Their little lavish moment ended abruptly when a phone rang—Mr. Brine's phone.
He instantly let go of Lena, and without warning, she slammed down hard on the ground.
Her anger flared the moment she stood up. She dusted herself angrily, grabbed her things, and stormed toward him.
"Shameless man! How dare you do that?" she shouted as he hung up the call.
"Excuse me?" He blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Oh, now you're pretending you don't know what you just did?"
"Wha—Yooh, hell! What is wrong with you?" he fired back. "I didn't do anything wrong. I told you I would compensate you, yet you're still here yapping like a mad woman. Are you crazy or what?"
"Oh, me? Crazy? Are you stupid?" she snapped. "You literally slammed me on the ground and now you're yelling at ME. I just hit my ass, bitch!"
"Don't you dare call me that, Mrs. Grumpy. I'm warning you."
"Oh really? What are you gonna do?" she challenged—
—but her phone rang before the fight escalated. It was Moody.
After a few seconds on the call, she rushed to gather her belongings.
"You're lucky I'm in a hurry," she muttered heatedly. "Otherwise, I would've done something you wouldn't forget."
"So you're just gonna leave like that, Mrs. Grumpy?" he called after her. "What about your compensation?"
"Fuck you! And fuck your stupid compensation! I don't need it. But next time, I swear—if I ever see you again, you're gonna pay."
"Jeez! You've got guts," he scoffed as he approached his car. "There's no way I'm seeing you again, not even in my dreams!"
He checked his car—no scratches, no damage.
He sighed deeply, gripping the steering wheel, a crooked smile tugging at his lips.
"Wow… she's one hell of a woman. Honestly, letting her fall was a good idea—I couldn't stand another stare from her. So damn grumpy." He chuckled. "Anyway, Elvis might kill me. I better go see him before he starts calling."
He started the engine and drove off.
---
At the Hospital…
As soon as they arrived, Bena and Sela rushed into their father's room. The moment they saw him lying there, tears welled up.
"Father!" Bena cried, falling into his arms.
"Heeey… how are you, my babies?" Mr. Luke whispered, pulling them close. "I missed you so much."
"Dad, we missed you too," Sela said, squeezing him tightly. "Bena cried so much for you every night. He used to hide under the blanket."
"I'm so sorry… I never meant to leave you," he murmured with guilt. "How have you been?"
"We've been fine… but Mom doesn't care about us," Bena said quietly.
"Dad… why did you leave?" Sela added gently, sitting beside him just as Lena hurried into the room.
"Sela, stop," Lena warned softly. "Let Dad recover first. You can ask him anything later."
"It's alright, Lee," Mr. Luke said. "They're my kids. Whatever they ask, I owe them an answer. But about what Sela asked…"
He paused, breathing deeply.
"I won't answer that today. I have my reasons."
"It's okay, Dad. We won't push," Sela replied, brightening. "Anyway, look—I brought you chocolate!"
"Me too!" Bena chimed in. "Your favorite—an apple!"
Their laughter filled the room, warm and alive.
For the first time in a long while, their smiles returned—genuine and free.
Mr. Luke watched them with glistening eyes. Even without his wife beside him, his happiness was here—his children. Everything he had done, even disappearing… was for them. All he could do now was pray they remained safe.
"Anyway, Lee," he teased suddenly, "didn't Mr. Right come?"
"Mr. Right?" Sela and Bena echoed, confused.
"Oh—he meant Moody," Lena muttered awkwardly. "Dad thinks… he and I are… you know—"
"Oooh shit!" Bena gasped dramatically. "Are you and Moody—?"
"Bena, NO! He's just a friend!" Lena defended quickly. "Don't listen to Dad's nonsense!"
"I'm not concluding anything," Mr. Luke shrugged. "You're the one being paranoid."
"Exactly," Sela laughed. "Super paranoid."
"That's not true," Lena grumbled. "Anyway, I left him outside. I wonder where he went. Let me call him."
She stepped outside and closed the door behind her.
Her heart suddenly raced; sweat gathered on her forehead.
She had no idea why.
After a moment, she began searching for Moody, dialing his number repeatedly—but he didn't pick up.
"Where the hell did he go? Did something happen? Did he get an emergency or…?" she whispered, scanning the hallway.
Then she saw him—just a few steps away—talking to someone.
"What…? Who is he talking to?" she murmured, slowly approaching.
---
Moody & Brine
"Tell her I'll come back whenever I want," Moody said coldly, hands in his pockets. "And why are you even here? Mom and Dad aren't admitted."
"I came to see Elvis," Brine answered calmly. "His wife just gave birth. He wanted me here."
"Fine. Just tell Mom I'll visit soon. And what about Meenu? Is she studying well? Is she okay?"
"Moody, stop." Brine's tone hardened. "I didn't come here to answer your questions. You left home three years ago, and now you suddenly care?"
Moody lowered his eyes.
"If you want to know how everyone's doing… go home. She misses you—a lot. She talks about you every day."
Brine sighed. "Anyway, I'm leaving."
"Wait—at least let me treat you to something. We haven't hung out in so long."
"You're mad," Brine scoffed. "Since you left, Dad's anger faded long ago. All he wants is to see you. Mom wants to see you. Meenu wants to see you. So fix your mess and go home. They miss you."
He paused.
"But not me."
Brine walked away, leaving Moody frozen, speechless.
Moody exhaled slowly, twisting his lips, and turned around—
—only to collide with Lena.
His hands instinctively gripped her tiny waist to steady her.
Their eyes locked.
Brine's presence disappeared down the hall.
A passing nurse broke the silence.
"Excuse me, I need to pass," she said politely.
"Oh—sorry," they both mumbled.
Lena looked into Moody's eyes.
"Where were you? You didn't pick up your phone."
Her eyes narrowed.
"And who was that tall guy you were talking to?"
Moody swallowed.
"Um… he's… he…"
Moody blinked slowly, searching for the right words.
"Um… he's… he's my brother," he finally said, his voice low.
Lena's eyebrows shot up. "Your brother? And you didn't think that was important to mention?"
Moody looked away, inhaling deeply as if steadying something heavy in his chest.
"It's… complicated," he murmured.
"How complicated?" she pressed, stepping closer, her voice softer now but still edged with worry. "Moody, I saw your face. You looked… shaken."
He let out a weak breath, his eyes finding hers again—tired, guilty, and carrying a weight she had never seen in him before.
"I didn't expect to meet him here," he said. "Not today. Not like this."
Lena's expression softened.
She had always known Moody hid parts of himself, but this… this felt different. Deeper.
"What did he say to you?" she asked gently.
Moody hesitated—just long enough for her to notice.
"He reminded me of something I've been running from," he replied, voice barely above a whisper. "Something I should have faced a long time ago."
Lena's heartbeat quickened. "Moody…"
He shook his head as if trying to dismiss the heaviness lingering in the air.
"It's nothing," he said with a forced half-smile. "Don't worry about it."
"That doesn't sound like 'nothing' to me," she argued softly. "You don't look okay."
"I'm fine, Lee," he said, this time meeting her gaze with a steadier expression. "Really. Let's just go inside before your siblings start assuming more nonsense."
She narrowed her eyes, unconvinced—but she took a step closer anyway.
"Moody… if something is hurting you, you know you can tell me, right?"
His breath caught slightly—just enough to betray him.
For a moment, he didn't speak.
Just stared at her like she was something he didn't deserve but desperately wanted to keep.
"I know," he finally whispered.
And for a second, the hallway fell quiet—just the two of them, standing too close, yet not close enough.
"Come on," Lena said softly. "Dad wants to see you."
Moody gave a small nod, straightened himself, and followed her—though his heart tightened with every step.
Because behind them, down the hall where Brine had walked away, Moody's past still waited…
and it wasn't done with him yet.