2

Andrea Salvador

I look terrified but this monster standing right in front of me looks so calm and intimidating.

Why am I still affected by his presence after so many years?- I mentally asked myself in a scolding manner.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed and glared hard at him.

"We need to talk" he said firmly. "We need to leave here" he added again in an authoritative tone as he held my wrist tightly.

I quickly yank my hand away roughly. "I'm going nowhere with you. Just go away" I hissed, staying firm on my words.

"Erm... Andrea, I think it will be best if you do as he says. I will excuse you two then. Francis, I wish you all the best!" Celine encouraged him more and left.

Betrayal! I'm her friend but she's supporting him instead.

•

We were both sitting at the Cafe across from my office having a staring competition right now. No one is ready to start a conversation.

Just as I was about to open my mouth and talk, he started. "You did well in hiding yourself from me, Chloe" He mocked and smirked at the same time.

"Don't call me that again! Just, Andrea for you" I hissed, rolling my eyes at him. Chloe is my second name and he was used to calling me that before we had a past.

"What do you want?"

"It took me 3 years to find you. Running away after everything was very childish" he remarks in a cold tone.

I stared deep into his blue captivating eyes and scoffed. "The last time I checked, you never cared so, why now?" I asked.

"Look, I don't want to ever meet with you again. We're long done and that's it! Stay away from me and I believe, this is what you also wanted. This should be the last setting eyes on each other, Mr. North" I said and planned on leaving but his words stopped me.

"After looking for you like crazy, you thought I would let you go that easily?"

"Looking for me you say?" I scoff, turning back around to face him. " 'I will never be trapped with a GOLD DIGGER and a BITCH like her. I'm only sticking to the bet we made and now, I have won. I played my part well' Those were your words, have you forgotten that so easily?!!" I burst angrily at him. Right now, I'm trying so hard to control the threatening tears that were about to fall out of my eyes.

"Why bother to stress yourself on a girl who was only after your wealth? The girl you never loved. The girl you made a bet on!"

"Chloe, I wouldn't be doing this with you if I still see you that way" he said, surprisingly in a calmer tone.

No, not again. I'm not going to fall for his trap for the second time again. No, I'm never going to allow that to happen.

"This meeting should be the last one between us. I came back for my career and not because of you. And I hope, we never cross paths again Mr. North. Excuse me" I'm so determined to leave this time around but out of the blue, he grabs my hand.

"Let's have a peaceful talk. We're both mature now and I believe we're both better than this"

"Matured my foot! You never thought of that before you treated me like a piece of trash! Your words are still clear in my head! You made fun of me! YOU MADE ME LOOK LIKE A FOOL!!" I burst again at him.

"Let's just... Let's just settle everything, okay?"

"No, I don't want to. I need to leave"

"Stop being childish and listen to me!" He burst at me this time around. I can sense that he's getting irritated by my behavior already from his voice.

That's it! That's the Francis I used to know and not the calm one pretending to be someone else just to have a conversation with me.

"You're stuck with me forever, Andrea. I'm yours and you're mine. You've run away from me for too long and now, now is the time to come back to where you rightfully belong" He said in a cold tone. My whole body shivered from his last statement and without uttering a word to him, I left.

•

It's past 10:00 pm in the night and I've been tossing on my bed for the past hour now. I couldn't find myself getting a peaceful sleep. His words also wouldn't stop ringing like a bell in my ear.

What does he want from me now after all these years? I thought he hated me! I thought he believed that I was only after his wealth. I had thought he would never see the good side of me after everything that had happened so, why now? What does he want from me now when I'm on the verge of forgetting him? Why? Just why Francis North?!!!- I screamed at the top of my lungs frustratedly whilst I hit my hand vigorously on my soft bed.

He told me four years back that I would never forget meeting him and yes, he was right. I never did. Having anything to do with him in the past keeps haunting me every day and now, I'm having the same feeling again.

Going crazy for him!

Flashback

(Five Years Ago)

"Andrea! Andrea!! Andrea wake up!!!" I heard my mom's voice calling out my name. I took the pillow I was resting my head on and placed it on my face... not wanting to be disturbed right now.

I've been stressed lately. Working as a model and schooling at the same time isn't working well for me at all. University also has not been fair to me for the past three years and now, all I wanted to do is to sleep and have a nice rest.

"Chloe!!!" My mom yelled out my name again and finally, I fluttered my eyes open but closed them again. Chloe is my middle name and only the people close to me know about it.

"Andrea, wake up." I heard my best friend, Celine's voice say too.

"Still sleeping..." I mumbled.

"You brat." I heard mom utter and smack my butt roughly.

"Can you two just go away and let me have a peaceful sleep?" I complained.

"Get up, Andrea. It's almost 9:00 am" Celine complained as she uncovered the blanket on my body making me sit up.

Celine has been staying with us for a while now ever since her parent's death. Her mom and my mom used to be best friends before her parent's death and ever since then, she moved in with us while Aaron her elder brother managed their family business. They're rich and can choose to stay at one of their houses here in New York but she still chooses to stay with us which is fine by me.

"Stop being a brat and stand up already, Andrea." I heard Mom say before leaving my room.

"Get up and get dressed sleepy head" Celine stuck out her tongue at me before rushing out of my room.

I got up and sauntered to my bathroom, stripped myself, and jumped into the shower. A few minutes later, I'm out. I finished dressing up and sauntered downstairs to meet my Mom reading her magazine as always and Celine having her breakfast already. "I can see you're ready." Mom said.

"Do I have a choice?." I replied rolling my eyes. Celine chuckled and I joined her at the dining. When we were done eating, we left for school.

"Yaay! I can't wait to see Andrew" she exclaimed in an excited tone on our way to the school. It's just a few blocks away from the house.

Celine and Andrew have been dating for 3 years now and I swear, I hate it so much. I wish I could knock some senses into her head. She's dating one of the playboys in the school and she's happy about it. Even Aaron is not stopping her from seeing his best friend. I guess, he trusts him too much to allow his sister to be with someone like Andrew.

Wow!

"It's going to end in tears, girl. End it now and save yourself from the later stress" I advised her.

"Why don't you just give in to Francis instead? I see you two have this connection" She advises too. "Andrew and I had come a long way to end our relationship so easily. Girl, we're walking down the aisle together!" She added again in a happy tone before I could say anything.

"Whatever!" I hissed and rolled my eyes.

We both got out of the car and walked into the building. She left to see her so-called 'boyfriend'. I, on the other hand, made my way to the library. I need to start reading for the exam. It's that time of the year again for our exam to commence.

I walk up to my locker and bring out the textbooks I borrowed six days ago, I still have 8 more days left to return them to the library shelf. I felt someone suddenly hold my hand the moment I placed my bag in my locker.

I turned and widened my eyes in horror.

It's Francis North.