Lianna exits the bathroom, clothed in an oversized t-shirt and sweatpants. She sees William on the bed with her earphones in. That spoilt brat. She puts her laundry away in a plastic bag she packed. She walks to William and stops next to him, leaning closer to hear what is playing. How on earth can he fall asleep to this song? “Daechwita” by Agust D plays and she laughs at the sight.She gently removes the earphones and pauses the song. She has to call her dad. William is fast asleep, so she will have to keep her voice down. She walks back to the sofa, stepping on the sofa. She opens the large window above the window. She dials her dad and waits for him to answer.“Dad, hi,” she whispers. She does not want to wake William.“Kid, what’s going on? Why are you talking like that?” her dad asks back in a whisper. She laughs softly.“Nothing. William is sleeping and I don’t want to wake him.”“Ah, how is it?”“Well, I met William’s younger brother, Isaac. Did you know he has a younger brothe
Lianna shoots up, blinking her eyes at the darkness. She pulls her fingers through her hair as she tries to remember where she is. A sob travels from the other side of the bed, followed by a violent shake of the bed. Her eyes try to adjust to the darkness, and she blinks a few times. William. She shifts closer to him on the bed.“No, please. No,” he whispers with a broken voice. Lianna freezes.“William?” she asks, crawling closer to him on her knees. She reaches her hand out to touch his face. He is soaked in sweat, and he is flaring up. It feels like he has a fever.William yanks his head away from her hand as he sobs again. He shivers from the cold air touching his chest. He is having a nightmare.Lianna gets out of bed and searches for her phone on the nightstand. William mumbles something incoherently and throws his head from one side to the other on the pillow.Lianna switches her phone’s flashlight on and inspects William. He has thrown the covers off him in an attempt to free h
William slowly opens his eyes. Is that music? He cannot believe someone would play music this early. He stares up at the roof while he processes the nightmare. He was doing good with the nightmares until last night.The early morning sun shines through the window onto the bed. He stretches his arms above his head and yawns.The music continues.He shoots up, and his eyes dart around the room. A beautiful voice echoes in his ears. He turns his head to the sofa where he sees a movement.His hands lift to his ears, feeling the earphones. He realizes that the music comes from the earphones.Why does he have Lianna’s earphones? He glances at Lianna’s side of the bed. She must have moved to the sofa after he fell asleep on the bed. He throws his legs off the bed and unlocks his phone.It is already 07:46. He should get dressed and head down for breakfast. He removes the other earphone and pauses the song. Her battery is below 10 percent. He plugs her phone in before he walks to the sofa.Lia
Lianna sits on the bed and watches William choose between different outfits. He lifts two white shirts, turning to her.“Which one?” he asks. Lianna shrugs after inspecting the shirts.“They’re the same,” Lianna says with a yawn, barely keeping her eyes open. William turns back to his suitcase and takes another shirt from the suitcase, paired with jeans. This should be informal enough.He pulls his shirt over his head and Lianna clicks her tongue. He looks over his shoulder at her. She lies on the bed with an arm draped over her face. He grins and removes his pants, checking to see whether she is sneaking a look. Her eyes are still sealed shut; He gets dressed and moves to the bathroom to finish his morning routine.Lianna’s phone rings on William’s nightstand. She reaches over to his side and takes the phone from the nightstand, checking to see who it is. She sees it is Maeve. She does not want to inform Maeve about everything that has happened so far. She will talk to her when she se
Lianna sits in the back of the minibus next to another woman. She cannot remember if she was at the house yesterday, but she introduced herself as Henry’s wife. Gina smiles at her when she catches Lianna staring at her. Lianna smiles back.This has been an experience since the moment she arrived. She wonders where Bianca is. She was excited to spend the day with her, but now Evelyn has wormed herself into the picture.Lianna does not know what Evelyn is planning, but Evelyn makes her uncomfortable. Why the sudden interest?The minibus comes to a stop at the entrance of a large building. This must be the spa. She and Gina proceed to get out last.They enter through the revolving door, and Evelyn and Rose walk to reception. Jasmine waits next to Lianna. The place has a relaxing atmosphere. “Do you know where Bianca is?”“I heard she had some stomach bug. I hope she is fine,” Jasmine says, linking her arm with Lianna’s. Lianna sighs and nods her head in agreement. She wanted Bianca here
William walks next to Isaac as they head to the next hole. He wanted to get some fresh air and the walking is doing him good. Isaac complained about not getting a golf cart, but it seems like he is also starting to enjoy the walk.“What did Lianna have to say about Evelyn?” Isaac asks and looks around at the course. William lifts one of his clubs over his head and rests it on his shoulders.“Nothing. She told her father about Evelyn but did not say anything bad about her. She, in fact, complimented Evelyn,” William says and stretches his back. He groans when the pain shoots through his back, starting in his lower back.“She is full of surprises. Oh, by the way, B is sick. We think it might be light food poisoning. She was upset that she will miss the spa day because of this thing.” Isaac stops when they reach the starting point.“Wait, Bianca didn’t go with them to the spa day? Shit, that means Lianna is alone with Mother and Evelyn.” William gets his phone from his pocket and sends Li
William walks in front of the rest of the group of men towards the front door. He enters the house and walks down the hall toward the living room. He hears voices from the living room.He slowly makes his way into the room, and his mother notices him. She gestures for him to come closer. His eyes search for Lianna as he strolls to his mother. Lianna is not here. Perhaps she is in their room. He gives his mother a peck on her cheek before he sits on the armrest next to her.“How was your day?” he asks his mother, his eyes darting around the room. Evelyn is also missing in action. “It was wonderful. Exactly what we all needed.” William nods and watches as the other men enter the living room, greeting everyone. “Where is Lianna?” he asks as he leans closer to his mother. She shrugs and turns her head to his father. He should have known. He stands up, but his mother gets a hold of his arm. “Where are you going? Tell me about your day.” His mother pulls him back to the armrest and he si
William opens the door to his room and quietly walks in. Lianna lies on the bed, wrapped in blankets. She is sprawled out on the bed, fast asleep. William sits down on the edge of the bed. She has her earphones in and he can hear the music playing. He shifts closer to her and places his hand on her leg. He shakes her softly.“Lianna, wake up.” She lifts her head from the pillow and looks at him. She yawns without covering her mouth.“Ugh, hi. How was the golf?” she asks, tucking her elbow under her head.“It was fun,” he says with a smile. Lianna gives him a thumbs-up and closes her eyes. She lets out a soft sigh.“Are you joining us for dinner?” he asks, standing up. Lianna lifts her head to look at William. She gestures to herself in the blankets before shaking her head. She lets her head fall back and stares at the ceiling.“Tagliolini and white truffle.” William informs her about the dinner choice. Lianna scrunches her nose up in disgust.“I don’t even know what that is. It sounds
William groans softly as he opens his eyes. He looks around the dark room, hearing music from the radio. He lets out a sigh and closes his eyes again.Lianna stirs next to him and he remembers that she is next to him. He turns his eyes to her, looking at her through heavy lids. She has a peaceful look on her face and her arms are wrapped around his chest and waist. A smile spreads on his face as he relishes the warmth and comfort.He turns on his back, lifting her head so that his arm can slither between her neck and the pillow. He pulls her closer to him before closing his eyes. The loud sounds of the nearby apartments allow him to appreciate this life. The one Lianna had shown him. To find peace amidst all the noise and chaos.With a wide smile, William drifts back to sleep.Laughter rumbles through William and his eyes shoot open. He takes a moment to orientate himself. He feels Lianna next to him, talking to someone. He notices his arms wraps around her middle and he turns his hea
The cab stops near him and he hurriedly gets into the car. The facility is quite a drive from the apartment and by the time he gets to the apartment, it is already half past ten.Luckily, Lianna is not home yet, so he has time to take a shower and make himself some food. He sits on the couch as he eats his spaghetti bolognese. His eyes scan all the pictures and books on the bookshelf in front of him. At first, he thought that this apartment might lead him to insanity, but he appreciates the distractions.A photo catches his attention and he gets up, placing his plate on the coffee table. He walks to the shelf and takes one of the pictures that were standing out from the shelf. It is a large picture of what looks like Lianna, but it is not Lianna. William inspects the picture and concludes that it might be Lianna’s mother. She looks exactly like Lianna, except for the green eyes and darker skin, She is holding two baby turtles. William smiles at the picture and realizes that Lianna and
The cab driver bids William farewell and William turns to the facility in front of him. “Harmony Haven Residence” decorates the pale building. He stuffs his hands into his pockets, trying to pull himself together.“William,” one of the nurses greet him. She walks up to him, her hands full of papers and files. “How are you?” She gestures for him to follow her and he obliges.“Busy, but I cannot complain.” She nods knowingly and stops when they reach the elevator. William pushes the button for the doors to open since Nurse Madrich’s hands are full. He pushes the button for the fifth floor and the doors close.“Has anyone else come to visit her since the last time I was here?” he asks. The nurse shakes her head.“We missed you last week, but unfortunately, no one has come to visit Nora. You are the only one,” she says with sadness in her voice. He hums absentmindedly.The elevator comes to a stop and the doors open slowly. William embraces himself and exits the elevator. Nurse Madrich le
William walks through the door of the bedroom, heading to the kitchen. He passes Lianna who is still asleep on the couch. The conversation between her and her dad replays in his head.He stops to look at her, wondering what her intentions are. She has been pretending everything is fine for the last few days. She did not once mention Evelyn or his mother. How can she forget things so easily?A sharp sound pulls him from his thoughts. There is a reminder on his phone.NoraAnother exhausted sigh leaves his lips. He completely forgot about that. He chuckles at himself. He supposes that is why he had the reminder; to remind him.He grabs his suitcase and adjusts his tie. He glances back at Lianna, contemplating whether he should say good luck. He could always just send a text.No, he could not do that.His feet carry him back to the couch where Lianna is sleeping. Her hair is sprawled out on the pillow and she is sleeping in a strange position. How has her back not disintegrated from slee
A knock at the door drags them from the moment. Lianna lets go of William and stands up, making her way to the door. William wipes his eyes and face, ensuring that Lianna would not be able to tell that he cried.“Dad.” William also gets up and waits for John to appear. Lianna’s dad enters and smiles widely when he sees William.“Ah, William. So nice to see you,” John says, holding his hand out and William shakes his hand.“What are you doing here?” William asks, glancing at Lianna who is busy making coffee in the kitchen. Did she tell her dad about what happened? It makes sense.“Lianna called for security, but apparently the threat left. I just came to see whether you two are still okay.” John sits down on the couch and William sits on the chair.“Oh, yeah, yeah. We are fine. So, this is security?” William asks, chuckling at the idea that Evelyn and his mother were so scared about security. It was just Lianna’s dad all along. It’s quite funny.Lianna places the mugs on the table and
There is nothing.He hears his mother arguing and he opens his eyes.“No, lady. Not in my apartment. Thank you very much for dropping, or rather breaking, in,” Lianna says while she drags Rose out of the apartment. Rose tries to fight back, but Lianna has her in a tight hold and forces her out through the door. Evelyn rushes to William to check on him.“Just leave,” he mutters, stepping away from her. She lets out a huff before she stomps past him, calling after Rose.“If you don’t leave, I’m calling security.” William hears Lianna saying from the hallway.“You can’t afford security,” Evelyn remarks. “No, wait, wait.”William walks to the door and peaks his head out to see what is going on. Lianna is talking on the phone to what seems to be security while his mother and Evelyn rush down the hall to the stairs.“Wait till your father hears about this,” Rose calls over her shoulder to William. Lianna finishes her phone call and looks to where Rose and Evelyn disappear down the stairs. S
William swiftly opens the door and enters the apartment, leading Lianna with him. His eyes scan the apartment as he looks for his mother and Evelyn. Where are-“I cannot believe he chooses to live like this,” Evelyn’s voice rings through the apartment. His mother appears from the bedroom with Evelyn on her heels.William lets out a silent sigh, already aware of what is going to happen. His grips tighten on Lianna’s arm, pulling her even closer to him.“What is going on?” Lianna asks in a whisper from behind him. He gives her a quick warning glance and she purses her lips together with a frown.“William,” his mother says with a scornful tone. He steps forward and lets go of Lianna. Another sigh leaves his mouth.“Mother, and Evelyn,” he greets them with a bow of his head. His mother takes a few steps toward him, her arms crossing across her chest.“William.” His mother glares at him. “You should have told me that this was your living condition. I would have told your father you wanted t
Light rain tickles Lianna’s face as she makes her way out of the school, William running in front of her. They had finished the color run, but it started to rain while they were cleaning up. They managed to finish packing up and are now hurrying to the car that William arranged for them.“Come on,” William calls over his shoulder, slowing his pace so that Lianna can catch up. She falls into step next to him and he lifts his jacket over them to shelter them from the rain.William leads her to the abandoned building across from the school where they can wait for the car. He ushers Lianna to the nearest wall which serves as protection from the weather. Lianna falls back against the wall and rests her hands on her knees. She tries to catch her breath. William also rests against the wall, running his hand through wet hair.“Ugh, I am soaked,” she says, twisting her shirt between her hands to get the water from it. William turns his gaze to her and notices that her white shirt is clinging to
William leans against the wall, looking around at his surroundings. There are a few people walking past him, all on their own mission.He turns his gaze to the school building across the street from him. The school building looks abandoned, except for a few children running through the halls. The pale grass in front of the school building makes him feel depressed.He checks his watch and lets out a frustrated sigh. Blake wanted to see him before he went to the color run. And now he is going to be late. He will just explain the situation to Lianna. She will understand. She always does.“Oi, why are you standing out in the open?” Blake’s gravel voice startles William. He jerks his head to Blake and finds him standing around the corner of the wall.“Good afternoon, Blake,” William greets while making his way over to him. Blake lets out a grunt as he leads them around the old wall. They come to a stop and Blake rests against the old wall.William steps next to Blake and crosses his arms.