The Gray Autumn's

Your Existence

Without the smile or hospitality that had been his trademark, Benjamin followed a servant who would take him to Edgar's study. "I hope Mr. Hillaire is not busy" said the gray-eyed man flatly.

"Mr Hilaire had just returned from Marseille" the servant replied, then stopped his steps at the door of Edgar's study. He then tapped it slowly. There was the voice of the owner of the room from inside, who invited him to enter. The waiter then entered. "Sorry to interrupt for a moment, sir. Outside there is Mr. Royce who wants to meet you" he reported with a polite and respectful manner.

Edgar did not answer. There was a short complaint from the lips of the fifty-two year old man. Edgar knew what Benjamin would discuss with him. "Where is he?" tanyakanya.

"I've invited her to wait in the living room, but Mr. Royce is forcing her to meet you. Now he was at the door" the waiter replied.

Edgar took a deep breath. There was no reason to refuse the man's arrival. Inevitably he had to accept an unexpected guest this time. "Just have him come in" Edgar breaks up in the end. The man stopped what he was doing and waited for the guest. Not long after, Benjamin appeared from behind the door. Edgar immediately corrected the sitting posture. He stared for a moment at the thirty-five-year-old man still standing before him. "What do I do for you, Mr Royce?" ask with intonation that sounds very rigid and forced.

"You must have known the meaning of my coming here" Benjamin replied with a very serious look.

Edgar was silent for a moment. After that, he moved from his seat. Arumi's husband walked up to the man who might be the first daughter-in-law in the Hilaire family. "Before asking about this and that, I think you should prepare yourself. Even if you insist, I won't tell you where Elle is" Edgar said.

Benjamin stared fixedly at the father of his lover. The quiet character of the one-child man was indeed beyond doubt. However, it was not until when the man could maintain his calm demeanor. "Before leaving, Elle had indeed said that she would definitely come back to me. But I don't know when. I don't like this way, after all. Our marriage was just counting the days from the schedule I had agreed with Elle, but now I don't even know where your daughter is. Please, Mr. Hillaire. Tell me about his whereabouts," Benjamin solemnly asked.

"Elle wants to calm down for a moment, and I don't want her to be distracted at this moment" Edgar said calmly.

"I'm not going to bother your daughter. I appreciate if he wants to be like that, but at least let me know where he is now" Benjamin asked again.

"After you know, what will you do? You're just gonna make Elle's mind go back to chaos. It's better to solve the problem with the little boy first, then confirm the decision with my daughter" said Edgar.

"I can handle Fleur well. You don't have to worry about that" said Benjamin, who immediately replied to a cynical smile from Edgar. A gleam of disbelief, clearly visible in the gray eyes of the fifty-two-year-old man. Benjamin could understand the meaning of the body language that Edgar showed him. This time, however, he was in a favorable position.

"Protected from whom do you mean? Protected from a ten-year-old? Is your attitude not too exaggerated, Mr Hillaire?" benjamin's protests still seek to control him. "Fleur is not a threat to Elle. He's just a kid who's afraid of being sidelined. All this time, I never brought a single woman before him. He was scared and felt threatened" Benjamin explained.

"Please tell me every reason, because one thing is certain that I won't say anything about Elle's whereabouts. You're just wasting your time in vain for coming here to beg me, "reject Edgar who also still looks calm.

"I always have plenty of time for the people I care about. So, for me nothing is in vain, Mr. Hillaire. I'm trying to balance things out, but it's all a process, '" Benjamin continues to convince his future father-in-law.

"Come on, Mr. Royce. You know if I never wanted your relationship, especially if I got married. But I don't want to see Elle sad. That's why I set aside a father's ego for his daughter. Why do you have to bother Elle? There are so many beautiful women in France, but why is it that my daughter is ...."

"Because there's only one Autumn that catches my eye," Benjamin sidestepped with certainty. "No need to explain how much I love your daughter. I'm sure that you can understand it well too. Therefore, please tell me where Elle is at the moment?" benjamin asked again with some urgency.

"I told you I would never tell you. Elle deliberately dodged for some time. It's too stupid if I show you where he is," Edgar's still standing.

"Until when? How long will Elle avoid me?" ask Benjamin who is starting to look troubled.

"Until he feels ready for all the decisions he will make" Edgar answered confidently.

"Is that not selfish? Don't you think about my side of the feeling? Come on, Mr. Hilaire! You and I are both men. You must know what kind of anxiety I feel, when the woman we love goes dodging. I don't like it this way" Benjamin protested quite forcefully.

Edgar was silent for a moment. Indirectly, Benjamin's words had reminded him of the time when he was chasing Arumi with all his might. Various ways have been done so that the woman is willing to accept her love. A moment later, Edgar shook his head slowly.

"I'm not going to stop asking you to tell me where Elle is. So take the time to look at my face more often" Benjamin said, again sounding very serious.