Chapter 2 With or without your permission!

Chapter 2- With or without your permission!

Ruby sat on her bench, allowing the paintbrush in her hand to do whatever it liked on the canvas in front of her, while she thought about all that happened some hours ago.

Her dad wasn't the only one who was vexed by the brawl. She was mad about it too.

She needed to find a way to cool off, so she succumbed to her usual habit of getting a canvas to paint on.

Painting was what cooled her down. She found peace in it. She had always loved to draw and paint right from when she was little, and her dad always said that it was a gift she inherited from her late mum.

Thankfully, she was good at it too. She'd just graduated out of an art school, and she was thinking of starting up a gallery of her own. At least that way, she wouldn't be bothered and controlled by her father that much.

Painting was life for her. It was the only thing she genuinely loved doing. Whenever she felt sad or angry or moody, all she needed to do was to start painting.

She sighed absentmindedly as she scribbled on the canvas with the paint brush...

A light knock on the door intruded into her thoughts.

She knew who it was already.

"I'm not hungry, Aunty Ruth. Just go away", she said as she continued painting.

Instead of some peace and silence, she heard her door open.

She turned back immediately to see Aunty Ruth in her room.

"How did you get in? Did you use the spare key again?", She questioned with a frown.

"Well, no. It seemed you forgot to lock you door", Aunty Ruth replied with a smile.

Ruby humphed in frustration and continued painting.

"I told you I'm not hungry", she muttered.

"I heard, but that wasn't entirely the reason I came here", Aunty Ruth replied.

Ruby sighed.

"If you're going to preach to me about what happened earlier today, now's not the best time. I don't want to talk about it, please. If that's what you've come here for, please just go", she said, her eyes still on what she was painting.

"You know one thing I like about you?", Aunty Ruth asked.

"What?", She murmured as she continued stroking her paint brush on the canvas.

"Whenever you get angry, you don't throw tantrums like the other children. You don't yell and break things like a spoilt brat. You always end up translating your emotions on a white canvas", she commented.

"And you're a natural at it. You never fail to awe eyes that behold your drawing. No matter the situation or your emotions, they always manage to turn out as beautiful as you are", she continued.

She saw Ruby crack a smile.

"You always have a way to melt one's heart and crack your way into someone's emotions. That's why I told you not come in. I was scared you were going to melt my heart", she teased as she turned to her nanny with a smile.

"And it so happened that the angry fairy forgot to lock her door before the heart melter came in", Aunty Ruth replied with her own tease, and she managed to make Ruby laugh a little.

They both finally sighed.

"You know he loves you, right?", Ruth asked calmly.

Ruby nodded sadly.

"He was so worried about you today. He was thinking the worst of the situation, and you couldn't blame him. You told me that you were going to buy a few things, but you left for hours. He was scared. I was scared. He was just about to go search for you before you came in", Ruth explained.

"But I'm not a baby anymore. I'm a grown woman now", Ruby groaned.

"And he's still you're father. You're still his child", she said with a smile.

Ruby stared at her face.

She was getting wrinkles around her smile and on her forehead. she was slowly growing white hair. She was so kind and loving, Ruby could say she was a mother figure.

"I'll talk to him tomorrow, Aunt Ruby. And sorry for yelling like that. I was just..."

"I understand", Aunty Ruth said with a smile.

"Okay, let me leave you to continue what you were doing. Goodnight", she sighed and left.

"Goodnight, Aunty Ruth"

As Ruby resumed painting, she thought of the mysterious man she ran into earlier today. She didn't even get his name, but she found herself smiling as she thought of him.

"How does a man manage to be look rugged and also be strikingly handsome?", She questioned rhetorically.

********

The morning sun was shone brightly in the sky, and Ruby had woken up, feeling much better than she felt yesterday.

She'd gotten over with her usual morning abulation, and she went down the stairs to have breakfast.

She got to the dining room and saw her dad seated there, having breakfast.

"Good morning, dad", she greeted as she sat across him.

"Good morning, daughter", he replied, without looking her way.

She rolled her eyes at his response. Why did her father have to be so dramatic?

"I'm sorry for how I spoke to you yesterday, dad. I didn't mean to flare up like that. I'm sorry", she apologized, and waited for his response.

Mr. Lawrence dropped his spoon and reached for his daughter's hands from across the table.

"You know that I love you very much. The stunt you pulled yesterday, amongst the others you've been doing recently, they're giving me a lot to think about. You can't just leave the house without telling anyone of your whereabouts. I promised your late mum that I would make sure you stay safe and have the finest things in life. I promised her that I would protect you. Now, I can't do that if you keep going AWOL for hours, can I?", Mr. Lawrence asked.

"I have enemies everywhere, they can hurt you to get at me, now I'm not saying you can't have fun, but I need you to slow down a little. Promise me you won't disappear like you did yesterday", he requested.

"Fine, I promise", Ruby replied and rolled her eyes again.

"You know I love you"

Ruby smiled.

"I love you too dad", she said and they resumed eating.

"Now that that's out of the way, I want to ask for a favor", Ruby announced.

"What's that?"

"Promise that you'll say yes", she pleaded.

"Tell me what it is first"

"Okay... I want to travel out of the country with some of my friends for a couple of days for a carnival-"

"Ruby, we just finished settling a fight about your outing lifestyle seconds ago, and you're talking about another one?", Mr. Lawrence asked in shock.

"Dad, this one is very important... It's one that I can't miss... We're going for a concert out of the country, and we're only staying for a couple of days... Or weeks. It's just a small outing-"

"If it's a small outing, then I want to assume that it won't hurt so bad to miss it. You're staying back this time", Lawrence instructed as he stood up.

"Dad, please!! I can't miss this one for anything!! Please-"

"You will sit this one out. Have some time to think about yourself and how you've been acting lately", he said and walked away.

"But-"

"You're not going, Ruby. Period", he said and walked out immediately.

He had concluded that he probably needed to stand his ground the more before she could listen.

Ruby watched leave her dad the dining room until he was out of the house.

"I'm going to the carnival, whether you like it or not. With or without your consent, I must attend that concert. You're not going to make me miss out on the biggest show of my favorite entertainer", she muttered to herself, allowing a mischievous smile to crawl up her face.