Some time had passed, and Adonis had already arrived in England. He was preparing to disembark from the plane.
—"Well... we're home. Time for a lot of preparations," —he said, happy to be back in his homeland.
Unnoticed by him, a couple of people were watching him from a distance. One of them, hidden in the crowd, whispered into an earpiece:
—"My lady, can you hear me? The young master has just arrived in the country. Do I proceed?"
—"Very well, do nothing. I'm about to arrive. Something told me that little brat would be back just today," —replied a woman on the other end of the phone, her voice firm.
Meanwhile, Adonis was leaving the airport.
—"Well... it seems it's true. There's nothing better than coming home," —he murmured to himself, relieved.
But as he looked up, he saw a perfectly familiar black car. He recognized it instantly.
He tried to turn around and disappear, but a subtly familiar voice stopped him.
—"Oh, but look who we have here..." —said a woman getting out of the car.
—"Oh! But... what do my beautiful eyes see? If it isn't my most precious mother!" —exclaimed Adonis with a cunning smile. —"What is Mother doing in this place? Don't you think your presence here will cause a commotion in less than two minutes..."
—"Don't think you're going to escape, my precious boy," —replied the woman, grabbing him by the arms with sweetness... and firmness.
She put him in the car without giving him any option, and the vehicle headed towards its destination.
—"Now then... could you explain to me why, when I arrived home, I couldn't find my son anywhere, and only found the receipt for a plane ticket to Greece? Would you like to explain, my beloved son, what is going on?" —asked the mother with a calmness that Adonis knew perfectly well was a facade.
She was very angry.
—"Alright, Mother, I'll tell you," —said Adonis, clearing his throat and choosing his words carefully.
—"You see... your dear son saw a very curious news item in father's study. And as you know, your son is extremely curious. Upon noticing that father had hidden such information, he couldn't let it slide. So, since it was so interesting, he took the first flight to Greece to investigate on his own," —he said in an overly formal tone, trying to soften the situation.
—"Are you telling me that the reason my eldest son isn't home is his father's fault?" —asked the mother, narrowing her eyes.
—"Yes, exactly that," —replied Adonis, believing for a second that he had gotten off scot-free.
—"You little rascal... do you think I'm going to swallow that story? As if I didn't know you. None of that is your father's fault. You are too curious! You probably saw the news, got excited, and before thinking twice, you were in another country," —she said, giving him a loving little tap on the forehead.
"Do you know why I'm angry, to begin with?" she asked firmly.
—"Because I went to another country without telling you... and because I'm still too young to be without you or father," —replied Adonis, lowering his head.
—"Exactly. What were you thinking, doing something so dangerous? Do you think we don't worry about you?" —she said in a softer, though still firm, tone. —"I know I don't spend much time at home, but you and your brothers will always be my priority. You three are our lives, your father's and mine."
Adonis, hearing this, knew he had done wrong... but at that moment, he shouldn't think about what had passed, but about what was to come.
—"And tell me... do you know where your father is?" —asked his mother with a sigh. —"When I arrived, I only saw the twins, being looked after by the butler."
"Hah! I'm not the only one in trouble... maybe I'll get out of this! Sorry, father, but your son can't be punished alone, —" thought Adonis, a smile on his face.
—"What, he didn't tell you? How could he do that? Sure, I'm one thing, but for Dad not to have told you... tsk tsk tsk..." —he said with feigned disapproval.
—"Don't think that will get you off the hook, little one," —his mother replied firmly. —"Well then, do you know or not know where he is?"
—"Alright, alright. Enough games... Dad went on an expedition in Egypt," —replied Adonis, resigned.
—"Ah... now it all makes sense. So that's also why you went to another country. So it wasn't just your fault. Now your father is going to have to listen to me... how could he leave you alone, especially those two little troublemakers?" —she complained, rubbing her forehead.
—"Exactly! Dad is the real culprit in all this. I'm just a little victim," —said Adonis brazenly, almost theatrically.
—"Believe me, son, that role doesn't suit you," —his mother laughed. —"But well... yes, a small but important part of the blame is his. When we get home, I'll decide what your punishment will be," —she added with a mischievous smile.
"Damn, I didn't get away! My last option will be to talk to father to intercede... besides, I need to find a way to return to Greece in two months. But there's still time..." —thought Adonis, looking out the window.
—"My lady, we have arrived," —the driver announced.
Hearing this, Adonis and his mother got out of the car. Before them stood the large family villa. From the garden entrance, two small figures came running excitedly towards them.
—"Big brother! We missed you so much!" —shouted the twins in unison, hugging him tightly.
—"'We missed'?" —repeated the father, raising a suspicious eyebrow.
—"Shhh, little ones," —Adonis whispered quickly, covering their mouths. —"As I see it, Father has also just arrived... which means he doesn't know I was away from home for four days. So, to not get me into more trouble... keep it a secret!"
—"Oh, Dad! How was your trip?" —said Adonis, trying to divert attention from himself and send it to his father.
Hearing this, the man turned to him and, with a smile, replied:
—"Good, actually. They found a thing or two, nothing very important... although there was a small issue. But if you want to know, I'll tell you later."
—"Oh, My beloved, it's a pleasant surprise to see you," —he added, approaching his wife.
—"I'm glad to see you too, but darling, we need to talk," —replied Adonis's mother in a serious tone.
—"Did something happen?" —he asked, noticing her concern.
—"Well, we'll talk about that later. For now, let's go inside and eat, I'm very tired at the moment," —said his wife, entering the foyer.
Later, they were all sharing a family dinner, talking about what they had done during the day. Finally, the awkward moment arrived.
—"Well, what did you want to talk about, dear?" —asked the father, putting down his cutlery.
—"Oh, right... I almost forgot all about it," —she replied, pausing her bite.
Her gaze hardened.
—"How could you possibly leave our children alone, without even mentioning it to me?" —she said seriously.
—"It's true, I didn't tell you..." —he admitted, —"but it was because the matter was urgent. I had to leave immediately. That said, I asked Adonis to tell you, so you could go to them. Since you told me you didn't have any meetings that day and the following days, I thought you could make some time and stay with them until I returned."
Hearing this, the mother slowly turned her head towards Adonis, raising an eyebrow with evident suspicion. She was about to speak.
—"Damn...! How could I forget that...?" —thought Adonis, feeling the blood drain from his face.
—"Well, let me tell you," —said his mother, not taking her eyes off him, "that your dear son not only completely forgot to give me your message... but he had the audacity to do something worse!"
Adonis squirmed uncomfortably in his seat as the father frowned, now directing his attention to his son.
—"Let's see, Adonis..." —he said in a grave voice, —"explain to me what exactly that so-grave thing you did was, for your mother to be this angry."
Adonis swallowed hard seeing his parents' gaze fixed on him. His mother with a furrowed brow and his father waiting for a serious answer.
He cleared his throat nervously.
—"Well... you see..." —he began, trying to sound formal. —"First of all, I must admit that... perhaps I forgot a small detail..."
His mother arched an eyebrow.
—"A small detail?" —she repeated, in a dangerous tone.
—"Yes, well... the detail of telling you, Mother," —said Adonis, forcing a smile. —"But before you start getting angrier, let me explain!"
The father looked at him in silence, arms crossed.
—"It turns out that I... uh... saw the news in the study. You know, the one about the archaeological find in Greece. It was too interesting to let it pass, and since I'm a responsible and curious son... I decided to investigate it personally."
His mother snorted.
—"Responsible? Curious? You went to another country without telling us!"
Adonis raised his hands in defense.
—"I know, I know! And I admit it! It was... a miscalculation. But I had it all planned out. Well... almost all of it. I bought a round-trip ticket, stayed in a decent hotel... I was careful."
The father stroked his chin.
—"And you thought that was enough?"
Adonis sighed.
—"I understand it wasn't right. But it's not that big of a deal either..." —he said, lowering his tone upon seeing his mother's look. —"Well... maybe it was a big deal."
He shrugged resignedly.
—"I'm sorry. Truly. I didn't mean to worry you. It's just that... I felt I had to go."
His mother took a deep breath, containing her anger.
—"Adonis... I love you. But I swear if you ever do something like that again without telling us, you won't even be allowed to go to the corner until you're twenty."
Adonis swallowed hard again, and then nodded with exaggerated solemnity.
—"Understood, Mother. Word of a rebellious but repentant son."
The father let out a brief laugh, though he cleared his throat immediately to become serious.
—"We'll talk about this later. Now finish your dinner."
Adonis sighed in relief, though he knew he wasn't completely off the hook.
The silence at the table became awkward after the scolding. Adonis looked down at his plate, pushing his food around with his fork, resigned.
But then, the twins—who had been curiously quiet until now—looked at each other, as if planning something in secret.
Veramut leaned forward with his best angelic smile.
—"Mom... Dad..." —he said in a honeyed voice. —"If Adonis has already apologized... can we forgive him?"
Vartemis, beside him, nodded energetically.
—"Yes! We want our big brother to play with us tomorrow! If he's punished, he won't want to."
Adonis raised an eyebrow, surprised.
—"Huh? You're on my side?" —he thought, unable to help but smile.
Vartemis turned to his mother with wide eyes.
—"Pleeease, Mom! Don't punish him too much!"
Adonis's mother put a hand to her forehead, sighing, but it was impossible not to smile a little at the plea of her younger sons.
—"You two are just as complicit as he is," —she said, pretending to be stern while ruffling their hair.
The father held back a laugh and coughed.
—"Alright, alright... Adonis is still in trouble, but we'll see how severe his punishment is. Perhaps... he can negotiate with these two pocket-sized lawyers."
The twins celebrated by high-fiving each other.
Adonis sighed in relief and leaned back in his chair, looking at his family with a touch of nostalgia.
—"I guess I'm really home..." —he murmured to himself, with a genuine smile.