Ariel froze in her seat as she realised Andy overheard their conversation. Leon bit his tongue in awkwardness.

"Was that man who tried to kill you both, my father?" Andy's lips trembled, eyes swelled.

"Darling..." Ariel placed her hand on his shoulder but he flinched it off.

"You lied to me! All these years I asked you who my father is but you never want to tell me. I hate you!" Andy ran off in tears.

"Andy, please!" Ariel ran after him and Leon followed after.

"Andy!" Ariel caught his arm, but Andy yanked it off. "Andy, I'll reveal to you everything, ok?"

"Liar! Why should I believe you? You tell me it's bad to tell lies, yet you do!" He squatted on the grass and buried his head in his folded arms on his knees and sobbed.

"Let me," Leon said to Ariel.

Leon squatted next to Andy and put his arms around Andy without saying a word. He let him cry it all out and patted his back. The cries of her son pained Ariel, ashamed and remorseful to have put him through this. She had tried so hard all these years to protect him from the awful truth about his father, until now.

"Is it true? That evil man's my father?" Andy rubbed his eyes, sobbing in between.

Ariel took a deep breath, "Yes, it's true."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I'm so sorry. I wanted to protect you."

Andy shook his head and glared at her, "Protect me from what?!"

"From getting hurt," Ariel bit her lower lip. "I'm sorry, darling. I wanted to tell you much later when you're older. But since you now know, I'll tell you everything."

"Tell me!" he bawled.

Nodding, Ariel proceeded to tell Andy the entire story of how she met Darryl, when they married and how he eventually left her for another woman who became his second wife.

"Did he not want to see me at all?" Andy lamented.

"He never made any contact. He may be your biological father, but he was not a father to you. That gala night, he only mentioned you to take advantage of the money he thought I had, not because he had any real interest or love in you. He did not even remember your name," Ariel sighed regrettably.

Andy sobbed even more. Leon stroked his head, "Andy, remember what I once told you? Not every father out there is good to their own kids. Be glad he was not involved in your life. He could've killed you too."

Andy sniffled and rubbed his nose, "Leon, do you hate me because I'm the son of that killer?"

Leon shook his head affirmatively and tightened his hand around Andy's shoulder, "Absolutely not! When I see you, I don't see that sadistic jerk. I see Andy - a bright, kind and wonderful boy who's very unique in his own right, and who's special to me."

"And to me," Ariel added with eyes swelling. "Andy, Mummy will always love you no matter who your father is. You are and always will be my child." She kissed his forehead and this time, he did not flinch.

Leon pinched his nose in between his eyes, trying to stop himself from welling up.

"Will I ever have a daddy?" asked Andy.

"That...I can't answer that," Ariel replied.

Andy looked at Leon with a poignant look, wanting to say something. Instead, he drew out along sigh and dropped his head.

"You may not have a dad, but you've got me," Leon assured.

Andy wiped away his tears.

"It's getting late, Andy. Let's head off home," Ariel helped her son up.

"I'll fetch you guys home," Leon offered.

Ariel raised her palm, "It's okay, I'll call my bodyguard to fetch us back."

Andy brightened up and ignored his mother, "Really, Leon? I never had you drive me before. Would love to!"

"Andy, we don't have to," she said through gritted teeth.

"Why not, mum? We're neighbours anyway. Let's go home together!" Andy insisted.

"Don't worry, Ariel. I rented a Honda," said Leon, knowing she would worry if she was spotted with him.

Ariel relented, "Alright then, just this once."

—————

Andy went up to his room and headed to sleep after bidding Leon farewell at the gate with a hug, leaving him and Ariel alone.

"Thank you," Ariel said to Leon.

"What are friends for, right?" Leon tested her reaction.

She somehow felt sad at the word "friends". "You better go, it's quite late now."

"Aren't you inviting me in to see your house?" He peeked inside the interior.

Ariel took a deep breath, "I can't. I would love to if it was not for-"

"Hiroshi." He completed her sentence.

Ariel hesitated.

"Listen, Ariel," Leon grabbed her shoulders. "He's no right to do this to you. The Fujitas just don't want you to see me."

"Don't make this any more difficult for me than it already is," Ariel pleaded.

"If you stay on with them, you're going to lose your mind," he held her hands in his. "Come back to me, Ariel. Come back and be my chef again."

"What?" she frowned, "Are you out of your mind?"

"Is it so bad working for me?"

"You think working for you was that enjoyable?" Ariel took her hands off his. "First of all, your pay's crap. Your hedonistic lifestyle is something I don't like and I won't want to expose my son to. I won't subject myself anymore to your empty threats of firing me and pushing my buttons as and when you see fit, to your delight. And of course, your womanising ways are a one big turn-off!" She snapped, angry that he dared touch her, angry that he dared request for her to come back to him after breaking her heart.

Leon folded his arms, "Don't you remember saying you did not love me? Then I wouldn't have slept with that model!"

Ariel was appalled by his defiance, "I did not say that. Back then, you stomped off before I could finish my words!"

"R-really?" Leon gathered his brows as he tried to remember. 'So, you really did love me?"

Ariel cleared her throat, "Does it matter anymore? Anyway, what's done is done. It's all in the past." She turned to walk back into her house.

"Answer me, Ariel. Do you still love me?" he stopped her.

She tried to let go of his grip on her wrist but it got tighter.

"Let go!" Ariel grabbed her own hand, rotated her wrist around his grip and slide it out with ease, a Krav Maga defense move she learned from Hiroshi.

Leon was taken aback. She had changed so much. The once shy and naive girl he once knew was now a confident, tough woman.

"Can you please leave now?" she remained firm.

"Fine," he raised his palms in defeat. "But there's something of mine that I came to get which you stole."

"Something of yours?" Ariel sniggered. "Ridiculous. Evan checked all my belongings before I left. I did not steal anything from your house."

"Yes you did," he insisted with gritted teeth.

"And what's that?"

"My heart!"

He pulled her towards himself and plundered her lips with a punishing kiss.

Ariel was terrified and electrified at the same time. It happened all too suddenly that their lips were in gridlock. Leon's eyes were closed in passion, but her eyes were open in shock. Ariel beat upon his shoulders to get him to stop but she found herself drowning in the moment too.

Resilience!

She snapped out from the spell when Hiroshi screamed in her head. She pushed Leon away, leaving them both gasped for air.

Oh, those soft lips, how he missed them.

"Don't do that to me again," she cautioned as he eyed her intently.

"Really?" Leon smirked. He went forward for another dive.

"Stop it, I'm warning you," Ariel pushed him away again but he resisted and held onto her collar, aiming for another dive.

She grabbed his hand on her collar, twisted her body to the side and pressed his elbow down, causing him to kneel down as a result.

"Ow!! Stop, stop!" Leon pleaded.

Ariel released her grip. He stood up and rubbed his painful elbow, "Are you crazy?" He seethed, shocked at how she aggressively dislodged herself from him when previously, she never once fought back except for that slap.

"Don't you ever dare touch or kiss me without my consent, you pervert!" Ariel teared up as his rash actions brought back painful memories of how he was impulsive towards her, even as far as causing scratches on her skin. "I'll not let you hurt me anymore!"

Pervert? Hurt?

Leon tried to resist the temptation of bursting expletives at her. Instead, he took a deep breath, "You've any idea how much I miss you? Not one day passed that I regretted losing you." Leon raked his hair back and looked like he was about to crumble, "You're right, I'm sorry, so very sorry. It's wrong of me to push myself on you."

Ashamed, he hurried out of her gate, leaving Ariel perplexed as her fingers touched her lips which were still tingling from the kiss. She caught a glimpse of a stocky-built man with Zappa beard and tattoos smoking across the street, staring at her. Was that the scary man Andy once mentioned? Uncomfortable by his eery stare, Ariel went back inside the house.