𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒

𝐓𝐖𝐎

It's been almost two hours that I have been laying in bed and gruelling sleep. The aching in my skull ebbs and flows like a cold tide throughout my body. The smell of alcohol still drenched on my skin, adding to the nausea rising up my stomach.

I splash cold water on my face, instantly wishing I could wash my brain free of all the toxins consumed earlier in the night.

I walk to the kitchen, the hallway swaying as I do so. The thirst stays after each slow drink of water and my brain feels fit to swell at this point.

At least the pain works as a distraction from my mind wandering to Michael.

Suddenly, I felt a cool breath of wind trailing over my shoulder. I trace the current of air back to the open verandah door. What an imbecile Reuben is, helping robbers into our house.

I tread heavily towards the door, thinking about all the rumbling he was ought to sit through tomorrow morning. That's if I make it till then.

Hold on. Is that -

"Dante?" I squint at the blurry figure, I was scarcely able to discern from the dark of the night. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just leaving." He exhaled, alleviating pressure from his chest.

I sat next to him, saying nothing but maintaining eye contact, prompting him to continue.

"Your brother wanted to speak to me."

"Yes, I heard. What for?"

"Nothing." He finally responded, toying with his lighter. "What's keeping you up, Claire?"

"Is that even a question?" I laugh bitterly. "Since when are you smoking?"

"It's temporary."

He watched, studying me attentively. His eyes stained one with a dull almost viridescent hue of evergreen mountain lakes and the other with the lightest shade of blue, like the midwinter sky.

"What happened with Michael?" He questioned, retrieving my focus back to the conversation.

"Michael -" I sighed. "Michael broke up with me because he could not commit to a long distance relationship, while I'm off to studies. He said that the only reason he stayed with me was because he thought I would not get accepted into a university of such status and that I would be forced to study somewhere confined within the city. He did not believe I could make it."

I pause.

"That's not all. Michael admitted to cheating on me since finding out about my acceptance into the university." I felt tears welling my eyes.

Dante shifted from his seat in unease.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't bother you with this." I muttered, unable to conceal my tears.

"I care about you, Claire." He responded almost instinctively. "There's no need for you to apologise to me."

I took a breath, leaning my weight against the armrests. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"What do you mean?" The question seemed to catch him off guard.

"Do you think there's something wrong with me? Have I done anything to deserve this?"

"No, Claire." His response was firm.

"I think I need a break. From romance in general."

He remains silent.

"What about you?" I ask. "You have a girl?"

"Many."

"Come on." I scoff. "Do you have anything serious going on?"

"No. Wouldn't you know if I did?"

I shrug. "Probably."

We both regarded each other in silence. I'm thinking we could both agree in this instance that none of us possesses the skill of small-talk.

"Would you do something casual?" I prodded.

"Claire, I think -"

"With me."

He rendered in disbelief, rooted to his place as if frozen. "You are asking if I would be open to have a casual relationship with you?"

"Yes."

"That implies sex." He inserted warily.

"I know. We receive gratification from one another, with no strings attached."

He halts momentarily, suspending from speech.

"So, what do you think?"

・❥・・❥・・❥・

ꫝꫀꪶꫀꪀꪖ:  i warned you all that kenzo and i are sluts behind all this cutesy stuff. but we're keeping this raw and are sticking to the storyline.

𓆩♡𓆪