When Zaria and Theodore arrived home, he sat on the couch silently to contemplate the weirdness of what had happened earlier. How was it possible?

"Dad, what are you thinking about?" Zaria asked as she made herself comfortable after pouring herself a glass of cold water from the dispenser.

"Why would Jupiter agree to an interview?" He asked directly. "Not only did he agree, he was also the first one to seek us. It just doesn't make sense no matter how hard I think about it. Also, what does it have to do with you? Don't tell me…"

Zaria could fill in his unsaid words that were too terrifying to think about. That was Natalie's boyfriend, okay! To stop him from thinking too much, she briefly explained the man's reasons.

"He admires you."

"He what? I would never have expected that." It was the last thing that would have ever crossed his mind.

"Me either." She confessed. Not only did it make her proud of her dad, but it also made her admire her idol all the more. She had always been a little afraid that if she met him in real life, she would find out that he was no different from many celebrities, who appeared friendly on screens and interviews but were terribly arrogant and rude in real life, and acted like they owned the world and that everyone in it, including their fans, were nothing in their eyes.

Luckily, Jupiter was friendly and kind both on screen and in real life.

"Are you sleepy? I will continue working for a while." Theodore suggested for her to go to sleep first.

"I will watch a drama for a while before sleeping. Goodnight dad." She made her way to her bedroom to watch a Korean drama before going to bed. There was one whose episodes she had been watching before she got too busy. When she turned on the next one, she found that she had missed so many episodes that she couldn't even focus on the storyline anymore.

"What a bummer." She sighed and decided to make a cup of coffee for her dad.

When it was ready, she knocked on the door of his study and gently pushed the door open. She thought he was busy and was trying not to cause too much distraction but when she got in, she was puzzled when she saw him lost in deep thought with a frown on his face. Beside him was a packet of cigarettes which was opened but there wasn't any smell of tobacco in the air. He was probably fighting his urge to smoke.

"Dad, you look gloomy all of a sudden." She tapped the surface of the desk a few times to call for his attention. He jolted and gave her a blank look.

"Are you alright?" She asked as she grabbed the cigarette pack to throw it in the trash can along with his new lighter.

"All good." He forced a smile and took the coffee to sip from it while thanking her. "You're all grown up. You're even taking care of me now."

She smiled in return but couldn't comprehend what was going on. Shouldn't he be overjoyed now that things were falling into place? Why did it seem like he was distressed instead?

___

When she went back to her room, she pondered over it and finally understood what was going on. She lay on her stomach on the bed and made a call.

"Are you awake?" She asked when the call connected.

"Yes. Do you need something?" Desmond sounded like he was caught in between nervousness and anticipation, but it couldn't be helped. It wasn't every day that Zaria called him first, so he wondered what she had to say to him.

"Nothing I…" She paused to try and guess whether or not he was busy, and continued when she heard the sound of soft music from his side. "I just need someone to talk to."

Desmond almost froze in shock. It was even more rare for Zaria to seek him simply to talk, so he was even more confused but he was quick to react and ask her what was bugging her.

"It's just...my dad is sad. Tomorrow is my mother's birthday. I think my dad is sad because he is thinking about her. They shared so many memories together after all…" Her voice trailed off when she suddenly realized that she used to only talk to Ximena about such things. When did she replace it with Desmond? Besides, how would he react to it? Would he find her too negative and childish?

Much to her relief, he listened to her then asked, "What about you?"

"Me?" She wondered when the topic shifted to her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm a little… sad too. Though I don't care about her as much as he does." She responded honestly. "I just don't know what to do with him."

"Just let him calm down. It's been so many years already… Who knows whether he is really thinking about her? Besides, if he is even after all this time, there is probably nothing you can do to help, aside from spending a little more time with him tomorrow so he doesn't feel lonely." He advised. "About not caring about her, you can't conclude that on your own. Just don't let it get to you, okay? Shall I pick you up to go out for some late night fun? You can spend time with your dad tomorrow."

"Tomorrow is a working day." She rejected the idea, not wanting him to be too tired to wake up on time for work the following day.

"You have a few more days off." He reminded her matter-of-factly.

"You don't." He threw a reminder back at him.

"If the CEO wants to sleep in, no one will have a thing to say." He retorted in all smugness, not leaving her any room for argument.

She clicked her tongue as she rolled onto her back. "If you keep that mentality up, it won't be long before you drag Preston and Fort Group into bankruptcy."

"Then that will be your fault, won't it?" He chuckled.

"Why would it be?" She wondered aloud.

"The CEO is losing focus because he is too much into you. Whose fault is that if not yours?" He answered pointedly, leaving her speechless.

"Then, should I resign so you don't see me so often?" She suggested in all seriousness, earning a gasp from him.

"Don't be that evil. You know that's not what I meant." Before she could make some other insane suggestion, he quickly got off his bed. "I'll be there soon."

"Call me when you get here." She suggested, which he rejected and wanted to continue talking to her.

"Don't talk on the phone as you drive." She reprimanded him.

"But I'll miss your voice." He insisted.

"Don't joke around. I'm hanging up." She warned and hung up, not giving him the chance to convince her. Chuckling at how silly he could get, she looked for clothes to change into and chose jeans and a black tee.

..

"I'm here." He announced over the phone just as she was done changing.

She grabbed a jacket with a fluffy collar and left her room, only for Des to leave his room to follow her.

"Go back." She ordered, and when she saw him sulkily go back to his room, she couldn't help going over to pet him. "Good boy."

After settling the puppy, she checked on her dad and when she found that he was asleep on his room, she was no longer worried so she left.

"I thought you were joking about coming to pick me up." She spoke when she saw him waiting at the parking lot.

"I don't joke about such things as your happiness. Come on, let's go." He urged her into the car as the night was chilly.

"Where are we going?" She asked as she fastened her seat belt.

"Why don't you let it be a surprise?" He grinned, choosing to keep her in suspense and she had no choice but to wait.

…

About an hour later, they arrived at their destination which she guessed to be on the outskirts of Imperium—considering how fast he had driven and how different the environment looked from that of the capital. She had to admit that it would be the perfect destination for a vacation.

"You didn't strike me as one to own such things as gardens and secluded manors." She commented when they pulled up at a manor that she guessed was owned by him.

"It turns out you don't know that much about me. I like a quiet hideaway." He smiled in response, helping her out of the car.

"It looks so beautiful." She looked around unreservedly.

"Does it make you feel more refreshed?" He asked, since that was the main reason for bringing her out for fun.

"It really does." She admitted.

"My grandma had it built for me. She also designed everything around it. She says she would want me to bring her granddaughter in law here." He explained. He had previously found the elderly lady insane.

"But she doesn't have one yet." Zaria frowned, and he nodded.

"No, she doesn't. But she will someday."