I woke up in the middle of the night and reached for the blanket. I could hear the heavy rain pouring outside. To my surprise, I noticed Lucas sleeping on the sofa, trembling slightly. Feeling drowsy, I got up without thinking and reached for the blanket that he was supposed to share with me earlier before I placed it over himself. As he took it from my hand, I returned to bed and fell back asleep. Morning came, and I heard Lucas's voice. It seemed like he was trying to wake me up, but instead of opening my eyes, I snuggled deeper into the pillows when I felt the chill. I was so sleepy and lacked the energy to get up and fetch the remote for the air conditioner to lower it. "Hey, you're hugging me too tight," he complained. I furrowed my brow, still drowsy, and forced my eyes open. I blinked in surprise when I realized I was hugging him. I quickly removed my arm from around his body and turned away, feeling embarrassed. "We can cuddle if that's what you want, just don't squeeze
I woke up with a heavy head in the early hours of the morning. I wasn't wrong; I had a fever. On top of that, I had a persistent cough and a runny nose, which irritated me to no end. This was precisely why I hated rainy days – I couldn't stand getting caught in the rain. It would be a whole week before this mess cleared up. I stayed in bed, wanting desperately to go back to sleep when I heard the sound of my suit. I prayed that it would just stop on its own, but it continued, so I reluctantly got up and opened it. I felt like my eyes were swollen, even though I hadn't cried. "Hold on!" I replied because it still wouldn't stop. I hesitated, sensing something was off as I opened the door. I froze in my tracks when I didn't see anyone outside. My eyebrows furrowed as I looked down the hallway, but there was no one in sight. It seemed like someone was just messing around, so I went back inside. I answered Mommy's call when I got back to bed. Mommy rarely called, so I figured it might
"Lucas!" I called out to him. I felt weak, but I couldn't let what he did go unnoticed. "Lucas!" I shouted. My anger knew no bounds as he emerged from the kitchen, holding a glass of water. "Why are you here again—" "Is this it?" I asked, throwing the box with the teddy bear drenched in blood at him. "Lucas, I can't understand you anymore! What did I ever do to you?" His eyes darkened as he stared at me while wiping away some blood splatters from his face. "What's your problem?!" he angrily retorted. I met his gaze head-on. "Is this how you seek revenge?" I asked. "And in the first place, what did I ever do to you that made you want to get back at me? Explain it to me," I demanded, full of anger. He gave a slight shake of his head. "Leave before I lose my patience," he ordered, which only made me chuckle. "And why would I? Tell me, Lucas... Why would I?" I pressed. "For fuck's sake, Aurora! You're accusing me again. This wasn't the first time you've accused me and put me on
I was shivering from the cold when I woke up. I blinked my heavy eyelids open, and Lucas was there, holding a blanket and adjusting it over me. "It's cold," I murmured. "Are you still cold? I already switched the air conditioner to heater," he said. I noticed then that he was only wearing shorts and nothing else for the upper body. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his eyes glistening. I tried to pull the blanket tighter around me, holding it close. I attempted to go back to sleep, but the chill in the room made it impossible. "Can you walk? I'll take you to the hospital," he suggested. I shook my head quickly. Staying in the hospital would only make me sicker. "But you're shaking so much," he pointed out. "This is how I get when I have a fever. It'll pass," I replied. "Are you sure?" he asked for reassurance, but I didn't bother responding. My eyelids felt heavy, and I could feel the heat radiating from my body. I followed Lucas with my gaze as he sat on the bed. He se
"Hey, are you with me? Aurora to Earth," Haze said, snapping me back to reality. "Come again? What was that?" I asked, still lost in thought. He raised an eyebrow at me. "You're not listening to me," he pouted. I furrowed my brows and winced before turning my gaze back to the people walking below. "That's disgusting, cut it out," I scolded him, which earned a laugh from him. "What are you thinking? Can you share it with me?" he asked. I shook my head. "Nothing. I was just lost in thought. What were you saying earlier?" I defensively replied, trying to change the subject. "I'll be attending a formal foundation party, but I don't have a partner. That's why I asked if you'd like to go with me since you mentioned you're always bored in your condo," he said. "Are you crazy?" I chuckled. "Why me? You can bring your girlfriend or someone else." "If you had said 'yes' earlier, I wouldn't be inviting you now, and you'd be obligated to come with me," he teased. I just laughed at his r
Iris gave me a hostile look as they approached our area. I tried to pull Haze away, but he didn't budge and greeted Lucas with a smile as if he had been waiting for him to approach. "It's my pleasure to meet you, Mr. Martin," Haze said, extending his hand for a handshake, but Lucas just looked at it. I swallowed hard and reached for Haze's hand, which was still waiting for Lucas's handshake because I felt embarrassed on Haze's behalf. "Let's go to a different place, Haze," I suggested. "No, that's rude, love. They came over here," he replied. My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at Lucas, whose eyes remained emotionless. I then turned my attention to Iris, who seemed to be angrily watching the stage, clearly not wanting to see me either. I approached Haze's ear and whispered, "Can't you see that they're not in a good term? Let's go." Haze just shrugged it off, reluctant to leave, but I dragged him away. "Aren't you trying to avoid trouble?" I asked him. "What?" he asked,
"Haze?" I hesitantly responded to his call. Since the party, we hadn't spoken. I felt embarrassed, not knowing how to approach him after leaving him alone there. "Are you still mad at me?" he asked, surprising me. "What do you mean?" I replied, feeling a bit awkward. "I left early; I didn't wait for you at the table. I was so embarrassed for what I've done, and I was still contemplating whether I should call you," he explained. My lips parted slightly as I stared at my dinner. I hadn't realized that he had left too. Instead of admitting that I had also left, I had just remained silent. "I'm really sorry," he apologized. I shook my head. "No, it's fine. I didn't wait long anyway," I lied. I couldn't tell him that I had also left the party, as he might ask who I left with or how I left, considering I didn't have a car, and I was unfamiliar with the area. I definitely couldn't reveal anything about my situation with Lucas either. "How about you treat me to coffee?" I suggested t
"Aurora, where are you going?" Noah asked. I could feel him following me, but my mind was preoccupied with what I had just seen on the news. Our house was on fire, the one Lucas was in. "No, stay here," he commanded. "Noah, step aside," I ordered when he blocked my way to my car. My heart was pounding uncontrollably. "I said move!" I shouted at Noah because he refused to budge. "If I said no, then no, Aurora. Give me your keys," he ordered. I shook my head and pushed him away, trembling as I did. He stood his ground, so I used all my strength to shove him aside. "I told you to move!" I yelled. "Are you even thinking, Aurora?! You want to go to Lucas at your burning house? What do you think you can do? Do you really believe they'll let you inside? Get your head straight!" he retorted, as if I were the dumbest person he'd ever spoken to. "Noah, what do you want me to do?! Stay here while Lucas is burning there?!" "Then why don't you just feel happy about it?!" he shouted back.