Chapter 165 - Put His Foot Down (2/2)

Wyatt was in the middle of slicing when he realized what transpired. He craned his neck to release the tension that stiffened it, ignoring Maxen's and Oliver's scathing gaze. He knew he made a promise not to go near nor talk with Emily but he couldn't help it.

To lighten the mood in the room, Emily clapped her hands, stealing everyone's attention. ”So… we're gathered here today in celebration of Ollie's lost hoodie.”

”What's so special about that hoodie? Well… It is special to me, but I don't know why everyone's so happy about finding it.”

”Because that hoodie belongs to your husband, which means, you and Maxen are a match made in heaven.”

”Pfft. Stop calling Maxen her husband. It's getting annoying. What if people will hear you and think Olivia's head over heels for Maxen that she's spreading rumors of them being married? And why do you ladies like romanticizing coincidences? Something like that was bound to happen because we all belong in the same circle,” Oliver exasperated.

”Ava, please do us all a favor and tape your husband's filthy mouth,” Emily seethed. She couldn't believe someone as nice as her Livi darling was related to Oliver who had a bazooka mouth.

Across from Emily, Oliver raised both of his hands in surrender. He could feel his wife glaring in his direction. If there's one person he hated receiving a lecture from, it would be his wife, so he made a zipping motion on his lips and continued to slice on his steak.

”That's a special hoodie that Ollie lost. It was the one we received from graduating in the military,” Wyatt explained, biting a slice of his food thereafter.

”But the interesting part of the story is…” Emily trailed and wiggled her brows in Olivia's direction. She felt a kaleidoscope of butterflies tickle her, the memory of that night resurfacing. ”When Ollie broke the news that he gave the hoodie to a girl, they had a huge fight because Ollie didn't want to go back and retrieve the hoodie. It was our first time seeing Ollie put his foot down.”

”Hell yes, I would! Maxen just threatened me that he—”

”Don't say it, Brother!” Maxen interrupted, his scowl was so sharp and deadly, it could slice Oliver in half like a samurai sword.

Oliver dropped the silverware on the plate, making a clanging noise. ”He said he would f.u.c.k the girl until she screams his name. Who wouldn't punch the guy who had sinister thoughts towards his younger sister?”

”Max! Why would you say something like that?” Olivia shifted in her seat, kicking Maxen on the shin.

”I said that out of anger, okay?” Maxen clarified. ”If you told me it was with your sister, the problem would not have escalated.” Maxen tipped his wine glass towards Ollie, infuriating the latter.

”If I told you I have a sister, you would have barged into our apartment and started dating her right away just like what you did behind my back when you met her.”

Maxen seethed. This brother of his just wouldn't let the matter go, so he retorted, ”Ollie took that hoodie because he was jealous. He wanted one for himself but he didn't pass the academy's entrance exams.”

”I did! I just failed the physical examination part,” Oliver contended. He paused, remembering the day the military doctor broke the news to him that he had post-traumatic stress disorder, disqualifying him from joining his brothers in the academy.

Olivia glanced at her brother. Being the curious angel that she was, she read his medical history after seeing a bottle of medicine in his bag years ago, and she knew why he had to choose a different path than his peers. ”Honestly, I can't remember how the hoodie came into my possession. I just knew it was from Ollie when I saw it in my wardrobe.”

Olivia frowned, her lips quivered when a snippet of her nightmare flashed before her eyes. She remembered Ollie promising her that he would stay with her, but never came back. ”So that dream was real, huh?” A tear fell from her eyes. She wiped it with her b.a.r.e hand.

”What dream?” A huge question mark floated above Oliver's head.

”I told you I was scared and you promised that you will stay, but you never stayed. You never came back.”

Sipping his wine, Wyatt patted the corner of his mouth with a napkin. ”Ollie checked in on you every night that week,” Wyatt trailed off. ”He never stayed in the hotel with us. He said he's more comfortable staying in Uncle's apartment in West Brompton, so we dropped him off in that place every night, then he'll be back in the hotel first thing in the morning.”

Olivia sniffled. She regarded Ollie and her eyes pooled in another wave of tears. She didn't know how to react over Wyatt's story, but one thing was for sure, Wyatt's story painted a smile on her lips, drying up her tears really quickly. Just like her, Oliver was an enigma.

”Whaaaat?” Oliver exasperated. ”It's not a big deal.” He went back to slicing his steak, ignoring the cheeky smiles of the rest of the group.