Chapter 2 - She betrayed me again

I closed my eyes as I slipped a few meters along my bike. For a few seconds, everything was chaos. I could hear my shrieks, growls, howls, and other cracking sounds, but it all stopped suddenly. I was scared to my core, but after a few seconds, I opened my eyes... (yeah, if I am going to be the food of some animal, then I should at least know which animal’s feast I am going to be)... I opened my eyes slowly and found myself all alone there. My bike was above my left leg, and my whole body was hurting.

I groaned in pain and tried to move my body, but I was unable to feel anything but pain. I started taking deep breaths. There is not even a 0.01 percent chance that anyone will cross this road at this hour, and I am afraid that animals will not leave me alive until morning. I took another deep breath and tried to move my body. I was struggling when I heard a low growling sound from the woods.

“Damn,” I cursed under my breath and pushed the bike a bit away, and finally, my leg was free. I quickly got up from the ground despite the pain and looked all around me in panic. My eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the darkness, but the silence around me freaked me out... (was that my hallucination?)

I turned towards my bike and picked it up from the road. I could feel the pain on the left side of my body, but right now, my concern was to get myself away from this messed-up situation. I sat on the bike and started it. The roar of the engine sounded like a melody to my ears. I didn’t have time to check for any issues with the bike because, to be truthful, it would be nothing but pure foolishness.

I didn't even look around, but I could feel someone's gaze. I rode my bike as quickly and safely as I could. When I reached my place, I thought of checking on my bike, but as I still couldn't shrug off that feeling of being watched by someone, I quickly climbed the stairs and went inside my one-room home. I shut the door from inside, went to the window, and looked towards the woods. I couldn't see anyone there, but the feeling of being watched was hard to shrug off. I pulled the curtains and turned off the light.

After waiting a few minutes, I still didn't see anyone coming out of the woods, which finally calmed me down. I sat on the floor and sighed. My whole body was sore, and I was sure my clothes were ruined.

I turned on the light and went in front of the full-length mirror. I discarded my now-tattered jeans and hoodie and looked at my bruised self. The left side of my body was grazed and bleeding. 

The left side of my leg, my hands, and my waist were bruised and had several cuts and scratches. I went towards the cabinet and took the alcohol bottle from there. I drank a little first and then used the alcohol to clean the wounds. It hurt like hell, but that wasn't something I had done for the first time. When I finished cleaning my body, the bleeding stopped. I was about to sleep when I realized that my hair also had a little blood. I groaned and finally went to take a bath. I went in front of the full-length mirror again and applied medicine. When my eyes landed on my face, I felt a pinch in my heart.

I am a replica of my mom, with the same beautiful face and brown eyes. The only difference between us is that she had long waist-length hair all her life, and I have had shoulder-length hair for most of my life. I went towards the bed and slumped on my right side without bandaging my wounds. Let's not think about those things now; it will only hurt me. I didn't know when I fell asleep, but the last thing I remember was trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in without being in so much pain.

I woke up to the sound of someone insanely knocking on the door. At first, I decided to ignore the knocking, but as soon as Drake's voice rang in my ears, I groaned in annoyance and shouted that I was coming. I removed the duvet and wore one of my extra-large t-shirts. As soon as I opened the door, he barged in like the madman he is.

"What the hell, kid?" he shouted, which did nothing but annoy me more.

"Can you please keep your voice down?" I said to him in irritation and took the mobile from the table. I groaned in annoyance as soon I realized it was just five in the morning. "Who the hell comes to someone's place this early?" I cursed. When he didn't say anything, I looked at him and found him looking at my leg, which made him angry.

I closed my eyes and sat on the bed for his usual scolding, "Kid, you should not do that... kid, you should do that," and so on.

“I am not going anywhere until you tell me everything that is happening in your life,” he said and sat on the chair with a stern expression. I looked at him to see if he was serious, but when he gave me the same look for a few continuous minutes, I knew he was seriously serious about this.

“Oh, come on, Drake. Calling me a kid will not make me a kid. I am a grown-up woman. I don’t have to explain things to you,” I said to him in irritation. I know I am harsh with him, but it is important to say these things to keep him out of my life's mess.  Angry Drake, Mad Drake, and Sad Drake are acceptable to me, but Dead Drake is something that I can never accept. He is the one because of whom I am living my life peacefully and respectably. If something happened to him, I don’t know what I will do.

“Can you at least tell me where you got hurt this much?” he asked me in irritation, and I nodded while taking a long, deep breath.

“I went towards the woods to calm my mind at night. As soon as I added the ‘at night’ part, he gave me that disappointed yet worried look. “Nothing to be worried about, Drake. A deer came suddenly in front of me, and I lost my balance,” I explained. Yeah, telling him about the dangerous growls is not essential, or he will surely take his bike back from me.

“How often do I have to tell you to ride the bike carefully and not go towards the woods at night? My decision to give you the bike was completely wrong,” he said, looking disappointed in himself now.

“Don’t be like that, Drake. You also know that only nature can calm my brain in these tough situations. If you had not given me the bike, I would have gone into the woods by another means… and I really listen to you. That’s why I was wearing a helmet at that time. See, my face and head are completely fine,” I pointed toward my face while giving him a huge smile, but he pointed toward my leg.

“See that part too. I think I have to buy a suit to protect your whole body before letting you drive again,” he stood up from the chair and went towards the door. “Are you planning to tell anything to any of us anytime soon?” he asked me, and when I smiled sheepishly, he took a deep breath and nodded. “Just don’t die.” I nodded.

“Can you please check if the bike is fit to drive today? I have to go somewhere in a few hours,” I told him, and he took a deep breath.

“You know you are shameless,” he said, and I smiled at him. “Fine, I will check it. At what time do you need it?” he asked me.

“Within two or three hours.” He nodded and took the bike’s key with him.

“I will drop your bike here… don’t forget you can call me and Elina anytime you need our help,” he said, leaving the room. As soon as I closed the door, I took a painful, shaky breath and slowly sat on the bed.

My whole body is extremely sore. If I had groaned in front of Drake, then he would have indeed given me a long lecture on how to keep myself safe and even taken me to the doctor, which surely would have made me late for visiting Mom.

I crawled inside the duvet again, but it is hard to sleep when my body is practically screaming in pain. I don't think I can tattoo anyone for at least a few days.

I don't know when I fell asleep, but I woke up again with the sound of my alarm. I took a quick bath and dressed the wounds as much as possible. When I went outside, my bike was not there. So, I called Drake, who informed me that Henry would be here with my bike in a few minutes.

Henry and I are the artists in Drake's studio; coincidentally, our home is also nearby. I live in a room constructed above a medical store. The medical store is owned by a middle-aged couple who are friends with Drake and Elina. When I started working in the diner, I didn't have any place to live, so I sneaked into the diner's kitchen to fulfill my basic needs. But one day, Drake caught me sleeping there, and that's how I ended up in this room.

I was lost in thought when I felt the same feeling of being watched again. I looked around, but no one seemed to be looking at me. I heard the roar of an engine, which took my attention in a particular direction. Henry was driving speedily and slammed the brakes a few meters away from me, creating a screeching sound. The bike stopped just in front of me.

I kept my expression neutral while he smirked at me.

"How's it, Arya?" he asked me, and I nodded.

"Drake told me he gave you the bike, so it will be tested before coming to me. Any issues with it?" I asked him with a neutral expressions, and he shook his head negatively. "Key," I extended my hand, and he gave it to me. He was about to say something, but I cut him off.

"Did Drake tell you to take care of my clients?" I asked him, and he shook his head negatively.

"He said, 'She knows how to take care of her work by herself,'" he mimicked Drake's voice poorly, but I just nodded.

"Ok, see you later then." I started the bike, but Henry stopped me.

"How about having dinner together tonight?" I knew he was nervous, but seriously, this was not a good time to discuss all this.

"Sorry, Henry, but I am busy with something urgent right now, and I don't think I will be back at night." Awkwardness replaced the nervousness on his face in minutes.

"Sure, sure, no issues. Go ahead." I nodded, and with that, I started the bike and drove away.

I didn't dwell on Henry's offer much because it's been a month since I am feeling that he had started taking an interest in me. He joined Drake's studio a year ago and is a nice guy, but I don't think my condition allows me to be in a close relationship with anyone. I am already concerned about Drake and Elina's safety if they knew about my past, and adding one more person to that list is the last thing that I want to do right now.

I couldn't help but feel the same feeling of being watched all day, but I shrugged it off when I didn't find anyone nearby. I went inside the hospital, and as I still had time before they would let me meet her, I went to get myself properly bandaged.

After getting dressed, I went towards the ICU, and as it was visiting time, no one stopped me.

"Did you have a good sleep?" I asked her as I sat on the stool placed by the side of her bed. I took the little lotion bottle out of my pocket and rubbed it on her hands. My mother had dry skin and was used to putting lotion on her hands every time she washed them. I knew that the hospital staff had already cleaned her up, but they never put lotion on patients.

"I told you not to come again," she asked me again in the same dry tone.

"I thought I had already reached the peak of disappointment a long time ago," I said with a smirk, but as always, she didn't find humor in anything. "Oh, come on, you can at least fake a laugh," I told her while rolling my eyes, but when she didn't shout at me, I knew that there was something.

"What is it, Mom?" I asked her, but she turned her head towards the window and looked outside. "You're not in pain, are you? They gave you painkillers, didn't they?" When she didn't say anything, I turned towards the door to go outside to talk to the doctor, but her words stopped me.

"Run if you want to save your life." I turned towards her in shock... {No, she is not referring to them}... she turned her head towards me. "They are coming for you."