4. Archer
Chapter four
Archer
W alking out of the room, I sighed as I only had a little time to myself before entering my last class.
Sadly the short days like these wouldn’t last long as we’ll be getting our actual schedules next week that have all of our majors and shitty activities they want us to take part in.
The choices from playing an instrument to horseback riding and everything in between and out didn’t interest me. It was all just a way for us to pay more.
The majority of the school majored in business, marketing, finance, and so on. The others who didn’t have these majors had to minor in one of the business categories solely because the academy was “preparing” us for the industries we would inherit.
Though some students wanted to major in completely opposite fields and went to different schools, to keep their educational status high, they still stayed somewhere in the academy.
The only upside in all this is that my classes would shift, and I most likely will have a course with Delilah. I hadn’t seen her since our encounter, and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t always looking around to see where she would be.
“You’re starting to reach stalker mode, buddy,” I heard Sterling, my... “friend” say.
“Do me a favor and piss off,” I muttered, and he chuckled.
We continued to walk down the hall, and I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I pulled it out and sighed as I read a message from my father.
Do me a favor and stop by the office. I need to go over a few things with you. You can bring that Sterling boy, too.
“We need to go to my father’s building. He needs me for something, and you’re coming too.”
“You know, if I knew agreeing to be your friend would lead me not to make a decision in what I do, would I have accepted?”
“You do know it was you who asked me to sit with you in kindergarten at lunch?” I retorted, and he tilted his head.
“I don’t recall me asking you how we exactly met,” he said, and I rolled my eyes.
“Exactly my point.”
We exited the building and went over to my driver. He opened the car door for us, and we made our way over to my father’s building. Upon arrival, I only noticed Sterling starting to put on his seatbelt.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked him, and he groaned.
“I regret coming, Archer. I just realized how scared I am of your dad,” he admitted, and I sighed.
“Sterling. It’s literally for less than a few hours. Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”
“That’s what she said,” he muttered with a straight face, and I exited the car.
“Get out.”
“Okay, okay... I’m coming.”
I gave him a look that dared him to say, “That’s what she said,” again. He took notice of my glare and got out of the car quietly.
It took one episode of The Office . One episode, and for the last five years, he’s made my life straight hell. With his ginger hair and annoying personality that tormented mine, it was no wonder I found myself often comparing him to the devil.
The doors opened for me, and immediately, I was approached by my two assistants.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Lockwood and Mr. Reynolds,” Jack greeted, taking our jackets.
Nicole spoke. “Sir Lockwood requests you visit him in his office when you are situated.”
I nodded my head.
Sterling said, “I’ll take my usual coffee. And look around to see if you can find me a donut or two.”
The two of them nodded and immediately walked to the breakroom to retrieve coffee and donuts. We walked to the elevator, and I spoke.
“They’re my assistants, Sterling.”
“Our assistants, Archer; the word is ‘our.’”
I pressed the button to close the elevator, and I leaned my head against the wall.
After grabbing the reports from one of the lower floors, we continued ascending the building. Once we reached the top, I walked into my office and saw our jackets and school bags, along with Sterling’s requested coffee and donuts. After getting settled with everything, we left my office and headed towards my father’s.
I stopped in my tracks as I saw someone walking towards us. Once he looked up, a smirk came across his face.
“Archer. What a pleasant surprise.”
“Luca. I wish I could say the same,” I said, and he chuckled.
“Hello to you too, Little Red,” he greeted Sterling, and I ignored Sterling’s look of disgust.
“What exactly are you doing here this time?” I asked impatiently, and Luca tilted his head.
“I’m sensing a great amount of hostility directed towards me. Why is that?” he asked, and I ignored him as I continued.
“Your father is here, isn’t he?”
“He sure is,” he answered in the same cocky tone, and I disregarded him.
Ever since we were young, Luca and I have been forced to be acquainted with one another. It’s not that I didn’t like him—actually, no. I don’t like him, I never have, and the feeling is very much mutual.
He was extraordinarily entitled and thought the world revolved around him, and that trait was not uncommon in this kind of environment. Our fathers have been business partners for over five years, and sadly, their partnership didn’t look close to being over.
“Well, we’ll be on our way. My father is expecting us,” I said, trying to end the conversation, and he nodded.
“Oh, of course. I was stepping out for a minute, so I’ll be joining you soon.”
I walked past him, and I heard him speak again.
“By the way. I hear Russel’s daughter returned to the academy.”
I stopped in my tracks and looked over to him.
“And?” I asked, and he shrugged.
“Oh, nothing, I just wasn’t aware if you knew... She’s a pretty little thing, isn’t she?” he remarked with a distinctive look in his eyes, and I felt my anger rise slowly.
Sterling grabbed my shoulder before I could do anything.
“Luca, don’t,” I almost snapped, and he turned with a playful shrug, thankfully not saying another word.
“Don’t let him get under your skin,” Sterling advised, and I remained silent as we continued walking.
Luca always knew how to get me riled up and angry. Calling Delilah… calling my princess… a pretty little thing? He’s practically asking me to kill him.
We entered my father’s office, and once he saw me, he smiled.
“Afternoon, gentlemen,” Andrew, Luca’s father, greeted, and we responded curtly.
“How was your first day back at the academy, Archer?” my father asked, and I shrugged as I took a seat.
“Uneventful and meaningless, but other than the fact that I didn’t want to be there for even a mere second, it was fine.”
“Splendid,” he replied, disregarding the first half of my sentence. “Soon enough, there is going to be a charity event, and because Andrew and I have invested in some of the pieces of art being auctioned, I would like your assistance in planning so we can schedule the official date.”
“Seems doable,” I responded, and he nodded.
“Let’s start planning then, shall we?”
Delilah
Sitting at my desk, I sighed as I looked at my options for extra classes. Obviously, I would be taking ballet classes since I have danced all my life. Excitingly, my dance teacher, or rather grandmother, teaches the courses at the academy. Even though she’s getting a little older, Madam Alexandrova hasn’t lost any of her old habits.
However, I had to choose a few more things to do, and it became difficult. I didn’t need to learn a new language because it required that we know at least ten by freshman year in high school. I’m already enrolled in some sport, so I didn’t want to overbear myself, and everything else didn’t seem appealing.
“Knock knock,” I heard my mother’s voice, and I looked over to her.
“Mom, I need your help,” I said, dragging out my words, and she giggled as she came to stand beside me.
“What’s up, buttercup?” she asked, and I pointed to the papers on my desk.
“I don’t know what extracurricular to choose.”
She looked at my sheet, which had a few things crossed out, and question marks next to them.
“Why don’t you do student government with Kimiko?” she asked, and I shook my head.
“She’s running for president soon, and no offense to Kim-Kim, but that sounds boring.”
“I feel offended,” Kimi said, walking past my room as she was on her way to go home.
“Love you, Kimi,” I said back to her, and she only hummed as she walked away.
“Learn another language. Your father is still learning new languages in his free time. It’s not too late to catch up to him.”
“That’s because he’s insane.”
She nodded. “I know. It sucks for me, too. He forced me to learn Spanish and French in our second year of marriage.”
I laughed at her words, feeling slightly sorry for her. “But you love him.”
She sighed as she stared blankly at the wall. “Sure, I guess.”
I rolled my eyes at her answer, and she giggled as she spoke again.
“I’m just kidding. I love him, even if he is on the verge of being clinically insane.”
“That is your version of some sick joke, right?”
In response, she just smiled at me and kissed my head. “Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. You can go freshen up. I’ll let your brother and sister know, too.”
She left my room, and I went into the bathroom to prepare for the night. Pulling my hair into a loose ponytail, I put on my cropped light blue long-sleeve and a pair of gray tights.
Hearing the door open, I laughed as I heard footsteps running to the door and the scream of my sister Ivory.
“DAD’S HOME!” she said excitedly, and I lightly jogged to catch up with her.
We see him every morning and every night, but it’s always been this way. Since we were younger, we always cherished him being home, as there were times when he would need to go overseas unexpectedly, and he’d been gone from home for a while.
We went down the stairs to see him still at the door as he held Trinity and Tyler, who were saying “Da” continuously as they patted his face. He kissed both of them on their foreheads and handed the two over to Benjamin as he gave Ivory her long-awaited hug.
“Hi, Daddy,” she said, and he kissed the top of her head.
“Hello, my darling. How was your first day?”
“It was great! I first went to homeroom, which was boring as usual, but then we got to see—”
And that’s when I started to tune her out. After a good minute of her rambling, Dad chuckled. “That all sounds great, sweetheart. Let’s talk more when I’m settled, hmm?”
She nodded and pulled away.
I walked over to him, and he smiled. “Hey, Dad.” I hugged him, and he hugged me, swaying us back and forth slightly.
“Hello, sweetheart.”
“I’m beginning to think there’s some favoritism going on here,” Zachary said, interrupting the moment, and I rolled my eyes as I stepped out of my dad’s arms.
“Don’t be jealous, Zach.”
He scoffed, “I’m not jealous.”
“We all know you are, honey,” Mom said as she came over and hugged Dad. Zachary rolled his eyes as he mumbled a few choice words that, thankfully, our parents didn’t hear.
Soon, Mom pushed us away to the dining room so we could sit at the table for dinner. I squealed as I saw Uncle Blaine standing by the fridge in the kitchen.
“Uncle Blaine!” I said happily, and he looked over at me.
“Hey, kiddo,” he replied, and I walked over to hug him.
“What are you doing here? I assumed you would be having dinner with your wife and children.”
“See, that’s the thing. Maia is cooking lasagna, and silly me, I forgot to let someone know that we needed pasta. So I wound up here because your butlers keep this place stocked like a damn grocery store.”
I giggled at his words, and my father’s voice rang out. “Blaine, get the hell out of my kitchen.”
He whined, “But Kiki, I need pasta.”
My father entered the room and sighed. “For once, Blaine, after a long day, I’d love to have a good evening with my family. You and Eugene know you’re only permitted here for special occasions or when invited.”
My mother pushed my father out of the way. “You and these restrictions on our family are getting out of hand. Blaine, honey, what’s wrong?” she asked.
“I need pasta, Bribri, or I can’t go back home.”
She smiled. “Take as much as you like. I’m sure Killian will understand... won’t you, Killy?”
My father sighed as he turned away to sit at the table. “You have sixty seconds to get what you need and leave.”
Uncle Blaine grabbed a bag and quickly got as much as he could. I tossed him a jar of Nutella for his five-minute walk home, and he blew me a kiss.
We went over to the table, and eventually, our food was served. And as expected, my father began discussing upcoming plans.
“I have a charity event to attend soon, and you three will accompany your mother and me,” he began, and I nodded as we listened. It was normal for him to take us to his events. Only recently did Ivory start coming along with Zach and me because she was a bit younger.
“And though this event will be another great experience for you all... Calvin is a part of the committee hosting the event.”
The entire room went quiet, and even Trinity and Tyler didn’t mumble or babble in their baby talk. My mother looked at me, and we stared briefly at one another before Dad continued, “We will ignore him and his family as we’ve done so before. The Crawfords are also attending, meaning there could be some confrontation, but I expect it will be minimal.”
I nodded, though in the back of my mind, knowing Archer, it wouldn’t be as easy as my father was making it out to be.
“Now that we’ve discussed that matter, Delilah, I never got to ask. How was your first day back at the academy?”
He leaned down to pick up my bag, and he handed it to me as he spoke.
“Pathetic. Do you honestly think I wouldn’t have found you?”
“Keep to yourself, and you won’t have to find out, sweetheart.”
I looked over to my father and gave him a small smile.
“My day was pretty... eventful, to say the least.”