CHAPTER 19 “One step back”
YUAN MENDEZ's POV
Ivy has been very busy these past few days even though she no longer manages Golden Dragons. Ever since Ivan came back, she was busy helping him around, whenever we have a date and when Ivan calls her, she always come running wherever he is. I get it! They rely on each other a lot. But I just hope she feels that I want to be with her a lot too.
I feel like I'm slowly losing her.
Sometimes when I visit Ivy at her office, I often see them talking to each other and I get jealous, I just couldn't help myself. They knew each other the longest meanwhile I just known Ivy just recently…
Ivy and I are going to have a dinner tonight and I'm waiting for her at the car in front of the HQ…
"Hi!!" she said as soon as she opened the car door.
She gave me a kiss on the cheek when she got into the car.
"How's work today?" I asked…
"The workload was manageable… how about in your office?"
"We just closed our deal with a huge conductor company in the US…"
"That's great!! Congrats!!" she said and gave me a kiss on the cheek while I was driving. I was taken aback…
While we were on our way someone texted Ivy then suddenly, she said;
"Han please turn around let's go back to the HQ…"
"Why? is there something wrong?"
"They said there was someone who entered the HQ started a fire at the company's canteen…"
"What?!" I immediately turned the car around…
When we arrived Ivy immediately went inside and I followed her to the security room
"Let's check the CCTV he could've been somewhere else apart from the Kitchen…" she said
As we watched the footage in each CCTV
"He went to the Data room and in my office…"
She immediately went outside and ran towards the data room…
"Byeol!!"
Ahhhh!! She shouldn't go alone what if the guy is still there?! I followed her but the 2 elevators were going up who could be on the other one?! I used the stairs to climb to the data room I looked around but she wasn't there…
She could have come to her office…
I ran towards her office but I saw Ivy on the ground just right outside her office being held by Ivan and keeping her calm, I didn't understand what was happening…
So, I went to them…
"What happened? What's happening to her?!" I asked because I saw Ivy being scared as hell and was crying…
"We have to remove those red ropes on her office quick!!"
"What red ropes?!" I opened the door of her office and saw red ropes all over the place
"What's this?!!" I uttered in low voice
"Yuan!! remove all of them now!!" Ivan commanded
I don't like that he tells me what to do while he holds Ivy on his arms…
"What are you waiting?!"
I just followed and removed all the red ropes on her office, put them in a black trash bag and commanded the security to burn them…
After a while Ivy calmed down and sat at the couch inside her office and I heard Ivan said something to Ivy…
"It's fine Yin, if she's here I won't let her come near you, I'll get you some hot choco…"
Ivan went to the pantry…
"Look after her, don't leave her alone, don't even take your eyes off her…" I said to the security team that was around
I followed Ivan to the pantry there's something I want to know…
"Ivan…"
"Yuan, you should've stayed with Ivy…"
"I told the guards not to let their eyes off Ivy… I came here because I want to ask you something…"
"What exactly happened to her?"
"You didn't know? I believe you met her that day…"
"What do you mean?"
"Ivy told me she met a boy when she escaped from her mother and that was you, I bet you noticed that day…"
"My memory from that day wasn't clear I just remember she was lost out in the woods and I was with her the whole time I just remember she was brave and wasn't talking much…"
"Hmmm… I thought you noticed, well what do you know you were just a kid lost in the woods too…" what does he mean?
"Can you just tell me what happened?!"
"Yin was kept in a house tied in a red rope, both hands and feet, she was trying very hard to escape so she tried hard to untangle them until she was bleeding, she had scars on her feet because of it."
So, she wasn't looking at her doll shoes when she looked down? I tried to remember that day again… Right!! she was wearing a long blue dress that day and it was quite dirty on the bottom but I didn't even bother to ask…
"But she no longer had scars on her feet now…"
"She got them removed a year after that incident, because she always dreamt about that day so her father thought when those scars were removed, she could completely forget the bad memories, but he was wrong… Her mother has already ruined Ivy inside…"
He paused and let out an absurd smile
"Doesn't she look so fine on the outside? Whenever she's with other people she never shows her weakness but deep inside she has scars and memories she couldn't forget."
"That's why I always played with her so she doesn't feel alone even though I hated playing some of the games she wanted to play but I didn't refuse because I just want to see her smile… Yin got better when we became teens but I had to leave her because I had to go abroad and study. After I left, I heard that her mother was back home, but I know she'd rather live without her, but her father was blinded with love and thought it would be best for their family to be one again, Ivy was always ignored by her mother."
How could a mother do that to her child? I thought I knew all of her story but she only told me just the tip of the berg, so this was what she meant that she's a complicated person and that I only know the floating part of the iceberg.
"When her father died, I came back to the country immediately and heard she was in a coma, I haven't told Yin about this so you should keep this to yourself. Her mother came immediately when she heard Mr. Lee passed and that Ivy was in a coma, but guess what?! she didn't come here for her daughter, she came here because she thought she'll be getting inheritance but everything was passed on to Ivy and nothing was left for her. She sneaked into the hospital where Ivy was admitted I was watching her that day, I just stepped outside for a moment to receive a call and came back and saw her sign a paper that she will pull the plug when I caught her doing that she immediately went outside, I tried to follow her but she was quickly gone."
So, if Ivan wasn't there, her mother could've pulled the plug and let her die?! Is that how much she wanted to get all the money? But what about her daughter?
"Ivy!!!" Ivan shockingly said
"d-did you hear what we talked about?"
"No need to hide it Yang… I knew all along…"
"What do you mean you knew all along?"
"After a year of the incident I had the records of my visitors when I got comatose and I found her name on the list…"
"Then why didn't you tell me that you knew?"
"I don't want to emphasize the fact that my own mom wanted me dead."
"I'm sorry I couldn't stay until you opened your eyes… I should've shown my face to you before I went back abroad" Ivan said
"It's fine, I knew you had obligations, saving my life from my wicked mother was more than enough, I haven't thanked you for that yet. Thank you, Yang for being there, you've always been my side since day one…"
While watching them, I could feel their deep relationship and love for each other, now I understand why Ivy went through all of that just to save Ivan. Should I take a step back to give way for them? Am I getting in between their relationship? I couldn't help but ask…
After all the fuss I took Ivy back to the Villa so she could rest.
"I'll come visit you tomorrow, don't worry about it much I'll send more security team at your office and here as well…"
"Thank you, Han…" she went straight upstairs and to her room…
When I went home, I just kept on thinking about what happened.
I thought I knew everything about her, I should've paid more attention. I feel bad that Ivan knows almost everything about her and I don't.
Then I received a text from Ivan asking me to meet him somewhere.
I went out and meet him at a bar just a few minutes from the subdivision I live…
"So why did you call me here?" I asked
"because I wanted to ask you… man to man…"
"ask me what?"
"Are you sure you're not going to leave her in the future?"
"Why are you asking me this?!"
"Just give me an answer…"
"I won't, unless she would ask me to…"
"Good!! because she'll be needing us more than ever…" he said
"I have something to ask too..." I said…
"Are you in love with her?" if not now when will I ever get a chance to clarify these things, right?
He smiled does that mean…
"Is that why you don't like it when I visit Yin?" he asked
"So, you knew…"
"Of course, I'm also a man and I get jealous…"
"So…" I uttered
"No, but I do love her like my own sister and I'll protect her from people who wants to hurt her, I want to be her brother she could rely on even though we're just the same age, still! I want to be someone she could rely on."
When I heard it right from him, now I feel like I'm talking to my girlfriend's brother because he sounded like one. I felt ashamed of myself from being jealous for nothing.
"So, don't think some weird things about us, because that's just how our relationship will always be… I admit I used to like her when we were young but I was more afraid of losing her if we went further than just friends so I gave up on that thought and just loved her as a sister in that way I could keep her forever and I didn't regret that decision because I know she needed a family more than a lover when we were young. I intend to keep her as a sister for as long as I live…"
I thought I would regret meeting him but I was glad I get to clear things up, now I don't have to take a step back, if I ever did that then I would have let Ivy hanging by the edge once again…
*Rrrrring *Rrrriiing I heard my phone ringing while I was driving so, I pick it up.
"Hello?"
"Sir Yuan!"
"Lady Min, what's wrong?"
"We've been knocking on Miss Ivy's door for 30 minutes now but she wasn't responding…"
"Maybe she's just in a deep sleep?" I said
"Miss Ivy has always wake up when we call her…"
My God I don't want to think about the negative things she might have done…
"I'm already at the gate… please get the keys of her door…"
I parked the car and run towards the house and climb upstairs to her room
"Sir Yuan here are the Keys" I immediately opened the door and when I looked around on her bed, she wasn't there so I look around her walk-in closet and found the bathroom door slightly open so I entered…
"My goodness Ivy!!!" I rushed towards the tub and saw a broken wine bottle on the floor
I saw her inside the tub submerged in the water wearing the same clothes she wore from yesterday, she was unconscious, I entered the tub to take her out of the water her body was cold.
"Goodness Ivy!!!" I went outside of the bathroom immediately
"What happened?!" Ivan was at the door
"I found her at the tub submerged in cold water"
He went to Ivy's bed and took out the comforter
"Wrap her with this let's take her to the hospital, I'll get my car…" he rushed outside…
"Ivy!!" I tried to wake her up…
We were on our way to the hospital and I just held her in my arms very tight…
"Get the stretcher!!!"
"Please lay her down…" the doctor said then they rushed Ivy to the ER…
"I found her on the tub filled with cold water and I think she drank wine, but I don't know if it will put her to sleep like this…"
"Yin has been prescribed with a strong sleeping pill, please check…" Ivan from the other side said…
"Okay, please wait outside…"
I walked back and forth in front of the ER while Ivan was standing still in front of the door…
"Excuse me are you both the guardians of Miss Ivy?"
"Yes doc"
"Miss Ivy suffered from hypothermia and according to her blood chem she overdosed her sleeping pills but it wasn't lethal enough, it just put her into a deep sleep…"
"Is she awake now?"
"Not yet the sleeping pills are still taking effect but we already administered a drug to reverse its effect she should be awake soon…"
"Can we see her now?"
"Of course."
"Thank you, Doc!"
We head to the room where she was transferred and saw her still sleeping…
"Has she ever done this before?" I asked
"Partly Yes"
"What do you mean?"
"Yin feels comforted whenever she's surrounded by water she told me it was like something embracing her and comforting her, it's like her weird habit or should I say a way of coping or a way to calm down… when her father convinced Yin's mom to comeback that's when Yin started going into the tub because she feels scared and worried that her mom's around and that she might hurt her again but since no one could comfort her and give her a warm hug, she does this instead. I wasn't there at that time either I was already abroad, I got to know this just a few months ago when we were catching up"
"She should have come out of the tub when the water was already cold…"
"Right?! But you know what? on the day that happened, her mother had put some pills on the drink she offered to Yin I guess she knew about this habit of hers… She was hospitalized that day, Hypothermia and overdosage of sleeping pills. Since then she never took a drink or food or either ate together with her mother."
"I didn't know about this…"
"You know it's difficult for a person to open up the past specially when the memories are painful enough to kill you…"
"Ohhh!! She's waking up!!"
"Ivy… do you need anything? Water?"
"yes please"
"okay I'll go get some" Ivan offered…
"Why did you do that?"
"She's back…"
"Who?"
"My mom, the red ties at the office, it's definitely her…"
"Then did she do this to you?!" I asked
"No, I… I was just trying to calm myself down and trying to get some sleep but I was just getting restless and I just lost it…"
She grabbed her head and closed her eyes…
"It's going to be fine Ivy…"