Chapter 22: Vent
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“Then I’ll be leaving, Aunt Marsha.” Adrian rose from his seat halfway as a polite gesture.
“Seriously, you’ve only been here for a day.” His aunt sighed but did not make further comments. “Come visit us again when you’re free, Eddy. Victor rarely comes home.”
Victor was Anderson and Marsha’s only child, who was 4 years older than Adrian. He started his own business after graduating from Yale University, and eventually had his own medium-scaled company. Though it was only in Boston which was not far from New York, he rarely had time to go home. He would also rather bring his mom over to his place than go home because Anderson was old-fashioned and stubborn, which could be seen from his relationship with his younger brother. Besides, there was a saying that a father and a son were enemies in their past lives.
“I will, Aunt, I’ll visit Victor when I’m free,” Adrian mentioned. Nonetheless, there were some things that he could not change even though they were from the same family. Furthermore, the key was with…
“I hope that you’re different the next time I see you.” Anderson walked out and spoke in an unpleasant manner until his wife glared at him. “Do well, Eddy, set your aim right.”
“Thank you, Uncle Anderson, I understand.” Adrian nodded, then left the luxurious apartment.
‘Aunt Marsha’s right, Uncle Anderson is already used to having the final say at home, so even nice words from him sound harsh,’ Adrian thought to himself as he strolled along Manhattan’s streets. He adjusted his windbreaker. While it was September, New York’s temperature was significantly lower than Los Angeles’.
‘That’s it for now, I’ll come over regularly to catch up with them. As for Victor… Since we barely meet, I’ll just talk to him when we do, but it’s ultimately their problem to solve.’ Adrian began enjoying his time in Manhattan. He never left his country in his past life, let alone coming to New York. Although the former owner visited the city before, it had become memories. Hence, Adrian found it interesting to walk around Times Square and Fifth Avenue while going through those memories.
Before long, Adrian arrived at the Hudson River and felt like he was in a dream when he looked at the Statue of Liberty from afar. Ever since he woke up in February, he had been very occupied. Although he lived life in an orderly manner, he never got to relax completely, which he finally got to do after completing the first step of his plan.
Adrian shook his head slightly. He recalled that there was a bench behind him, so he took a few steps back with the intention to sit on it. Who knew, before his butt touched the bench, a reprimand was heard. “Hey, who let you sit.”
The sudden voice shocked Adrian and only realized after turning around that someone had sat on the bench. It was a 15 or 16-year-old girl who wore a pink t-shirt and a light gray coat. She had blonde hair and delicate facial features, making her a beautiful lady.
“I’m sorry, may I sit here?” Adrian asked after noticing the bag and some strange items on the bench. Seeing that the girl was about to refuse him, he added, “I suppose you don’t want to occupy the whole bench?”
The girl looked at him half-alert, half-disgusted, then packed the items back into her bag. She looked like she was venting her anger as she purposely shifted to the side after putting her bag on her lap.
Adrian chuckled and shook his head, then sat down quietly. It was a perfect spot to view the Hudson River, but the incident earlier made it slightly boring. After resting for a few minutes, he decided to leave but was startled when he subconsciously turned to look at the girl.
The beautiful girl was looking far away with downcast eyes. With one hand on her bag, she rubbed her kneecap with the other, and her gloomy look suggested that she lost something important.
“Do you have something weighing on your mind?” Adrian asked curiously.
The girl was slightly shocked. She turned to look at Adrian strangely, then ridiculed in a disgusted manner, “What does it have to do with you?”
“Uhm… Alright, I’m sorry.” Adrian threw his hands up as he knew that he acted a little rashly, but just as he was about to leave, the girl said scornfully, “How would someone like you know!”
‘This girl…’ Adrian frowned, then turned to ask, “What do you think I don’t know? Your pain? Your setbacks? Oh God, everyone has their pain and frustration, but does everyone vent their anger to those who give them kind reminders out of good intentions? Perhaps you have a persecutory-type delusional disorder, and you think that those who speak to you have ill intentions?”
“You!” The girl’s face reddened instantly. Maybe because she suppressed her feelings for too long, she yelled, “Do you know how long I worked hard in this damn place?! Do you know how it feels to fall into the abyss due to an accident, after it took so long to see the light?! I started learning ballet when I was young, and after practicing for many years, I went to Europe and Italy, then finally made it to New York. I entered the damn ballet academy at last, but I can’t go on stage anymore because of a knee injury! What do you know!”
Triggered by her emotions, her eyes turned red. She quickly realized it, so she turned her head to the side angrily.
“You finally said it. You’ll feel better now.” Adrian smiled, then added, “Do you know how I used to be 2 years ago?”
“Who cares how you used to be 2 years ago?” The girl blurted out of a feeling of injustice. A long time after, she finally turned back again to look at Adrian with a complicated look. “So what were you like 2 years ago?”
“Uhm…” Adrian pondered. “I used to fool around while idling my time away.”
The lady frowned without saying a word. Adrian looked at the Statue of Liberty as he continued, “Back then, I spent my day fooling around without doing or bothering about anything and I did whatever I wanted to. In fact, I was like that since high school, and even when my best friend took over his dad’s company after we graduated, I was still the same. My parents lectured me many times, but I never listened, until 2 years ago… I can’t hear them nag anymore.”
There was a long pause.
“I continued fooling around. Although my parents changed their will, they left a part of their properties to me, but I drank and played around more than I used to, and I only returned home when I was very drunk. I neither listened to my godfather nor my best friend, and I felt like I was trash, that I was born to be like that. Perhaps I might die from playing around too much… But… I don’t know what happened, during February this year, I suddenly… Woke up. Yes, I suddenly awoke, and I understood many things at that moment. I knew I could do something, and I knew that I was definitely not trash, so I looked for my best friend to work out a plan. I have an aim now, and it only took me 7 months to acquire my own company. Though it’s still small and weak, I know that I’ll definitely succeed! I know that I’ll surely stand at the top of the world to overlook those who used to mock me and thought that I was merely trash!”
As Adrian exhaled deeply, he felt refreshed after venting. He then looked at the girl, who was staring back at him blankly. She asked him after some time, “Were you—venting?”
“I guess.” Adrian shrugged. “Let me ask you, do you know anything else other than ballet?”
“Uhm…” The lady wondered. “I… I was a model for a few days, and I can maybe act…”
“Oh Jesus, why must you revolve around those? Don’t you have other options?” Adrian waved his hand. “Don’t give me excuses like you don’t know anything else. I wasted 20 years fooling around and had no experience in management at all, but I’m now the boss of a small company even though I still need help. Learn if you don’t know, are you dumb? Do you think that you’re not as smart as the others? Come on, if you secured a role by practicing hard in ballet, why can’t you do the same in other fields? You can very well major in something in a university, then become an assistant, a reporter, an analyst, and so on. You can build your own path! The most important thing is if you have the courage to, not if you know how to!”
When the sonorous speech was finally brought to a halt, the girl who was drawn to it came back to her senses. They both fell silent. Adrian breathed deeply as he looked at the Hudson River, whereas the girl watched.
A while after, she finally spoke, “Honestly, your speech was great.”
“Thank you, how would you compare me to Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have A Dream’?”
“You were much better than that.”
“Really?”
“Really, because you have a dream.”
They looked at each other for some time before the lady burst out laughing, followed by Adrian. The onlookers could not help but look at them.
“Thank you, mister, you’re a good person.” The lady stood up and exhaled. She blushed when she said to Adrian sincerely, “You’ll achieve your goal.”
“You too.” Adrian nodded with a smile.
“Goodbye.” The lady waved him goodbye, then hopped away with her bag.
‘She’s quite adorable.’ Adrian then raised his brows when he watched her leave. ‘What did she say just now? I’m a good person? Why does that sound strange?’
He shook his head, then was stunned. Subsequently, he slapped his thigh. “Jesus! I forgot to ask for her name and her number!”
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