Chapter Text
“I want to tell you everything,” Loid was careful with his words. “Everything that Yor and I have been working towards has been finalized. Its only fitting that I tell you the truth, now.” He was sitting at the edge of the couch unable to relax under the gaze of his grandfather. ”But,” finally looking up to meet his gaze. “I think it is best for both Yor and I to tell you together, and introduce Anya to you properly.”
Chairman Forger was amazed at his grandson’s response. In the past, if he learned that Loid had lied to him about something, he knew he would crumble and admit to his faults right away. Today, though, the Loid in front of him was no longer that little boy; he has grown up. “All right,” the chairman stood up. “I expect the three of you to join me for dinner tomorrow night. And expect to stay the weekend.” Loid wanted to say something, but he didn’t have the chance to. “I want to be able to spend time with the new additions to our family. Is that all right?”
“Yes, sir.” Loid stood up.
“Very well. I will see you tomorrow, then.” The chairman had turned away to leave the office.
“Are you upset?” Loid couldn’t help but ask.
“I am.” The chairman turned back to look at his grandson. “As you know, that I know who those girls are and how important they are to you.” He sighed, “But I’m sure you had your reasons as to why you and Yor had to hide this from the world. I know I’ll understand more when we talk.”
“I’m sorry,” Loid’s voice was quiet, as if he reverted back to the days when he would be scolded by his grandfather while growing up.
“There is no reason to be,” the chairman was standing in front of Loid now. “Like I said, you two must’ve had your reasons.” He hugged his grandson and could feel the tension leave Loid’s body.
—
Originally scheduled to go on a business trip visit a new resort off the coast of Ostania, Yor was at home instead. The employees at the resort had mixed up her itinerary and were overbook for the week. Instead of going to work as normal, her supervisor had allowed her to take the days off instead. Now, Yor has found herself standing in her home humming to herself in the kitchen.
“Mama, what are you making?” Anya had walked in into the kitchen tugging on to Yor’s apron.
“I’m making lunch.” She smiled down at her daughter. “How does omurice sound?” An excited gasp has left the child’s mouth. “Ms. Holly has told me it was your favorite when they served it at the orphanage.” She quickly flipped the omelette onto a bed of fried rice that was sitting on the counter text to the stove. “I don’t know if it’ll taste as good as hers, though.”
“I know it’ll be better!” Anya said as she excitedly walked towards the dining table.
As Yor was about to sit down and join her daughter for lunch, the phone rang. “Hello, Forger residence.”
“Hey, Yor.” Loid on the other line.
“Loid!” She said with a smile.
“Are you busy right now?”
“I’m about to have lunch with Anya. Is everything all right?” There was a pause on the other line for a moment.
“What’s for lunch?”
“Omurice…”
“Mind making another plate? I’ll join you two.”
Rather than telling Yor their weekend plans over the phone, might as well have lunch with his family instead. He couldn’t resist Yor’s cooking as she kept improving since they started dating.
—
“Staying over at the Forger estate? The whole weekend?” Yor asked in surprise to what Loid had told her.
“Sleep over at great-grandpa Forger’s house!” Anya just kept getting good news as the day went on.
“It’s what he suggested. He wanted to spend more time with the new additions to the Forger family,” Loid looked towards Anya before shifting his gaze towards Yor. “I had already agreed.”
“Did he seem upset?”
“He did.” He looked down at his empty plate. “But he said he can understand why we decided to go the secret route.”
The couple had a guilty look on their faces, as the child next to Yor happily kept eating. They knew that they couldn’t keep it a secret any longer.
“All right,” Yor looked up from her plate. “Anya, we need to go shopping tomorrow.”
“What for?”
“We need to find something for Grandpa Forger. We can’t arrive empty handed, especially when we’re going to tell him that you’re his great-granddaughter now.”
—
The next day was still a work day for Loid, while his girls were at home preparing for their weekend stay at the grand Forger estate.
“Anya!’ Yor called from the kitchen as she looked at her watch. “We better head into town for our errands before it gets too busy.” In a few moments, the pink-haired girl ran out of her room.
“I’m ready!” The girl twirled in her new dress that her parents had bought her. “Are we going to buy more dresses today?”
“We can look at some!” Her mother answered. Since Anya had joined their family, Loid and Yor had to do lots of shopping to give her everything she didn't have. There were times where Yor had to stop Loid from going overboard. “Formally introducing yourself to Chairman Forger is a reason for a new dress, don’t you think?” She winked at her daughter. “Now lets go, we have a few places to stop at.”
It was only a short trolley ride to the department store. The goal of the shopping trip was to find a gift for the Chairman, but what do you buy the founder of the biggest airline company in the country?
“This is becoming a lot harder than I thought,” Yor said to herself as she was browsing the fine china section thinking maybe a lovely wine decanter would be a fitting gift. “If only the WISE Department store was open by now, I’d probably have an easier time with this.”
“Found something you like?,” a salesperson had come up from behind.
“Oh, just trying to figure out a gift for a family member.” Yor said nervously.
“Do you have an idea for something they might like?”
“Hardly,” Yor admitted. “He already has everything he possibly want or could want.” Her eyes went back towards the shelves she was looking at previously.
With some quick thinking, the salesperson had led Yor and Anya to the drink-ware section. “Is this person a drinker? How about a wine decanter?” The woman held up a glass decanter from the display shelf. “Even if you do not like the standard shape, we carry an array of styles.” Yor had taken her time browsing the selection of decanters. The chairman does love his reds, its all he drinks during dinner, she said to herself. She also loved how the u-shaped decanted looked as it could blend well with the house. After asking Anya which glass she thought was the prettiest was when she made the purchase.
“Well, since we got the chairman his gift, would you like to get something to eat before we head home?” Yor asked her daughter as they left the register. As she waited for her daughter’s answer, someone had called out to her.
“Yor?” A familiar voice had approached her. “Oh, it is you!”
“Melinda? What are you doing here?” Yor quickly turned towards her friend.
“Just some shopping, I felt in the mood to do so.” Melinda looked around Yor, taking in the scene in front of her. “And spending time with my son. I’ve introduced you to Damian before, right? Damian, say hello to Yor.”
“Hello, Ms. Yor.” Damian stepped out from behind his mother.
“We have met before,” Yor looked down at the boy. “Hello, Damian. It’s been a while hasn’t it.”
“It has,” the boy answered, but his attention was towards something else. More like someone else. He kept looking behind Yor.
“Oh!” Yor quickly placed a hand on Anya’s back. “I’m here shopping with Anya. Anya would you like to say hello?”
“Hello Mrs. Desmond. Hi Damian.”
To Melinda’s surprise, she knew that the little girl seemed familiar. “Are you the Anya who my son talks about all the time? And why he kept asking to go with me during my volunteer shifts at the orphanage?”
“Mom!” The boy tried to stop her from embarrassing him.
“So it is her!” She giggled, but not for long as a realization had hit her. “Why is she with you, Yor?”
Unprepared for this question, Yor began to search for a question. As much as she wanted to tell her friend what has happened within the past few months, she couldn’t. The couple promised each other that they will reveal all when the time is right. She had to say something quickly before Melinda could sense any suspicion.
“Ms. Yor is taking me out on an outing,” said Anya; as if with the intention of saving Yor from a potential awkward situation.
“Oh?” Melinda was surprised by this answer as she looked at the girl before looking back at her friend. “The orphanage allows that?”
“Not really,” Yor laughed nervously. “I had went to the orphanage earlier today to help out, as it is my day off today. As I was about to leave, Ms. Holly noticed that Anya was sad that I was about to leave, and suggested I take her out for a bit.” Although not an entire lie, as this has happened in the past. To others, it may seem odd to spend time with an orphan outside of an orphanage without the intent of adopting them.
“That’s nice of them isn’t it?” Melinda had shifted her attention back to Anya. “Do you like spending time with Yor?” The girl nodded excitedly as she said yes. “If you like her that much, you should tell her to adopt you.” Melinda winked as she whispered the latter. “Damian has told me all about how you take up all of Yor’s attention when she’s there.” She laughed as a past conversation had come to mind. After a bit more of conversation, Melinda and Damian had to say goodbye as Melinda had a Lady Patriot Society event to attend to.
“Mama, how come you didn’t tell her that your my mama now?,” asked Anya as she sipped her juice on the trolley ride back home.
“Because we have to tell someone else first.”
“How come, who is it?” The girl asked another question as she was swinging her legs.
“Because papa and I promised great-grandpa Forger to tell him the truth about our family.” Yor let out a heavy sigh. There was guilt from lying to Melinda, but it had to be done. There was guilt from hiding the truth from Chairman Forger, but it had to be done as well. Other matters took priority in the couple’s lives, and they needed to attend to those matters before the opportunity was lost.
“Are we going to be in trouble?” The girl looked up at her mother with bright green eyes.
“Of course not,” Yor wiped juice splashes from the girl’s cheeks. “That’s why we’re going to stay the great-grandpa’s house this weekend.”
–
The day has come for the Forgers to tell Chairman Forger what they have been up to the last few months. In a near repeat of their last visit, Loid was becoming a nervous wreck as he stepped out of his car.
“Loid, there is nothing to worry about this time,” said Yor as she helped their daughter out of the car. “From what you’ve told me, he didn’t seem upset that we hid a few things from him.” Along with Anya, she came around to the trunk of the car to meet her husband. “He did invite us to stay here tonight.”
“But still,” Loid pulled out two overnight bags. “I know he didn’t seem upset, but who knows what he’s really thinking about all of this.” He turned to look at his wife, “I know he must be disappointed in me. Going behind is back and all; getting eloped and adopting Anya.” The weight of worry and guilty that was in his heart could be seen in his eyes. Instinctively, Yor grabbed his hands.
“You did say that after we explain it all, he would understand why we made our decisions. I mean, you didn’t tell him that we were dating till several months later, and that was because you couldn’t contain how happy you are since we started dating.” She did her best to stop the laugh that was hiding behind her smile. “It’s not like you never kept something from him before that involved our relationship.”
A smile had finally cracked through the nervous look Loid had on since he came home from work, The smile quickly faded, as a few thoughts made connections. “I’m sorry for hiding you and our relationship from him. I just-”
“I know,” she held his face in her hands. “With your public figure status and the scandal of those women, you did all of that to protect me and what we are building together.” She gave him a quick kiss, “You shouldn’t have to apologize for protecting me in a way you thought would be the best for us.” Loid wanted to say more, but a familiar face was approaching them.
“Are these all of your bags, Young Master Forger,” Simon had arrived to greet them.
“Yes, Simon.” Loid had turned towards the butler. “But I could bring them in.”
“No need to, sir. The chairman had instructed me to bring them to your rooms.”
“Rooms?” Loid thought they would be staying in his old room. It was certainly big enough for the three of them he would just request to bring in an extra bed for Anya, if needed.
“Yes, rooms,” said Simon. “The chairman thinks that the newest members of the family shouldn’t have to stay in your childhood bedroom, and that Ms. Anya would like to have her own room here, even for a few nights.” The couple looked at each other with slight shock, they weren’t expected this level of treatment, but sometimes you wouldn’t know what the chairman had in mind. “When you are ready, the chairman will be waiting for you in the main living room.”
–
During their last visit to the Forger estate, the chairman had brought Anya to play at the old swing set he had built for Loid with his late son. While spending time with the girl, he decided to ask a few questions to get some information that his grandson was hiding from him. He couldn’t ask the girl point-blank why she is here with Loid and Yor. An orphanage wouldn’t allow a child to leave for an outing, nevertheless an overnight stay without the intention of being adopted. Anya’s body language, when he first saw her had given him signs that there was something more to their relationship. He had to be careful with his phrasing, Anya is still a young child after all.
“What did you do today?” The chairman asked as he watched Anya climb onto a swing seat.
“I played with Mr. Loid and Ms. Yor at the orphanage today,” Anya had answered as she began to kick her feet to begin swinging.
“Do you like playing with them?”
“I do!” she looked at the chairman with a smile. “They aren’t like the other adults who played with me.”
“What do you mean?” the chairman sat on the empty swing next to her.
“Sometimes they come to the orphanage to help Ms. Holly, but they always make sure to play with me. When I got lost, I was able to find mama at her work. I wasn’t sad anymore when I found her. She called papa and told him all about it.” She began to gain momentum in her swinging, but the chairman could hear her story clearly. “They wanted to bring me back right away, but I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to be away from mama and papa. Then later, papa said I could have dinner with them before going back to the orphanage. Oh and on children’s day! That’s my favorite day!”
“Why was it your favorite?”
“Because it was the first time I got the spend the whole day with mama and papa together. It felt like they really were my parents.” Her swing was beginning to slow down. “I remember wishing that that day would never end. That they wouldn’t have to leave me anymore.”
The chairman listened to more stories of her days with Loid and Yor. He noticed how happy she was when she mentioned their adventures, and how sad she was every time they had to leave her behind. “Anya, how come you keep referring to Loid and Yor as mama and papa?”
Anya stopped kicking her feet and waiting for her swing to settle next to the chairman. He had noticed the change in her demeanor and though thought that this questing might be too much for her. A subject change needed to happen soon.
“Because I wished for them to be my mama and papa. I wanted them to adopt me since I’ve met them.”
“Do you love them?”
“I do!” Anya turned her head quickly towards the chairman. “I really really do! Thats why I wished for them to adopt me. I wished for them to be my mama and papa. No one else, only them.”
“Do you want your wish to come true?”
“I do great-grandpa Forger, and it did!” Her smiled was so bright. “And it did! I’m Loid and Yor’ daughter now. And I made sure that they became my parents.”
“And how did you manage to do that?”
“When other adults wanted to adopt me, I never wanted to go with them. They were nice to me too, but they aren’t Mr. Loid and Ms. Yor. I knew they were going to be my mama and papa one day.”
–
Dinner at the Forger estate went well. Anya and the chairman seemed to have created a relationship since their last visit. Their conversation had filled in the gaps of silence during dinner.
After dinner, the chairman had asked Anya to play in her room as he wanted to talk to Loid and Yor alone. The child obeyed, and followed a staff member to her room during their stay.
“Tell me everything from the beginning,” the chairman leaned back in his chair. Although he knew one thing through Anya, he needed to hear it from them.
Taking in a deep breath and holding onto his wife’s hand for support, Loid was ready to talk. “Three months ago, Yor and I kept talking about wanting to adopt Anya.” his grip on his wife had tightened as he could feel his heartbeat rise as he felt the pulse in his ears. “We’ve both experience the heartache of having to leave Anya behind; together and on separate occasions.”
“I hate to admit this, but it wasn’t until after the welcome event for the department store did i realize that our time with Anya could be limited. She could've been adopted by anyone at any time.. “ Yor spoke. “I couldn’t let that happened.”
“And I agreed with her,” Loid jumped back into the conversation. “Children’s Day had changed my view on what a family was. I know that you raised me well after mom and dad died, but I also knew that I didn’t have family unit the other kids did, and because of that, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to provide that for a child. But after spending a whole day with Yor and Anya, it became clear that I’m able to do it.”
“And wanting to adopt Anya led to your decision to get married?” The chairman asked, a bit stunned by their initial reason for the adoption.
“Yes.” It was Yor who answered, “We’ve been told by Mrs. Johnson that married couples tend to have a higher chance of adoption approval and completion.”
“But don’t worry grandfather,” Loid stepped in. “This isn’t a contract marriage, marriage for convenience, or a marriage for show.” He turned to look at his wife. “I truly loved this woman. With the conversation about Anya, what we both wanted in our lives also came up. In the moment, we thought it was best to get married now and work towards Anya’s adoption.” With more confidence in his eyes, he turned to look back at his grandfather. “I know it may have seemed to be a spur of the moment decision, but how I went about it was right. I confessed my love to her and proposed with all my heart. I vowed to love her and Anya until the end. We wanted everything to be finalized before telling anyone, especially you.” His gaze never faltered. “I knew that if I had told you, you would do anything in your power to help us, but we wanted to do this ourselves. I’m sorry if you felt hurt, grandfather, but it was never our intention to do so. We just wanted to bring Anya home as soon as possible.”
“She’s our little girl, and nobody else’s.” Yor added as the final piece of their case to the chairman.
A bit stunned by everything that was said, the chairman took some time to relax back into his chair. He could tell that the couple was waiting for the words that will come out of his mouth.
“Anya has already told me that you are her mama and papa.” The couple responded with shocked wide eyes. “I already had my suspicion when you three walked in the last time you were here. Anya was clinging onto the both of you as she did during Children’s Day. I knew that if I asked you two, you wouldn’t say anything right away.” Loid looked away due to guilt. “So I asked her. I asked her if she has fun with you two and if she loved you two. She told me that she did and that she wished for the two of you to become her parents the day she met you.” Tears began to blur Yor’s vision as she fought back them back. “She also told me that she did what she could to make sure only you two adopted her.” The chairman chuckled causing the tension in the living room ease. Then, he stood up, causing the couple to follow his actions.
The chairman had approached his grandson first, “Despite me initially not agreeing with your decisions, I’m sure your parents will be proud of what you’ve done; as I am. You found a wonderful girl, married her, and gave a lovely child a home. Although not a traditional way, but you’ve created a family that is perfect for you.”
“Thank you,” Loid whispered as the weight of it all had finally lifted off from his shoulders.
After hugging his grandson, he then turned to Yor. “I guess its time to welcome you to the family, right Yor?”
“Yes, chairman. I’m honored.”
“No need for that type of formality now, we are family; grandfather is just fine.” He smiled at her, to which she reciprocated. “If only Loid’s mother could see you, I just know that you two would get along.” With his heartfelt comment, he had decided to switch gears. “Well, let me see how my grandson did.”
“Excuse me?”
“The ring? He proposed to you right? Let’s see the ring.” Following instructions, Yor held up her left hand. The engagement ring she was wearing was familiar to him. “Is that?”
“Yes,” Loid answered. “Its mom’s engagement ring. I knew she had left it for me, and I left it here, fearing I would misplace it in my own home. The day we talked about me taking over as chairman, was the day I brought the ring with me. I should have told you.”
“You didn’t need my permission for that.”
“I know, but it was dad who bought the ring for mom… I know it’s mom’s ring, but its Yor’s now. It looked just as lovely as it did on her.”
“As it does,” the chairman agreed. “I’m sure your mother would want her to have it too.”
“I’m very honored to be wearing it.” Yor also agreed as she admired the princess cut diamond. “It’s a beautiful ring.”
Conversation has now shifted to the process of their elopement and adoption, until a pink-haired girl came running into the living room being followed by a few of the house staff.
“Great-grandpa Forger! Great-grandpa Forger!” Anya was running with a bag marshmallows in hand. “Miss Kim said that I can have s’mores and asked me to ask if you, mama and papa wants some. Oh- I mean, Mr. Loid and Ms. Yor.” The adults laughed at her words. “What’s so funny?”
“We don’t need to keep the secret anymore, sweet pea.” Loid walked over to Anya. “Grandfather knows everything now. How mama and papa are married, and..” He cleared his throat and positioned Anya to face his grandfather. “Grandfather, I would like you to meet our daughter, your great-granddaughter, Anya Forger.”
“Hello, I’m Anya Forger,” she bowed to the elderly man, as if it was rehearsed numerous times. “I’m mama and papa’s daughter!” Anya then looked towards her parents, “I don’t have to keep the secret anymore!?”
“Not anymore,” Yor joined her husband and daughter. “But someone told me that you already told him our secret.”
“Who did that?!” Anya’s question was exaggerated and dramatic causing the adults to laugh more.
“Enough chitter-chatter,” the chairman spoke up. “Let’s head outside to build a fire.”
“What for?” Anya asked.
“You want s’mores right? What better way than to have them over an open fire under the stars? Thats the right way to have them.”
“I wanna help! Papa, can I help?” The girl’s eyes looked up full of pleading, how can Loid say no?”
“You can, but just be careful.”
“Okie! Great-grandpa, wait for me!”
Husband and wife watched their daughter run after her great-grandfather towards the sliding doors that lead to the backyard.
“Is this everything you wanted?” Yor asked as she wrapped and arm around his and held his hand; leading them to the backyard.
“Why such a sudden question?” He chuckled.
“Well, when we met; I never painted you as a man who wanted a family, house with white-picket fence. But now, you were fighting everyone to make sure you got it.”
“Let’s just say two important people in my life showed me what I truly wanted, especially after everything that has happened to me.” He turned to look at her. “And what about you? The independent city-hall worker.”
“I can say the same reason as you.” She giggled, “but I also had the need to protect someone since my brother. I also never want to say goodbye to you and Anya. I want to wake up seeing your faces every day.”
“I can promise that will happen.” He pulled her into an embrace, “We have a family to protect now, together.”
—
Before meeting Yor, Loid never thought that finding love or having a family was important, especially all that had happened with Karen and Fiona. Who knew that meeting the right person would change his perspective about it. A man who was purely business and focused on protecting his family’s business, now vowed to protect the family he has built with the love of his life. He took that second chance at love and happiness that was presented to him in a form of a luggage tag.