Piercing Hatred | ✔️

39

~Flora's POV~

I thumped my hand against my forehead as I sat in my apartment the next day, unable to believe that I had completely forgotten to talk to Knox about what we were.

Hell, the entire reason I had been making dinner last night was because I wanted something to try to ease us into the conversation a little, but that thought had been lost the second he'd stuck his hand down my pants in the middle of the kitchen. It certainly didn't help that he had distracted me not only last night, but the second I'd woken up in his bed this morning, too. The man was insatiable, but I suppose the fact that I gladly accepted it meant that I was as well.

Casting a glance at the time, I saw that it was already about ten PM, which meant that Knox had likely returned from the dinner he had gone to with his friends. I curled my legs up on my bed and chewed thoughtfully on my bottom lip, considering whether or not it was too late at night to go over to Knox's. Would he be annoyed?

With a shake of my head, I crawled out of bed and pulled on a pair of pajama pants before I could convince myself otherwise, wandering across the hall to Knox's apartment. I knocked on his front door and waited patiently for him to answer, fiddling with my shirt in the meantime. However, a few moments passed and I frowned, beginning to think that perhaps he had already gone to sleep. Maybe it had been to late to come over after all.

Right as I was about to turn around and head back inside, however, I heard movement from inside Knox's apartment. I paused, a smile growing on my lips when I heard the click of the door as it unlocked.

But my smile quickly fell away when the door swung open, and Knox was not the open standing there.

I stared at the woman in front of me, blinking in a mix of surprise and confusion. The woman was vaguely familiar to me, her tan skin and long brown hair, and I frowned down at her. She was short and petite, which is perhaps why I took very immediate notice of the fact that she was swallowed up by an oversized shirt that I knew belonged to Knox. My eye twitched as I tried not to jump to conclusions, instead giving her a strained, confused smile. "Who are you?" I asked, still trying to figure out where I had seen her.

Then, after a few more seconds, it hit me. This was the woman that I had seen wandering around the apartment complex with a suitcase, who I assumed had just recently moved in.

"I'm Gabriela." She introduced herself as she smiled at me, a kind one that seemed to actually be genuine, so I assumed that she clearly didn't know who I was. And why would she, after all? However, I stared at her, stunlocked. Gabriela? As in, Knox's ex-girlfriend?

My lips pursed slightly and I gave an uncertain nod of my head, unsure what to think. Why was she here, and why the hell was she wearing his shirt?

She raised a brow at me, slightly confused, and opened her mouth to say something, but quietly shut it when we both heard the sound of footsteps approaching from behind her. Knox stepped into line of sight and I pinned my gaze onto his, torn between hoping that he could see my slight irritation and hoping that he didn't notice it at all. I didn't want to get too ahead of myself, but this...why was she here?

Knox's eyes flitted with a brief flash of panic between Gabriela and I, and I knew he saw through me, catching onto my feelings. "What are you doing here, doll?" He asked me, stepping around Gabriela. She frowned up at him from behind, likely picking up on the nickname that he let slip, and then cast her gaze towards me. Suddenly, she was no longer looking at me as friendly as she had been before, now narrowing her eyes at me like I was in her way. I tried to ignore it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to give her that dirty look right back.

A thoughtful hum left me as I crossed my arms over my chest, peering up at him. "I'd wanted to talk to you about something, but I guess it can wait. I see you have...company." I responded, and he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.