I'M HERE

In the hospital room, Giselle's father lay motionless, his face etched with pain. Machines beeped steadily, monitoring his fragile vital signs.

Kimberly sat beside him, her expression calm, but her eyes betrayed a hint of anxiety.

Jasmine fell asleep on Samuel's lap, exhausted from the emotional toll.

Samuel volunteered, "I'll take Jasmine home."

Kimberly nodded, her gaze never leaving Giselle's father.

"Thank you, Samuel."

As Samuel left, the silence grew thicker.

Kimberly's mask began to slip.

Her eyes narrowed, gaze fixed on Giselle's father.

A sinister smile crept onto her lips.

The machines beeped on, oblivious to the malice in the room.

Meanwhile, Samuel settled Jasmine into his car.

"I'll take care of her, don't worry," he reassured himself.

Giselle paced anxiously _in her living room when Samuel carried Jasmine inside.

"What's wrong?" Giselle asked urgently, noticing Jasmine's sleepiness.

Samuel hesitated, unsure how much to reveal.

"Giselle, I shouldn't be telling you this, but... dad collapsed again," he said finally.

Giselle's eyes widened in shock.

"After taking his medicine?" she asked, her voice trembling.

Samuel nodded.

Giselle's face contorted in anger and disappointment.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" she yelled.

"How could you keep this from me?"

Jasmine stirred, waking up from Samuel's shoulder.

"Giselle, calm down—"

"No! You should have told me!" Giselle interrupted.

Without another word, Giselle grabbed her keys and rushed out the door.

To the hospital.

Now.

Samuel and Jasmine exchanged worried glances.

"We should have told her," Samuel said regretfully.

Jasmine nodded, still groggy.

As Giselle sped to the hospital, her mind reeled.

Why did they keep this secret?

What else were they hiding?

The hospital loomed ahead.

Giselle's heart pounded.

She burst through the doors.

"Dad?" she called, rushing to his room.

Giselle burst into the hospital, her heart racing.

She turned a corner, and her eyes locked onto Kimberly.

Exiting her father's room.

Kimberly's expression changed from calm to guarded.

"How did you know we were here?" Kimberly asked.

Giselle's anger boiled over.

"You should have told me!" Giselle exclaimed.

"Even if you don't like me, you should respect me."

"What if something happened to Dad?"

Giselle's voice trembled.

Kimberly's mask slipped, revealing irritation.

"Calm down, Giselle," Kimberly said.

"You're not the only one panicking."

"You're not the only one with a father."

Giselle's eyes widened.

"How dare you?"

"You have no right to speak about my father."

"You're just a manipulative, controlling—"

"Stop, Giselle!" Kimberly interrupted.

"This isn't helping."

Giselle's fury paused, replaced by a chill.

"What's going on with Dad?"

Kimberly hesitated.

"Ask the doctor," she said curtly.

Giselle pushed past Kimberly.

Into her father's room.

Giselle pushed open the hospital room door, her heart racing.

As she saw her father lying in the bed, tears rolled down her cheeks.

She froze, unable to speak or move.

Her eyes locked onto his frail form, wired to machines beeping steadily.

Her father's eyes, once bright and full of life, now seemed sunken.

Giselle's tears fell harder, her chest heaving.

Suddenly, she felt a gentle touch on her hand.

She looked down, shocked.

Her father's eyes were open, gazing weakly at her.

A faint smile crossed his lips.

"Daddy?" Giselle whispered, her voice trembling.

"Hey, baby girl," he whispered back.

Giselle's tears flowed harder, relief washing over her.

She grasped his hand, holding tight.

"I'm here, Daddy," she said, her voice barely audible.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised.

Giselle nodded, smiling through tears.

They sat in silence, hands entwined.

The machines beeped softly.

In that moment, nothing else mattered.

Roderick and Julian exchanged a warm smile as they stepped into the mansion.

"It's good to be home," Roderick said.

Julian nodded.

"We've missed this place."

Jenkins took their luggage.

"Your father will be delighted to see you, masters."

As they followed Jenkins, the familiar creak of the wooden floorboards and the scent of old books enveloped them.

In the foyer, their mother, Elizabeth, rushed to hug them tightly.

"My boys are home!"

Their father, James, appeared from the study, a gentle smile on his face.

"Welcome back, sons."

The warmth and love in the air was palpable.

Roderick and Julian were home.

Where they belonged.

"Look how tall you've gotten" Their mother could not believe how her boys changed over the years.

"Oh. My boys are back" James approached

Julian smiled widely. His expression showed how happy he was to be back home.

Roderick was happy to see his pops, his other best friend. He had had a close relationship with his father. They were really glad to meet their father again.

Roderick's expression was different than usual. His face showed how glad he was to be back. The father hugged his boys now men.

"Where's grandpa?" Roderick was curious when he couldn't find his old man.

"He's waiting inside. Let's go inside and talk about how you've been. I missed you so much. Let's go" Lizi led her children to the massive living room.

Roderick felt different here. He felt at home for the first time. His mother words, rang through his head. He missed his family and wanted to tell them how he really felt.

"I missed home" Julian was one who couldn't hide his excitement.

"We plan on staying long" he broke the news and Lizi was very happy to hear that.

"Yes my boys, stay long. Move in if possible."

"You know we can't, mom. We have lots of work to do" Ricky said.

"Don't you miss your family at all?" Lizi felt sting in her heart.

"Its not like that, mom. I missed you and I want to stay with you as long as I can " he honestly said not wanting to hurt his mom. He has already done enough.

"What are talking about Ricky? Can't we work here?" Julian pushed.

"Sigh... Okay, we'll stay. I want to" Roderick smiled as soon as he's eyes met the graceful figure in front of him.

"Grandpa" the men called in unison.

"Oh, my. Look at you two. You've grown into a man now, huh?"

The family talked about many things over lunch and the young men were glad they came.

Ricky felt good being around his family again.

As for Julian, he kept talking and blabbing about how their lives were in London.

But didn't state that Roderick has insomnia.