08

"You passed out again yesterday, Haru brought you home."

I choked on what Haxilla said. I wipe my mouth after drinking.

"H-How did he know our address?" I asked, confused. She pinched me on my belly.

"Are you that really stupid?" she said while pinching my belly. 

"A-Ah, that hurts Hax!" I exclaimed. 

"You applied for them, so it's normal to know your information, moron!" 

I pouted my lips and continued eating my soup. My brows furrowed when I was trying to remember what happened yesterday.

Do we stand under the sun for me to pass out?

Argh, I don't know. My head still hurts.

"By the way, I'll go to Kaely later. Take care of the groceries okay?" She put the money beside me and stood up.

"Does Britanny have so many shows today?" I asked, I suddenly felt too lazy to buy anything in the mall.

She nods and throws a piece of paper at me. My eyes widened when I read all Britanny's shows.

"10 shows in one day?!"

"Yeah, so better prepare the dinner nicely because Britanny is really exhausted later," she said and waved to me.

"Hmm, what food can I buy on this?"

I was about to stand up to wash dishes when my phone suddenly rang. It flashed Raven's name.

It's been a while since we last talked and met. 

"Yes, Raven. It's been a while," I greeted.

"Yeah, hey, how are you?"

"I'm fine, somehow. How about you? It's been a while since we last talked."

I walked towards the kitchen and put my phone on speaker so I could wash the dishes.

[I've been busy due to work, by the way, I called to tell you something.]

"Spill." 

He said shyly, [I... I want to court Haxilla again.]

"Really? After that, you'll put on interrogation," I made a joke. My heart skipped a beat when he laughed.

What the fudge is going on here?

"But, seriously, even though you're her ex, we need to talk to you first," I said, trying to hide my displeasure with his laugh.

[However, I'm not sure where to begin, which is why I dialed your number]

My sponge scrubbing on the plate had slowed down. In this conversation, I'm concentrating on how I felt.

"How come I'm envious?" I muttered something to myself.

[Of what are you envious?]

When I realized I was still on call, my body got a little squeamish. I swallowed my saliva and continued to speak.

"Nothing, I just remembered something. By the way, tell me what you want to do, and I'll talk to Britanny later."

When I finished cleaning the kitchen, I changed my clothes and picked up my phone.

[Of course, I'll need some props–]

"We'll take care of it; all you have to do now is prepare your gift. By the way, what kind of theme are you looking for?"

[Because Haxilla adores books, how about a bookworm theme?]

"Yes, I understand. Bye, I'll go to the mall now."

I put the phone down and tied my shoelace. A loud knock on the door jolted me out of my reverie.

I said, "Wait." I tied my shoelace and opened the door for whomever it was.

When I opened the door, a delivery man greeted me with a smile.

"Hi, I'm looking for Ms. Brittany Prosais."

"Oh, she hasn't arrived yet," I politely explained, "but I can accept anything that has been sent to her," but the delivery man appeared hesitant and scared.

"Ahm, according to the sender, Ms. Britanny should pick this up on her own or with her permission..."

I gave him a friendly smile and took out my phone to dial Britanny's number, which I put on a loud speaker so the delivery man could hear.

"Hey, you got a present," I mentioned. While she's on the phone, there's a loud background noise, perhaps she's on a show.

[Who is it coming from?]

The delivery person signed that he couldn't tell me who sent the package because he doesn't know the sender's name.

"I don't know, neither does the delivery man know."

[I'll open it when I get home, receive it for me.] Then immediately she hanged up.

The deliverer gave the gift to me and signed it on paper, I put it on the central table.

When I got to a piece of paper, I was going to go to the door and took it up and read something about it.

“I miss you, darling. Hope you're doing fine. - Seed”

The cheesiness of the letter made me smile–

Wait a minute, that's the same handwriting that sent Britanny gifts on a regular basis.

Is it possible that they're the same individual?

When I put the letter on top of the gift, I sighed and shrugged my shoulders.

I was walking to the mall when I heard a series of agonizing screams coming from a small pathway.

When I looked around the scene, I was astounded to see a group of men savagely assaulting someone.

My eyes can't find anything I can use to fight them, and their bodies are built in such a way that beating or scaring them on my own is difficult.

I looked around and marched because I was dissatisfied and perplexed.

Why aren't there as many people walking around here?

I'm not sure why, but my fingers went straight to YouTube and searched for a police siren to stop them.

To make the sound more realistic, I used a carton to surround the speaker on my phone.

When they got closer to me, the fake siren came to a halt. I walked away from the scene as if I hadn't seen anything and called 911.

"Hello, this is 911; how may I assist you?" says the operator.

"A man was beaten by a group of men on St. Klareson Road, between Haedy's Restaurant and Cut and Style."

When the bad guys weren't around anymore, I reported as I walked back to the scene. I only saw his back, so I'm not sure of who he really was.

"Okay, the cops are on their way to the scene. Please, stay put."

"I'm sorry, but I'm unable to remain in this location. I need to get some work done, "As I awaited the arrival of the cops, I lied.

I'm at a loss. My feet are unable to move a single inch away from their current position.

When help isn't on the way, I have the feeling I need to ensure his safety; there's also a strange thing that keeps stopping me to help him, even though my body really want it.

When my ears heared a police siren approaching, I walked away. There's someone calling me but I just ignored him.

"Stop saying you're not good at designing Britanny and just tell me what I need to buy!" I exclaimed as I strolled through the national bookstore.

[Pick items that fit the theme he wants, such as books, old newspapers, or magazines if possible.]

I sighed as I browsed the stationary section. There are so many things here that are appropriate for the theme–oh well, I'll get them all.

"Okay, that's it, I'm done." I proceeded to the cashier to pay for everything I had purchased.

[You think you bought too many things, don't you?]

"Well, I couldn't choose between them, so I bought both."

The cashier said, "Ma'am, this costs $567.92." I'll get my black card out and hand it over to her.

"Charge it here," I said, causing Britanny to scream.

[$567.92?!? Selena, are you serious?!]

I didn't answer the phone and hung up.

I'm too tired to explain things to her right now. My feet took me to various parts of the mall until I became tired and sat on a bench.

"You're also here."

When someone on my side started talking, I almost jumped.

"Haru? What are you doing in this place?" When I asked, he sipped his milktea and set aside the magazine he had been reading.

"I got bored at work, so I came here," he said, smiling and tapping the spot where I had been sitting earlier.

"You can go out to the company even if it's still office hours?"

"Just for executives only. I do the things beforehand so, I have more time to relax," he explained and leans on the railing on his back. 

"I see," were the only words that came out of my mouth. I was not expecting to see him here at all!

Since he's really straying–well, that's what he complained to me about when we were talking earlier–he treated me to a pasta in a restaurant.

He broke the silence by asking, "What were you doing in the national bookstore earlier?"

"I went out and bought some design materials that Britanny had requested."

"For what?" he wondered with furrow in his brows.

"Secret," I guffawed when I saw his pouted lips, which were so adorable.

"Alright, so we're friends now?" he asked a question that made me pause for a moment.

Why am I so dissatisfied?

Is it possible that I had hoped for more? Eh, it's a little strange.

"It's so unusual to be asked that question on a normal day," I admitted awkwardly.

"What? Why?"

"I mean, we can be friends without even asking, as if we just woke up one day and realized we were bestfriends. That friendship is more important to me "I explained myself.

He chuckled and rested his elbows on the table, his chin resting on his palm. He locked his gaze on me for a few seconds, which made me feel uneasy.

"Stop staring at me," I said as I drank water and cast a sidelong glance at him, but he remained in that position.

He probably noticed me leaning back and crossing my arms while giving him a death stare, so he came to a halt.

Without hesitation, I can stab his eyes with a fork.

"I-I'm sorry, I just suddenly remembered someone," he apologized, returning his focus to the food.

My phone abruptly rang as I was about to speak.

"Brits," 

[Where in the hell are you?] she enquired. Haru looked at me, perplexed.

"Why? I'm at the restaurant with Haru?"

[There isn't any food here, Sel! What exactly am I supposed to eat?!]

My eyes widened as I realized why I had come here–the dinner, shit.

"Okay, I'll go home now; there's a cup noodle in the storage cabinet; you can eat that in the meantime," I said and hurriedly gathered my belongings and prepared to return home.

"Why? Is there any problem? "He inquired, then walked away, leaving the bill on the table.

In a rush, I said, "I forgot that I'm supposed to be the one who cooks the dinner."

I was taken aback when he grabbed my wrist and dragged me to his car, where he opened the door and shoved me inside without saying anything.

"Can you just tell me how to get to your house?"

He started the car after I gave him a nod.

We're just driving along quietly, and I'm only talking to him if I need to point us in the right direction.

We arrived at my house without having had any conversation in the car. I'm not sure, maybe the awkwardness?

"Thank you for dropping me off here and for the pasta," I said as I unbuckled my seatbelt and prepared to exit, but he drew me around to face him.

I swallowed hard when I realized how close his face was to mine; it reminded me of the time he gave me a tour of the company.

My stomach began to tickle, and my face began to heat up.

"Thank you for making my day complete," 

he said gratefully, his gaze fixed on mine. I wish I could smile, but I'm unable to do so.

"What exactly do you mean?"

His face was only three inches away from mine as he moved closer.

Sel, get up! My body, on the other hand, betrayed me.

He successfully captured my entire mouth and kissed it passionately to the point where I had to close my eyes to feel his kiss more.

It's so good, damn.

I hold the back of his neck to deepen his kiss, he moved closer until I already sat on his laps.

"Hmm," I moaned when he entered his playful hands on my shirt and squeezed my breast that made it more good.

"You're good, Selena," he said between our kisses. I only smiled at him and kissed him again, I'm literally out of my mind now.

My phone rang that made me stopped what I'm doing, Britanny called.

"Yeah?" I answered while catching my breath. I looked at Haru, disappointment traced on his face.

[Where are you?]

I fixed myself to get out of the car. 

"I'm already at the gate, bye." I hung up the call and waved to Haru.

I turn my back and bit my lower lip.

I want more, shit.

While holding my lips, I can't help to smile.

"Haru is good at this things, huh."