I do not own Fifty Shades Trilogy
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That's Christian
...
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Two and a half years...
Christian sighed deeply, as he watched the huge mansion in front of him.
He stood at a safe distance from the house he grew up in, the memories replaying in his head. As a child and teenager, he sure experienced good times with his siblings and parents.
As a small smile played at his lips, Christian inhaled the fresh air and thought about the last conversation he had with his sister.
"Dad has married Kate, and she's eight months pregnant " Mia had told him, while a storm raged behind her eyes.
He couldn't believe it, and was angry at himself for not being there for his mother.
Christian knew that his father always had a wandering eye for other women, but he never thought Carrick would leave his mother for someone much younger than him.
Christian regretted now that he hadn't been there to console his mother in her time of need, but at the time he still was hurting and suffering immensely from PTSD. However, was that a valid excuse?
Even during his short phone conversations with his mother on her birthday, she never mentioned the pain that she was carrying with her...and not once did Christian ask how she was holding up.
'Guess she wanted to shield me from more pain...' were the words that bounced inside his head, suddenly feeling an ache going through his heart.
"Mom, I'm sorry"
As tears pooled in his eyes, Christian watched as all of the lights of the mansion were being turned on.
"It's time for dinner" he whispered, and smiled." Mom and her immense dinners"
Christian knew that they were waiting for him, because Grace had asked him to join them for dinner.
He had called the mansion, after Ana left to be the star of her art exhibition. Well she deserved it... she was extremely talented, her masterpieces the evidence of her dedication and hard work.
Just thinking about that feisty, gorgeous, talented woman, made him smile...
It took him two and a half years, the company of a precious puppy AND the stubborn woman with the long, chestnut-colored hair, but as he stood there in front of the wide gate, Christian could finally admit to himself that he was really ready to go home and be a family again with his mother and siblings.
He was just about to enter the code to the gate keypad, when he heard a car from behind.
"Christian, is that you?" he heard a familiar voice say, causing his heart to implode inside his chest, while being plagued again by images from his last mission as a combat medic.
"I'm so happ..." the woman began, but Christian cut her off.
"I've gotta go" he uttered, while giving her the most devastating look she had ever seen.
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Meanwhile, on the other side of town inside an exclusive gallery.
"I'm so excited!"
Ana beamed, her eyes sparkling like stars, while she stood in the middle of her very own art exhibition.
"Congratulations, Ana" she heard Sean say, as he handed her a glass of champagne.
"Thanks" she commented, and looked around the gallery.
"Only high profile clients, Ana..." she heard Sean say." You're so gonna be laughing all the way to the bank tomorrow"
She smiled, and nodded, and was just about to say something, when one of her friends walked hastily in her direction." You're gonna be filthy rich!" she said and told Ana that clients were lining up to buy her paintings and drawings.
"So, this means I can quit my current job, right?" Ana heard Sean say.
He used to be Ana's co-worker, before she decided to quit that old job and begin her own art gallery.
"Yes, you can... but uhmm... don't you mind all the hard work and late nights, while working for me?" she asked, her eyebrow raised.
Sean shook his head at that." I don't mind" he replied." I like working hard, you know."
At hearing that, both Ana and Gia burst out into laughter. They knew Sean always came into work late.
"Seriously guys?" he said, and huffed because like usual, his two friends loved teasing him.
"Come on, smile for me?" Ana asked, but Sean didn't, so she placed both hands on his cheeks and began squeezing them lightly." Smile!"
As Gia watched the two, she laughed till her cheeks hurt." Ana, stop it... He'll quit, before even beginning to work for you"
Well, that made Ana laugh even harder, and she was just about to squeeze Sean's cheeks again, when they heard someone clear their throat.
"Miss Steele?"
In response, Ana pulled both her hands back, and turned around to face the person." Yes, can I help you, sir?"
She was looking at an older man in a very expensive suit." Can I have a word with you, Miss Steele? I want to buy at least three of your pieces"
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.
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In the meantime, Mia and Elliot were outside Ana's gallery.
"What are we going to say to her? She's the one Christian likes?" Elliot asks, his brows furrowed.
"Yes, her name is Anastasia Steele"
As they stood in the entrance, waiting to be let in, Mia sighed deeply." I hope she'll help us"
Elliot shook his head in response." I still don't understand why our brother fancies her company instead of ours" he pointed out." WE are his family... not this Ana person"
"I don't know either, Elliot." Mia confessed." But at least he has someone to talk to... he trusts her I suppose, and I assume they're very close"
As those words tumbled from her lips, Mia thought about the night of the apartment building fire, a few weeks ago... she remembered how Christian was consoling Ana, and how he had been holding her hand so tightly.
'They were indeed very close' were the words that bounced inside her head.
As they walked inside, Elliot made an impatient sound." How the fuck are we going to find her in this crowd?"
"It shouldn't be that hard... she's the artist of this exhibition." Mia told her brother, and after a few moments gasped aloud.
"What? What is it, Mia?"
It was then, when Elliot also saw what Mia was staring at." Wow... she's very talented." he uttered, in total awe.
"That's Christian" Mia announced, while a loving smile graced her gorgeous face." I'd recognize that tattoo and arm anywhere..."
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Meanwhile, Ana was in her office upstairs, having a chat with her client.
She was truly happy at the moment, because her exhibition has been a success up until now.
As she watched Mr. Green sign yet another check, the amount staggering, Ana couldn't help but to think of Christian.
'I really cannot wait to celebrate with him' she thought, and couldn't believe how wonderful her life has turned out.
Lately, only good things has come her way... only one thing left to overcome though, and that was helping Christian.
His puppy, Daisy, had been a great help though.
Christian had long conversations with Daisy, whenever he thought that Ana was sound asleep, telling her all sorts of things.
(She overheard their 'conversations' a few times in the past weeks)
Just thinking about the two of them on the couch with Daisy on his lap, while he petted her, made Ana's heart melt into a puddle.
"Here you go, Miss Steele" Ana heard Mr. Green say, taking her out of her happy thoughts.
"Thank you, sir" she said, smiling at the older gentleman.
"Nice doing business with you, Miss Steele. Be sure to contact me again soon"
"Of course, Mr. Green... You're name is at the top of the list." Ana assured him." You'll be invited to my next exhibition for sure."
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As Ana walked her rich client out the office, she heard voices from the stairs. She wondered who it was, and deep inside hoped that it was Christian.
With a huge smile on her face, she locked her office, but when she turned around, she didn't see the man who had saved her life two times, but someone else.
Ana noticed right away that something was wrong. Cause why would Christian's sister be here?
Sean noticed the disappointed look on Ana's face right away, and said." Sorry to disturb you, Ana... but they want to speak to you now"
Ana closed the gap between them, and observed the two guests. "Christian's sister, right? You called me a few times..." Ana uttered, and then her eyes landed on the tall man standing beside Mia.
"Is Christian here too?"
Mia shook her head at that." No... he's not"
Sean noticed that something was going on, and asked." Ana, why don't you invite them inside your office to talk?"
She nodded at that." Of course, I'm s-sorry." Ana apologized, and gave Sean an appreciative look. She was so overwhelmed by the two guests that she forgot her manners for a moment.
"Come into my office, please?"
"OK, then Ana... Gia and I will be right downstairs, if you need us." Sean told her.
.
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"Hi... you're Mia right?" Ana said, and shook her hand.
"Ana, this is my older brother... Elliot"
"Nice to meet you..." Ana said, but gave the siblings a worried look." Something's wrong, isn't it?"
Ana always had been blunt and wasn't the kind of woman who beat around the bush.
Mia nodded at that." It's Christian" she told her, as tears pooled in her eyes.
"Damn it woman, what happened to him?" Ana said impatiently, while her heart rammed against her rib-cage.
She was absolutely terrified...
"He went MIA again" Elliot answered." We've looked everywhere, but we can't find my brother..."
"What?" Ana shook her head, and attempted to keep her emotions under control." What exactly happened? He called me from my apartment to tell me that he was going to join you for dinner... he sounded so hap- happy" she told them, her voice breaking near the end.
"Yes, he promised our mom that he was going to attend dinner" Mia explained." However, he didn't show up"
"What?! I don't understand" Ana said, and felt how the tension in her head began to build from hearing this awful news about Christian. This was too much." Everything was fine with him, before I left to come here... we even made plans to celebrate tonight."
"Mom doesn't understand either... none of us do" Elliot told her.
Ana pondered and pondered, wondering what could've triggered this reaction from him.
'Maybe because we kissed?' were the words that bounced inside her head, automatically making her feel so guilty.' Or maybe because I displayed the drawing of him in the gallery?'
She shouldn't have let it go that far... She shouldn't have kissed him... She knew that he was still vulnerable. She shouldn't have...
"Fuck..." she muttered under her breath, as tears pooled in her eyes." It's my fault..."
Mia furrowed her brows, and asked." What are you talking about, Ana? Why is it your fault?"
Tears spilled from Ana's eyes, and just as she was about to explain, a phone rang.
"It's mom... wait a moment, ladies" he said and answered the call.
"Mom, mom... please calm down first." Ana and Mia heard Elliot say." You're not making sense to me right now... calm down and then explain, please"
As she waited for Elliot to finish the call, Ana suddenly felt a hand gripping hers.
It was Mia's.
She was sobbing, her body shaking." I cannot lose him again, Ana... WE cannot. My mom, it will break her if..."
Ana squeezed Mia's hand, and even though she was scared herself, she tried to be brave.
She looked Christian's sister in the eyes. "Everything will be OK, I promise... we will fix it" Ana told her.
In response, Mia squeezed Ana's hand and nodded in agreement.
'No wonder Christian liked her company so much, she's absolutely wonderful; feisty and yet compassionate' were the words that swirled around in Mia's head at that moment.
It was then, when Elliot hung up the phone.
"Well? Spit it out..." Ana said, her voice impatient." Do you know where he is?"
Elliot nodded, and gave her a sad look." My mom has an idea where he could be going."
"Where?" Ana and Mia both said.
"Arlington National cemetery"
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Meanwhile, Grace was at home, devastated by the situation.
She contemplated what to do next.
Should she call her ex-husband and ask him for assistance? She wasn't sure...
As Grace poured herself a strong drink, she wished she could've prevented all of this.
"Christian, my boy... why are you shutting me out yet again?" she uttered, while tears rolled down her cheeks.
It pained her so much that she still was unable to help her son.
"Grace, I think Billy and I should stay with you for the night." A gorgeous brown-eyed, blonde woman said, taking her out of her grim thoughts.
Christian's mother shook her head in response." It's not necessary, Ally... I'll be fine" she told the blonde.
"But you're all alone, Grace. You need someone." the blonde woman insisted." God knows how long it will take Mia and Elliot to find Christian"
Grace stubbornly shook her head, and poured another scotch." You really sh..." she began, but was interrupted by a child crying.
"Hey, hey... it's OK, baby" the blonde woman said, and lifted the child up, and held him in her arms.
He was four years old.
Grace smiled through her tears, and walked over to the pair." Fine, you can keep me company" she told the blonde woman.
"Good, cause I wasn't taking no for an answer"
In response, Grace smiled and kissed little Billy on the cheek." Will you keep me company, sweetheart?" she questioned, and took the child from Ally.
"I'm really sorry, Grace about Christian" the blonde woman uttered, and walked over to the wide window." It's my fault that Christian fled"
"No, no... it's MY fault." Grace insisted, and walked over to her with little Billy in her arms." It was my mistake to invite you too"
Ally let out a deep sigh in response." No, I shouldn't have accepted your invitation, Grace." she said, while tears pooled in her eyes." But I was so happy to hear that Christian finally had returned... I just needed to see for myself that he was doing well."
Christian and Billy's father were best mates in the NAVY... but after Sam had died, while on active duty, Ally never had spoken to Christian about what had happened during their last mission. But now it seemed that Christian still was blaming himself for what happened to Sam almost three years ago...
"I just wanted to let Christian know that it wasn't HIS fault, Grace... and that he mustn't feel any guilt towards little Billy and me." Ally began to sob aloud, so Grace hugged her with her son in between them.
"I know, Ally... I should've seen this coming, but I was too excited for our reunion." Grace confessed, and swallowed a huge lump that had formed in her throat." But I didn't think seeing you would trigger this reaction from him... It's my fault."
"No, it isn't"
"I just hope the woman, her name is Ana, I hope she will be able to help us find and talk to him." Grace uttered and wiped away her tears.
Ally squeezed Grace's hand and locked eyes with her." She will... don't worry. We all know how persuasive Mia and Elliot can be..."
"Yes, indeed." Christian's mom countered, and smiled through her tears.
It was then, when Grace wondered, IF Ana would leave in the middle of her own art exhibition to help them with Christian...
Note: Will she though?
... Hello guys,
Thank you so much for your continued support and your feedback. :)
So, what do you think of this chapter? And... will she leave her exhibition? or won't she?
Leave me a review?
Till the next one,
J