When twilight drops the curtain,
and pins it with a star,
Remember that you have a friend,
Though he may wander far.
°°°°
"Do you think he killed her?" An unfamiliar voice says from somewhere nearby.
"Nah, it's too soon. Even for him." Another voice says. I can sense the hint of humour in his voice.
"How long do you think she'll last?" A third voice asks.
"No idea. This is the first time he has ever brought a girl home." The first voice answers.
They sound really really close. Who are they? What are they talking about?
I force my eyes open and gasp when I find three boyish faces, some inches away from my face, staring at me.
My eyes widen and so does theirs. They jerk back like I'm an alien.
I sit up and looks around. I'm in the same room I was before so that's a relief. But who are these guys? Are they.. some kind of perverts.. no way..
"Who are you?" I ask them.
One with light brown hairs and olive tanned skinned with a seemingly toned body, adorning an expensive suit says, "Aren't we supposed to ask you that?" He asks back, skeptical.
I push the blankets off of me. "Listen.. I'm not that kind of a girl.. Jacob. . I mean Mr Woods brought me here.. don't you dare think otherwise."
"That kind of a girl?" The fair skinned guy with slanted eyed, dimpled, black haired and a perpetual smirk, asks. When noticed closely, you can see that he is korean. Atleast half. He is astonishingly tall for a Korean. "What weird ideas are running around in your pretty mind?" He sits beside me on the bed.
I shift away from him. "Don't come any closer." I warn.
This makes the tanned one and the half korean smile even wider. And it makes me nervous as heck.
"You will probably scare her away before Jacob does." A calm and collected voice comes from my opposite side.
Oh my god. This guy is the literal definition of handsome. Light brown hairs which almost comes down to his neck, hazel eyes, sharp nose, triangular jaw, sharp cheekbones.
For some reason I find myself comparing him to Jacob. They both are so different yet so breathtakingly good looking. Jacob is more on the ragged, raw side while this guy is more on the polished and dandy side.
He walks over to me. "Don't be bothered by them. We just aren't used to see a girl in this house. I'm Ethan by the way. Ethan Foster." He sticks out a hand.
I take it with a smile.
"Sorry if I unintentionally scared you. I'm Noah. Noah Song." The half korean says. His dimples and Korean boyish looks are really charming.
"Don't forget me." The olive tanned guy says from the other side, while stuffing his mouth with an apple. "I'm Liam Perez."
"Hello everyone, I'm Sierra." I greet them with a smile.
Their eyes land on my face and they freeze for a jiffy. Like even though they have been seeing me for past fifteen minutes or so, they actually looked at me just now.
"Man, now I know why Jacob brought her home." Liam says.
"How do you know Jacob?" Ethan asks, ignoring Liam's comment.
"Oh, we just met at my flower shop twice. The second time, I fainted in his presence. So he had to bring me here.. out of benevolence." I answer.
"Flower shop.. Benevolence.. Jacob.. These words sound so wrong when put together." Noah remarks.
"This day cannot get any more weirder." Liam supports Noah.
I get up, suddenly feeling self conscious in the presence of soo many young men. The attire Jacob put me in is not particularly helping either. It's a strip sleeve satin top with shorts. The shorts are extra large for me. Probably Jacob's. The thought is really uncomfortable.
"I must get going." I say. Then I turn to Noah. "What time is it?"
He glances at his expensive wrist watch. "It's nine o'clock. Pm." He answers.
"Okay.. nice to meet you all." I make my way to the door. They all follow my movements with amusement.
Jacob stares down at me when I open the door. I gasp and step back.
"Who gave you the permission to leave?" He steps inside the room making me take a few more steps back.
"I.. well.. it's not like I'm a hostage.." This man scares me to death.
"I've already told you Sierra, I do nothing for free." He says coldly.
"Tell me what you want." I reply, getting irritated now.
He smirks and hands me a file. "I want you to sign this agreement."
I sit down on the edge of the bed and open the file. Ethan, Noah and Liam climb behind me and look into the file over my head.
"No way.." Ethan whispers.
"What the actual fuck!" Liam shouts.
"Unbelievable. ." That's Noah.
I glare at Jacob with the best death glare I could give. The nerve of this man! How can he even suggest something like this!
"You want me to be your fiance for five months!?" I say in an accusatory tone. "What the hell?"
"It's the price you have to pay. For my kindness." He answers.
"What if I don't sign this?" I challenge. This is intolerable.
He leans into me. "Trust me darling, you do not wanna mess with me." He whispers in my ear.
This agitates me more than ever. When he is pulling himself away, I grab his collar and pull him close to my face. "Listen carefully. I treated you as nicely as I could've Mr Woods. You have tested my patience for long enough. I am not gonna sign this. Thank you for everything, I'll get going now." I push him out of my face and stride out of the room and out of the house in a fit of anger.
When I am on the street, I realise it was a foolish decision. I'm seriously underdressed, wearing no shoes and I don't even any money with me.
I recognised the area well. It's the garden street. Of course rich people like him live here.
I guess I have to walk back home. Without any shoes. This is not good.
"Careless much?" Someone says from behind me.
I turn to find Ethan standing right behind me. Under the moonlight, he looks more handsome than ever. He shines. Is it actually possible?
"Rash much." I put in.
This makes him laugh. And my god his laugh is breathtaking.
"I'll drop you off." He offers.
"No, that's not needed. French quarters are not that far away really." I decline.
"You kidding? You'll have blisters if you go without shoes. Come." He grabs my hand and drags me to a really expensive looking car. "Wait." He says before I can get inside.
He shrugs out of his coat and puts it on my shoulders. I can't even tell how grateful I am.
"I... thank you." I say to him. He replies with a smile.
We both get inside the car.
"That was quite a show. You know no one ever spoke against Jacob. This was the first time. He is still stunned." Ethan says while driving.
I chuckle. "I guess his mother never pulled his ear like mine did." I reply.
This makes his playful expression change into a grim one. "His mother died during childbirth." He tells.
I cover my mouth with my hands in surprise. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I didn't mean to be insensitive. I'm so stupid."
He smiles again. "It's okay. It was a long time ago. But seriously, did your mother pull your ear?" He teases.
I sigh. "Indian mothers are strict as hell."
"That's it. I knew you were Indian. Liam said you must be from UAE." He smiles as if he won lottery. "Look over there." He points at a billboard.
It has the picture of the famous upcoming model Sophie Richards. "Are you pointing at Sophie?" I ask.
He nods. "She and I are childhood friends. And.. it's confidential.. but I guess I can trust you." I nod. "We both are in love with each other."
And it hits me. I shouldn't be taking his actions in the different sense but I think I did.
He saved me today. From humiliation, from pain. And made me feel something that I haven't in a long time. Being cared for.
I smile when he looks at me.
He owes me. I will pay him back by not showing him my developing feelings for him.
He's out of my reach. All those guys are. Including Jacob.
After all, birds of one feather flock together.