Olivia Sparks

Out on the balcony, three heads snapped at her direction when Olivia stepped out of the bedroom.  Just as she closed the door behind her, long, determined strides thudded on the carpeted hallway, halting a step away from Olivia. "Are you okay, baby? Your eyes are red." Maxen cupped Olivia's face with his strong yet warm hands. "Just… I'm just…" Olivia tried to speak without shedding another tear, but every time she opened her mouth to utter a word, her heart would painfully squeeze, so she just pursed her lips and exhaled heavily. Wrapping her in his cocoon, Maxen kissed the side of her head and finished her sentence for her. "Disappointed?" Max arched his back to get a good look of her face, but she buried it more on his c.h.e.s.t while nodding.  With a low yet audible voice, Olivia tightened her embrace, and spoke, "Let's stay like this until Ollie disturbs us." Maxen chuckled. "I think he wouldn't come close until we break apart. I could see him rolling his eyes down the hallway." Lifting her head, Olivia stuck a tongue out to her brother who was now shaking his head. After what felt like having a full power nap, a recharged Olivia peeled herself from Maxen and weaved her hand into his. With her phone still in her other hand, she lifted it and took a selfie. "How do I look?" she raised her phone to Maxen's eye level.  His brows furrowed upon seeing her puffy eyes and snotty nose. "You have a squint eye," Maxen commented when he noticed Olivia's left eye was turning inwards compared to the other that was looking straight. "Oh yeah, I didn't notice that." Olivia zoomed her photo in and out, pouting when she saw her squinted eye. "I'm trying to chronicle my emotions, taking a photo of what I look like after I feel something extreme. Like extreme happiness, sadness, anger. It's my project." She talked non-stop while slipping her phone back into her purse when she saw Ollie and his family finally taking the walk of shame to her.  She sneered in her thoughts. She could see how her brother was downplaying the issue about their mother with a huge maniac grin plastered on his face all because he wanted to borrow Maxen's car. She felt Maxen's hand tighten against hers. She could feel his arm shaking too so she looked up to him, a single brow raised as she asked, "Are you okay?" "Nothing. You're mumbling like an angry chihuahua." Maxen tried to hide his smile by covering his mouth but failed when Olivia let go of his hand and sped away from him. Meeting halfway with her brother, Olivia announced in a flat voice, "She's going home tonight. I already gave them a head's up." What she said surprised Oliver and Ava. They weren't expecting that Amelia's resettlement would be expedited that day. "There's nothing we could do about it, Livi." Oliver shrugged, vexing Olivia. "Trust me, Ollie. There's a lot of things that you could do, but you choose to ignore it." Olivia turned her head away from her brother and focused on the sleeping Finn in Ava's arms, brushing the loose hair away from the dumpling's eyes. She prayed that Finn wouldn't turn out like his father in the future. Taking the lead, Maxen walked ahead as the group walked down the hallway. Behind Olivia, Oliver talked in hushed tones as he drew a picture for his sister. "It's not that simple, Livi. Many people rely on Lin Prime Holdings as their bread and butter. If word gets out that our family is divided or there is trouble brewing in our camp, it would not only affect our name's value but also the people dependent on our operations. We almost got into trouble because you ran away from your wedding." "That's not my wedding, Ollie. And that's a contract that I didn't sign up for." "And what about Alexa? Did she sign up for it?" Oliver countered. "Oh look at you, worried about a bastard. Great." Olivia halted her steps, crossing her arms over her c.h.e.s.t. She gave her brother a once over and clarified, "For your information, I didn't force the girl. She said, she'll do everything to make things right, and so I gave her the choice to either go to the police or marry a good man in my stead and obviously, she picked the easier route." The siblings were left standing in the center of the foyer when Maxen and Ava continued to walk away from them, giving them enough space to sort things out. With his hands braced on his h.i.p.s, Oliver trained his eyes on the marbled floor, pursing his lips as he tried to formulate words in his head. "Look, Livi," he trailed off, moving his gaze from the floor, he looked intently into her eyes. "I know we have our differences but we have to work around it because we're the last two persons that our mother could rely on. You saw it yourself. She's unstable." "Because of what Henry did to her! And yet you agreed to her whims without even asking for my consent. I…" she pointed a finger to her c.h.e.s.t, "I exhausted every means that I have to take her out but you blew it when you fed her brain of a fantasy that she could go back that easily in that rotten cabin." "Livi, it's different now that we know she's awake. Ava would keep an eye on her. I promise. So please, just let it go. You don't know father's wrath. I've seen it once and I don't want to see it again." Goosebumps raised all over Olivia's body as she saw something in her brother's eye that she never saw before. She tried to look away but her curiosity got the best of her so she steeled herself and once again took a brief glance on Ollie. For a moment, the siblings were in a stare-down contest, each diagnosing the other's damage. In a blink of an eye, Oliver stepped forward hugging her by surprise that she was caught off-guard.  "Everything's going to be okay, Livi. Let's just get mother home first," Oliver whispered on the side of her head. She could feel him tremble so she consoled her brother, gently patting his back but the truth was, she was the one in tears. Raising the white flag, Olivia pushed him off her by his shoulders and huffed, changing the subject. "Let's go. Your Batmobile is waiting for you." Following Maxen and Ava who were waiting at the mansion's door, Oliver hugged Olivia by the shoulders as they walked. The group found themselves inside a detached garage at the back of the mansion. One by one, the lights inside lit up, revealing Maxen's prized possessions. And just like a child on Christmas Day, Oliver frisked his hands together, ready to claim his present on the "nice" lane. With a heavy heart, Maxen threw the smart key fob towards Oliver's direction. "Ollie! Catch!" Beaming, Oliver caught the key with two hands and dangled it in the air. He pressed the key and turned the car's ignition from afar. At the far end of the garage, a black car roared to life and Oliver's eyes grew big as saucers when it laid upon the first Bugatti La Voiture Noire in the market which collected dust in Maxen's garage. Oliver peeled Finn from Ava and passed his son to the waiting nanny that trailed them. He gingerly took Ava's hand and kissed the back of it. "How about I take my beautiful wife out for a ride?"