Chapter Text
The more time Nadi spent with Elise and her family the more he understood where she got her strong will and drive. Standing around the kitchen bar in her sister’s apartment with a glass of wine in her hand, Nadi watched her planning and analyzing her next move. Her cheeks were warm and flushed as her sharp eyes followed her sister, Abigail, and Gray while they discussed the next day’s court proceedings.
“How could they possibly allow that vile monster onto that witness stand?” Abigail seethed, her defined blond curls bouncing around her porcelain face. Gray pinched the bridge of his nose as she did, shaking his head with an exasperated look. “They have no evidence against us! The prosecution is grasping for straws trying to find anything to make us look like homicidal wealth grabbing ingrates!”
Elise swirled her glass, watching the smooth red wine spin before taking a quiet sip. Her sister’s apartment was just as Nadi had imagined, sleek and modern with a crown mould ceiling and white walls. Vibrant abstract art hung throughout the room accenting the black furniture and granite countertops. The Montgomery family spared no expense when it came to interior design, not that it surprised him much.
“Abigail, deep breaths, okay?” Gray said, waving his hands toward the ground, “Take it down a few notches. We’re going to be fine. He’s going to get up there, and he’s going to unravel their whole case,” Gray, ever the voice of reason, said as he pointed at Nadi.
Elise rolled her eyes and shook her head as she turned toward Raeger, who who was sitting one of the barstool chairs nearby. She leaned into him, placing a hand on his shoulder and whispered something into his ear and causing him to laugh unexpectedly. His eyes lit up as he covered his mouth, stifling another chuckle. Elise, with a smug look on her face, stood up straight and continued watching her sister and future brother-in-law.
Nadi wondered when the two had gotten so close.
“Struggling to figure out what you should be doing?” Fritz asked Nadi suddenly, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. The redhead smirked, placing a hand on the gardener’s shoulder, “Yeah, me too. I don’t care much for partying these days, or casual drinking. But, Elise … her family drinks like fish.”
Nadi held back a laugh — if only he knew what it was like the few weeks Nadi spent at the Montgomery estate! Elise’s mother was barely sober, preferring to spend her time sipping martinis outside while bossing her middle child around like a servant. And, while her father was barely present at the time, Arnold seemed to favor whisky on the rocks to water.
“It’s a lifestyle that I might’ve once understood when I was younger,” Nadi mused, remembering the times he spent goofing off and drinking until sunrise with Johnny, his friend and former college roommate. “Some of us grow out of it.”
Fritz nodded his head, cracking open a can of beer before offering it to the gardener. Nadi took it from his hands, feeling the tension in his shoulders loosen as the cool liquid hit his lips. It was clear, to Nadi at least, that everyone needed to blow off some steam. Not knowing what would happen the next day wasn’t helping anyone, and the fact that there was so much on the line … that the three of them could theoretically get thrown into prison based on false accusations from Elise and Abigail’s deranged mother and brother … Nadi banished the thought, closing his eyes and gulping.
And, in addition to that, Minori threw herself into the line of fire when she tried to protect her friends from the pool of vicious reporters circling the Montgomery family as soon as they walked out of the courthouse. Now, her parents were surly on their way to collect the young woman who had fled an arranged marriage so many years ago.
Nadi’s head spun — the lies and deception; the twists and turns — it was enough to make any sensible person walk away. His best friend, the man he spent countless nights with, almost married a girl. A girl who ran away and started a farm. A girl who Nadi met outside crying in the snow. A girl he didn’t quite understand, but who he found comfort in.
Fritz and Nadi turned away from the commotion Elise and her family were stirring, attempting to block out the hushed arguments between Abigail and Gray about their courtroom strategy. Should Nadi take the stand or not? Would they risk Elise running her mouth off at the prosecution? There were so many decisions to make, ones that they thought they had down, but were shot to pieces the moment Victor stepped into the courtroom.
Fritz sighed, running a gloved hand through his messy auburn locks. “Man, when is this all going to be over with?” The farmer asked, pulling out his own beer and cracking it open. “I just … I want it to all go back to normal.”
Nadi smirked, his ruby eyes glinting in the soft lighting of the downtown apartment. “What does normal even mean these days?” He retorted, almost genuinely curious. His life had never been quite the same since meeting Elise and her family, and though he’d hate to admit it, he’d miss the bunch of dramatic fools he’d come to befriend in Oak Tree Town.
Frtiz took a swig. “Cheers, I’ll drink to that,” he said, holding back a belch.
…
Minori gripped the railing of Abigail’s balcony, feeling the city breeze tussle her mousy brown hair. Years spent away from the bustling city life left her feeling out of place in her country garments, but she admitted she missed seeing the twinkling street lamps and whirring cars. She closed her eyes, feeling Johnny’s presence at her side as he leaned against the railing, taking a drag off a cigarette.
“Do you ever think about the consequences of your actions,” he asked, his voice raspy and strained. He flicked his cigarette, watching the embers fade as they floated away. “I’m serious, Minori, do you ever think about anyone other than yourself?”
Minori tensed; his words were like a punch in the stomach. Ever since she was a child she knew she was selfish. How could she not? It was there in everything she did. She was engaged to Johnny because it was convenient for her to do so. She left for art school against her parents wishes, and then she dropped out at the first sign of failure. The lies she told to her friends made the truth easier to swallow for her, because it was easier for her to pretend that she was someone else.
Of course she knew.
She was always looking out for herself all along.
“I always thought by this time in my life I’d have everything figured out,” she said, running a slim hand along the railing. “But I still don’t have a clue.”
Johnny shook his head, folding an arm across his stomach as he took another drag. “You need to get it together,” he said, looking away. Minori clutched her chest, leaning further over the edge. “There are so many people who care about you,” he said, voice barely above a whisper.
The people walking down the city streets looked like ants from above, and Minori could almost imagine what life would have been like if she had never even left. She’d be married, to Johnny, of course, and they’d probably have a kid, or two, or, perhaps, three. They would go to all her favorite cafés and she would order her favorite coffee. Sometimes they’d catch a matinee before dinner, then they would have a home-cooked meal and some wine.
But that was then, and she knew she could never return to that life. It wasn’t her; it never was, although she so desperately wanted it to be. She could never assimilate into the high-society life that her parents involved themselves in, with the glamorous cocktail dresses and elaborate parties. They were new money, not old; rich off of her father’s corruption. Though feared, they weren’t well respected.
There was too much pressure. Always too much pressure.
Minori thought about slow dancing with Nadi, how his hair glowed like silver in the moonlit forest. He was kinder than he looked, and softer than he sounded. When he smiled she felt her heart flutter with excitement, and for a second she let herself pretend the moment would last forever. In the morning they had pancakes with maple sweet syrup and laughed when Fritz showed up at her door soaking wet. It was simple, yet unpredictable. Sweet and tender, the kind of intimacy she craved and never had.
“I used to think it would have been easier if I had just died,” she said, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. If she closed her eyes she could hear the city streets, the cars hoking and people talking. The sounds of a busy city felt so familiar and foreign at the same time.
Johnny snapped his head toward her, eyes wide with fear.
She imagined what life would have been like if she never left, and she could imagine what life would have been like if she never lost her memories, but that was the choice she made and now she had to face the consequences of her actions. But, damn, it felt good to try to forget it all.
“Or, at least it did. At some point. Do you know how I know that? I wrote it in my diary. I don’t remember how I got to that point, or what I was thinking exactly,” she said, pausing to catch her breath, feeling hot and sticky in the evening air.
“Now, I’m not so sure,” she murmured. “There are so many reasons to live … I can’t lose any more time.”
Johnny turned around so he was facing the balcony railing and leaned forward. His boyish features hardened over the years, Minori noticed. She supposed that was partially her fault, but they were both so naive when they were younger. A wannabe starving artist and a boy looking for love in his childhood best friend. Their life of privilege was lost on them. Maybe growing up was what they needed.
“The surgery will begin the day after the trial,” He snuffed out his cigarette on the railing, turning to leave. “It’s time to grow up.”
Johnny reached for the sliding glass door only to come face to face with Nadi just as it opened. The doctor took a slight step back and raised a brow, “Ah, I was just coming back in,” Johnny said, stepping to the side as the gardener slipped thought he door awkwardly.
“And I was just getting some fresh air,” Nadi replied, glancing between the two friends. Johnny furrowed his brow for a split second before cracking a grin and patting his friend on the shoulder,
“I think I need another drink, my friend,” he said just before dropping his hand and stepping back into the apartment, his grin quickly fading. He clutched at his chest briefly as a dull ache settled in. “May need more than one,” Johnny muttered under his breath, shaking his head and rejoining the group.
Nadi watched his friend make his way inside from behind the glass door, wondering if he would be okay. It was only a split second, but the pain in Johnny’s eyes wasn’t lost on him.
It had been a full day since he spent the night with Minori, and the pressure he was feeling to keep it a secret was building. Johnny had to know. Didn’t he? Fritz knew, and if there was one thing for certain, the redhead could hardly keep a secret. If Johnny didn’t know by the end of the night, Nadi would be surprised.
“Come to catch your breath? Or perhaps you’re here to scold me like everyone else in this damn apartment,” Minori asked, not even bothering to turn around. Nadi looked around before spotting a carton of cigarettes on a small glass table that Johnny had most likely left. He picked the carton up and was lighting one of his own before he knew it.
Minori’s ears perked when she heard the flint of the lighter, “I always hated that habit,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Johnny only picked it up when he left for college. It was one of many, I guess.”
Nadi took a drag, almost instantly regretting it. How long had it been since his last cigarette? “At some point you graduate and the habits you picked up in college just become … habits,” he said, exhaling a puff of mint flavored smoke. Menthols. They were never as good as they sounded. “I guess some things don’t change.”
Minori scoffed, shaking her head, “Where does the time go?” She wondered, gripping the railing. “I just keep getting older and saying the same things: This year I’ll do better. This year I’ll change. But I don’t. I still lie and I still hurt people.” Minori turned, motioning toward the carton before holding out her hand. Nadi placed the box into her palm, “I never liked these,” she said, placing a cigarette between her lips as she leaned forward.
Nadi cupped his hand around the tip, lighting the cigarette for her. “I guess at some point you have to grow up,” he said, tucking his hand back into his pocket.
“Harsh.”
Nadi paused, watching her carefully. There was something different about her — her mannerisms, the bitterness in her voice — it was as if she were a completely different Minori from the one he found drunk and swimming in the goddess pond. But then again, maybe it was. This Minori was decidedly more … sober.
“You’re staring, you know,” she said, taking a drag.
“That’s supposed to be my catchphrase,” He said dryly.
Minori cocked her head to the side, “Come again?”
To which Nadi shrugged his shoulders. “Never mind,” he replied.
Minori turned, facing the railing once again. She let her cigarette burn, watching the embers break and float away. “I don’t think I like the person I turned out to be,” Minori said before flicking the cigarette and taking another drag. She grimaced, fighting back a cough as the familiar burn settled in her lungs.
Nadi leaned against the railing, watching her carefully. “Most people are probably surprised by where life takes them,” he said. “You don’t like the person you turned out to be, but if you weren’t you, then none of us probably would be friends right now.”
Minori scoffed, shaking her head. “Don’t start,” she warned, rolling her eyes. “Everyone’s path would have crossed eventually.”
Nadi raised a brow, “Isn’t it true that Elise was only visiting her parents to seek financial assistance to help you?” He asked, waiting for her to nod her head. “If she hadn’t been on that train, if she hadn’t gone to her parent’s house, there’s no way in hell we would have met.”
“Okay, but you know Johnny,” she said. “You would have come to Oak Tree Town eventually.”
Nadi sighed, “When? He only came to Oak Tree Town at Marian’s request to help you,” he said. “But, regardless, look at Elise and Raeger now. Didn’t you say they hated each other’s guts?”
Minori, “Ah, classic enemy’s to lovers. They would have been brought together eventually.”
“You’re being intentionally obtuse.”
“Intentionally obtuse?” Minori’s voice cracked, holding back an incredulous laugh. “What, are you a lawyer now, too?”
“Don’t you get it,” Nadi asked, sighing with exasperation. Without thinking he grabbed her hand, “All the decisions you made brought me to you.”
Minori blinked, taken aback. She glanced down, feeling her face grow hot. Nadi coughed, quickly dropping her hand. “I-I mean …” He started to speak, tongue tied. Minori smirked; she couldn’t help but feel a little amused with the gardener’s sudden embarrassment brought on by his equally sudden forwardness. Her heart fluttered — It had been awhile since a man had made her knees feel so weak.
“Perhaps it was divine intervention after all,” Minori said dryly, taking a step back and turning toward the balcony once again. She tucked a strand of hair behind her head with her free hand, flicking her cigarette with her other. Clearing her throat, she nodded toward the sliding apartment door, “When I wake up and inevitably don’t remember this conversation and the intense embarrassment you just put me through, remind me.”
Nadi raised a brow, “The intense embarrassment I put you through?” He asked, shaking his head. It seemed the farmer would never get his true feelings through her thick skull, but that was a battle for another day. A battle of what, he wasn’t sure. Acknowledgment? Friendship? The gardener cared for her, that much was clear. He’s never been much of a wordsmith, even in his college days when it was expected of young men to woo young women with charming words and flirtatious looks. It wasn’t his style.
So, it wasn’t much of a surprise that the feelings he was trying to convey — whatever those feelings were — didn’t come across quite how he anticipated. Too strong? Not strong enough? He wondered. How does one clearly state: I have feelings for you, maybe, probably, most likely, but you are my best friend’s ex fiancé. If you feel the same, let me know, if not, I’ll just go quietly die of embarrassment.
Cool. Subtle.
Nadi internally rolled his eyes.
Minori laughed, tossing her head back as she put out her cigarette on the iron railing. “C’mon, they’re probably wondering what we’re doing out here anyways,” she said, opening the door of the apartment. Nadi followed closely behind, face still flushed.
...
Gray ran a hand through his hair, somehow looking even more stressed than before Minori stepped outside. He paced the room, crossing and uncrossing his arms, “Elise I —“ he started to say before cutting himself off abruptly, pinching the bridge of his nose. Abigail, sitting in the armchair directly across from the fireplace, put her head in her hands.
Minori gently closed the sliding screen door behind her, raising a brow as Nadi lingered at her side.
“Are you being serious right now?” Abigail asked, a quiet burning anger behind her tone. “Let me get this straight. Victor, our brother, who is pressing charges against the two of you for attempted murder, broke into your house?” She seethed, nearly knocking over her glass coffee table as she abruptly stood up.
“And you said nothing to us about this? You didn’t think this was, I don’t know, something we could have used in court?”Abigail asked, waving her hands wildly around. “Are you out of your mind?”
Elise rolled her eyes, “Oh, don’t be so dramatic, Abigail. What, its not every day your beloved older brother tries to kidnap and murder you?” She asked sarcastically. “What the hell was I supposed to do?”
Nadi exchanged a worried glance with Raeger from across the room. The chef placed a hand on the back of his neck, “Let’s take it easy —”
“Not drug him with sleeping pills and send him on his merry way, that’s for damn sure,” Gray interjected, shaking his head. “Elise, honestly, what were you thinking? Abigail and I are bending over backwards to get you and Nadi out of this mess. Do you like making things harder than they should have been? We could have used this information to build a case against him as a crazy vindictive older brother trying to take over the family estate.”
“It was a dangerous situation in which none of us were thinking straight,” Raeger said.
“Don’t even get me started with you,” Abigail growled, stamping her foot. “You are supposed to be the level headed one. I mean, do they put something in the drinking water that makes you all stupid or what?”
“What are they talking about?” Minori quietly asked Fritz, who was standing off to her left near the kitchen counter. The redhead covered the side of his mouth,
“Victor broke into the mansion a few weeks ago,” he whispered back.
“There’s no use arguing about it now,” Johnny said from the kitchen, taking a sip of beer. “What’s done is done. I mean, you can’t really bring that evidence into the courtroom. Can you?”
Gray inhaled deeply as though to center himself. “I mean, we could certainly try to introduce the evidence, but Victor’s lawyers would fight it tooth and nail this late in the game,” he said. “But, perhaps we could use this knowledge during the cross examination?”
“He’s going to take the stand again in the morning, right?” Abigail asked, turning toward Gray. The lawyer nodded,
“Yes, and then we will hear from Nadi and then Elise,” he said. “It’s getting late. We should all probably go get some rest before tomorrow.”
Elise looked up at her future brother-in-law, opening her mouth to say something, but was cut off. “Don’t. Let’s just go to bed and reconvene in the morning,” Gray said, sighing as he walked down the hall toward the bedrooms. Abigail followed closely behind,
“Guest rooms are to the right,” She said quietly. “There’s always a couch, or the floor, if needed.”
The two disappeared, leaving the Oak Tree Town crew in stunned silence. Minori crossed her arms, “Elise, why didn’t you tell me this had happened? I could have helped you. Goddess knows I would do anything for you; you’re my best friend.”
Elise rolled her eyes, “I’m going to bed. I don’t need to hear another lecture — not from you lot, anyways,” she said, heading toward the bedroom hall. “Minori, you can bunk with me. The rest of you … I guess figure out how you want to divvy up the bed or whatever. Just … get some sleep. We’re going to need it.”