Rudy and Rebecca waited for a few minutes for Elena to arrive.
It was rare for Elena to ever be late, so Rudy was surprised and curious at the same time, wondering what could have made Elena late.
However, all his queries were answered as soon as Elena arrived in her luxury car. She wasn't driving the car, a girl was.
Rudy and Rebecca hopped into the rear seat while Elena stayed seated in the passenger's seat.
"Did you wait long?" she asked.
"Yes."
"Heh. You are supposed to say no there."
"What's up with all this…" He pointed his gaze at the driver.
"Oh, don't worry. She won't be joining us."
Rudy leaned back on the seat and looked outside the window.
'She said she has something important to tell me. I wonder what that is. What could be important to her? I hope it's not about breaking up. I know she loves me, but she might be wanting to break up for Eric and Erika's sake.
If that's her reason, I can't stop her. She has a valid reason. If that happens, I will tell Eric and Erika everything about me and Elena. And I will let them decide if they would want to see me as their father.
Damn, just thinking about it makes me cringe. But there is no way I am letting Elena leave me. Let's see if that's what Elena wants to talk about. There is no point in assuming things.
Turns out I was wrong all along and she has a totally different thing to say. But I just can't keep my mind still. It always wants to think about something and make up scenarios. I truly hate that.'
Rudy looked at his fingertips and wondered, 'If they spread more, they will be visible. I can currently hide them by avoiding showing my finger tips to anyone.'
He looked up at the sky and saw how the clouds were hiding the stars behind them.
'Well… I could wear gloves or something to avoid it, but this won't stop at my hands. It will keep spreading until my entire body turns into a shadow. I have no idea how long it will take that to happen. I don't even know what spreads this corruption.'
Time passed with ease, and they reached the next city. Rudy was still unaware of where they were going and what the date was about.
It was night, so going somewhere was out of the question. The only place they could visit was a theater or restaurant. Sure, there were other places they could go, but Rudy didn't consider them as ideal spots.
The car stopped in front of an apartment, and the driver got out.
"...?" Rudy was confused and looked at Elena, wondering if they were supposed to get out of the car too.
"I will see you tomorrow, boss," the girl said to Elena and closed the car's door.
Elena glanced at Rudy and asked, "Can you drive a car?"
"Of course I can."
"Where to, though?"
"I have inserted the location on the GPS."
Rudy hopped into the passenger's seat and drove the car.
He couldn't resist the urge to ask, "Who was the girl?"
"My secretary."
"You keep your secretary as a driver?"
"Yes."
"Wow. Do you pay her double?"
"Nope. Her only paycheck is from the work of a secretary."
"I am confused."
"After her office hours ends, she has to take a bus or a train, and then a taxi to get to her apartment. I suggested that she could wait for me and I can drop her off every day."
She shrugged and continued, "Sometimes, she drives the car, sometimes, I do it."
"I see."
"Hey, when did you learn to drive?" Rebecca asked Rudy.
"Eric taught me."
"Oh!" Rebecca and Elena gasped.
Rudy shot a glance at Elena and said, "I know what you are going to say. And I don't want to hear it. Keep it to yourself."
"Aww, don't be like that. I found it rather cute that your son taught you how to drive."
"I told you I didn't want to hear it." Rudy's face twitched in anger.
"I am sure Rebecca was thinking the same thing. Am I right, Rebecca?"
"Well… yes…"
"This is why milfs are annoying sometimes…" he mumbled.
After driving for twenty minutes, they reached a vintage restaurant.
"Isn't this place…" Rudy muttered.
"Do you remember it?" Elena inquired with a wide smile on her face.
"Yeah."
"I am happy to hear that."
"Is this how the rest of the night is going to be? I don't want to feel like the third wheel."
"Don't feel like that. I am the one who invited you, so I have no problems with it."
"But I do. No girl would like to see her lover getting intimate with another woman… you know it."
"I thought you were used to it since childhood."
'They were so quiet in the car. I almost thought they were going to behave and everything will be fine. But as soon as we got out of the car…'
"I will park the car. You two wait inside."
Rudy went to the parking lot while Elena and Rebecca made their way towards the restaurant.
"What were you two talking about earlier?" Rebecca asked calmly.
"Oh, it's nothing. Rudy used to bring me to this restaurant back in 1989 to 1990. This place holds a sentimental value for us."
As soon as Elena stepped inside the restaurant and the man at the reception saw her, he quickly grabbed the telephone and called someone.
"Sadly, this place was closed down after a few years. I was very sad. But after I became successful, I bought it and now it has become a franchise. I wasn't looking for anything in return when I bought this place, but it has given me so much in return."
"..." Rebecca shook her head at Elena and asked, "Is there a place that you haven't bought yet?"
"Your house."
"Piss off!" She hissed.
They made their way to the reserved table and waited for Rudy to arrive.
