Thump. Thump. Thump.
Whoa....
My wet slippers slipped on newly showered bathroom floor dumping me down on my back with a loud thump. But this time not of my feet. But of my entire body.
"OW!" I moaned out twisting my face in painful expression.
Again the clicking of main door resounded inside the apartment as my ears perked up to detect the sound.
Ofcourse Emma had to come knocking at the door the moment I start taking a bath.
Can't she come before or after I take a bath?
Does she have some secret cameras installed Inside the house just to bug me at the exact no no moments?
Groaning I pushed my slippery hands on the floor and picked myself off it. Quickly jumping into my grey sweat pants and a matching grey loose sweat shirt that had a huge tweety drawn at front, I grabbed the towel and threw it over my head and exited the bathroom.
Quickly rubbing the water off my newly showered hair that was sprawling on my face and back in a 360° angle, I rushed out of the room to open the door.
My bare feet made sloshing sound as they hit the ground in hurried pace while exiting the room.
"Oomph!" My nose hit first into a--wall-- which was unexpected to be in my way making my towel to fall off of my head and I took a step back just for my feet to slip right back again in a blink making me fall ahead once again.
Into the-- arms-- of this wall now?
Strange!
My hair curtained my face, falling down saying hi to the floor as my upper body stayed bent over this arm.
Giving in to my curiosity, I flicked my head back and wet strands flew away from the right side of my face as they landed on my back presenting a view I didn't expect.
All the blood dried up inside my veins.
I was staring at myself in those dilated orbs that had pitch black darkness in the background of my face.
I somehow found myself rising my face up to look closely, squinting my eyes with scrunched up nose.
But they moved backward.
What?
The moment those orbs zoomed out was when I finally registered a very stony but blank face looking right at me as if I was a pythagoras theorem displayed to be solved.
King!
The mixture of cigarette smoke and slight male sweat-filled up in his cologne- came crushing my lungs as I sucked in a breath.
I shrieked out of his arms with such vigor that for a second bubbles erupted inside my head in all directions leaving me in a daze. Gaining back my consciousness, I frowned at him in bewilderment.
"What are you doing here?" I blurted out still a bit in a daze.
This sentence more likely have become our greetings lately.
He stood in front of me in all his glory. The front of his chest and abs weren't well hidden under his tightly hugging v-neck white tshirt as he rocked a white summer jacket over it matching the white slacks.
This all white aura over black bomber boots strangely seemed unnerving.
As if the white facade gives me an illusion that I can seep right through it but at the same time the hints of black in his boots and midnight bangs smirk at my foolishness.
This time those bangs were roughly sticking their edges inside his eyes as if acting like a dagger.
Or were those his eyes that acted like a dagger.
His face stayed passive as he didn't even move a muscle or made any comment which was strange after breaking into my house-using my keys.
I tried to catch his stare but It seemed to be wondering all over me uncontrollably.
As if it wasn't in his control either.
Knitting my eyebrows I followed his line of vision that ran all over my grey sweatpants, up my shirt, his eyes grazing the innocent tweety drawn there and then up my collar bone and on my not face.
Instead they were on my hair?
My brown hair.
It took me a moment as those words seeped into the awakened corner of my brain before I shrieked out jumping at the realization.
He blinked quickly sucking in a breath in slight panic as if struck by a mini heart attack at my reaction and possibly caught red handed while wandering over forbidden territory.
Oh my God! He's been looking at my hair!
My uncovered hair!
I frantically leaped around over my stuff, searching for my God damned scarf.
God, I thought it was Emma outside. How was I supposed to know it would be this creeper breaking into my appartment out of nowhere.
Shuffling blindly with my entangled sheets and pillows as my mind went haywire at the thinness of the moment, mixture of pleas to God escaped my lips as embarrassment engulfed me in huge bubbles that were see through at the same time to let this vulnerability be apparent to the observing eye.
"Where's the scarf! Where's the scarf!" I chanted lowly while going to my study table and throwing books over one another as if the scarf would pop out of them miraculously.
Why does my mind not work in such situations!
It's an emergency, for goodness' sake!
I probed my mind into alert mode.
Do I even possess fight or flight mode?
Not even glancing back, I threw open the mini closet door and started shuffling with my neatly folded clothes at the bottom.
All of this happened in a matter of seconds.
Why's he still standing there! Can't he just exit the room or something until I get my hands on the scarf!
A throat cleared somewhere in the distance and my scowl turned away from my closet to the annoying person, the reason of all this, standing at the door of my room.
"Here." His voice reached quite low to my ear drums as I froze in place looking at his extended hand. He held a towel in his hand and his back was turned towards me.
He was facing outside the room and I could see the hint of redness creeping up the back of his ears.
Is it possible that he is as embarrassed as I am right now?
But why would he be embarrassed in the first place!
Nope.
What am I even thinking.
Not wasting another second, I settled for the towel, snatching it out of his grasp and covering my head with it.
Painfully slow, he turned around to see me holding both edges of the towel at front in a death grip, as the towel stayed draped over my head covering it, not so subtly as many wet brunette locks were still peaking out of certain angles.
He coughed abruptly which felt like a half snort and half chuckle coming out of his lips in a nervous fashion which was soon drowned behind his fist.
Heat creeped up my face and I could feel the goosebumps rising all over my body making me lower my eyes, feeling ashamed.
He must be thinking that now I officially look like an idiot.
He really had to come here while I was in this state, hadn't he?
I knew it would happen. After all he had the key. How could I not predict the possiblity of him being at the door!
But how could I?
He wasn't looking at me anymore. The way he usually does. Always does. Or the way he was doing sometime ago.
His eyes seemed restless and no object seemed to interest his wandering orbs that urged to go back to settle somewhere he wasn't allowing them to.
"Why are you here?" I scratched out in a raspy voice.
His gaze locked up with mine for a fleeting moment and the next instant, we both looked away.
"We are going somewhere. Let's go!" He announced in a non debatable way and turned around as the bunch of keys danced in between his fingers.
I looked at his departing back as if he expects me to follow him.
"Going where?" My voice was oddly soft or maybe reluctant.
"Somewhere." He spoke over his shoulder.
"But I'm not going anywhere!" I called out after him making him halt in his steps to turn around and look at me.
How can he expect me to go with him, just like that.
I looked down at my outfit that had few wet spots here and there underneath my sprawled hair, my dripping feet that had a hint of pool of drops gathered around them.
"Yes, you are going." The pressure behind his tone left me on edge.
"Why?" I shifted on my feet uncomfortably.
"Cause I'm taking you with me."
"But why are you taking me somewhere. I can't just go with you whenever or wherever you want!" I explained matter of factly.
He took a step closer to me but then stopped as if a bulb lit up in his head making him stop. He dug both of his hands in the pockets of his slacks making the hem of his jacket curl up out of the way as his jaws ticked in a neatly controlled rhythm.
His eyes rested on me.
"Wasn't it you that day who said I act like your boyfriend but am not?" His voice held the memories of time when I ranted in his face to quit acting like my boyfriend while complaining about him talking like one to mama.
My forehead straightened back the creases as the memory hit me like a flow of water, coming all smoothly and transparently.
"Yes but-"
"So now you won't have anymore problem." He declared.
"What do you m-" I started but he was already halfway to the door. Leaving no room for argument he opened up the door to exit.
"Hey!" Emma appeared on the doorstep, looking apprehensively at king as if caught off guard who stood like a non budging rock holding the door handle.
Her face beamed at his,what they call --strikingly handsome face--which I don't think so.
Getting no friendly response from him, she turned towards me accessing my state. Her face morphed into a weird expression.
"You coming?" King called out to me without sparing me a glance.
His back was outright as if a rod had been fixed in place of his backbone.
Before I could respond to him, Emma jumped in," you guys going somewhere?"
"Yes."
"No."
She looked at both of us, raising her eyebrows at our opposite responses.
"What's going on in here?" She voiced out in between low chuckles, still wrapping her head around the situation at hand.
I stepped few steps closer holding the back of the couch, "actually-"
"We're going on a date." King announced cutting me off.
My eyes bulged out in shock.
Emma's head shot up to me and I feared her neck might twist at odd angle, "Date!" She boomed in high pitch voice making me cringe inwardly," is that right, Faith?" Her eyes took in my outfit and the towel covering my head in a funny way," but I thought you don't date." She approached me hesitantly.
Yes I don't.
Especially not when bagged up in this type of clothing. I grimaced inwardly.
"Yeah I don't. " I croaked making her expressions distort in confusion once more
"Then why are you--?" She looked back at king unsure of what was going on but then his stoic face gave off all those unflinching waves in every direction that penetrated right into the core.
Emma gave me that alert look as if getting assurance for a signal that seemed to strike her.
My face, being like an open book as always gave off everything making her press her lips together as something akin to anger starting flickering inside her eyes.
" she's not going anywhere!"
King turned fully around painfully slow and took her in through his lazy eyes under carelessly dropping eyelids that held midnight bangs as his allies.
I held my breath in anticipation.
"Says who?" He drawled out in mock interest.
Emma stepped before me in a defensive way and I shifted on my feet not liking where it was going.
"I won't let you impose yourself on her. In fact now that I think about it," she threw me a processing glance before turning her attention back to king," it's been you all along keeping her on edge lately." She added thoughtfully with accusation filled underneath.
I fidgeted with my fingers not having a courage to look at king anymore.
Emma please stop!
"So you are gonna stop me from taking her along?" He slurred out the word 'you' with a slight tilt of his head just like a child would do while questioning an interesting stranger, innocently, but the mischief in king's eyes said otherwise.
"Yes I am!" She nodded more confidently meeting his gaze unperturbed.
"How so, may I ask!"
I made a mistake of looking at him.
My back stiffened as shiver ran down my spine. I recognize that shadowed malice which hovers behind the covers of his empty eyes, waiting to pounce at the object of interest at the right moment.
I hurriedly grabbed Emma's elbow, squeezing it urgently to convey my desperation to her, " Emma!" I whispered out to her which went unheard or maybe she ignored it, " please let it go. I'll-" my tongue curled up in my throat, finding it hard to say the words as Emma threw me an irritating look. I somehow disturbed her ragging spree, "I'll just go. It's not that big of a deal." I mustered up a convincing look.
"Not that big of a deal?"
She gave me a hard look and I dragged my eyes away from her when she started detecting my inwardly panicking nerves.
Sighing I turned away, and entered my room to retrieve a scarf from my closet.
I didn't wanna drag her into this mess as well.
I heard her urgent footsteps following my trail, " I won't let you go, faith!"
"Why're you feeling this obliged to go anyway?" Her shoulders lifted and fell in a shrug,"You need to understand that you can say no."
That's where you are wrong, Emma.
I can't say no.
Although I try to.
I took out my scarf, covering my head with it now and gave her a dejected look. That's all I could do right now,"Emma you don't understand, so please!" I pursed my lips shut as she looked back at me in defeat.
Pushing my feet inside my white puppy slides, I walked past her out of the room.
But she didn't give up. Guess I was wrong earlier.
She held on to my shirt from behind," Faith, you don't have to do this." She pleaded in a concerned voice.
King didn't give me a chance to respond as he stomped over to us and broke me free out of her grasp which made her nostrils flare.
"Who do you think you are huh? You can't just just force her like that." She leaped forward raising her voice as my heartbeat accelerated its pace while king steered me along towards the door.
"I'm talking to you, asshole!" She jogged after us.
I looked back at her, " its okay. I'll be fine, Emma." I assured her not liking how I couldn't stand for myself and was putting her down who clearly cared about me.
"No you won't!" She shouted back giving me 'are you serious' look," you don't have to listen to this asshole."
King's hand froze on the handle and I bumped into him as he abruptly turned around fixing Emma under his scorching gaze who momentarily paused at the spot.
Not wanting her to be the center of his rage, I tried to avert his attention on me, " I-I can't go." My words disappeared into the thin air at the end.
I got his attention.
Which I regretted.
I felt like a hollow vessel--on target--when he looked at me. Differently.
He's been looking at me in a different way lately.
Strangely.
Which makes no sense at all.
"You hear that!" Emma started at the opportunity, " she doesn't wanna-"
"Oh you just shut up already!" King's voice boomed as he gave her annoyed look while the echo erupted inside the entire apartment.
I jumped back at the loudness although the shout wasn't directed at me.
Emma's lips stayed parted in shock at the insult.
I couldn't help either. I felt a slight shiver starting under my sleeves and I gulped down the rising anxiety but failed miserably.
"And you," he addressed me in rather cold tone that had no scorching heat rather a chilling frost. He meant serious business," are going to do what I say. Without a single word." He pressed the last words out before pulling me along by my arm on which he had an iron grip. I was sure it would leave a bruise later on.
Exiting the apartment he didn't give me another chance to look behind me.
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