Damien, A Father?

Trinity opened her eyes. She turned onto her back and stretched, then slowly sat up. She looked around in a daze. The green and blue sky was gradually lit up with the rising sun.

"How odd… It's not even 12 hours but I'm feeling so well rested." She mumbled.

She shrugged and walked to the attached bathroom to wash up. She then stood in the walk in wardrobe, debating with herself over what she should wear to school. Finally, she decided on her usual clothes. /I may not have a double like Damien but I doubt anyone will think to link me to his wife./

She packed her bag but stopped at the closed door. /I don’t have a job to go to anymore./

She stood there for a while before making her way to the chair on the balcony. She took out a thick and wrinkled book from her bag and started to read with a highlighter and pencil in one hand.

When the sky was brightly lit, she closed her book. She looked out the balcony in a good mood. The peace and quiet here was really conducive for studying. There were some birds chirping but it was not too loud or too noisy. The sound of waves crashing was calming. Seeing how the beach was still deserted, she wondered if this was a private beach.

Just as she packed her book back into her bag, the door opened.

“Trinity? You’re finally awake!” Phil exclaimed in a soft voice.

“Finally?” She echoed.

“Yeah. You collapsed out of stress and exhaustion. Your immunity dropped and you were completely out cold. You should take better care of yourself from now on.” Phil advised while walking to her.

Before she could get a word out, Phil continued. “Here. Your medicine.”

However, Trinity took her handphone instead. “I slept for a full day?!”

“Ya. You were out cold. Like I said.” Phil confirmed and gestured for her to take her medicine from him.

“Oh, sorry, thank you.” She said as she took her medicine and glass of water from him.

“You’re not planning on wearing that out, are you?”

Trinity followed his gaze to the clothes she was wearing. “No one would think to link me to the wife of Damien Wu. I don’t think there would be a problem.”

“How do you plan to get to school?”

“Bus? Train?”

“... To enter this property, you need to be in a private vehicle. Public transport isn't allowed beyond the gates.”

“I’ll walk to the nearest bus stop then.”

“That’d take you 30 minutes.”

“What?”

“Mr Wu values privacy. A lot. So this mansion is really far in.”

Trinity no longer knew what to say.

“You don’t know who could be waiting beyond the gates. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“But I can’t possibly turn up all well dressed in school so suddenly.”

“Why not?”

“It’s too sudden!”

“I’m sure people get makeovers often. Moreover, you were absent for two days. You can come up with some excuse, can’t you?”

Just then, it dawned on her that she studied the wrong materials for the day. “Ugh… I wasted my time…”

Phil frowned a little. “It didn’t take you long to change into this, did it?”

“No, no, I’m talking about something else. Anyway, I understand now. I’ll change…”

Phil smiled. “Thank you.” He walked ahead of her and helped to pick out some outfits.

Trinity chose the simplest one.

“I’ll prepare your meal.”

“You don’t-“ However, Phil already left the room before she could complete her sentence. “Have. To.” She sighed. Although this is like her dream come true, it happened too suddenly, so she was really not used to being served like this.

Trinity made her way to the dining room. Along the way, she studied the photographs on display along the walls. There were solo and group shots. Mostly with family. Not a single one had Damien in it. The boy in the pictures looked flawless. It was as if he got blessed by both his mother’s and father’s good looks. The older he grew, the less outstanding he looked, though.

Once she reached the dining table, she commented while sitting down. “It’s no wonder no one doubted that you’re Damien.”

“Hm?”

“You’re both so meticulous. All these pictures of you and his family situated at strategic places. You were such a handsome and pretty baby!”

“Oh.”

“Thank you for the food.” She said before digging into the scallop congee. “Mmmm!” She let out a soft happy moan as she savoured the first spoon. Her toes curled and her body tensed. She happily took another scoop, then another. If there was something she could get used to fast, it was getting good food to eat.

Phil, however, did not notice. After Trinity took a few more spoonfuls, he suddenly spoke. “Only the adult ones are me. Everything else is actually, really, Mr Wu himself.”

“What?” Trinity’s hand froze. Her lips apart in a frozen half-smile. It slowly dropped, though. “What… Happened?” She asked in a soft voice.

There was a long pause. Trinity waited. “That’s his story to tell.” Phil ended up saying.

“... Where’s Damien?”

“He’s still asleep.”

“Does he usually sleep till this late?”

Phil shook his head. “He does not have a fixed schedule. It depends on his plans from day to day.”

“I see…” Trinity ate a few more mouthfuls. “Phil, you like Damien, don’t you?”

“Huh?”

“You’re different around him.” She explained for his benefit.

Phil blushed a deep red. “I-“ Phil looked down at the floor. “He’s like a father or brother to me.”

“Father? How exactly did you two meet?”

Another silence dragged out.

“Erm, if you’re not comfortable with telling me, it’s okay.”

She was about to resume her meal when Phil spoke, “... I’m an orphan.”

Again, she froze. /Whaaaat?! So is Damien really like his benefactor or something? What’s all this TV worthy drama?/

“I was the weakest and the smallest, but I looked the best. So, I was favoured by the adults but picked on by my peers. Any friends I had were only friends with me to mooch off what I got from the adults. It was a hell hole. Mr Wu brought me out of it. He gave me a second chance at life. Taught me things. Taught me how to get my revenge. Now, no one would dare to bully me anymore.” A heartfelt smile lit up Phil’s face. “Although we are close in age, he was like a father I never had.”

“He passed on his sadistic traits to you to toughen you up, didn’t he?”

Phil’s head shot up, intending to defend Damien. However, the words got caught in his throat when he saw her teasing expression. Somehow, he felt that she understood.

“I’m glad for you.” She said.

Phil’s guard dropped.

“How old ARE you actually?”

“25.” He answered with a blank expression.

“And Damien?”

“28.”

“Hm. A 5 years gap between us, huh. I don’t have to fake my age or something, do I?”

Phil shook his head. “If you needed to, he would have said it during your briefing.”

“Okay.” Trinity finished what was left of her congee. “Thank you, again, for the food. And thank you for telling me about yourself.” She said with a kind and warm smile.

Phil’s response lagged. “No problem.” He awkwardly said before leaving with the dishes.

He soon returned to lead her to the van. The drive to her university was silent. Phil was even more disconcerted that Trinity seemed to know that he needed some silence to process what just happened. His goosebumps only left after she exited the van.