Chapter 902 Threat
Hannah gawked at Austin, totally floored.
She'd purposely dodged calling him, planning to hash things out with her folks first.
What the heck was he doing here?
Catching her puzzled look, Austin grinned and chuckled, "Quentin hit me up just as I was getting back. I was right at the door, so I swung by."
"Oh, gotcha!" Hannah replied.
In her head, she was like, 'So that's the deal!'
Quentin was chilling in the farthest seat, with Hannah's mom, Lisa Lewis, on his left and Austin on his right.
Hannah scoped out the room, shut the door behind her, and was about to plop down next to Lisa, but Lisa nudged her towards Austin.
Lisa said, "Austin's here, why sit by me? Sit next to him."
Feeling super awkward, Hannah sat down next to Austin with a sheepish grin.
Austin, being all gentlemanly, poured her some water, cleaned the utensils, and handed them over.
"Thanks!" Hannah smiled, her hands nervously fidgeting on her thighs, fingers gripping her pants, palms all sweaty.
She was freaking out 'cause she had no clue how to start.
If she'd known Austin was coming, she would've talked it out with him first. They could've teamed up better to explain things to Lisa and Quentin.
Compared to her nerves, Austin seemed totally chill.
Austin asked, "Why'd you show up outta nowhere? Why didn't you give me a heads-up so I could pick you up at the station?"
Quentin looked at Austin with a pleased smile, "I came for a follow-up checkup, so I thought I'd swing by to see you."
Hannah immediately asked, all jittery, "Dad, you feeling okay? Why didn't you ask me to come with you? You guys aren't getting any younger, what if something happens?"
Quentin reassured her, "We're only in our forties, not ancient! Plus, your studies are so intense, we didn't wanna bug you."
Lisa chimed in with a smile, "Your dad's right. It's just a follow-up, no biggie, so we didn't wanna stress you out. Plus, Austin set up this professor, and he took great care of your dad! Answered all our questions."
Quentin nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah! Thanks to Austin, if it weren't for him, I might not be here! Hannah, Austin's really good to you and our family! Don't argue or throw fits with him. You two should stick together, and when you hit 20, we'll throw you a big wedding."
Hannah had psyched herself up to spill the truth.
But hearing all this, her words got stuck, and she had no idea how to start.
Lisa and Quentin were so into Austin. If she told them she and Austin had split, she couldn't imagine how mad they'd be.
Quentin and Lisa noticed something was off with Hannah.
Since she walked in, she looked off.
Lisa asked, worried, "Hannah, you feeling sick? Why do you look so pale?"
Hannah shook her head. Her smile was forced and awkward. To change the subject, she quickly asked, "No! Where's Oliver? You all came, what about him?"
Lisa chuckled, "He's in middle school now and can handle himself! When you were his age, you were already working part-time. He needs to learn to be independent too."
Even though their family was pretty well-off.
Oliver and Hannah had a sweet childhood and never really struggled.
But Hannah was always the responsible one. To help out, she started working early to make some cash.
While other kids her age were still under their parents' wings, she was already hustling.
Hannah nodded, "Yeah, he should learn to take care of himself! College isn't that far off."
Lisa added, "Exactly! His grades are all over the place. Who knows what college he'll get into! But I'm not expecting much; as long as he can support himself, that's enough."
Switching gears, Lisa turned back to Hannah, "Now, I'm more worried about you! It's been ages, why haven't you brought Austin home? We had to come all the way to see you. Is something up with you two?"
Hearing Lisa's words, Hannah was about to spill the beans about her breakup with Austin.
Austin caught on and squeezed her hand under the table, smiling, "Nah, we're good! I've been swamped with lab work, and Hannah's been busy with her internship. We've just been caught up with work! Once things settle down, we'll come visit together."
Quentin nodded, relieved, "As long as there's no problem, I was worried Hannah might do something rash and upset you."
Austin laughed, "No way! Hannah's always been sensible and obedient, never impulsive!"
Quentin agreed, nodding, "That's true, she's never given me a reason to worry."
Austin added, "Exactly! Hannah's so sensible and obedient, she wouldn't do anything to upset us!"
Watching them chat, Hannah thought of Charles, still lying in bed unconscious, and her heart ached.
No! She couldn't keep this up.
Since they had broken up, she couldn't keep stringing Austin along.
They needed to clear things up. If she didn't take this chance to set things straight, her 20th birthday was coming up, and Quentin would definitely push her to marry Austin.
With that in mind, Hannah found the courage and blurted out, "Dad, Mom, Austin and I have broken up."
The room went dead silent.
Quentin's words got stuck in his throat.
Lisa froze mid-pour with the tea.
Quentin thought he misheard and asked, "What did you just say? Say it again?"
Hannah lowered her head and closed her eyes.
The hardest part was saying it the first time. Since she already said it once, repeating it wasn't as tough.
Hannah repeated, "Austin and I broke up two months ago."
This time, Quentin was sure he hadn't misheard. He slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly, "What did you just say? Say it again."
The same words, but this time filled with threat.
His tone made it clear that "breakup" wasn't a word to be thrown around lightly. If she had the guts, say it again.
If she still saw him as her father, she should take back that word.
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