Chapter 267: One and True Princess
Amala and Lola stopped at the end of the hall, still on the same floor as Lola’s office, where the children were.
"So, what is it?" Amala asked, since Lola wasn’t speaking, even though it was she who had called for her. "Did something happen, Lola? Anything I should be alarmed about?"
"No." Lola crossed her arms, eyeing the glass wall that only showed the narrow side of the building. "Amala, you told me to move on from that night, from who spent that night with me, or who the father of my child was."
"I did." Amala nodded. "And you know I’ve been telling you to move on. Losing your child is the reason we met, Lola, but God knows how I wish I had never met you."
Lola bit her lips, sliding her eyes to her. "Vito," she whispered, watching Amala nod.
"And I hope that after our conversation the day before, you’re finally ready to let it all go." Amala sighed. "Our past has its importance, but it should never stop us from moving forward."
"I know..." Lola rocked her head. "I’ve been trying to find out what happened to me that night, but somehow... it’s becoming clearer."
This time, Amala’s brows rose. "Clearer?"
"Mhm." Lola hummed, smacking her lips. "That night, I was supposed to fall into Melissa’s trap, but because of what looked like an honest mistake, I somehow got myself saved from that nightmare."
She paused for a moment, keeping her thoughts together as she had been thinking about it since last night, when she stopped Atlas from explaining things to her.
"I avoided that horror, but I didn’t avoid making a mistake that night with somebody else," she continued quietly. "A night with somebody else... who needed somebody just as desperately as I did."
Deep lines appeared between Amala’s brows as she studied Lola’s side profile. "Lola, don’t tell me you found out who was with you that night?"
"Well..." Lola shrugged as a shallow laugh escaped her, facing Amala. "I’m just telling you, Amala, since you’ve been helping me with this from the start."
"Telling me? Or were you trying to make a decision just now while talking to me?"
The corners of her lips curled up. "Both. It’s just that... all these years, there was nothing. I can’t believe I’m so close — too close — closer than I thought."
Did her nightly activity with Atlas help? Or her current situation? Either way, Lola was both in disbelief and relieved that she could finally close that Chapter of her life.
"Like I promised, I’ll close that Chapter of my life, Amala," she continued, offering Amala a smile. "No more searching, no more holding back, just closure."
Amala studied her expression before nodding in understanding. She smiled, reaching out to hug Lola gently into her strong arms.
"I am happy for you," Amala mused, patting her back.
"I know." Lola patted Amala’s back as well, smiling as her chin rested on the latter’s shoulder. "I know, Amala. I know."
As Amala released her, holding her shoulder, she examined Lola’s face. Surely, Lola’s energy had changed significantly, and it wasn’t hard for Amala to notice. After all, Lola wasn’t like this when they parted months ago.
"Anyway, I need to go back to the children," Lola said, tipping her head. "I can’t let children look after children for too long."
"Those kids are doing their magic on you, don’t they?"
"They’re not just adorable, but lovable. You’ll love them." Lola quipped as she turned on her heel. But just as she turned her back on Amala, she stopped at her call.
"Lola," Amala said, narrowing her eyes and tilting her head. "You said you remembered things that night."
Lola’s brows rose, tilting her head.
"Is there anything else that you could recall from that night?"
"Is there anything else I should remember?" Lola returned.
"I’m just asking," Amala smiled. "It could help with the Hudson case since you plan to use him to bring down Melissa Young."
Lola shook her head and resumed walking. "Well, I’ll tell you when I remember more. But I don’t think there’s anything else I can recall from that night aside from spending it with a total stranger."
"Hope it was a hot one at least."
"Haha..." Lola paused and looked back at her. "It was... wild."
"Goodness." Amala chuckled, watching Lola leave. "Look at her. Just a day ago, she looked like her world was about to fall apart. But now, she’s... more energetic than ever. Makes me wonder where all that energy was hidden all these years with her."
Shaking her head, Amala let out a shallow breath before glancing at the glass wall. Her smile slowly faded as another sigh escaped her.
*
*
*
When Lola returned to the office, she noticed a few things. First, the office was neat — neater than when she left. It wasn’t like it was dusty; she wouldn’t have dared bring the children if it were. But everything was properly arranged.
Her eyes landed on Haji, who was fixing some staff items with the twins standing beside him as assistants. Haji looked back at her bitterly, but quickly clenched his teeth and continued working.
Another surprising sight was Silo, back near the playpen where the quadruplets were, arranging some books on the side.
"I didn’t know you finally calmed down," she quipped, making Silo flinch in surprise. To her amusement, Silo perked up and shook his head profusely.
"Huh?" Lola slowed her steps, narrowing her eyes while Silo kept tipping his head. "What happened? Does your neck hurt or something?"
The moment she said that, she caught the swivel chair behind the desk slowly turning from the corner of her eyes. Someone was seated in it. Lola carefully moved her gaze to the chair, and there sat a beautiful woman with nothing but a smug smirk on her face.
"Penelope," she whispered under her breath, stunned to see the beauty of the Bennet Family’s one and true princess. "Penelope Bennet."