Chapter 47: Chapter 47

Armand and Laurene finished talking to Suzette's parents early. Dylan was in a great mood, thinking of how he could openly and freely show his love for Madison after getting out of this situation with the help of Suzette. Dylan smiled at Suzette, his ally, and saw Laurene stand up from her seat.

"Heh, are you happy because soon, you can be with your darling without any hindrance?" Suzette whispered teasingly to Dylan, making the latter's smile widen.

"Shhhh, keep it down," Dylan playfully scolded her but added, "If your Dad hears you, it would be difficult for the both of us." Suzette nodded, raised her hand, and zipped her mouth. The two couldn't help but laugh as they looked at each other. However, when their parents glanced at them with curiosity with a hint of teasing in their eyes, Suzette just smiled at them goofily and shook her head. Dylan looked accusingly at Suzette as if telling her it was her fault for misleading their parents.

"I'm sorry," Suzette laughingly said, trying to suppress her laughter but unable to do so. When Dylan was about to reprimand her again, he saw Armand stand up and motion for him and Suzette to come closer. Following his dad's words, Dylan escorted Suzette to where their parents were. As they approached, he heard Armand bidding goodbye to Suzette's parents as he shook his hands with them.

"Let's go, sweetheart," Laurene said to him. Dylan also said goodbye to them and kissed Suzette on the cheek before leaving with Laurene. He was so grateful that Laurene and Armand brought a car, so he didn't need them to drive them home. As such, Dylan watched his parents enter the car before heading to his car. Glancing outside the window, he waved at Suzette first before starting the car and driving away.

The smile never left Dylan's lips on the way to his apartment. He felt so happy because he would get to see Madison and make up for his absence these past few days. Upon seeing the apartment building from afar, Dylan couldn't help but smile even more.

"I'm close, Darling," He excitedly muttered and parked his car in front of the building. He then stepped out of the car and immediately went inside the building. After the long wait, with a "ding," the elevator finally opened to his floor. As he walked toward his apartment door, Dylan didn't make any sound because he was planning to surprise Madison.

He tried to enter the apartment as quietly as possible. Once he was in, Dylan was only met with total silence, making him frown for a moment. Feeling uneasy, he consoled himself when he didn't see Madison and murmured, "Right, perhaps Darling is sleeping or relaxing in the bedroom."

Thinking of that, Dylan immediately went to her bedroom but saw that Madison was not there or her clothes. Seeing this, his heart thumped loudly, and he quickly searched the entire apartment, fooling himself as he denied that Madison didn't leave him.

"Where are you, Darling?" he whispered worriedly as he turned his apartment upside down, trying to find Madison. Feeling lost, Dylan went to the living room and sat down without much strength in his body. He did not know what to think anymore. When he looked at the table, his eye accidentally caught a letter which he hadn't noticed before. Dylan frowned and stood up.

Nervous, Dylan slowly picked it up and opened it. All his hopes were crushed after reading what was inside the letter.

[Darling, I'll head to Norville first so you have plenty of time and may do your tasks without me interrupting you. I know you're just coming home because you're worried about me. Be at ease, Darling. I'm fine. I'll just be with Mom and my sisters. I am aware that you are occupied and have little time for me. I am aware of your situation and genuinely wish that you do not get married to her. I love you, Darling. I wish you luck. I'll wait for you. -Your Darling, Madison]

Dylan weakly placed his hands on the desk; suddenly, emptiness crept inside him. The thought of Madison leaving him because he couldn't spend some time and be with her makes him feel guilty. Especially when Madison thought that she was being a hindrance. Also, there was a time when he broke his promise to her when he said that he would go home but didn't. Right now, Dylan felt like he had run into a wall, not knowing what to do anymore.

Then, he went to the sofa and leaned on it, closing his eyes, thinking of how he missed her, his excitement in going here, and the despair after finding out that Madison had gone to her province without telling him personally. It was not that Dylan didn't want her to go home to her family. He just hoped Madison waited for him first and told him her plans so he could accompany her to her province.

Lost in these thoughts, his phone suddenly rang. He quickly snapped out of his thoughts and got excited, thinking it was Madison. However, when the caller ID indicated that it was Suzette, his shoulder dropped again, and he answered the call dejectedly.

"What's up? Weren't we just together just now?" Dylan asked and took a deep breath, a bit apprehensive though, thinking that something bad might have happened for Suzette to call him.

"Dad knows about our plan, Dylan. What should we do?" a desperate cry sounded from the other end of the line. No doubt, it was Suzette.

"What did you say?" he shouted, confused. What Suzette had said didn't seem to sink into his brain.

"Dad locked me up, and he wouldn't let me leave until the wedding day. We're hopeless, Dylan," Suzette exclaimed helplessly. Hearing this, Dylan felt even more powerless.

"I don't know what to do, Suzette. That's the only idea I have," Dylan weakly said, suddenly losing hope of getting out of this predicament. The wedding would be held in a few days, and Hades easily found out their plan and even thought of a way not to let it happen. On the other end of the line, Dylan could only hear Suzette's cry, making him feel powerless. Was there no other way to stop this marriage?

"How did this happen? Just a little time is all we asked! Why now?!" Dylan raged and kicked the table, frustrated because everything seemed to be going against him. At this point, he didn't realize that he, too, was crying as he kept tugging his hair. He roared, "Fuck that wedding! And fuck Hades to death for making our lives miserable!"

"What should we do, Dylan? How can we stop the wedding? I can't think of anything right now. I'm so useless!" Suzette exclaimed in anger.

"You're not useless, Suzette. It's just that your stepfather is a control freak and an asshole!" Dylan told her as anger welled up inside him for Hades.

"It's all my fault, Dylan. If I didn't tell him that I'm engaged, this wouldn't happen, and you won't have been put in a precarious situation. It's all because of me, Dylan. It's all my fault that we ended up like this," Suzette blamed herself while crying incessantly. For a moment, Dylan felt sorry for Suzette, but what could he possibly do? Dylan couldn't even think now that Madison, his strength, the only reason he was trying to get out of this marriage, had left him. He took a deep breath and thought of how Madison was still waiting for him.

"Don't blame yourself, Suzette. You don't want this to happen either. It's your stepfather's decision, so he is to blame for all this. We still have time left, and we need to think of another plan," Dylan insisted, his voice becoming more determined.

"How? I can't even get out of this fucking room! Tell me, how can I even help you?!" Suzette shouted in frustration. Dylan sighed when nothing came to mind. As Suzette didn't hear him answer, she cried again, "See? We are fucked up!"

"We still have time, Suzette. This time, we should think of a better plan. I know it's hard because it's only a few days before the wedding, but we should try, Suzette. If you don't want the marriage to continue, we should think harder of a better plan," Dylan stated. He tried hard to convince her because Suzette seemed to be giving in to their situation, and he shouldn't let that happen. He didn't want to leave Madison or the wedding to happen.

"How, Dylan? How can we think of plans if I'm locked up and guarded by many bodyguards? I won't be surprised if someone is also guarding you now," Suzette dryly said, making Dylan stiffen for a moment. Quickly, he walked towards the window and looked outside. Upon spotting some cars parked not far from the building, he realized that what she said was right.

"It's only right that Madison left. Otherwise, she might be involved in this chaotic situation," Dylan eventually said, trying to console himself. Still, his voice had a hint of sadness.

"Madison left you?" Suzette suddenly stopped crying and asked him. Dylan nodded mindlessly, not realizing that Suzette couldn't see him now. "I'm sorry, Dylan. You have a serious problem right now, and here I am, adding more," She weakly said.

"There's nothing we can do about this. It's good that Madison is not here so I could devise a plan without worrying about her wellbeing," Dylan said.

Suzette sighed on the other line. "Why don't you give us a try, Dylan?" Suzette said in a helpless tone, which made him freeze. Did he hear it right? Suzette was giving up and wanted to continue that wedding?

"What are you trying to imply, Suzette?" Dylan angrily asked. Hearing her suggest they go with the flow and continue that goddamn marriage made him want to explode in anger.

"Dad is powerful, and we can't go against him. Let's just continue the wedding since we get along easily. Maybe we can learn to love one another too," Suzette said.

"What the fuck, Suzette?! You know I can't do that! I'd rather die than hurt the one I love. I will find a way, Suzette! If I didn't come up with any better plans, I'd rather kill myself than be forced into this goddamn marriage!" he shouted, feeling mad and betrayed. How could Suzette easily give up? Didn't she say she loved her boyfriend? Furious, Dylan hung up the call and turned off his phone. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He should focus all his attention on finding a new suitable plan to stop this marriage.

He pleaded in desperation, his hands covering his face, "God, please help me. Help me find a way to stop this wedding. I don't want this to continue because I don't want to hurt the person I love the most. Let's just say I'm selfish, but I don't want to marry anyone but her. Please help me,

However, he always came blank whenever he tried to think of a new plan. Feeling helpless and tired, Dylan bent down and silently cried.