Chapter Ten
They waited and waited for the court's approval but in vain. Just like all legal systems take ages to respond, this was no different. Jayson repeatedly sent reminders yet the court seemed to take ages. Dustin was frustrated, Jade was impatient, Jaden lost hope, Jayson was relentless in his efforts but granny went about her work with a happy smile on her crinkled face.
"How are you not getting frustrated, granny?" Asked Jade.
"Courts have millions of pending cases. They will prioritize and set dates. It might take years or maybe just a few months if we're lucky. We have to be patient, dear," she explained.
Jade took a deep breath and tried to be as patient as possible.
At last after five long months, the court accepted the petition and gave permission to reopen the case. The date set for the hearing was after three more months.
They waited patiently for the hearing. Jayson was prepared and so was Chase.
Finally the day arrived and granny too went to the court along with many people of Travis Springs. Jade didn't have the courage to face Dustin. She stayed in her room and prayed. The whole day she couldn't eat a morsel of food. She was so nervous. She just sat down on her bed and just prayed.
By afternoon when Jaden called her, she trembled like a leaf, waiting for the news she had dreamt to hear for the last eight years.
"Jade, we've won the case. We've freed your Dustin. Jayson has applied for compensation from the state government on charges of false imprisonment and defamation. So Dustin would receive a lot of money as compensation. Now are you happy, Jade?" He asked softly.
Jade couldn't answer. Her voice was choked with tears of relief. Yes she was happy. The happiest she had ever been in the last eight years. "Yes, thanks Jady," she said and Jaden smiled.
"Today Dustin will be released and allowed to go home," he informed.
"Hmm," said Jade.
"See you later, bye, take care," said Jaden.
"You too," she answered. He hung up and Jade sat, unable to move. For years she had waited for this day and when it finally came, she was unable to go to granny's house and meet her Dustin. Her Dustin? No he wasn't hers.
She stayed at home fidgeting around in her room. Her mind was on what Dustin would be doing at home. He surely had arrived and was spending precious moments with his granny. She didn't have the courage to face him. What would she say? Hey, I've come to see you? How have you been? No. It's better to say nothing and stay at home.
Dustin came home at last after eight long years. His home and restaurant was just like he had left them. It was a miracle. He never expected that he would find things running so smoothly after he returned. His granny hugged him and cried with happiness.
She thought Jade would come to meet them but strangely she didn't. She found out from the boutique that she didn't come to work also. Dustin searched for Jade, thinking that she would be there to greet him, but when he realised that Jade wasn't coming to see him, he was very disappointed.
His granny told him everything that she had done for her and the restaurant. His wish to see her grew all the more. The next morning, he would search her out and meet her surely. He took a fresh shower and had his granny's dinner and went to bed, his cosy bed, his own room.
The next morning, he woke up early and showered and opened his restaurant with a new hope. It was a new beginning for him. He was free again. Granny too prepared the kitchen. Their employees came to work. Some of the people of Travis Springs came to greet him. They had coffee and chatted with him.
Afterwards the breakfast crowd came by and they got busy. Dustin managed the cash counters as before while granny handled the kitchen. Everytime the small bell on the door jingled to indicate someone's presence, he looked up, expecting Jade, only to find a customer in her place.
At last at 10:30 in the morning, Jade opened the restaurant door and came in. She slowly turned around and saw Dustin at the cash counter. Dustin stopped what he was doing and simply stared at her. She had grown so beautiful. She had bloomed into a woman of twenty-four. Her body had filled up so well. She had become taller and more curvy. Her eyelashes grew longer and her hair had grown too. Her complexion looked soft and creamy.
He wanted to get up and just take her in his arms and crush her to himself and kiss her like there was no tomorrow but with customers in the restaurant, he couldn't. So he just kept sitting there and staring at her with his jaws dropped.
Jade saw him, smiled shyly and went to the kitchen without a word. Was she ignoring him? Did she not feel happy to see him? He sat there, wanting to go to the kitchen and talk to her. Jade helped granny in the kitchen like always. For two hours she didn't come out. Dustin grew more and more impatient. When only one customer was left, he asked Richardson to sit at the cash counter and went inside to check what Jade was upto in the kitchen. He opened the door and stood watching Jade help granny make preparations for the dishes on the menu.
"Go and talk to your Dustin, dear," said granny with a smile.
"He's not mine," she said, pouting. Dustin's eyebrows went up in surprise at their topic of discussion.
"By the way, he now looks like a grumpy old man with so much beard," said Jade, chuckling.
Granny laughed. "That's true. I hate beards too," she agreed.
"So do I, eww," said Jade and continued with her chopping.
"I heard that," said Dustin in his deep husky voice. Both women whirled around and saw him. Granny chuckled and shook her head while Jade turned red as a tomato. She could feel Dustin's gaze on her and she kept chopping to just complete her work and escape from this place.
"So you have nothing to do than discuss me?" He asked.
Before Jade could say anything, granny said, "Don't say anything to her. She has a job to do after this yet she comes daily to help me. She won't come in your way Dustin. She'll just help me and go away, " said granny. Dustin just stared at granny. He wouldn't have said anything to Jade. He just wanted to hold her in his arms and kiss her senseless.
Jade completed her work. "Granny, I'm done for today, I'll go now," she said and opened the door of the kitchen and walked out. She went to her boutique to start her work.
Dustin felt frustrated as ever. He wanted to talk to her but he couldn't. She was gone for the day and he only had to wait for tomorrow to see her.
