4 - Cancer

"Is he awake?" An older voice asked.

"Not yet, sir." Mr. Robert's familiar voice replied.

"Just how hard did you knock him out?!" The older voice yelled.

"We're sorry sir."

"You're always sorry! Fools! Bunch of idiots!" The man yelled with a tsk sound.

A groan came from the man in the bed and immediately, the room fell silent. Arthur groaned due to the light that hovered above him, shining brightly.

He snapped his eyes shut and slowly peered them open to get adjusted to the light. Once he had adapted, his eyes looked around the room. 

The pure white ceiling that were covered completely with Plaster on Paris. They had intricate Gold designs at all four sides that touched the wall. His eyes fell on the window blinds that were silver in color.

A huge family crest was marked it on it. He knew it. He was there. He was in that house again.

"Are you awake?" Mr. Robert asked walking to his side.

"No, I'm about to pass out again." Arthur replied sarcastically sitting up. 

"I'm glad to see you're okay."

"After drugging me? That's all you can say? You're glad I'm okay?" 

"I'm sorry. I had to follow orders."

"Stupid orders..." Arthur murmured with a roll of eyes. 

"I'm leaving." He announced pushing the white duvet off his leg. He dropped his leg on the floor before he realized what he was dressed in.

"Where are my things?" He asked turning to Mr. Robert. The man grunted and looked away.

"You're not going to tell me? Forget it, I'll find it myself." He said getting up on his feet. He seemed a bit daze but he handled himself by gripping the headboard while his other hand was raised to stop Mr. Robert from approaching him.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm not dying. Just a bit dazed." He replied shaking his head. He walked towards the door when a cane hitting the marble floor stopped him.

He looked back at Mr. Robert.

"Is that who I think it is?"

"Welcome home, Young Master. I'll leave you two to talk." Mr. Robert said instead and bowed deeply before he exited the room.

A low sigh escaped Arthur's lips. He followed the man's body until they stopped on an older man's face.

"You look hazardous." The man pointed out.

A small chuckle escaped Arthur's lips.

"What was I expecting? You see me after 10 years and that's the first thing you say? I had high Expectations." Arthur spat with a glare.

"I'm merely saying the truth." The man replied sitting on the one seater couch in the room.

"Right. Well, enjoy doing that. Have a good life. I'm leaving." Arthur announced.

"Close the doors."

The door slammed shut in his face and he took a step back frightfully.

"Are you trying to kill me?!" He yelled with fury.

"Kill you? Of course not. Why would I kill my only son?" Mr. Rodrigo Duterte, Arthur's Father replied.

"Son? I'm not your son. We're strangers!" He spat with anger.

Rodrigo stared at his son. He had grown so much. As much as he had grown, his hatred for him had apparently grew as well. Not that he could say anything. What could he say that he hasn't said 10 years ago?

"I did not kill your Mother. You have to believe me."

"Believe you?! What nonsense are you going say next? To trust you?! I would do that maybe in another lifetime. Definitely not this one. Never." 

"Arthur, my son..."

"Don't call me that. Do not call me your son. You buried your son along with Mother the day Mother was lowered into the ground. I am not your Son. I hate you! I detest y-" 

"I have Cancer." The man said cutting him off. Arthur's arm dropped. He blinked once. Then twice. Then rapidly. He didn't want to believe his father.

"What?" He asked breathlessly.

"That's why I want you back home. I need my successor. The Doctors don't know how long I have to live. They say I might drop dead any day."

"No. No. You're not dying. You're lying to me. It's a ploy. You're trying to hold me down to make me stay home. Tell me it's a prank." Arthur whispered shaking his head. His heart was heavy. He had stayed away all these years and he still has cancer?! How dare he have Cancer?! How dare he think of leaving him all alone in this world? 

How dare he not take care of himself?! He hated him even more for this. 

"Rest up. Dinner would be brought soonest. I'm sure you're starving." 

The older man exited the room after saying this. As soon as the door closed behind him, Arthur fell to his butt. He kept shaking his head like an insane person.

"No. No, he's fooling me. It's a trick." He mumbled tears welling up in his eyes. Tears he did not dare to let it fall before his Father. He didn't want him to see him as weak.

Soon enough, someone knocked at the door to tell him it was time for Dinner. 

"Good Evening, Young Master. I am here to inform you that Dinner is ready. Your Father said to call you down for Dinner."

"I'll be down soon." He replied in a gruff voice.

"Yes, Young Master." The maid replied trying to hide the blush in her face. She stepped back and walked out of the room.

But what if it was true? What if his Father was actually dying? What if he was a few months away from becoming an orphan?

There was no medical reports. He didn't believe that cunning, crafty man. He could be lying for all he cared.

He stepped into the dining room to see his Father sitting at the head of the table. Behind him was a picture of their family. The same picture he had framed. Except this frame was bigger.

The face sitting on the chair matched the face of the man smiling in the picture. Arthur could remember slamming a stone on his Father's face in the picture when he was younger hence the broken screen of the Frame he had back at home. Speaking of which, where were his belongings?

"Come. Have your seat. Let's eat dinner." His Father announced tearing his gaze away from the frame behind him.

"I'll eat my dinner in my room." He replied shaking his head.

"Alright then. Sleep early. We're going to get all you'll need to be Arthur Duderte. The rightful heir to the Duderte Empire. We would go to the company later on. You should get to-"

"You keep saying 'we'. I never agreed to go with you. To go anywhere with you." I glared.

A tinge of regret and sadness flash in the older man's face but Arthur missed it. He could remember the day his 8 years old boy left home with tears streaming down his face. He remembered the look in his son's face when he walked into the hospital room that day.

He looked up to see Arthur was no longer in front of him. A low sigh escaped his lips and he dropped his cutleries by his fork. Mr. Robert who had been staring at his face looked away with a very quiet sigh.

"Get his dinner to him. We set out by 8 am tomorrow morning." Rodrigo instructed before getting up with the help of his walking stick.

"Yes, Sir." Mr. Robert replied with a bow and waved his hand. Immediately, five maids came running out in a straight organized line all holding a plate in their hands.

"Get the Young Master's dinner to him immediately." Mr. Robert instructed.

"Yes, sir." They replied in unison. He led the maids and walked up the stairs with the maids walking after him.

He knocked on the door and a come in came from behind the door. He turned the knob and stepped into the room.

"Good Evening, Young Master. Here is your dinner." The maids greeted.

"Just set it down." He said without turning to look at them.

The maids exchanged anxious glances. Place the Young Master's food on the floor? They wouldn't dare.

They turned to look at Mr. Robert.

"Set it on the table." He simply said. They bowed in response and walked to the coffee table in the room. They placed the food on the table and walked backwards with their head bowed and their hands folded in their stomach.

"Good Evening, Young Master." They greeted and exited the room. Mr. Robert shut the door and turned to Arthur.

"Aren't you leaving?" Arthur asked looking at the man.

"The Master said I should inform you that you're leaving as early as 8am tomorrow morning. You can leave the dishes by the door when you're done eating. The maids would come to pack it up without disturbing your sleep."

Arthur gave no reply.

"Well then, have a good night rest, Young Master."

"Stop calling me that." He said in a low growl.

"What, Young Master?"

"Stop calling me that!" Arthur yelled getting up on his feet with a glare.

"I... What would you like you to call me then, Young-" The man groaned when he realized he almost called him Young Master just now.

"Doesn't matter. I'm leaving anyways. I won't become a stupid rich kid who is nothing but a pawn in the hands of his Father. I own my life."

"I can only wish you good luck, Young Master. Have a good night rest." Mr. Robert said with a bow.

He stepped out of the room and closed the door with a soft clink. Arthur glared at the door and heaved a heavy sigh.

What did he mean by he can only wish him good luck? He rolled his eyes and walked to the window. He pulled the Blinds away only to see the windows handles had been snapped off. There was no way to open the window.

He looked around the room to see if there was truly no window handle. He searched hard and long, but he did not find it. He walked to the door and tried to open it only to see it had also been locked from outside.

That cunning old bastard...