THE INFAMOUS BELLA (KathNiel)

Chapter 11

11

 

Set against the chaotic backdrop of recent events in the library, Lance gave Madison a quick once over. She lay still in the emergency bed, eyes closed and completely oblivious of his existence.

Lance surveyed the enormous ward with undisguised obscurity, as he wonders how many years had it been since he visited one. Hospitals were one of the few places he rather not set a foot at. He never liked hospitals; it reminded him of funeral and engraved childhood memories. Those memories that was so precious and yet so painful at the same time.

He turned his head, just in time to see Madison opened her eyes. She regarded him with puzzled look.

A surged of emotion rapidly took him by surprised that his reasoning mind may not have time to influence the reaction. It’s almost like an involuntary shiver running down his spine.

The attraction he felt was unquestionable, he was starting to have feeling for the girl who lives next door. Those feelings he was not yet ready to face, not now or not even in the near future. He just couldn’t afford any destruction as of the moment. 

Distance. He needed a decent distance away from her, before it was too late. Maybe, it’s best to recollect his thoughts and set his priorities first.

Madison continued watched him until she recognized how visibly withdraw he was. Lance pulled away and become distant.

“Ready? Shall we go?” Lance said in a cold, unfeeling tone of voice.

He waited for her reply, but she didn’t say a word. Instead she just nodded stood up and follow him silently.

The first five minutes at the ride home was terrible, but then again Madison begins to feel her nervous system getting into fast base rhythm.

Her brows slammed together as she would start worrying about things might go wrong, or worsen by the second than it already was. For Pete’s sake, what did she do now? Nothing, if he doesn’t want to talk neither would she.

She peek outside the window, and something caught her attention. The sight already and made her nerves ten folds calmer. Underneath that burning sun a lone 40 feet Christmas tree stood tall and proud.

The artificial tree is decorated with balls in different hues and sizes. Huge life size candy canes, gingerbread man, nutcracker, ribbons, and other Christmas decorations were attached in alternate branches. What captivated her most is the star nestled on the top of the tree.

She smiled to herself, suddenly her thoughts drifted back to the past, looking back on her previous Christmases spent as a child. She loves the warm feeling that she gets when it’s Christmas.   

It was late in the afternoon when they finally reached their destination. Madison waited for lance by the lobby as he parked his car.

In the elevator, they were confronted with an awkward silence. A very long, long stretch of dead silence, the only noise that filled the small space between them was the air that was sucked in, and out through their noses and mouths as they breathe.    

Stepping out of the elevator in the tenth floor, they resume walking to Madison’s apartment. The both of them stopped on the hallway, the pair too engrossed with each other’s train of ideas.  

Madison was the first one to snap out of it, and she turned to Lance. “Thank you for today.” She said in a whisper.

He smiled. “No problem,” he said, in a strange soothing tone.

Madison has a feeling the tone of his voice doesn’t sound right. There was that moment where he was this charming prince and then, the next thing she’ll know he’d snapped back at being a cold blooded prick, that behavior alone leaves her completely puzzled.

“Can I offer you a hot chocolate?” Madison offered.

“Nope.” He sounded relieved. “Thanks.” And then he paused again. “I’m heading home.”

“Okay,” She said, turning her back at him.

Sighing, she opened her flat to find a wild mess was seated in front of her living room. She was just about to close the door when someone beat her on doing that. The next thing she knows, her face was planted on a solid chest.

Slowly, recovering from the sudden onslaught she glances up to the face of her attacker. Her eyes widen in astonishment.

Life is so full of unpredictable surprises. It’s just sometimes, it is way too much for me to handle. Madison said in a hissed.