Heartcraft

Five

༄𖤍🂱 Dario 🂱𖤍༄

It was almost six in the evening by the time I made it back to my place. As soon as I opened the door, I was met with Armando sitting casually on the couch with his phone in his hand. His head snapped in my direction when he heard the door.

I walk closer and find her asleep in an unusual position, her neck twisted in an uncomfortable way. I switch my gaze to the coffee table where I left her food in the morning expecting to find it still untouched but to my surprise, neither the plate nor the mug were there.

Armando must have noticed, "She did the dishes." He says in a low tone. My eyebrows shoot up and another amused smile makes its way on my lips.

"Did she eat?" I ask.

"Only the sandwich from this morning." He answers.

"Lunch?" I ask next.

"I ordered pizza, she took one bite and put it back." I nod my head while switching my gaze to her. I noticed this morning that she was unnaturally skinny, practically no meat on her bones which raises even more questions in my head.

"Okay, you're good to go." Armando mumbles a quick 'yes, jefe' and gets up to leave. I keep my eyes trained on the Turkish princess until I hear the click of the door behind him.

She was still in the same dress and boots from the day before and I can imagine how uncomfortable that must be. Her hair was slightly tangled and the bruises on her cheek and jaw became a little faded. I could tell that the one on her cheek was a slap, and it must've been a fucking hard one because the skin is still a faded dark red color. The yellow spot on her jaw must've been a punch. A sudden image of her symmetrical face from this morning pops into my head and I can't believe how can someone bring themselves to hurt such a beautiful face.

Breaking myself out of this trance, I lean forward so I can pick her up and move her to the guest bedroom. A light sound escapes her lips as I pick her up in my arms but she doesn't resist. Her head rests on my chest and my hands hold her bare thighs and my senses are suddenly all aware of her in my arms. The smell of Chanel engulfs me and I try to walk quicker so I could put her down already.

She puts me in a fucking trance every time I look at her, it's ridiculous. No woman has ever intrigued me this much, but then again, I've never seen a woman this beautiful before.

As I put her down gently on the bed, I feel her stir slightly and begin to open her eyes. I assume she's about to fall back asleep but as soon as her eyes meet mine, she flinches and jumps to the other side of the bed in mere seconds.

"It's okay," I try to reassure, "You fell asleep on the couch, I moved you to the bed, that's it." I raise my hands in front of me to show her that I won't try to grab or touch her. Her eyes are frantic and scared, moving from me to my hands to the room.

"Do you want new clothes?" I ask now that she's awake. Her eyes meet mine again and I see her throat move as she gulps. No answer.

"I'll give you something of mine to sleep in?" I suggest but I'm still met with the same wary gaze.

"Come." I make my way out of the room and up the stairs to my bedroom so she can pick whatever she finds comfortable. I hear her footsteps behind me a few seconds later and I smile to myself.

My room has no door since the stairs lead to it directly and it looks onto the living room and kitchen area. I make my way to the small inside closet and look through the pile of t-shirts I have folded on a shelf. Azra stops right outside the doorway, not coming in.

It feels weird calling her Azra now that I know her name. She's still bruise girl in my head. And she doesn't need to know that I know who she is. Yet.

"Come here." I order gently. She seems hesitant as she slowly closes the few steps separating us.

"This one?" I show her a white t-shirt with a picture of Peppa Pig on its front which Pablo got for me on one of my birthdays, hoping it would break the ice.

"It's an inside joke." I explain as I catch a hint of a smile on her lips.

The smile gradually gets wider when she flips her gaze from me to the shirt in my hands but it still doesn't reach her eyes. She then gently takes it from my hands.

"Pants?" I ask as I go back to look for something that might fit her. Settling on shorts that have a string at the top so she could adjust it to her waist, I also grab a new towel and a pair of socks.

"Here," I hand everything to her, "If you wanna shower, you're welcome to." Her gaze meets mine but the expression on her face has changed into an unreadable one. Before I get to say anything else, she turns around and leaves.

I was taking one final bite from the leftover pizza ten minutes later when she comes out from the downstairs bathroom. Her long hair wet and my clothes looking huge and baggy on her. She stands in the living room shyly as if she's afraid to come closer.

She looks...adorable.

It had occurred to me that she might not understand English very well or that she doesn't speak it but that doesn't explain the lack of reactions and responses. She could gesture or write or use a translation app on her phone, there's a million ways to communicate but she's choosing not to.

"Do you wanna eat?" I ask even though I know she won't answer. She looks at me for a few seconds before sitting down on the couch right next to her stiffly. I almost laugh.

I pack the rest of the food and put it away in the refrigerator before taking a can of beer, opening it, and throwing myself on the couch next to her but still keeping a distance.

"I heard you did the dishes." I say when I remember what Armando told me, "Thank you." My eyes search her face, waiting for a reaction, but there's none. She's not even looking to me.

"Are you at least going to tell me your name?" I try again, "Mine is Dario." I purposely leave out my last name because there's no doubt she's gonna know who I am if she hears it and I don't think I want her to know yet.

Azra's face remains blank.

She's kind of good at this.

"Alright." I say casually and grab the remote, I flip the channels for a little while before settling on a random sitcom. A few minutes in, I see her from the corner of my eye lean back on the couch and tuck her legs under her.

I purse my lips to hide another smile.