Astraea

The whole Villan family enjoyed the sumptuous dinner that Daniella and Brylee prepared for Lorcan. They ate at the long dining table that Rowan especially placed at the main courtyard of his house for this kind of event.

They were now chatting and drinking wine catching up with what's going on with their lives since they all have their own family now except for Lorcan.

Some of them were still on the table and seemed to can't get enough of Daniella and Brylee's dishes that they can only have for free at the comfort of their home. Others would have to reserve a table at one of Daniella's fine-dining restaurants to get a taste of these dishes.

Three kids were running around. They were the younger cousins of Bell, Brylee, Briony, Brina, and Bianca.

Lorcan was just sitting on one of the accent chairs with a glass of whiskey in his hand. While the others were drinking wine, he preferred his alcohol hard at this moment.

He looked cold, aloof, and forlorn.

"Okay, time for gifts!" One of their aunts clapped her hands.

One by one, their cousins, uncles, aunts, and their parents gave Lorcan their birthday gift. Lorcan is not the type of person who enjoys receiving or giving gifts. He thought that it was too childish. Brylee told her sisters not to prepare a gift for their Uncle for she had already prepared something for him. It will already count as a gift from the five of them.

When it was time for them to give their gift, Brylee took a step but she seemed reluctant to release the box on her hand. This could be the last of Lydia's creation and she doesn't want it to go to waste if her Uncle would just look at it with disdain. It should be cherished.

Brylee has become a big fan of Lydia and her designs and she wanted to be the owner of her last creation if she did ever stop designing. But she has to take chances, maybe this will help her Uncle open his mind and realize what he lost.

Brylee is not in her usual cheery attitude. Usually, she would start talking and saying nonsense. Asking questions that sometimes too personal. But not today, she seemed grumpy and sad at the same time. And her sisters noticed it making them look at each other quizzically.

"I don't know if you will like this, but if you don't just give it back to me and I will definitely treasure it," Brylee said with a stern face.

Lorcan looked at her with a frown then his gaze landed on the box in her hand. His frown deepened when he recognized the box. When he came to Miliani two days ago, the first thing that he did just like he always does is scan the perimeter making sure that the place is safe for the person who resides inside the boutique. And the first thing he notices is the familiar car parked in front of the boutique.

He immediately recognized it as Brylee's car making his mood darken. He hates her for being nosy but he just cannot bring himself to hate her as a person. It is in her nature anyway. It's what defines her. He just cannot understand why she has taken a fancy in his love life if there is any love in his life by the way.

When he saw Brylee walked out of the boutique, he immediately noticed her crestfallen face and the black box on her hand. Did something happen? He thought internally but when she raised her head and their eyes met despite the heavy tint of his car he was convinced that something did happen by the way she glared at him.

The box she is holding now is the same box that he saw her holding outside the boutique. Now, he realized what his beloved niece had done. Taking the box from Brylee he mumbled as simple thanks.

Knowing what could be inside, he doesn't want to open it in front of his family. But one of his sisters-in-law is much too eager to see what's inside. Seeing the fancy way the gift was wrapped, they wonder what could be inside it.

Opening the box, he found a classic and sophisticated suit inside. With one look, he knows who made them. He is too familiar with it. Because all of the suits he owned were created by the same designer.

"Wow, it looks sophisticated and expensive," One of his sisters-in-law commented.

"And by the looks of it, I could tell that it is expertly crafted using fine fabrics." One of his brothers stated while admiring the suit that is laid on the box. There was a hint of envy in his voice. It seems that he wanted to have the same suit.

"And Uncle, please, if you are going to accept it and just throw it away, don't. Just give it to me." Brylee pleaded to make Lorcan look at her with irritation.

"Oh! Come on, Brylee! Why would your Uncle throw such a fine suit? You are talking nonsense." Daniella scolded Brylee though her tone is not at all angry.

Brylee looked at her mother then at her uncle and just shrugged her shoulders.

"Sweetheart, where did you buy that suit? Maybe you can get me one as well." Rowan said. It is obvious that he liked that same suit and is envious of Lorcan for having it. His brothers said the same thing.

"It is custom-made, Dad, by my favorite designer. I wish I could commission her to make the same one for you as well, but unfortunately, that suit might be the last of her creations," Brylee paused to look at her Uncle's reaction and she swears that she saw emotions that she cannot describe from his face. "...for now."

And because she is not sure, Brylee didn't tell them that the designer might be stopping from designing for a while. And at the same time, she didn't tell them that that certain designer is already gone, for good. And she doesn't know if she'll ever be able to see her again. Only her Uncle Lorcan could tell.

"Are you sure?" One of her Uncles asked her regretfully and she just nodded her head. "You mean that suit is probably that designer's last creation?" He added and Brylee nodded her head again.

"May I know the name of that designer?" One of her Aunts asked.

Brylee looked at her Uncle and said the name, "Lydia Hale,"

Lorcan's lips quivered at the mention of the name that he hasn't heard, seen, or mentioned for quite some time now. His mind is in a total mess and he just stared at the suit on his lap.

Her last creation.

The words stuck in his mind followed with a question, why. Why would she stop doing the thing that she loves doing? It is her passion, her dream. Why would she stop? What made her stop? He had seen how passionate she is at her work. It is her bread and butter. She is so good at it that she received praises and offers that could make her wealthy and popular in this industry but she refused them.

When he asked why she refused those offers, she just said that it will only pressure her. She doesn't like doing what she loves to do under pressure. She loves to design, she loves to create something out of her imagination. And she wants to take her time doing it. Relishing every second while creating a masterpiece.

Her designs became famous. Her brand became famous. Her boutique became famous. Her name is famous but not her face. She would rather stay behind the curtain than be in the limelight that might take away her tranquility. That's just her. And he admires and respects her for that.

"Lydia Hale. I've heard and read about her but I've never seen her. I didn't expect that you are acquainted with her, Brylee." Daniella commented.

"What happened?" Briony asked Brylee as soon as the five of them were left alone.

"She's gone," Brylee said regretfully.

Brina's eyes widened. "What do you mean gone?"

"I didn't realize you would be interested," Briony commented looking at her twin sister like what she said is something that she would never say.

"By just looking at Uncle Lorcan, it made me wonder," Brina said softly.

The five sisters looked in the direction where their Uncle Lorcan is still sitting. He looks grumpy and conflicted. Though he had already closed the box where the suit is, it is laid on the coffee table in front of him. He is looking at it as if it would talk to him and answer the questions that were lingering in his thoughts. His thoughts were not there and seemed like they drifted to someplace to find answers to his questions.

"There is no sadder sight than a young pessimist," Brina mumbled to herself.

Briony and Brylee looked at her as if she had grown two heads. "Brina, what have you been reading these days?"

"Classics," Brina replied softly then she raised the glass of wine to her lips.

"You think he is a pessimist? I've known Uncle Lorcan as an ambitious person. He is not afraid to ask and pursue what he wants. Nothing could stop him. And he is confident that whatever he does, will have a positive outcome. No matter how dire the situation is, he will make sure of it. He is anything but a pessimist." Brylee stated. She might be a prying person but it sometimes made her understand a person better than others.

"Pessimistic people tend to hide their true feelings. That is what Uncle Lorcan is doing, he is holding back his emotions. Maybe he is pessimistic about love. There is something that causes him to think that he doesn't deserve it." Brina replied, still looking at Lorcan without noticing that she already emptied her glass of wine.

She was startled when Bell snatched the glass from her hand. "That's your second glass and that's enough. It makes you talk too much and it is scary." Bell reprimanded Brina.

"So, what do you mean by she's gone?" All four sisters looked at Bell with astonishment on their faces. Among them, Bell would be the least they expected to ask that question.

"What?" Bell raised a brow at them.

After a while, Brylee told them that Lydia left for good and that her place is up for sale. She also told them that she had seen their Uncle near Lydia's place and that he seemed oblivious of the fact that Lydia is gone.