chapter two

Stepping into the hallways again with now fewer people around crowding the big space like before as the clock now strike 12 in the midnight.

One hand clutching over my phone securely with my small bag hanging on my shoulder. I strolled around the big hall again with my half sleepy state as my eyes wandered around the room to look for Rosa around the place and when I couldn't see her I dialed her number hurriedly.

beep-

; Rosa

; Angela! where are you?

; I'm going home now

; Wait-

I cut the call off without waiting for her to reply and stride toward the big mahogany door again when I feel it,

My stomach twists like never before making it harder for me to stable my position. I bent my body a little to the front and held onto the cold tiles walls. Inhale-exhale, I repeated the same action over the past minutes until the feeling started to fade away a little when another pain struck my stomach and my breath hitched.

shit.

I stood silently at the corner of the empty hall as I tried steadying my breathing and the pains.

Grabbing my small bag clutching on the side, I fumbled against my stuff inside the bag and when I found it, I swallowed the medicine even without water and waited for a couple of minutes. My heels stumble upon the tiles on my way to the toilet after a few minutes of standing on the corner.

I look at myself in the mirror and it reflexes my pale face, this is bad- I need to see a doctor. After making a mental note of making an appointment first thing tomorrow in the morning, I exit the gloomy toilet when Rosa face appears out of nowhere.

"Angela?" Rosa said with a worried lace in her voice, "are you okay?" I waved my hand in anticipation for her to leave me alone but of course, Rosa De Luca is not that kind of person.

"What's wrong with you?" she scanned me from head to toe, examining me as if I was caught doing something bad. Too lazy to answer her, my mouth lifted in a grin and she snickered.

"Don't play with me!" she slapped my arm making me hiss in pain and back away from her but she pulled me closer to her body as she noticed me distancing from her and dragging me with her to god knows where.

"You look so pale!" her hair moving followed by her head movement as she keeps looking at me back and forth, "you look like you have just seen a ghost!"

I shook my head at her stupidity but kept quiet and immediately stopped in my track once the door came into view.

Voice filling the empty hallways from inside the closed door and light oozes from there. Contemplating with myself whether I should come inside or not. I had promised Rosa that I will try to mix with the family but- now that I know I still couldn't bring myself to.

"Rosa- I'm going home" she looks at me disagrees and once again eyes me up and down before shaking her head.

"No no no, you are staying tonight" just before I could say anything she put her finger on my lips to quiet me down, her face serious "you can't say no" I sigh defeated, and followed her inside with hesitation in every step that I took.

I hid behind Rosa as we made our way inside the crowded room but the girl pulled me beside her excitedly, attracting some of the people around the room.

All eyes turn to look at us once the door makes a noise and my eyes immediately went to stare at the floor beneath me as it attracts my attention more than the people around the room.

The voice that peaked my ears was my mother's soothing voice, "Angela! are you okay?" she too asked me the same question that I got from Rosa.

Why? do I look that bad? I frowned at the thought but instantly brushed the thought off.

Oh, and I hate when all eyes begin to observe our little interaction when the room is getting silent and I could feel my heart thumping inside my chest.

Placing my hands over my mother and looking straight into her eyes, "I'm okay- I just want to go home" her face shows an obvious disappointment but covered it with her motherly smile that Ive come to missed sometimes.

I brush the aches feeling inside my chest and squeeze my mother's hands unintentionally, hoping for nothing but something to break out of the stared that I got around me.

"Stay for the night" and her word is the final decision.

• • •

I tossed and turned around on the bed, thick comforter covered my whole body and the sudden hotness inside my body made me suffer in coldness but I was burning inside.

I checked the time on my phone and it showed four-thirty in the morning. Pulling the cover high up to my nose as I tried to get my sleep back but the soreness in my throat wouldn't let me.

Quickly getting out of the bed, I grabbed the sweater hung inside the closet before making my way out of the room to the kitchen where I remember was located on the lower level.

No light was on around this time making it harder for me to walk in the darkness, Even so, I still made it to the kitchen.

After gulping one whole lot of cold water down my dry throat, I managed to sit on the stool around the kitchen counter and waited if I am getting better.

As I was too busy self-questioning myself, a hand came to touch my arm and I jerked out of surprise.

"Are you okay" came the same deep and husky voice, the voice that keeps me wandering the whole time I was left alone on the balcony, He asked me,

"I-I'm okay" my voice comes out hoarse even though I had just taken a drink and I don't know why but my face feels hot and I blame the fever that I am getting right now.

He examining my state before walking away from me to one of the kitchen cabinets to grab- what I assume is medicine and I stay silent as I feel too weak to even move.

"Here," he slides the medicine in front of me before grabbing the glass in my hand to refill it again with warm water.

"Take the medicine Angela" his voice demanding but I ignore it. He is now seated in front of me.

"What are you- trying to be a doctor now?" I ask in playfulness but he stays silent and his face serious as he observes me taking the medicine and swallowing it.

The atmosphere turns awkward but I stay unbothered as the sound of the clock striking echoes inside the silent and empty kitchen.

I waited for him to leave while I fidgeted with my fingers, my mind was occupied with the thought of dying as my body heat is getting higher which left me in deep and soundless thought. Every breath I exhaled felt hot when it hit my face.

I hate when I'm sick- I feel like I will die soon.

"You are not going to die you know" his voice lower and I whirl to look at him,

"I know" and a second later he too turned his head to look at me, our eyes met and everything around me went round in circles of blank and all I could see was the dark color of his eyes staring deeply into mine.

Now that he was close to me I can see his face even without the source of light radiated inside this place. I could see him.

What's wrong with me now?

A lazy smile decorated my lips when I observed his face, his eyes- in dark color but I couldn't identify whether it was brown or pitch black. His hair is in dirty blonde color which I couldn't deny but- it suited him.

He coughs and turns his head slightly to the side and I observe him more, eyes sticking to his side profile.

I counted every piercing hanging on his ears and smirked in amusement when his sharp eyes penetrated mine and he got closer.

"What are you doing" his voice was heard deep near mine and unconsciously my body moved forward into the warm feeling radiated from his body.

"you got a nice tattoo" my voice came out in a low whisper mixing in the dark atmosphere as I let my sincere thought out and he went stiff but my body moved further into him. Captivated by the smell of his man column. I could smell him all day long-

I shake my head vigorously as the thought doesn't make sense to me.

What's wrong with me?

My vision blurred and I let out a hefty of hot breath coming out of my lips when headaches decided that it was the good time to kick in the system and as if no one was there with me, I leaned my head on the kitchen counter and sleep consumed me.