Presently…
"So, you mean Damien had memory loss of the incident, and none of you know what really happened?" Aiden asked.
"Yes… he never opened up to anyone. And he's told us never to call him Charlton since then," Mrs. Kate replied.
"But why?"
"I noticed that whenever we do, he gets a headache—and sometimes ends up in the hospital…" she whispered.
"Let me tell you a little secret…" she leaned closer.
"What is it?" he whispered back.
"Hey! You don't have to whisper back," she scolded playfully.
"Oh… then why are you whispering? We're the only ones in the room," he chuckled.
"Err… yeah, true," she laughed dryly, and Aiden burst into laughter.
"You really are in the mood to gossip," he said with a grin.
"Err… yeah. He's suffered from sleepless nights ever since then," she confided.
"Really? And how do you know?" he asked, surprised.
"Well… I've come across him almost every night, drinking alone until midnight—or sometimes even morning," she said, clapping her hands softly.
"OMG, that's so weird," Aiden sighed.
"Yeah, I guess that's why he sometimes works late… or to relieve stress."
"Relieve stress?"
"Yeah… never mind," she waved it off.
"But that's terrible… did he ever tell anyone what happened, or did he just pretend not to remember?" Aiden asked.
"No… I don't think so," she shook her head.
"Come to think of it… how did you owe him your life?" he asked curiously.
"Hmm, you're really curious, eh? After the incident, we were all dismissed. Things became hard for me; I couldn't feed my child. My husband left me for another woman because I didn't have time for my family. Soon after, Damien left for Japan. When he came back to Monaco, he had fully recovered and entered business. He took us all in, even sponsoring our children to one of the most prestigious boarding schools. My son only comes home during holidays."
"Woah… that's pretty cool. I wonder if he'll be okay after everything that happened. So that's why he has a different name from the other siblings," Aiden smiled.
"Exactly," Mrs. Kate replied, folding the last piece of cloth and helping him zip the bag.
"Hmm… thanks for spending time with me. You really made my day," Aiden said graciously.
"You're welcome, dear. I have to go now. Sir Damien asked me to supervise the catering services at the hotel," she said.
"The event is at a hotel? I thought it was at the mansion," Aiden mumbled.
"No, he insisted it would be at one of his hotels here. Besides, he doesn't like his private things being messed with," she explained.
"I see… then let me leave you to it," he said as she patted him and left the room.
---
Aiden continued with his thoughts aloud.
"If I knew I was getting into something messy, I wouldn't have even bothered coming here… nah, I never really agreed anyway. It's not like I'm gay; I'm straight as Tokyo Tower," he mumbled.
"Where's my phone?" he muttered, searching until he found it in his wardrobe.
"Someone texted me… I wonder who this is," he said. At first, he thought it might be Justine, but it was an unknown number:
"HEY, IT'S ME, FROM LAST TIME… HOPING TO SEE YOU THIS EVENING"
Immediately, Aiden knew it was the guy from that night. He decided not to reply.
---
Not long after, a maid brought in a tuxedo and matching shoes. Just looking at them screamed luxury.
"It's for who, please?" he asked, unsure if it was his.
"I was instructed to deliver it to you, sir… from Master Damien," she said, bowing immediately before leaving.
Aiden stared at the tuxedo and shoes, then called Damien to confirm.
"Hello… I just wanted to let you know there was a wrong delivery," he said.
"Wrong delivery?"
"Yeah… a pair of designer shoes and a tuxedo."
"Oh, that's for you, to get ready for the party," Damien replied.
"Thank you, but I'm not really a fan of suits. I'll tell the maid to return them," Aiden said.
"Aiden… don't worry. I'll get you what you want," Damien assured. "When it's 5 p.m., my driver will come to pick you up so we can get you new ones."
"Nah, I have plenty of clothes here. I can wear one of them," Aiden replied.
"Get ready. No more talks," Damien said firmly, ending the call. Aiden noted the firmness in his voice—he just wanted to waste money on clothes.
After the call, Aiden showered and threw himself on the bed for a nap. That's when Justine called.
"Dude, how are you?"
"I'm pretty good," Aiden replied.
"Hope you're enjoying your stay… you missed a lot. Rumors in school say you were on your honeymoon with Damien," Justine chuckled.
"Ehhhhh!" Aiden exclaimed, blushing and shaking his head.
---