IV.

AWAKENED by the sound of screaming, I rose from my bed only to discover myself dripping wet with sweat. 

A terrifying nightmare again victimized me. I couldn't help but catch my breath. 

It was a good thing that I wasn't screaming in my sleep, or else I would have woken Bright. 

I immediately got up from where I was lying and walked towards the kitchen area of the room. I pulled the refrigerator door open and then grabbed a glass of water to drink. 

"You were still awake?" A voice from behind me suddenly spoke, and so I almost let go of the glass. 

"I'm sorry. Did I startle you?" Bright immediately follows, which makes me put on a wry smile. I put the glass on the kitchen counter, only to notice she was wearing a nightgown with messy hair. 

"I only grabbed a glass of water," I say. 

"I see, then good night," she answers, and quickly enough, her attention switched from me to the television, flashing another movie. 

I walked back towards my room and closed the door. 

When morning comes the next day, Bright mentions she won't be able to visit as often as she could since classes have started again. She will need to focus on her studies for the time being, but whenever she can, she will come and check on the place. 

She said, "I'll probably be back by the weekend to check the place, so see you by then." And with that, she took her purse and walked towards the door. 

I only nodded my head and saw her leave the door. "See you," I reply.

Ever since we went out that day, I feel more at ease with Bright now. It probably helped me understand and know how to interact with her more, which is why it is easier for me to smile now. 

I walked towards the fridge and checked the content, only to notice that we were already missing some preservatives. 

"Looks like I'll be visiting the grocery store today," I whisper to myself as I get an echo bag I have once stored in one bag in the room. 

Apart from the salary I receive from Bright, because she often visits her condo, she has also left an allowance for me to buy food whenever we lose stock. It has immensely helped the place be filled with unlimited food and snacks to munch every day. And the other good thing is that the grocery store is just a few minutes' walk from the building. 

Before I went out to shop, I first wore a light blue-green oversized polo shirt paired with jaggers and slippers for a comfortable walk. I also tied my hair into a low messy bun so that it wouldn't get in my face once I walked down the street. 

After locking the door of the apartment and securing the keys in case of an emergency, I quickly went down the elevator and, just like any other busy bystander, I hurried towards the grocery store because of the scorching heat brought by the afternoon. 

I probably got used to the air-conditioning of Bright's condominium since there was never a time when she would not open the air-con.

When I arrived at the grocery store after a three-minute walk, the guard greeted me as usual. 

 

Grabbing one cart close to the cashier, I see myself carefully selecting the food items I'll be buying for this month's stock. 

Truth be told, I am not used to a grocery store and instead, I am more familiar with the market since they have lower pricing for every item. However, unlike the place where I am right now, they do not have the kinds of food items and snacks that Bright has been eating. 

Once I finished navigating towards the whole place, I came up towards the cashier just like usual and paid for all the food I bought. The guard even helped me carry the box outside the grocery store, only for me to coincidentally meet Amanda and Sam. 

"Oh dear, are you planning to carry those by yourself?" Amanda immediately exclaims once she stops in front of me. 

I scratched my head. 

"Yes." The moment I said those words, she frowned. What? It's not like I can't carry such a light box. 

"Sam, why don't you help Queen carry that box?" My ears tingled at the suggestion of the old lady. Immediately, my eyes wandered towards the man who had been silent the whole time. 

"No, you don't have to. I can carry it by myself–"

"No, I'll help you." Sam did not let me finish my words and just took the box off the ground with one hand. 

"Very good, my child! Alright, I'll go inside the grocery store. Meet me here afterwards," Amanda says to her grandchild before she turns her back and starts walking in the entrance's direction. 

"Let's go." I glanced at him once again. 

"I can do this myself," I retaliate, my forehead creasing at his gesture. I was about to take the box away from his hand when he raised it up on his shoulders. 

"Can't complain now, can you?" Sam teases, a smirk flashing through his lips. 

Honestly, I do not know what goes around in his mind. He just seems unpredictable and weird. 

"Didn't the two of you ride a car to go to the grocery store?" I asked while we were down on the side of the road. 

"Yes, we did," he replies shortly. 

"Then why aren't you using it to arrive faster–"

"It's just a three-minute walk, plus I think you need some exercise." 

My forehead immediately creased into a thin line. Is that supposed to be an insult? Is he calling me fat?

"Are you insulting me?" I asked him, raising one of my eyebrows. 

"What if I am?" he retorts, a grin flashing through his lips. 

"Fuck you," I mumble as we walk in the building's direction. 

I'm not really sure how we got to know each other this way, but ever since our first encounter, I've become unknowingly comfortable around him. He may act like some cold old man, but from time to time, he just likes to tease. 

"I'll be going back to my residence today," Sam suddenly narrates, to which I turn to look at him. "My mom asked me to check up on my grandmother and stay with her for a while since she's all alone, but now, work has piled up and I have an urgent business meeting," he adds. 

"Oh, that's unfortunate," I reply. The two of us then walked towards the long hallway of the condominium, the sound of our footsteps echoing while some people were blabbering through the lounge area.

"I know," he comments, and then shrugs his shoulder. "It's a drag to work." 

"I can't argue with that." 

When the two of us are alone in the elevator now, he puts the box down on the floor and then stares at me for a second. 

"Say, when I come back from my business, can I . . ." He pauses for a second, mumbling to himself. His eyes were lower on the ground as though he had something he couldn't say straight to my face. 

"What?" I asked him. 

"Can I . . . argh! It's hard to put it into words." He furrows his brows, putting one of his hands against his forehead and lightly tapping on his head. 

"Just say it," I said, rolling my eyes on the other side. I have a gist of what he wants to say, but I do not want to pry into it. 

"Can I ask you out on a date?" When the words finally came through and his voice sounded husky for a second there, I almost caught my breath. 

I know I'm already expecting this to happen with his kind gesture to me, but it still feels different and awkward; something inside of me is tingling while he continues to stare at me like that. 

"I . . ." 

I bit my lip, speechless at his question. I suddenly became tongue-tied, unable to bring out the words. 

As I ponder these few seconds, the elevator door clicks open and the silhouette of a woman suddenly emerges in front of us. 

"Queen!" The first word the woman exclaims as she approaches, a huge smile flashing through her lips. 

My heart almost leaped out of my chest because of her sudden appearance. She then embraces me in a tight hug before her eyes land on her cousin. 

"Oh, Sam, you're here as well," Bright mentions when their eyes meet. 

"Yes," I just helped her carry the box to your condominium. You could have just asked us to buy it for you instead of ordering Queen to shop by herself."

My eyes widened in surprise. "N-No! She didn't order me. I just thought of buying some food since we were low on stock," I immediately said, defending Bright. 

Before the two of them could further start their staring contest, I grabbed onto the box and was about to lift it when they stopped me. How in the hell were they able to notice me when they were so fixated on each other? 

"Sam, just help us bring this box inside our room and you can go now," Bright orders, quickly intertwining her fingers with mine. She pulls me out of the elevator and gently leads me to our room. 

"Argh, fine," Sam grumbles and then lifts the box. He follows suit. When we have arrived in the apartment room, he puts down the box and his eyes quickly wonder. "Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be at school?" he asked of Bright. 

"I just forgot something." 

"And that is?" Sam furrows his brows yet again as a sly smirk flashes through his cousin's lips. 

"I forgot about Queen," she teasingly said, and then showed us our hands that are still intertwined together. "Anyway, aren't you supposed to go already? Grandma texted me on my way here and mentioned that the two of you were together and that after you help Queen, go back to her to help her with her shopping," Bright narrates. 

Sam clicks his tongue at the sarcastic tone of his cousin. Despite the two having to spend their time together frequently, they manage to achieve quite a feat. 

Sam heaves a sigh before he glares in my direction. 

"Think about what I said, alright?" he says, and immediately, he turns to walk away. 

Bright shut the door shut and eyed me with a smile. However, I see a glimpse of something sinister? 

"What did he say to you?" she asked as I unpacked the groceries I bought. I looked at her for a second before switching my gaze back to the food. 

"Nothing much, just that. He asked me out," I replied in full honesty. There was no point in hiding it, anyway. She's my employer and she's his cousin. 

"And what was your response? Are you two finally hitting it off?" My forehead creased at her question before I started putting the preservatives in the fridge. 

"I wasn't able to respond," I say, shrugging my shoulders. Her eyes glimmered with shiny dark chocolate.

"Hey, what do you feel about him? I want to know!" she exclaims, to which I respond with a laugh. 

I guess her reaction is just as expected, being one of the social butterflies who is curious about a man who is interested in her friend. 

"I don't know," I respond, and the two of us laugh it off. 

If I were to go out with a man like Sam, it would be just a fantasy. 

After all, I once fell in love and it didn't end well, like your typical story.