by S. S. Sahoo
As I waited for him to speak further, my patience level drained out when he didn’t utter a single word. It was when I broke out of my state and placed my hand on the window.
“What are you doing here at this time of the night? And how did you even get inside the boundary?” I asked but all he did was stare at me.
“Zachary!”
“Zachary!”
“It’s you! Juliette,” he spoke and I stopped asking him questions.
“What is wrong with you?” I asked even though I hoped no reply from his side still he opened his mouth to say: “Open the door and let me in!”
“What?” I asked incredulously.
“Open the door!”
“No! Just leave!” I said and turned around to leave but he banged on the glass window like a maniac.
“What do you think you are doing? Are you mad?” I hissed at him.
“Let me in!”
“No!” I said and turned around to leave. As I walked towards my room, I gasped and stopped in my tracks and looked the glass door towards the left with wide eyes. There he was huffing as he looked inside. He ran all the way to the other side of the house to the glass door.
“What do you think you are doing? Just leave Zachary!” I said and as I walked towards him he coughed and the moment collapsed down all of a sudden stopping the breath out of me.
“What?”
“Zachary!” I screamed and ran to him. What just happened? Why did he collapse? As I ran I could feel my eyes watering looking at his collapsed form on the ground.
Undoing the lock, I opened the door and knelt down next to him and held his arm “Zachary! Zachar-”
“I knew it!” a gasp escaped my mouth when he held my hand and looked at me.
“W-What?”
“I knew that you care for me don’t you?” he asked and I looked down at him as if I just saw some ghost.
“What is the meaning of all this?” I gritted out and jerked his hand away as I got up and turned around to go back. That idiot. Who does he think he is? How dare he trick me? And just look at me how shameless I am. I am still running to him like a mad woman who is deeply in love with her husband. Well...
As I turned to shove the door, he stopped it and tried to push it open.
“Just what do you think you are doing? Stop it!” I hissed at him as I tried to shut the door.
“Move aside and let me in!” he said and effortlessly pushed the door and barged in with me taking few steps back as he shut the door behind him.
“Just who do you think you are barging inside somebody’s house like this in the middle of the nigh-”
I was engulfed into a tight hug as he buried his face in the crook of neck nd held the back of my head and waist stopping me from talking any further.
“Wh- What?” is what formed in my mouth out of shock.
“Who is shouting?” I heard Kiara and looked at the side from above Zachary’s shoulder to see her rubbing her sleepy eyes and holding the pillow to her chest as she yawned and walked out of her room but as she realized what was going on she stopped in her tracks and looked at us with wide eyes. Then she realized who the person was who was still embracing me refusing to let go of me.
“Oh my god! I am sleeping!” she cracked a nervous yet weird laugh as she took few steps backward. I raised my hand in her direction wanting to stop her from leaving me alone with Zachary but she kept on mumbling “I am still sleeping? Oh my God!” and vanished into the dark and shut the door close.
Kiara I am going to kill you!
“W-What are you doing?” I realized he was still clinging to me. I tried to push him but to no avail did he budge.
“Let go Zachary!” I pushed harder.
“Never!” he wrapped both of his arms around my waist and pulled me even closer blocking the air out of me. But in that position the blocking of air out of my lungs didn’t shock me but his words did.
52
Felt like an eternity, as I felt his touch once again as he let go of me and traced his finger on my face before pulling me into another hug once again. My hands fell limp on my sides as I stood there unmoving engulfed in his arms.
“Are you drunk?” I managed to mumble.
“Yes, you are!” I said once I smelled the alcohol on his shirt and breath.
“Let go!” I tried to pull away fighting with my own inner feelings and resistance of not wanting to be separated from him.
“Stay in my arms,” was what he said and I felt him stroking my hair.
“What are you doing? Here?” I mumbled putting my forehead on his shoulder as I felt him stroking my hair tightening his grip on my waist.
“I don’t know!” he replied.
“What do you mean by you don’t kno-”
“Ssssh!” his clicking of tongue silenced me.
“You sure talk too much!” he whispered into my ears sending a shiver run down my spine.
“You smell of alcohol!” I said as I inhaled the smell of alcohol from his mouth because of our close proximity.
“You smell good,” he inhaled deeply as he rested his chin on my shoulder humming in response. I didn’t really understand whether to feel good about it or get worried because of the fact that he was being unusually open and was speaking whatever I had always wanted to hear but couldn’t.
“Let go! You are drunk,” I tried to push him but more I struggled the more iron-like grip he formed around my body.
“But I am in sense,” he complained.
“You don’t even know what you are speaking!” I retorted.
“And I’ve heard that a drunken mind speaks a sobers heart!”
His statement made me stop struggling against him and slowly I looked up to look at his face inches away from mine. His breath fanned over my face and I realized that not only was he drunk but he was tired and sleepy too. The bags under his eyes indicated how tired he was and the smirk plastered on his lips made me wonder what was the thing that made so happy at the moment.
“Zachary!” I gasped all of a sudden because of the voice coming from behind me. Still, in Zachary’s arm, I turned a little and recognized the owner of the familiar voice.
“Willi?” I said astonished to see him after a long time.
And Zachary? Since when did he begin to call him using his name?
“Look who do I have here!” Zachary said and leaned against me putting his body weight on me which made me bend backward. His weight gave stress on my back and that kind of hurt me.
“Gaaah Zachary hold yourself!” I panicked as I tried to push him away from me.
“Zachary!” Willi was right next to me in a second helping Zachary move from me.
“No!” Zachary slurred stubbornly as he tried to hold my shawl and drag me back to him.
“Man you are drun-” Willi was cut off by the police’s siren outside my house. It was the patrolling team.
“Quick! Let’s go inside!” Willi said and even before I could respond he carried a drunk Zachary inside the house while I was dragged inside because of Zachary who was clutching my shawl like a stubborn monkey.
“Always barging inside!” I muttered as I tried to free my shawl from Zachary’s hold.
“Oh man!” Willi muttered as he made Zachary sit on the chair.
“I have to take him back to his hotel room now,” Willi said and put his hand around Zachary’s shoulder trying to make him stand but Zachary being too stubborn even to co-operate shook his head rocking to and fro in his seat and clutched onto my shawl even more tightly.
What side of him is this?
“I am sorry Juliette. Forgive him for his behavior but he is not in his right state of mind,” Willi said and all I could do was to heave out a sigh.
“It’s not your fault!” I muttered and watched as he gave me a faint smile before returning to his act of trying to make Zachary stand on his feet.
“Juliett-tte” came out Zachary’s slurred voice.
“Tell me, how did you both find me here?
” I asked as I recalled the question that has been nagging me in the back of my mind since the time I saw Zachary outside my window.
“And since when have you started calling him by his name? Are you both I mean kind of friends now?” I asked crossing my arms around my waist and rubbing my left arm, I looked back at Zachary who had his eyes closed but was still holding onto my shawl.
“Long story short, you can call us friends and about that previous question I’ll tell you everything about it tomorrow,”
“Or should I say Zachary himself will tell you about it tomorrow when he is sober but right now we need to move out back to our hotel,” he said and I nod understanding but then it struck me and I gasped.
“Tomorrow? You mean to tell me that he is going to meet me again tomorrow?” I asked incredulously and glanced back at Zachary who was now leaning against me with his head on the side of my waist.
“Of course!” Willi shrugged as if I was asking him a stupid question.
“Well, why would he even want to meet me tomorrow?” I asked throwing my hands in the air. The mere feeling of talking face to face once again made my heart race against my chest.
Willi bit down on his lips fishing his hands into his pant pockets he looked back at Zachary.
“I don’t really think that he will need any reason not to meet you tomorrow when he found you after a long time,” I heard him whisper.
“What?” I asked even though I heard everything clearly.
“I know you heard me,” and that annoying smile of his was back on his lips. It was the Willi I knew. He would smile without any reason.
“Bu-”
He cut me off and pulled Zachary’s arm over his shoulder and made him stand on his feet.
“Well, time to leave! See you so- tomorrow,” he laughed and as took a step with Zachary leaning against him now asleep, my shawl slipped off my body as I watched both of them leaving the house from the same way they came in with my shawl still in Zachary’s hand.
“Coffee?” Kiara asked as I combed my hair furiously tying it up into a ponytail.
“No!”
“Tea?” She asked leaning against the open door frame of my bedroom.
“No!”
“Water?”
“No!”
“Juice?”
“No!”
“Mr. Sullivan?” she asked which made me glance at her through the mirror.
“Never!” I muttered more to myself but my traitor heart yelled against the word that I used.
“Oh really?” she mocked me wiggling her eyebrows.
“Stop it, Kiara!” I glared at her and straightened the collar of my blue and black checkered shirt.
Thanks to Willi I couldn’t sleep the whole night thinking that I would be meeting Zachary once again in the morning. I made up my mind that before he could come and stand on my doorstep I would vanish out from his sight. And for that, I called Tess in the morning asking her if she and the other girls would like to go out on a road trip. She said yes immediately thanks to my stars. I guess the stars are really on my side today.
“We will leave without eating anything?” Kiara made an astonished face to which I just shrugged in reply.
“We shall eat something in our way,” I said as I applied some pink lip gloss on my lips.
“Bu-”
“Let’s go!” I looked at the time to find it already half past nine in the morning. I have no idea about the time when Zachary would show up so, getting out of the house as soon as possible is the only choice left. I took hold of Kiara’s hand and dragged her towards the front door picking up my purse in the process.
“Why are we even going on a road trip all of a sudden? You even forced me to take the day off from my work!” she complained and all I did was to ignore her rants.
“Well I kind of know why you are doing this,” I heard her while I locked the door.
“He is coming today, right? Are you going to run away from him? Fine, you will just ignore him today but what about tomorrow? You can’t just always go on a trip or force me to take the day off you know!” she spoke continuously as we walked towards our neighbor’s house. On reaching there I saw Tess already out with her car while Marianna stood there talking on her phone whilst Eve was locking her house door.
“Oh Good morning!” Marianna said as she looked at our way putting an end to her call she fished it inside her pant pockets.
“Morning!” Eve yelled as she jogged to us.
“Good morning,” I smiled at them and looked back at Tess who came out of her car and walked to us.
“So ready for the trip?” she beamed with joy.
“You look more excited from the one who suggested the idea of the road trip,” Marianna chuckled at Tess’s cheerfulness.
“I know right!” Eve joined us smiling at Tess.
“Well, I was also planning a road trip. I just love road trips. Who doesn’t?” she beamed. I felt the warm aura radiating off her and seeing her cheerful smile made me feel little better.
“Well off we go then,” Marianna said raising her hand and we joined as we walked towards the black Suv.
“Oh wow, I didn’t know that you own a Honda CR-V Tess!” I said admiring the car.
“Gift from my dad,” she beamed as she hopped in the driver seat and I sat next to her in the passenger seat while Marianna, Eve and Kiara took the back seat.
“Ready?” Tess asked excitedly.
I gave her a smirk while the three of them yelled at the top of their lungs “Ready,” excited.
“Oh C’mon! it’s only ten in the morning! Let me sleep!” we heard a guy from the neighbor and I looked back at them giving them an amused look.
“Rise and shine sleepyhead!” all of us yelled at the top of our lungs before Tess ignited the engine and we drove off. Halfway through the way, we continued laughing and chatting about that sleepy guy. I was so indulged in the conversation that I completely forgot about Zachary and failed to notice a black sedan which was following our car all the while.
53
A gust of wind went past me hitting my face in the process. A small smile appeared on my lips as I turned a little to look behind to find my girls taking pictures on the roadside. Marianna decided to take a little break since Tess has been riding continuously for hours. We saw a meadow and that was when we thought about parking the car on the roadside and to enjoy the scenery for a little while. After taking the pictures, I decided to walk crossing the road to the other side where I stood under a tree looking at the vast ocean of sunflowers. As far as my eyes could see, the only thing I could see was the bobbing head of the sunflowers.
“Guys look there!” I could hear Eve shouting from across the road towards my direction.
“Oh wow!”