Mr. President: You Are The Daddy Of My Triplets - Chapter 321

Chapter 321: 321- One Year Back

Ethan and Geena were watching Rafael doing planks near the footpath.

“Was he always that much pain in the ass?” Ethan muttered but Geena didn’t answer him. Rafael didn’t come out of the car when they were making calls or were having coffee.

And just when they thought to continue the journey, Rafael decided that he needed some fresh air.

He had coffee, even tried a cigarette, and then started trying his workout moves. The people who were nearby, especially girls started observing him with interest.

“And I’m thinking how gently he was behaving with those two girls,” Geena said in a low whisper.

She walked to Rafael and tapped on his shoulder, “Rafael. We need to get going. Don’t you want to meet your family?”

When Rafael didn’t utter a word during his plank hold, Geena thought he wouldn’t speak. She was about to straighten her back when he said, “I don’t have any family,” he switched his plank position to a side plank one, “You are my family, Giana.”

Ethan who was standing right behind her, spoke near her ear, “He needs a mental check-up. Memory loss doesn’t mean he accepts any x.y.z to be his family. Why does he think, you are his sister?”

With a sigh, Geena got up and looked around, “I don’t know what to do. Everyone must be waiting at the palace. Sophia will get in trouble if we don’t reach there.”

Ethan watched Rafael carefully and then turned to Geena, “Do you have his family pictures in the phone?”

Biting her lip, Geena took it out of her pants packet, “I think I clicked some at the event. Need to browse my gallery.”

She grabbed a nearby plastic chair to sit on and opened the gallery. Going back to the one-year-old pictures wasn’t an easy task but Ethan was right.

Those pictures might convince Rafael to start moving.

At last, when she reached that bunch of photos, she quickly started scrolling and got up lazily from her seat.

“Rafael!” she was again crouched near him, “See,” She thrust the phone near his face, “Do you know who they are?”

“Alex!” he didn’t even look at the picture. Geena’s heart jumped in her chest. She thought he was talking about his son but then he quickly clarified, “My name. It’s Alex. Not Rafael!”

“Good God!” Ethan groaned behind her and walked away to the car. Geena had to deal with him patiently.

“Look at this picture, Rafael… I mean… Alex,” Rafael at last took pity on her and his eyes turned into thin slits.

Three kids were standing on the stage, about the same age. Two girls and one boy.

“I don’t know these girls…” he shrugged, and then placed his finger on the boy’s face, “This is me. That’s my childhood picture.”

“Ok!” Geena scrolled through her selfies which were mostly with Ethan. There was a picture of Valerie.

She quickly showed him the screen, “See! Know her?” she tried to bring excitement into her voice.

He kept looking at it and then made a pout, “No!” he said with a shrug, “She is pretty though.”

Geena nodded, and her finger again started gliding on the phone screen. There was a picture of Marissa with a big grin on her face.

The good thing about the picture was, that Rafael was standing beside her in it.

“Look at this one!” She let Rafael hold her phone. His body seemed to go rigid when his eyes landed on it.

“Who is she?” he asked in a whisper and his finger started trailing on her face, “Sh… she is… so… beautiful?”

His voice was painfully low. Geena could see the agony in his eyes.

“Sh…she is your wife, Rafael,” she told him, trying to control her tears.

“My… my wife?” he confirmed placing his finger on his chest, “H-How can I be so lucky, Giana?”

Geena shrugged and offered him, her hand, “Right now… she is waiting for you, sweetheart.”

Rafael swallowed hard before peeling his eyes off the phone screen.

“Really?”

Geena nodded, “Umm hmm.”

A slow grin made its way onto his face. This was the first genuine smile she saw on his face. He might not have remembered Marissa, but his heart had recognized her.

Without any further argument, he held her hand and got up.

“Let’s go and meet my wife, Giana,” he happily took the passenger seat. Geena hit her hand on the roof of the car to get Ethan’s attention who was busy on the phone call.

By raising his finger, he asked her silently to wait and mouthed one word, “Dean!”

***

“Believe me, Dean. I’m going back for good,” Akari was standing in her living room with all her stuff packed in cartons.

A small suitcase was ready for the airport. Dean couldn’t believe it. She was leaving him just because he was friends with Marissa.

“She is a good woman,” Akari said while placing a packed box on the kitchen counter that had cutlery, “You are equally good.”

“Akari,” he came to her, “Don’t do this to us,” he pleaded.

“I didn’t want to… but the way you left me…”

“Oh, God!” Dean threw his arms in the air, “Can you listen to what I’m trying to say here? Stop posing yourself as a victim. She needed me. Her six-year-old girl was admitted to the hospital.”

Akari kept standing there with that stubborn look.

“Fine!” Dean smiled helplessly, “If it has to be like this then I’m OK with it.”

“You rejected the best job offers for her!” she said haughtily, he rushed towards her and held her wrist tightly.

“And I’m willing to do it a thousand times, Akari!” he shoved her a little and left the apartment. The relationships where you need to explain yourself every minute are best if left behind.

He didn’t want this kind of stress in his life.

He was coming out of the elevator when he got a call from a number that wasn’t saved in his contact list.

“Hello?” he asked cautiously.

“Dean? I’m Ethan. Can you reach Marissa Palace? She might need extra hands for support,”

“Sorry. Ethan? What do you mean? What kind of support?”

“A drama is soon expected to take place there. Be there for your friend, please.”

Dean looked at the phone as if Ethan had gone crazy. Was Marissa OK?

He thought to call her but then decided to go there directly. If Marissa needed him then he had to be there for her.

***

“Ah! Yeah. I agree. A fu*cker through and through,” Valerie said with a sly smile, “By the way, what did you two think?” her eyes darted between Marissa and Nina, “You will throw me out like last time? Well!” She shrugged and sat down in style on the couch as if she owned it, “This time I won’t let this happen.”

The smile on her face suddenly vanished and the mean look was back on her face.

Marissa had started getting headaches.

She pressed her temples with her fingers to get some relief. Sophie needed some serious talking. As friends, they never did such things without each other’s consent.

They always respected each other’s boundaries. Then what went wrong?

“Let’s go to my room,” she tightened her hold on Sophie’s arm, “we need to talk before Geena arrives.”

“Great!” Nina folded her arms on her chest, “leaving me with this witch, you two are going to your room to talk? I’m not staying here even for a single minute.”

Before Sophie could stop her, Nina picked up her purse and was out of the living room, “Nina!” Marissa called her but Nina didn’t even bother to look back and instead showed her, her middle finger.

“Sophie!” Marissa eyed her friend, “What is this all about?”

“Yeah!” Valerie got up, “I’m also interested to know! This isn’t the will-reading ceremony. Right? Ethan lied.”

The intercom started ringing, and Sophie was quick to receive it, “Yes. Please send them in.”

She placed back the receiver, and Marissa saw a look of panic on her face, “They are here!” she was looking at Joseph.

Joseph came to stand near Marissa and circled his arm around her waist, “Always remember. We are here for you. I guess, this was your undying love for him that he survived all this and came back.”

Who came back? Who had Sophie invited here?

The doors opened and Geena came inside along with Ethan. Marissa had almost ended the contact with her after that Nina episode.

Right now, they both looked tired. Behind them, a man also stepped inside who seemed to be all muscular.

Marissa already had enough on her plate. Her eyes stayed on Geena. She wasn’t interested to know who was accompanying her, “What mess have you stirred up now, Geena?”

Valerie who turned around to ask Ethan about the will reading ceremony gasped in horror.

“N… No… this is some kind of sick joke. How is it possible?”

Marissa frowned and wanted to roll her eyes, “Same old dramatic Valerie!”

“Beautiful!” a painfully familiar voice reached her ears that came from the mouth of the man who was standing behind Geena.

Marissa raised her eyes and found him looking at her with those green eyes… Those familiar green eyes…

And that familiar face…

And … not a familiar body… he was all muscular with long hair…

“Wh…what… Oh… God!” Marissa could feel the grip tightening around her waist. This must be Joseph.

Thankfully he was holding her when she fainted in that living room, right where she fainted, one year back when she received Rafael’s death news.