Xavier looked at her for a while and nothing came forth. The silence lingered, and she ached to know what was going on in his mind. They were both sitting up this time, but no word was said.
"You still haven't told me what the problem is," He said, but she wasn't ready to tell him anything about her personal life. She also knew he wasn't going to tell her about his personal affair too.
*So why does he care?* she almost screamed out *If he was going to keep his affairs private, then why should he show concern for hers?*
"Forget about me, you can go to sleep," she said, wiping her tears off and turning to the other side with a heavy heart.
"You don't look fine," he pushed in further when she was least expecting him to say a thing about it. Xavier never ceased to amaze her. One minute, he would make her feel uncomfortable and the other he was acting all nice and caring. That was precisely what he was good at and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't hate him.
Amelia chose to keep quiet for a while. If she pretended to be asleep, then he might leave her alone. That was what she presumed inwardly.
"Do you want to go out for a walk?" she heard. It surprised her that he still cared to persist. As much as she wanted to bawl her eyes out that night, she also relished the idea of taking a walk with him. She didn't know how, but staying with him would make her feel much better. He had that power.
He had two superpowers. That was, the ability to make her uncomfortable and the other was the power to make her so comfortable. He was the only one to ever do those two to her.
"Yes," she muttered under her breath. Taking a stroll wasn't such a bad idea, she concluded after many thoughts.
He stayed quiet for a while. She concluded Inwardly that the deal had expired. She sighed in exasperation and just when she was about to drift back to sleep, he spoke up.
"Alright let's go"
Xavier stood up and she followed. This place was strange to her, but she was aching to have a peek around the palace-like Mansion.
They both exited the room and Amelia came faced with the giant hallway. In as much as she had been there before, amazement still clouded her as she looked around the place in awe. The amount of money that was invested in the artwork alone would be massive, compared to the full house.
Xavier stood in front of her with his hands dug into his pocket and his slightly long hair as messy as ever. For some reason, she found it attractive, resisting the urge to run her hands through it, but she immediately brushed the nasty thoughts off.
************
Martin
Martin stared into the blank space as a mischievous smirk slowly crept into his face. He turned to look at Hardin, who seemed lost in thought. Knowing fully well what Hardin was thinking about, he still decided to show nonchalance towards it. That was the appropriate thing to do because it was precisely how he felt about the whole thing.
"You aren't doing anything about it?" Hardin finally spoke, and Martin turned to look at him, puffing the smoke from his cigarette out of his mouth.
"Patience is key" Martin replied and Hardin scowled at him. He was done with that statement. It was beginning to wear him off. He wasn't the patient type, and Martins was the only thing keeping him from striking. If left to him, he would be twisting Jaws and ripping hearts out.
"How long?"
"Long enough, you need to be calculative, Hardin. You can't do as you please and hope to get away with it"
"I don't function that way," Hardin snapped as his breathing increased. The anger building up inside him was so huge that he felt that he was going to explode at any minute.
"You have to. You aren't stupid, and I know it, or would you like to prove me wrong?"
"We both want different things, and I still don't know the reason I have to succumb to your order."
"Because I don't want you to act in anger"
"It's not so easy and you know it"
"Do I?" Martin turned to look at him, cocking his eyebrow. Hardin signed in frustration, leaning his back against the wall in an attempt to surrender.
"When do you think is the appropriate time to kill that bastard?" he asked in a calmer tone, but that didn't stop the anger he felt in him. He knew how Martin was when people didn't succumb to his will, and he wasn't ready to face Martin's wrath.
"When I say so" he stated, and Hardin resisted the urge to ask for more information, which included where and when.
"Eventually, you will get your revenge," Martin assured him." But you have to wait.
Gulping a glass of Bacardi, Hardin squinted his eyes as the hotness of the drink attacked the back of his throat. The hotness of the drink coursing through his body was nothing compared to the hotness he felt Inwardly. It wasn't okay by him, but his hands were tied at that moment.
Once Martin gave an instruction, he meant it and regardless of what you do, never forfeit his rules, to avoid his wrath. Everyone knew that, and no one dared to rebel against him because they all knew the consequences.
Hardin watched as Martin simultaneously dragged and puffed smoke out of his mouth. He couldn't help but scoff and Martin smirked in reaction.
"You don't need to worry, once I grant you full permission, there will be no stopping you" Martin stated to calm down the already tensed up and angry Hardin.
Martin stood from where he sat and walked slowly towards Hardin with the cigarette placed in his mouth. He stopped in front of him and a slight smile appeared on his face, while Hardin's face remained the same, having a glare on.
"You know, you don't need to worry about a thing" he puffed smoke on Hardin's face and a snicker followed. "You know why?" He leaned closer to Hardin until the space between them barely measured any centimeters.
"Because I'm here," he said underneath his breath, and Hardin could feel his hot breath against his face.
"Sooner or later, that bastard, Xavier will go down"
Martin smirked, raising his index finger to his cheeks and stroking slightly, and caressing it while Hardin's face remained the same, unchanged, but that wasn't stopping Martin.
Once he wanted something, he was going to get it at all costs, and he didn't care if it was in consent or force.
Martin slowly began to move closer to Hardin and just when he was about to kiss him, Hardin pushed him off and glared at him, which made Martin erupt into thick laughter. He walked towards the table and plunged a bottle of Bacardi in his mouth, drinking it without repercussion.
Hardin on the other hand soon started regretting why he didn't let Martin do what he wanted. He knew how Martin could be when rejected. In as much as he felt he was tough, there was no way he was tougher than Martin,
Martin snapped his head toward Hardin who was leaning against the wall and when a sly smirk appeared on his face, Hardin knew he was in big trouble
"You don't seem to know what you have done," Martin said to him while Hardin stared back at him. Martin walked towards him one more time, but this time the smile wasn't on his face, instead, a stern look.
He stopped in front of Hardin and grabbed in roughly by his collar as he glared.
"Are you out of your fucking mind!" he yelled in anger, looking intently at Hardin.
"I wasn't ready for that" Hardin shot back, trying his best to set himself free from Martin's grip. Martin reached into his pocket, brought out a gun, and pointed it at Hardin's face, watching him gulp at the sight of the gun.
"You think you're tough, huh?" Martin screamed in his face as anger overtook him. He cocked the gun and Hardin shut his eyes, exhaling rapidly.
"You think I can't do it?" Martin asked, caressing the gun slightly on his cheek. He noticed how Hardin trembled in fear. That was the reaction he wanted from Hardin; fear.
"Martin" Hardin spoke in a pleading whisper and Martin was sure he had already instilled enough fear in him. Martin erupted in deep laughter, withdrew the gun, and walked back to his seat. Hardin could finally breathe. He exhaled sharply, adjusting his collar.
"You are lucky you know?" Martin picked up his cigarette that lay on the table and placed it on his lips. "You know why? I'm in an excellent mood today" he smirked
*****
Amelia felt the cool wind hit her delicate skin and goosebumps followed. She folded her arm under her breast, exhaling sharply and shakily. Xavier walked in front of her while her eyes remained transfixed on him the whole time. It was almost impossible to look at something else when a work of art was standing in front of you.
His hair was slightly messed up and his eyes still looked tired from sleep. This caused her to wonder why he even bothered about her enough to take her out for a walk. All this while she had always seen him as the tough type, this was the first time she got to see his soft, caring side.
"Where are we going?" she asked. She couldn't help it. The feeling of wanting to speak with him was strong, impossible to resist.
"For a walk," he said, turning to look at her. The lamppost that was close to them shone directly into his eyes. His green eyes became very visible, giving him an unrealistic beauty. Amelia couldn't help but awe, and for a moment, she was lost in beauty's paradise.
"Why do you even bother about me?" she blurted, but immediately regretted it as the word proceeded out of her lips. He was being helpful. The least she could do was thank him, but here she was acting insecure and questioning his kind heart.
" I don't" he smirked at her. " I needed a walk too".
"Oh" was the only word that made it out of her lips as realization hit her.
"And you looked as if you were going to pass out any minute. Bringing you along for a walk wasn't a bad idea"
"So you are doing this for me then?"
"Don't flatter yourself"
"I wasn't, you should be glad I agreed to go on a walk with you," she said, and he snapped his head to look at her in disbelief. With the look on his face, Amelia knew she had hurt his ego and that was the greatest thing she had wished for because he always did the same thing to hers.
A smile appeared on his face after some time. Amelia stared at him in astonishment. This was the first time she had seen him smile genuinely since she met him. His face always had a stern or emotionless look. Seeing him with a genuine smile warmed her heart, and she couldn't help smiling back at him.
Xavier, almost as if he realized what he was doing, quickly stopped smiling, and his face went back to the normal way he always had it. Amelia's smile lingered because she felt blessed to see him smile so warmly.
It wasn't something he did regularly, and she was willing to hold on to that moment for a long while.
Xavier rubbed his eyes with the back of his palm. She bet he was still feeling sleepy. Even though he told her he was doing this for himself, she knew deep down that he was doing it for her.
Amelia stared at him as the smile slowly faded and the question lingered in her heart once more.
"Xavier?" She called out and he hummed a response. "Why do you want to get married to me?"