by S. S. Sahoo
Splash!
I fell directly into that fountain. Water filled up my nose and my mouth as I felt my body twisting in an odd position inside the fountain. When I tried to get up, I tripped again because of my heels and fell faceplant inside the fountain and then everything blacked out.
I blinked several times before I felt my eyes open. Everything was a blur for some seconds before my eyes adjusted themselves to the light and I held my head which was throbbing painfully.
“Ugh! What happened?” I heard my own voice and looked to the side find a woman sitting on the bedside smiling down at me.
“You fell into the fountain and hit your head. You head a concussion” she said and I watched as she removed the pressure belt from my arm.
“It’s alright! Nothing much to worry Mr. Sullivan” she said while she checked my eyes and I looked to the side to find Zachary standing next to the mirror looking at us.
“Thankyou doctor, for getting here on short notice,” Zachary told her and she smiled. Both of them shook their hands and Zachary walked her out of the room.
While they were out I managed to sit up and I leaned against the headboard holding the side of my throbbing head.
“Ow!” I flinched when I touched the part where I hit my head accidentally.
I watched as he ‘the devil himself’ walked inside the room. He had changed himself into a white t-shirt ad black jeans. He took a seat on the chair right next to my bed. I thought he was going to snap at me telling me ‘How stupid or foolish I was’ but to my extreme shock, I watched as the sides of his eyes wrinkled up and he brown dull eyes lit up before he threw his head back and laughed at loudly.
“Wha-” words didn’t even form in my mouth when I saw him laughing for the first time ever since the day I have met him. His laughter echoed in the room as I gawked at him. My face heated up and I knew I was blushing embarrassed because I had always somehow managed to make a fool out of myself before him.
“St- Stop!” I managed to mumble. This only made him laugh even more.
“Shut up!” I took the pillow and hit him. He got hold of the pillow still laughing hard. “I can’t believe this! You fell into that fountain and you even blacked out! Not only clumsy but you are a” he laughed again and I tried to hide my face at the same time as I tried to pull the pillow away from him “But you are a delicate darling too!” he completed and got off the chair letting me take the pillow.
“It all happened because of you! Shut up!” I hit him with the pillow. His masculine laughter filling my ears which got my skin a tingling sensation. I was embarrassed, I knew it.
That is when my eyes fell on the clothes that I was wearing. I was wearing my night suit. Who changed me into these?
That made me jerk off out of my thoughts.
“Who changed me into this?” I questioned as I threw the pillow next to me. Thankfully he stopped laughing wiping the sides of his eyes and looked down at me.
“What?” he asked amused.
“WHO CHANGED ME INTO THIS?” I asked enunciating each word.
He bent down until he reached my eye level and smirked. “Oh, I don’t know! Maybe me?” he said smugly when he saw my startled expression. Before I could hit him he laughed and practically ran out of the room.
“What the hell you monkey?” I yelled after him.
39
Juliette
“Talk about shit!” I threw my hands up in the air irritated. Thankfully, I got to know that one of Zachary’s maid changed my clothes after that tragic fall in that stupid fountain. But that monkey of a man had to just play with me and my poor mind claiming that he was the one who changed my clothes. I asked him the whole day yesterday about who changed my clothes, and all he did was mock me, glare at me, ignore me, type on his laptop and phone, at one point he had the guts to even shove me out of his stupid study room. I even banged few times on his door because he locked it from the inside claiming that ‘I was irritating him!’ I mean how the hell was I irritating him when he was the one who was irritating me?
I asked a simple question “Who changed my clothes?”
Answer the question and I would have been in my way and him in his. But no, he had to make it complicated or else the food he ate will not easily digest not until he annoys me.
“Why ask the silly question?” was his outraged statement and I was like “Excuse me? It’s about a women’s dignity! duh!”
Finally, after pacing around I met this lady in the hall mopping and cleaning the floor. I wouldn’t have known if she hadn’t asked me about ‘How I was? And if I wanted something.’
Then only I asked her and she told me that she was asked by the monkey of a man to change my clothes because he went to fetch the doctor to the mansion’s entrance gate. I took a sigh of relief when I heard about it. Thank God!
I would have killed if only he didn’t leave me alone in the house all alone by myself the whole evening and night. He didn’t even find it important to tell me that he will be leaving or he will not be there in the house the whole evening. It is awkward to be like a ghost wandering around in a big house with no people around. The maids were back to their quarters leaving a poor little soul alone in the big house. Even the bedroom where I sleep is so big that I preferred covering my head with a blanket fearing about the impossibilities of ghosts watching me sleep.
I mean “You never know!”
Here I am early in the morning with my wet hair, water still dripping out because of the shower I took for my hair smelled like a dead rat because I felt into that fountain which had algae like substance and it kind of stuck in my hair. So, I had to shampoo my hair even if I didn’t want to. All of a sudden I felt hungry and that was the reason I woke up early in the morning with a rumbling stomach and hence decided to take a shower and make my own food as no maids come early in the morning. I looked at the clock to find it 7 in the morning.
I decided to eat bread and butter for the breakfast. I wasn’t really good in cooking but I could make the basics at least to feed myself. I kept the bread on the kitchen counter and searched for the butter in the fridge. As I was new to the things and place, it was difficult for me to find all the things easily. Most of the time, I had to ask the maids if I wanted anything.
First, I thought I would eat bread and butter but when my eyes fell on the toaster I thought about toasting it. So, I took the bread and inserted it inside the toaster and waited for the toaster to give me my bread. Till it gets toasted I thought about searching anything else in the fridge.
“Well, a sight to behold!” I jumped in fear but took a sigh of relief when I saw who it was.
“Zachary! Will you stop scaring me like that? You just caught me off guard!” I said as I walked to the fridge and took the jug of milk out and kept it on the table.
“Might I drink some milk!” I thought as I searched for the glass.
I was searching for it when Zachary walked into the kitchen and went past me to a cupboard. From, there he took a glass out and kept it beside the milk jug and looked back at me.
He looked tired as if he didn’t sleep the whole night. He was wearing the same clothes from yesterday. His hair was messy and his sleeves were rolled up which was an unusual sight for me because from the day I have been with him, I have seen him dress into perfection and I had actually assumed that he was from that type pf person who dresses up perfectly every single time of the day.
I heard a noise and saw the bread pop up from the toaster. Before I could take it out, Zachary took it out and kept it on a plate and inserted another one into the toaster.
“You are hungry? Already?” he looked at his watch “At this time of the day?” he asked and then without letting me speak he continued “You should have called the maids using the staff phone,” he said as he crossed his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes at me. His brown eyes pierced into mine as if he was looking directly into my soul.
“Because for the dumbest human like you, you never know!” he said and tha
t literally brought back to reality.
“Dumbest? Excuse me?” I glared at me.
“What if you burn the kitchen down?” he said smirking at the end and looked at the toaster when the bread pop up.
“Well for your kind information I can cook!” I told him and crossed my arms across my chest.
“Really?” he said as he took bread and put it into the toaster.
“Yes. Yes! I know all the basics. I can at least feed myself!” I told him and walked next to him and took the plate from before him and taking the knife I started applying the butter over it.
I stopped when I heard him chuckle. “What?” I asked.
“Nothing!” he said and I saw him walking to the fridge and he brought the eggs out.
“Wait! I will make you scrambled eggs” he said as he kept the pan on the stove for heating and took the butter away from me. I looked at him as if he had two heads while he beat the egg onto the hot pan.
He can cook?
“What?” he asked when he caught me staring.
“Who taught you how to cook?” I asked and a sly smile appeared on his face as he chose to ignore my question and concentrated on the eggs. Leaning against the kitchen platform I watched as he sprinkled salt over it and stirred it on the pan.
The egg looked nice, it even smelled nice and I felt my mouth salivating looking at it. I was really hungry.
“Here! Just serve it in two plates. I will just take make some coffee” he said and went to fetch the coffee powder from the cupboard. I admired his cooking skills and did what he asked. Taking two plates, which I assumed that another one for him I served the eggs and took the bread and to the table. At this point, my stomach was growling like a hungry tiger.
“Oh my god!” I inhaled the aroma of the coffee when Zachary place the cup of coffee before me.
I pushed my wet hair to the left side of my shoulder and sat on the chair as Zachary took a seat before me. Taking a piece of bread into my mouth, and a spoonful of scrambled egg into my mouth.
“Heaven,” I thought as I chewed enjoying the delicious breakfast savoring each bite of it. I was so busy eating mine food that I didn’t notice the piercing stare that I was getting right from the person who was sitting right before me. When I felt the stare, and I looked up at him with my mouth stuffed with my food to find him drinking from his coffee mug and staring at me. He knew that I caught him staring still, he didn’t pry his eyes away from my direction. I chewed my food which was in my mouth slowly thinking why was he staring at me.
What did I do now?
I followed his eyes and it was directed to my hair. What’s so interesting about my hair? It’s just damp now. Okay! Because I just took a shower and I was wearing a purple tank top with black leggings.
“Is there something on my face?” I asked once I swallowed my food.
He looked back at me and as if he was reluctant he shook his head ‘no’. With a small sigh, he took a bite of his food and I concentrated on mine.
“Frumoasă” I heard him mumble.
“What?” I asked confused whether I heard something or not.
“Eat your food!” he said and though I wanted to shove my spoon on his face, I gave him a sarcastic smile and ate my food.
“I set Nicholas free!” all of a sudden I heard him speak while I was sipping my coffee. I choked on my coffee and coughed a little before looking straight into his eyes.
“What?” I asked perplexed by his words.
“I let go of Nicholas yesterday,” he said looking straight into my eyes. I blinked several times and averted my gaze away from him.
“Oh!” I said as I kept the coffee mug on the table and trailed my finger on the rim of the mug.
“Will you not ask me any questions regarding Nicholas?” he asked and my head shot up to his direction.
He wants me to ask him about Nicholas?
“Do you want me to ask you?” I questioned back. All of a sudden a statement from my father came rushing into my mind. I clenched my jaw and put my left hand on my knees to hide it from Zachary. Something miffed me off and for that my left hand clenched into a tight fist as I looked straight into his brown orbs.
“I will answer your questions!” he said which made me avert my eyes away from him.
“You don’t need to worry about Nicholas. I have people watching his moves. We hope he will take us to Vito. And if you are worried about your safety than you don’t need to think about that. He can’t harm you, I will ensure tha-”
“Are you my bodyguard?” I questioned glaring at him.
“Pardon?” he narrowed his eyes.
“I no longer care about what Nicholas or Emmett whatever his name is doing or what he wants. It is a request from me, I will be grateful if you keep me away from all these. I don’t want to hear anything about him. You can do whatever you want with him. So please?” I asked and watched as he balled his fists on the table and his jaws clenched but he nodded yes.
“Fine! I respect your decisions. I won’t involve you in all this any further” he said and I nodded appreciating that he understood my decisions.
Nicholas! His name itself wants me to kill someone. Not only did he broke my trust but that man has the audacity to try harming my family. Sick man! He was the worst mistake that I did in my life. I hate myself for ever falling in love with that bastard. I still can’t believe that my world tumbled upside down these past few days after I got to know about his identity and his motive behind that fake identity.
It was a moment of silence between us when we chose to silently sip our coffee not even looking up at each other. My mood changed into a foul one because of Nicholas. I just hope Zachary takes care of all this and keeps me out of all this. I don’t want to get involved in Zachary’s criminal lifestyle nor do I want to do anything with Nicholas anymore. He is dead for me now.
That reminds of my father’s statement and I couldn’t help but ask “You said you will answer my questions.”
He looked up at me and nodded with a slight hesitancy.
“So, once all this is all sort out, I mean you get your revenge from Nicholas and Vito, will you let me go back to my family? I mean I can go back and resume my old life?” I asked and saw something flickering in his eyes. I couldn’t quite recognize it whether it was anger or sadness.
“Of course!” he said with a smile which almost made me feel as if it was a fake one but judging from his expressions and the situation of our lives, I highly doubted that it was a fake smile but rather it was a happy one that he would be freed from me. I mean of course I was a burden for him because he had to protect me and at the same time act before his family as if we are a happily married couple. He would be more than ecstatic to let go of me. The question is does it even matters? Because both of us know this, we are far from anything but a happily married couple. ‘Married’ only by a deal.
“Great!” I muttered.
So why does it affects me all of a sudden that he wants me to go away? I mean I should be happy because a couple of days ago I was the one who wanted desperately to get away from him. So, how did all the feelings changed all of a sudden? Our feelings to separate and go our own ways should be mutual. I hope this Vito guy to be captured by him as soon as possible because the soon he is captured the soon all this will be over.
“What am I even thinking?” I mumbled to myself and watched as he looked my way with a questioning look to which I gave him a shrug and shook my head saying a small “nothing!”
I sat on the balcony’s chair as I looked up into the sky blankly, my mind void of any thoughts. I was confused with what was going on in my life. The only thing that came into my mind was what would I be doing after I can go back home. Should I be excited? Should I make a list of things that I will be doing once I am free?