Chapter 34: Ivy Ophal Ai Lee

"What am I doing here?

Wasting all my time

I can't stand the pain.

I am sick of this life

But here I am, still here

Dangling and hoping

That somebody could come and save me."

Ivy sat by the balcony listening to the lyrics of the song entitled My Savior by an underground band The Lucid Easter serenading her which was literally speaking out her thoughts. However, all she could do was tirelessly study and cram her history notes in mind in preparation for her exams next week as a distraction.

It's been four days since Jason left and yet he didn't give her a call or reply to her text messages at all. She was beginning to doubt herself thinking Jason's previous acts were genuine but instead it was really just an act to ward off Nancy. "I must have thought too highly of myself… How could somebody so old fall for you… Dumb Ivy!" She scolded herself as she angrily wiped away the tears welling on her eyes.

Fortunately, the two guppies swimming in the aquarium bowl in front of her was a great distraction. "Enjoy these companies while you can Ivy… Just a few more weeks. Hang in there Ivy…" She encouraged herself to stay strong knowing in less than ten weeks, she would then need to adapt to a new environment.

As she sipped her warm lemon tea which she ensured to make it extra sour, the soft gentle breeze was slowly drifting her to sleep with Lucky in her embrace.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself back in a stone path as she twirled around walking out of a foggy area to find her grandma's cottage standing out from afar. She inhaled the fragrance of irises wafting from the purple field while she continued to walk on the stone path.

It reminded Ivy of her first time visiting her paracosm. It was always the same view. She finally got her wish answered as she could tell from afar a crooked figure was her grandma as she ran all she could to reach out to her for an embrace.

"Grandmaaaa!" Ivy cried when she reached her as she quickly pulled her in to hug her with all her might. She ignored her cries getting louder into a wail as when she was with her grandma, she could let herself be vulnerable. Her grandma could only stand silently letting her weep while she herself wept with Ivy. Phoenix watched from afar as he approached them.

"Oh, grandmaaaa… I miss you… I miss you soooo much!" Ivy managed to say out loud in between her choking sobs as grandma slowly let go of her embrace and rubbed her back to calm her down.

"Ai Lee… Oh dear, how have you suffered… Grandma is so sorry…" Grandma said as she wiped away Ivy's tears from her wet cheeks.

"Grandmaaaa… Don't leave me again…" Ivy wailed with her eyes closed as she pulled her in for another tight hug. Phoenix who was close by was heartbroken at how sad Ivy was as he gently patted Ivy's head to comfort her. Ivy knew it was her twin as she held her hand out to hold his hand.

"It's alright… Cry all you want Ivy… You have been strong for too long…" Phoenix echoed as Ivy wept even more that she could no longer stand on her feet and fell on to the ground with grandma in tow. Phoenix spread out his wings to keep them both in his embrace as grandma sat weeping together with Ivy. In the background, Phoenix let his harp start playing a soothing soft melody he played before for Ivy which eventually calmed her down.

The sight of the rain on Jason's hotel room window panel was adding more moodiness to his already haywire self as he continued to drown in guilt for the past few nights after being busy at work, visiting sites and understanding the operations during day time with Ivy's father or brothers. He had been contemplating on telling the truth the next day since on the business side, everything seemed to be in order and he was going to head back to Landsfield.

His heart had been longing for Ivy every single day being apart from her as he decided to finally give her a video call to check on her. It took him a lot of guts to press the call button and waited for her to pick up.

While Ivy was in her grandma's embrace on the ground, she could feel a strong vibration occasionally on the ground which had enough force to shake them three apart. Ivy was holding on tight to her grandma not wanting to be split away by a force she felt from behind as she wailed her lungs out flying the opposite direction of her grandma and Phoenix. Ivy ended up waking up to the heavy downpour of the rain outside the balcony greeting her.

She tried to calm herself down as she noticed her wet cheeks and realised she must have cried in her sleep. Lucky was whining at her as she comforted him to not worry about her. A sudden vibration from her phone rang again as she saw five miss calls from Jason.

A call she had waited for many days which she thought would have thrilled her but only to upset her even further. She tried to ensure she kept herself composed before answering the video call as she quickly dried her wet cheeks with tissues.

"Hey…" Ivy greeted as she flipped her hair to her left shoulder. Jason instantly studied her face.

"You're alright?" Jason asked as he noticed she seemed to have just cried. He could feel the urge to take the next flight home just to be by her side.

"Yes I am… I fell asleep while studying… A little groggy…" She tilted her head to the side and scratched her head not knowing how to react to him being too observant.

Jason knew she just woke from a nightmare but she didn't want to tell him the truth. He decided not to pry either although he felt a little disappointed but instead he decided to distract her.

"You sure it wasn't because you miss me?" Jason teased as he watched the corner of her lips curved up in a shy smile while she looked away.

"Of course not… who is so free to miss you? Besides, I have Lucky accompanying me…" She showed the phone camera towards Lucky's direction as Lucky barked at him.

"See he doesn't miss you too…" Ivy put a tongue out while Jason laughed at her. He was glad despite being this far, he was able to still cheer her up.

"Oh by the way, I have a party to attend tomorrow night with Andrew and Sandra… Don't worry I will still feed Lucky for you!" Ivy cheered while hugging Lucky as Jason nodded.

"Enjoy!" He said briefly while contemplating if he should let her know if he was coming back the next day but instead decided to leave it as a surprise as just in case his discussion went wrong with Peter tomorrow and cause a delay, he didn't want to disappoint Ivy.

"Alright, since you will have to party tomorrow, sleep early. You need a lot of energy for it and don't stay too late. Call a taxi if you're too drunk to drive home or bunk in a hotel with Sandra and Andrew…Safety first…" Jason was initially wanting to give her some advice but ended up sounding like he was nagging as Ivy comically imitated him nagging which made him laugh.

"Goodnight…" Ivy said as he smiled. "I will only hang up when I see you in bed… Go…" Jason instructed as she obediently obliged with Lucky in tow. As she tucked herself in the blanket and put his view of her face lit by the table lamp, he couldn't help but to smile at the sight.

"Sweet dreams Ivy…" Ivy smiled and nodded before hanging up.

Ivy felt a little better after the call but when the thoughts of her missing her grandma and her leaving Jason soon came back to haunt her mind, she couldn't help but let loneliness take over her as she stared out at the window watching the rain while sobbing with Lucky in bed.

Jason on the other hand was more confident of his plans the next day as he tucked himself to sleep only to find himself wide awake the entire night thinking about his plans. Instead of continuing tossing in bed and thinking too much when he caught a glimpse of sunrise on the horizon from his window panel, he dragged himself out of bed and got himself ready to meet Peter.

Peter was in the midst of discussion with his staff when he caught a glimpse of Jason standing at his doorway from the glass door. He quickly wrapped up with his staff and signaled for Jason to enter.

"What a pleasant surprise to see you here this early, Jason?" Peter greeted as he took off his glasses and pointed for Jason to sit on the couch in front of his desk. Jason nodded primly with a solemn face. Judging from his look, Peter could tell something important Jason was about to tell him.

"What's the serious matter which brings you here? It must be urgent?" Peter prompted as Jason took a deep breath.

"Peter, after hearing me out, regardless of any agreements we made previously, I hope you would place priority on your daughter at all times." Jason said as Peter instantly smiled.

"You have news about Ai Lee!" Peter asked excitedly as Jason nodded. However, Peter knew there was something wrong for Jason to act this way.

"Tell me… Go ahead, what's going on?" Peter urged.

Jason took up his mobile phone and opened a video of Ivy's debate to show Peter instead. Peter watched the video captivatingly as he instantly recognised it was his long lost beloved daughter. He was touched by how brilliant her performance was in debating as he couldn't help but to get a little emotional.

Jason passed him some tissues as he came to the end of the video. "Where is she? Is she still living in Manes?" Peter asked with his voice cracking in between.

"Her full name is Ivy Ophal Ai Lee. Ivy has always been staying in Manes with her grandma till her grandma passed away recently. She is in Manes college pursuing her college foundation and will be graduating within a few months after her finals." Jason explained.

"Is her mother staying with her?" Peter asked worriedly about her daughter's welfare.

Jason shook his head. "Apparently, ever since her mother left, since she was a toddler, she had never seen her mother again…" Jason said solemnly as he studied Peter who was deep in thought.

"Since infant to be exact… The lady in the picture is my second wife. Ai Lee probably did not have many memories of her biological mother…" Peter explained but it didn't mean anything to Jason as his mind was focused on his next issue.

"At the same time, she also is on internship with…" Jason paused for a moment as Peter looked at him curiously.

"With who?" Peter pestered.

"With Rahi's consulting…" Peter was a little surprised at first but he tried to keep himself composed as he thought to himself, things were not as simple as he thought.

"Jason…" Peter wanted to question further but Jason interrupted.

"I can explain… When I first met Ivy, it was the beginning of the year and I didn't know she was your daughter. It was close to the time where you sent me a picture of your family when she was young. I happened to see the same family picture at her grandma's house when I visited her to persuade her to join Rahi's consulting for her internship as I saw that she was a capable lady. I sincerely wanted to train her. In the middle when she was still making her decision and I discovered her identity, I must admit I have also lured her into my company in the hope of using her as a pawn to get your cooperation in the merger. However…" Jason paused for a moment to keep his emotions in control.

"However, Ivy may be strong on the surface, but soon I learned she was trying to keep everything to herself and endured them from within. Because of that, she has sleep paralysis. I tried to convince her to seek medical help but so far she only went once to a psychologist who is a friend…" Peter cupped his face into his palm as Jason continued to explain.

"It only takes simple gestures and wonders to keep her happy. This young simple soul… I hope she will finally let all her worries and miseries haunting her go as I led you to her. Hence, I will only agree to our merger only if she agrees to it. I no longer want to take advantage of the friendship I had with her. I am willing to give up this opportunity for your daughter's happiness. For that, I owe you an apology, Mr. Ophal." Jason said as he stood to bow in front of Peter who was analysing his points.

At first glance on the matter, it did indeed made Peter angry at Jason's manipulation and delay in telling him the truth but the more he thought about it, the more he could understand his actions and wondered if Jason and Ivy might have grew close enough to the level of more than friends for Jason to be so willing to make the sacrificed. However, he decided to leave that matter to the both of them to resolve as what mattered to him most was that he finally found Ivy and would definitely pamper her for good.

"I understand… Take a seat Jason. You don't have to bow to me…" Peter held on to Jason's shoulders as he looked at Peter.

"I owe you an apology too for troubling you to do the impossible. It's all fated. My family and I will forever be grateful to you…" It was unexpected to Jason for Peter to be such understanding as Jason looked away guiltily.

"I'm sorry…" Jason apologised as Peter nodded in acknowledgement.

"I will prepare the contract and we will proceed as you have mentioned…" Peter said as Jason nodded in agreement. At the thought of Peter visiting Ivy, he was reminded of her midterm exams next week.

"Ivy is having her midterm exams next week. Perhaps the best time to visit her would be next Thursday; right after her last paper." Jason suggested which kept Peter caught himself in surprises.

"You're so well aware of her schedule… Tell me are you and Ai Lee in a relationship?" Peter couldn't help but to question.

"I tutor her for accounts which is her extra subject in college. And no, we are not in a relationship but…" Jason hesitated for a moment to tell the truth but he knew he shouldn't hide it if he wanted Peter's approval.

"Go slow… The young Ai Lee I knew wasn't shy but stubborn and loves to retaliate a lot." Peter chuckled as he mistaken Jason was admitting to liking his daughter.

"She is actually helping me out in a situation with my ex-girlfriend who had some psychological issues…" Peter paused for a moment at another surprise and paid attention to Jason as he continued to explain.

"My ex-girlfriend cheated on me with a mutual friend… I once made a promise to my ex-girlfriend's dying grandma to protect her granddaughter before she passed and before my ex-girlfriend cheated on me. Recently, we were caught in a situation and Ivy had to act as my fake girlfriend to protect my ex-girlfriend from harassing her. Rest assured, all is under control. The act should stop soon as Ivy would have decided on her next course of interest in studies which I don't want to block her way."

Peter nodded and smiled knowing his daughter had found a great mentor and hopefully her future partner as he patted Jason's shoulders.

"Young man, your job is done here. Head home and ensure my daughter graduates…" Peter smiled as Jason nodded with a smile as well. He was glad to have met Peter who was a very understanding person as he looked forward to their business venture but he knew he had to first sort out things with Ivy.

He quickly texted Marcel to help him discreetly ask the exact location of the party Ivy was attending from Andrew or Sandra knowing they would also be there. He knew Marcel would keep their personal records as Andrew and Sandra had helped out before in one of the roadshows. On the way to the airport, Jason couldn't wait to get home to see Ivy and pick her up from her party instead.