Chapter 67: Chapter 62

"I think I know what I want," Johan said as he faced the waiter, "I'll have the gourmet pork with honey mustard with grilled vegetables on the side, no broccoli please, and some sparkling water with lemon on it."

"Very good, sir," the waiter responded as he turned to Margaret, "And you, ma'am?"

"Give me a bacon cheeseburger and a cola."

A momentarily surprised look was on the waiter's face before he cleared his throat. "Very well."

Once the waiter took their menus and left, "That's quite a surprise coming from you," Johan commented.

"Were you expecting something fancy? Don't think that I'm one of these rich kids who eat those tiny portions at super-expensive restaurants. Just give me a burger and I'm happy." Johan laughed. "Is it that funny?"

"I actually did think you were one of those rich kids. I guess I was wrong."

Margaret chuckled. "What about you? With your honey-mustard pork chops and grilled vegetables."

"I seriously wanted that."

"But not the broccoli, huh? I guess you're nothing more than a kid."

“Kid?” Johan said with a bit of surprise. "Whose a kid? You're the one ordering a burger at a restaurant. The last time I had a burger, Lucy bought it for me on a train-" He forcefully stopped himself. After clearing his throat, "Never mind. You're free to have whatever you want."

A brief pause of silence occurred between them. Sensing tension arriving, "So, Johan, you're looking forward to the future. Tell me what are you planning?"

Johan cleared his throat once again. "I'm going to get my degree in psychology and then get an internship. No, I should get one while I'm still in school."

"Do you have any idea how to do that?"

"No, and I haven't been looking. Now seems like a good time to do that since summer vacation is around the corner. But I wanted to make friends first." He chuckled. “There's just so much to do, I guess. I feel like I'm trying to catch up.”

"What about your writing?"

"That's just a hobby, nothing serious."

"Can you show me what you have done so far?"

"I'm a bit embarrassed to share it, especially since I have no plans to actually publish anything. It's really just for my own amusement."

"But I'm curious to know what you have because it may be worth getting published. You see, I'm an amateur writer myself and would love to read what you have."

"No, Margaret. My writing is not good. It's really more for amusement than anything."

"Is it non-fiction?"

"It's fiction, but nothing more than what you can buy at the airport. Trust me, it's nothing groundbreaking. It's just me... you know... venting."

"Then maybe one day you'll share it with me?"

"Perhaps, but don't bet on it."

Another brief pause as Margaret noticed Johan tapping the table with his fingers.

--

"That was pretty good,” complimented Margaret as they left the restaurant.

"Pretty good?"

"Well, I did have a bacon cheeseburger. I guess next time I'll order from the grown-up menu."

"Next time, huh? So you're calling it a night?"

"No, of course not. It's still too early for that."

"It is?" Johan pulled out his phone. "Past nine. Wow, it felt like an eternity in there."

"Are you kidding? The night's hardly begun."

"It has? But if we stay out too late, it'll be midnight before you know it."

Margaret cocked her head a bit, "Don't tell me you were about to call it a night this early."

Johan rubbed the back of his neck with his palm, "Well, actually, I don't have anything else planned. After all, if we're out late, our sleep schedule is going to end up in disarray."

"So all you had was dinner planned?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Alright, fine. I get it. Then it's my turn to take you somewhere, isn't it?"

"Now?"

“Yes, now. Don't tell you care more about your beauty sleep than our date.”

“Had I known we were going to continue past dinner then I would have accommodated the outing much earlier.”

“Unbelievable. You really are a child, you know.“

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An ill feeling ran through Johan as a discomfort had imposed itself upon him. “You know, that really is insulting, being called a kid in such a context. I guess I owe someone a-” Once again, he forcefully stopped himself as he straightened his posture. “Very well, you win. Where do you want to go?”

"How about you take me to the beach?"

"The beach?"

"The shore is closed but not the shops and the little amusement park by the wayside."

"The beach..." As if a switch had been turned on, images projected themselves on Johan's mind. Images of himself in a much happier state. Pleasant evenings as the sun set over the water, laughter, joy, and happiness.

There was a look of despondency and wonder on his face as Margaret peered through him. "On second thought, maybe we can go somewhere else. So, how about we just head to a movie or something."

"No," Johan said with conviction. With a smile on his face, "Let's go to the beach."

--

"Nathan?" an elderly voice was heard on the other side of the phone. "What are you doing calling me at this hour?"

"Dad, I need to talk to you."

"Why the rush? Call me in the morning. I'm trying to get some sleep."

"Dad, it can't wait. I really need to tell you something."

"Nathan, I don't have time to play games. I have to get up early tomorrow for a meeting."

"I quit."

"What?”

"I quit the family business."

"What are you talking about?"

"I've had enough of this life I've been living since forever. I've had enough of just living to sustain the business while everything around me deteriorates."

"What is this childish complaining? You know very well that in order for the company to survive, we must give a piece of ourselves."

"A piece? All my life has been nothing but working to sustain this company. Ever since I was a little boy, I've been doing nothing but work for you and this stupid company."

"Stupid? You take that back!"

"No, I will not. I had to give up making long-term friends because I was too busy learning how to run the business. I couldn't go on vacation with what little friends I had in order to prepare myself to become the new owner of your company. I even had to marry a woman I didn't want to just because of some stupid complication from this merger between the two companies. What in the world was I thinking just obeying your every whim? I'm certain this is illegal in some way."

"How dare you talk like this? Don't forget that if you divorce that woman, the merger is over and we'll lose millions! Don't you dare!"

"Not only will I go through the divorce, but I'm also going to break my ties with you and the family. I want out of this whole charade and get my life back."

"Have you gone insane? You are so close to owning the company. You are about to lose everything you have been working in these past three decades."

"Three decades that I will never get back. I gave up so much all because you told me that money was everything. I don't care about riches anymore. I don't care about the company. I lost everything all because of this soulless pursuit of wealth and power.."

"This is egregious. Do you understand that you are about to destroy generations worth of hard work so that we, the current generation, may live in luxury?"

"This company has ruined my life! I should've known when I had to marry some stranger that my life was going to crumble. That all changes right now. I'm taking back my life and I'm going to fix all the wrongs that have happened to me!"

"You fool! Don't think just because you're my son that I'm going to allow you to disrespect the company that our great grandfathers worked so hard to build. I'm not afraid of suing you!"

"Take every penny. Better to live free in poverty than be your rich slave."

"You are making a mistake! Besides, I have a lot of illegitimate children that would be happy to accept this position. Just you wait till-"

Nathan instantly hung up and hunched forward on the sofa while he rubbed his face. 'This is all my fault! No matter how much I blame my family, my ex-wife, and even my daughter, this is all my fault. But now I got to make things right. I don't have time to be crying about this. I got to find Lucy. That disgusting woman, abandoning our child. Does she think she's a toy? I should've... No, complaining isn't going to help. I better check with the police.'

A few moments after dialing the police department, he is directed to the one in charge of the investigation.

"What is happening with my daughter?" he asked.

"We're doing all we can, sir. Please calm down."

"How can I calm down when my daughter is missing?"

"We understand your concern but panicking will only make things worse. Trust us, a missing child is usually found within a few days."

"A few days? You can't find her right now? Are you even doing your job?"

"Sir, we can assure you we will find your daughter but there are procedures involved such as paperwork."

"My daughter is missing and you are talking about paperwork!?"

"Your daughter is not the only missing person we have to deal with."

"I can't believe this. My taxes are going to a bunch of incompetent fools! Forget it, you worthless maggots. I'm looking for her myself." He hung up the phone and immediately headed out the door.

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