Drowning In Color | ✔️

Chapter Thirty-Seven

We headed to Ivan's place to freshen up. He now lives on his own, after choosing to be financially independent. As for how well that's going for him, I have no idea. Nevada probably went home, wherever it was.

I looked around the place. Musical instruments and scores of sheet music were placed all around the living room. At least he's doing what he likes. Let's just hope his neighbors are caring and understanding people.

Art canvases were also placed by the windows, as well as an easel. I never knew he was into that stuff. Was it his roommate? Rent is expensive, after all.

Violetta was already inspecting the place, giving everything a closer look. She's adorable when she's that inquisitive. Ivan handed us spare toothbrushes and extra towels. For me, he lent some of his clothes to change into as well. Seeing as she was occupied at the moment, I decided to take the first shower.

When I got out, I peeked from the corner of the walls. Violetta was sitting tensely on the couch, but her expression made it clear that she was enjoying the music my cousin was playing. I listened in on it too. He played an upbeat melody that was moderately paced.

A hand touched my shoulder and I felt the weight. She spoke not a word as she lifted it and walked past me. Her long, blonde hair flowed down to her lower back. I watched their introduction from afar.

"Hi, my name's Ember. Ivan told me you two were coming," she spoke with a calm voice. Sort of friendly, though you can't tell one's true personality from the first impression. She turned to Ivan. "Hey, I told you not to move my palette and brushes," she warned, kicking him in the ankle.

Ivan hopped around on one foot and apologized, "I'm sorry. They were just lying everywhere."

"I can only imagine how pissed Afina will be when you two move in with each other," she commented.

Having no idea who that was, and taking no part in the conversation, Violetta took the opportunity to excuse herself to wash herself up. As she walked towards me, I kissed her on the forehead. She gave me a sweet smile that was comforting. I headed towards the sofa and took a seat. The lady, known as Ember, headed out, apparently to work.

"How's your leg?" I asked, partially amused by that moment.

He sighed. "It's fine. She's been doing that to me for years. That's just what best friends do. Especially when that friend is a girl..." he mumbled at the end. I refrained from commenting on that statement.

He asked how I was doing. Other than the fact that my own brother endangered the lives of me, my loved one and a random stranger, there wasn't much to report on. He then proceeded to ask about school. He was starting to sound a bit like an adult when he asked that. Not that he wasn't one... Legally.

I told him all that I could, and my stories seemed to be giving him a slight bit of nostalgia. Afterwards, he recounted his life to me. Which was intriguing, even though he wasn't a grandpa yet. It was still relatable.

My stomach rumbled, and it was probably audible enough for him to hear. He headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for me and Violetta, seeing as how we barely had anything to eat the whole day. He told me to make myself at home, so I followed him.

He poured some cereal into two bowls, handing me one. It was basically cornflakes with bits of fruit in it. And while I don't mind those, they always manage to taste weird as compared to the fresh, non-dried ones. I shrugged. Beggars can't be choosers.

It was a Sunday, which meant that I could take this trip as a weekend vacation. Sort of. But I had the whole day to just rest and relax. Good thing I finished my homework. But I wasn't sure if Violetta did the same. I was going to have to question her about it later.

While I was taking spoons of the cereal, she came out of the shower with her hair dripping wet. She seems to have a habit of leaving it like that, though so did I. But the water dripped onto her very thin clothes. And it wasn't like they covered her body completely.

I knew she wasn't confident enough to pull off a look like that. But god, she looked hot. My body seemed to be self-destructing as I choked on the tiny fragments. I had to assure her that it wasn't because of her. Even though it totally was. Suddenly, my pants felt like they were tighter.

She took the seat beside me. Both our cheeks were filled with red and neither of us dared to look at each other. Ivan handed her her cereal. We ate them in silence to distract ourselves from the awkwardness.

"So, now that we're safe, did you finish your homework yet?" Damn. Romantic topic, I know. Could really have been salvaged by saying literally anything else.

She laughed nervously. I knew the answer, and so I apologized. Nothing was her fault.

"You know, you've changed a lot in the past few days," she said. I looked up at her curiously. She explained, "When I first met you, you were kind of playful. After we started dating, you've become like a mom—overly assertive and all that shit. Granted that's when your brother came back, but I miss the old Luka. The one who'd try to have a little fun. Where did he go?"

Had I been too controlling over her life? I thought about it. Then I put down the bowl and gave her a hug. My hand grabbed her bare shoulder. I asked if changing was a bad thing. She shrugged.

I apologized, though still tried to justify my actions, "I'm sorry. It's just that I'm constantly worried for you. I just want to be able to look after you. To protect you."

She frowned, tears starting to build up in her eyes. Shit, what have I done? She stared directly at me, her body hunched over that I could see what's underneath her shirt. I felt guilty so I looked away.

"Why does everyone treat me like a useless object? All my life, people think I can't take care of myself. After a while, I started to believe them. But I don't want to be like that anymore. And you... I want you to start seeing me as a person again. Not some pet to be locked up in a cage."

I sighed. In a way, I understood where she was coming from. I suppose it's terrible when all I ever talk about nowadays is work. Had I started to dictate over her whole life, day and night? She also mentioned about how I became more sullen since Mario came back. But now that he's gone, I wanted to make it up to her.

I made a suggestion, "Tell you what, how bout for a week, I don't talk about homework at all, starting tomorrow? Maybe that'll help me loosen up a bit."

She smiled and nodded. I followed and wiped the loose tears from her eyes. And with my hands on her face, I just couldn't let this opportunity pass. I pulled her towards me with a slight force, till her lips met mine.

Sensing that she wasn't going to run away, I moved my hands to her back and guided her body towards my lap. She climbed onto me, placing her hands on my shoulders for support. With closed eyes, my fingers felt their way to her hair and pulled it away from her face. Slowly, I withdrew myself and looked to see her dreamy eyes.

I traveled to her neck, and started licking and kissing her gently, just the way she liked it. Her breathing hastened from what was already considered quick from her. Her boobs, which grew each time she inhaled, tempted me. I did my best to resist the thought of holding them.

But I must have gotten myself possessed, as I eventually began giving her a vampire's bite. It may have been hurtful, but I felt like I needed the force of her life to survive. Once I was done carving my mark on her, I licked that spot again, to relieve her from the pain. She seemed to appreciate it.

Not long after, I stopped everything to look at her again. A slight smile could be seen on her face. And then she rested her head on my right shoulder. Her breaths had calmed down. She must have been exhausted as she snuggled up on top of me. I held her like she was mine.

My phone buzzed since I put it to silent mode. I had received a text, so I checked it.

"Can I come out of the kitchen now? >vO -Ivan" Goddamnit.

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Muahahahaha! Ivan had the best line in his text message here!

But to be fair, he did wait for them to finish instead of walking in on them. Best cousin ever, I would say >w<