The Man I Became... Because of You (Completed)

The Truth is Out

Author Nim

Pete left the meeting with his mother holding a clear idea of what she wanted and some ideas of how to give her that while bringing the hotel into the new era. He didn't want to lose the luxury clients but he didn't want the new people who would now belong to them to feel like their hotel chain was ashamed of them.

It was all about finding the right balance and that would involve training.

He would have to make plans and set up schedules and some overtime pay would be involved. Could they handle the expenses?

He pulled up in front of that restaurant and walked in. He immediately spotted mom and went up to her.

"Good afternoon. I'll be right with you in a second." She looked up with a smile and froze. Then with shaky hands, she covered her mouth.

"Pete?"

He smiled softly and she came around the table with force, grabbing him into a hug and holding him to her chest as she sobbed her heart out.

Pete gripped her just as hard as she held him and let the tears drop from his eyes freely. She had sent him many letters while he was away and he had only received them after he had decided to come back home.

Reading them had made him laugh, cry and feel loved from this woman as much as he had from his own mother.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't reply to any of your letters."

"Oh baby boy. Ae told me you may never receive them but I was content to just write them. Oh our Yim is going to be so happy to see you."

"You can't tell her mom! I already spoiled it a bit by coming to see you now when Ae wanted me to wait. He has plans to surprise her on Saturday and I'm just going to go with it."

"Oh it will be hard but I think I can manage it. She should be home soon thought. Lessons always hold her back."

They sat and talked for a bit as her new workers took over the kitchen. She had hired quite a few young workers who were liking for extra cash and she even had an assistant cook when she used to do everything herself or get Ae and sometimes his friends to help her.

When Pete left, she hugged him again and kissed his cheek. He felt that she wanted to say so much more to him but it would all have to wait a little while longer.

Driving out, Pete spotted a group of young girls and imagined one of them could be Nong Yim. He smiled as he headed home.

Ae was supposed to have the day off the next day. Pete intended to go see him around 10. It would give them a lot of time to catch up and he was going to Ae's apartment so he could see all the different projects he was in the middle of. They also had the BBQ that afternoon to accommodate Diew who was leaving on Saturday at some random hour. The guy was too mysterious but even he had reached out to Pete on more than one occasion.

Walking into his room bought Pete face to face with the events of yesterday for the umpteenth time.

Was he angry that Ae left the way he did? Yes. The part that wanted Ae the most felt angry and rejected. That part didn't care about regrets and possible mistakes. It was just hurt, point blank.

But there was a more rational side of Pete that understood Ae's thinking. It was do or die and Ae realized that if this relationship was going to live again he would have to do the right thing because Pete wasn't in the right frame of mind to make that decision.

"Why did I have to be the needy one though?" There was also another irrational part of his brain that wished he had been the stronger one and stepped back, had pushed Ae out and sent him home instead.