Su Mansion

~I drive the streets when you told me your secrets

We made mistakes, but we both didn't mean it~

Kygo's song entitled 'Permanent' played on Angela's phone as her alarm clock. The device was so close to her ear that she winced as soon as it blared. The sun shone so brightly and the birds chirped outside the window as though they were nagging to wake her up.

With her eyes still closed, she searched for the phone next to her and dismissed the alarm. Angela slowly fluttered her eyes open, and then it took her a few seconds to adjust to the brightness of her room. It was seven in the morning, and she was still exhausted.

She realized where she was, seeing as the curtains weren't like the blackout ones she had in her apartment that made her room dark even during the day. Because inspiration sometimes hit her at random times, Angela would occasionally be up the whole night, and then sleep during the day. But the ones she had in her old room in the mansion were the normal ones and it certainly woke her up since the room was now so bright.

"Ughhh…" she groaned.

Just then, her eyes grew wide when she suddenly remembered the call with Gael hours ago. She quickly grabbed her phone, muttering 'Oh my gods' as she checked the call registry. The call ended at 3:55 in the morning, but she could no longer remember how it ended. Had she fallen asleep while they were talking? She gasped.

While Angela contemplated whether to send him a text message to apologize, the door to her room opened, and in came her brother Oliver.

"You're up. Come out and eat breakfast. Dad's waiting for you," he slurred while he brushed his teeth with one hand and had the other in his jogger's pocket.

She didn't want to protest, thinking that it was pointless, so she put her phone aside and washed up in the bathroom.

At the dining table, Angela sat opposite her brother, Oliver, while her father sat at the head of the table that was too huge for their small number. Apart from them, a butler and a servant were standing on the side, ready for their beck and call.

The Su Family was old money and was quite well-known in Mayne City. It was a big clan, and the current head was her uncle—her father's brother. There was a time when the elders chose her father to be the head of their clan. However, he rejected the position. As for why he did, Angela and Oliver didn't know.

"I'll have Assistant Yi coordinate the schedule with you," informed Mr. Su before sipping his morning tea.

"You can't be serious. I already told you, Dad, I won't be meeting any of those men you arranged," she responded, staring at the empty plate in front of her. Angela already knew why her father asked her to go home, so she had expected him to talk about this. And now she lost her appetite. She couldn't believe that he insisted that she meet the sons of his business partners again this early in the morning.

Darting her gaze towards her brother, she drew her brows together, annoyed that she was the only one getting all this pressure when Oliver was also single and older than her. Shouldn't he be the one being pressured instead of her alone?

"And why are you only pushing me to meet potential spouses? Why aren't you forcing Oliver to meet women too? His age is no longer found in the calendar," she added.

Her brother snapped his head towards her, wanting to counter her remark, but then her father spoke before Oliver could.

"Your brother said he's already dating someone, so there's no need for me to set him up. You, on the other hand—"

"What do you mean?!" Angela arched a brow at Oliver. "You're not—Aw!" She whimpered when she felt Oliver kick her shin under the table. It hurt like hell that she bit her bottom lip as she rubbed the sore spot. Her face went red as the pain penetrated through her bones and she knew that it would bruise later.

'Stupid moron,' she cursed in her thoughts. Glancing at him, her jaw clenched tightly when she met his glare. This dummy was lying! Oliver wasn't dating anyone at the moment—he was so busy with work that he wouldn't have time, so she was sure that he only told their father that he was so that he would get off his back.

Angela scoffed. Her father actually believed that? Returning her brother's glare, she uttered incomprehensible curses under her breath out of frustration.

"Anyway, I have an early meeting with an associate." Mr. Su set his teacup aside and got up from his chair. "Oli, when are you planning to bring your girlfriend here so I could meet her?"

"What?" Oliver straightened his back. "My girlfriend? I—um… Well, we're still really getting to know each other. I think it's too early to bring her over." He cleared his throat and glanced at Angela. Her wicked smile grew by the second as she watched him struggle to answer. She had her arms crossed over her chest, looking cocky as ever. She couldn't wait for him to get busted.

"Is that so?" He sighed. "I better get going. Let's have dinner tonight," said Mr. Su before leaving the dining room with the butler following behind him.

When their father left, Angela grabbed a slice of Mango and began to eat with her fork. "How could you allow him to do this to me? You know how much I hate it."

"How long do you plan on punishing yourself?" Oliver questioned in a toneless voice.

Her hand paused mid-air when she heard his question. She studied his face, but his expression was unreadable. "What do you mean? I'm not punishing myself."

"Then why haven't you been in a serious relationship for six years now? I've met a few of the guys you went on a date with; some weren't half bad. Even Nina thinks so…"

"You've been talking to Nina?"

"That's not the point." Oliver wiped his mouth with a napkin and drank cold water. Setting it aside, he continued, "I'm not forcing you to date. It's up to you if you want to or not. But I understand where Dad is coming from. I think he's only worried about you. For all he knows—if you're not in the company, you're not doing anything with your life. You don't have to take these arranged dates too seriously."

"Are you suggesting I just meet them to get him off my back?" she probed, and Oliver just shrugged, looking so calm about their conversation.

"It's just one date. You don't even have to meet them for dinner. Make it a lunch date. No expectations." Oliver got up from his chair while checking the time on his watch. Squeezing her shoulder as he passed by, he told her, "I gotta run. I'll see you tonight."

"Yeah… okay…" Angela answered absent-mindedly. Even the thought of meeting the men that her father arranged for her caused her chest to feel heavy and her head to hurt. She certainly wasn't interested in meeting just anyone.

The ringing of her phone interrupted her train of thought. She answered it right away when she saw that it was Nina.

"Hey, instead of lunch… Can we meet for brunch? I need to see you sooner," Angela requested. "I need my best friend right now."