"Hey, you're still staring at your portrait? You love it that much, huh?" Hilary questioned, hugging me from behind. She gently swayed our bodies together side by side, toning the atmosphere into the essence of sweetness.
With an unbreaking smile, I eagerly nodded. We were standing in my study room and I'd been gawking at the painting of mine since I came home from my last class of the day. It astounded me to the core that someone painted me for the first time.
This work of art that Hilary had given me for my birthday was the best thing I'd ever receive as a present in my whole life. Aside from the fact that it was from perfect her, I was also overwhelmed by the smudges of bright acrylic dyes covering the grudges area underneath my whole feature. It was an absolute abstract of my face tinted with sophistication and beyond.
"I love it so much. I can't stop staring at it every time I come here," I said, beaming happily.
Hilary giggled, kissing me on my shoulder. "I'm glad you do because that's just the start of the gallery I'm planning to work at after my art tribute for Cassie."
I hummed, turning around and held her on her waist. "I'm sure you'll do great. Speaking of, how's your painting business going, Toes?"
Hilary averted her eyes in thoughts. "I'm starting my first artwork. They're mostly abstract and don't go into details so it won't be time-consuming. Arisa's connection is helping me to find bidders. How about you? How's your digital art going?"
"I might start freelancing but I'll surely focus more on my study," I answered while stroking her lower back soothingly.
She raised her hands and cupped my face, her gaze locked with mine warmly. "You don't have to work yourself out for now. You need to relax and calm your mind at this moment. Give yourself a time to heal. Don't worry, I'll take care of the rest in a meantime."
I smiled at her kindness. "It's fine, Toes. We're in this together, remember? Besides, I promised your father to take care of you. What would he say to me if he finds out that you're the one paying for our necessities? I'm sure he'll annihilate me."
Hilary sighed. "Don't mind him."
"Toes, hear me, okay? I still have my trust fund and Dad loaded it with a huge sum of cash. I know that I shouldn't take advantage of it but I swear to give all those back once I get a job, then transfer it to my Mom's account," I said, giving her a candid smile.
Hilary pouted in defeat and I kissed it away, pressing my lips hard on hers. She moaned at the contact and eventually, it turned to ragged and avid kisses of our desires. My hand moved down on her butt and groped it lavishly while Hilary pulled my face closer to press our lips impossibly firm more than they already were. The dance of our lips stole our breath into fiery suffocation— highlighting our hunger for each other.
However, the sound of the doorbell interrupted us. As I pulled away, I heard Hilary grunted in disapproval and she was now glaring at me sharply.
"I have to go answer—"
"Why don't you just tell him to just find another partner and fùck off?"
"Toes, we've already talked about this."
Hilary let me go, sighing. "Fine! I'll be in my art studio. And I have eyes, Klo," she said, referring to the CCTV we had all over the apartment.
I shook my head chuckling and ogled at her legs as she walked out. When the bell rang again, I quickly stormed out to open the gate for Xander. He smiled timidly at me as I stepped back, giving him a space to enter. Once I closed the gate, I stood behind it and stared at him anxiously.
"Hey, I have something to tell you but don't freak out," I began, scratching the back of my ear.
"Sure," he said, totally clueless.
"I'm living with Hilary and she's inside right now," I said to him, hoping that he wouldn't panic.
But as I expected, his eyes widened in surprise as he looked at me in disbelief. It seemed like he was afraid of my girlfriend and pondering if he better run away instead of facing the devil incarnate. Hilary is a sweet angel for me though. But given my history with Xandie, I knew that she was all ready to consume a little bit of wrath and dark. She could be possessive sometimes.
"W-What?! Why didn't you tell me?" he asked incredulously.
"I'm afraid you wouldn't' want to go here once you find out. But don't worry, she knows that you're here and we're working on this art project."
Xander frowned, a worry look plastered on his face. "She's not gonna kill me, right?"
I laughed. "No. Wait, are you scared of her?"
"N-No. I just don't want to trouble the both of you. You know that she doesn't like me."
"I know, but she has to accept that we're friends, right?" I said with an unsure smile.
He smiled back at me. "Yeah, of course, we're friends, Khloe."
"Great! So shall we?"
Xander nodded and we both entered the apartment at ease. I told him that Hilary was in her art studio so he didn't have to worry about anything while we do our work. I'd been blending 3d concept before but I was more focused on my realism 2d artwork during high school. Luckily, Xander had been practicing it for a long while so he willingly taught me the basics and I eventually understood where to start. We decided to create a game character and each of our talents melded easily with the idea we were trying to aim for.
After long hours of building the base of the character, a few knocks ceased our focus and once the door opened, Xander immediately leaned away from me as if I had a contagious disease. Geez, we were just sitting next to each other because we both had to look on my monitor. Why so panicky?
Hilary entered the room with a smile on her face. It seemed like she'd already taken a shower, noticing that her blonde hair looked so wet. She stared briefly at Xander before turning her attention to me. "Hey, dinner's ready. Aren't you finished yet?"
I looked at the time in my digital watch and almost hissed at myself when I realized it was already eight in the evening. "Oh shoot! I didn't realize the time."
"It's fine. I just finished cooking our dinner. Why don't you join us, Xander?"
Damn, it sounded like an invitation from hell. And Xander looked like he was about to piss himself when he stood up and started to gather his things.
"It's alright, Hilary. My friend invited me to the bowling alley. And we're about to finish anyway. Right, Khloe?"
I just nodded, but we both knew we weren't nearly done yet. I just chose to shut up about it because I could see that Xander wasn't planning to go back here again—ever. We should probably just coordinate at school and online after this. We'd already decided on the concept anyway.
"Are you sure?" Hilary asked him further.
However, he just gave her a nervous smile as a response. "It's fine. I'll go now. I'm meeting with my friend at eight-thirty."
"Umm, I'll walk you out," I suggested, standing up. Once Xander stepped out of the room, I leaned towards my girlfriend and pecked her lips to lessen the tension that had begun as soon as she had knocked on the door. I clearly knew better that she was a bit angry because I didn't realize the time.
I quickly trailed behind Xander and once we marched out of the front door, my jaw dropped at the sight in front of me. Madelaine was walking at the edge of the pool with only her red bikini. Her curls were wet while they bounced in each of her strides. Her sun-kissed skin was adorned by the water drops which were crawling down through her body with the gravity. Although it was already dark, I still could see her toned abs screaming for a light touch.
"W-Wow," Xander uttered and I bet he was already thirsty from the way he ogled at Hilary's personal bodyguard.
But I awkwardly nudged him awake from his daydreaming. "Move, Xandie."
"Khloe, you didn't tell me there's another goddess in here. Hòly shít! Maybe I should stay for dinner."
I frowned at the idea and visualized what could happen if ever he's gonna stay for dinner. Nope, it would be a disaster. I knew Xander whenever he would try to flirt. I'd already experienced how awkward he was with his innuendos and lame jokes. Hilary would be pissed even more even if Xander would only try to make a move with Mad over dinner. No! Definitely no!
"No, move!"
Xander sighed as he proceeded to head out of the gate in defeat. Mad was observing us as she sat on the jacuzzi. Hilary told me she had to report to Mr. Damien about what had occurred so far and just sent a temporary bodyguard to Hilary. The event was still fresh so I couldn't blame anyone if they were still cautious about our safety. Quinn also hadn't pull out my bodyguards yet and my Mom was still calling me every day to check on my well-being.
Once Xander was already out, I approached my savior with a warm smile. "Hey, I didn't know you're already here. How did you—"
"I just came in an hour ago through the front gate," she bluntly answered, her voice was laced with blankness.
I just nodded and reminded myself that I had to thank her for saving me. "Umm, Mad. Thank you for being there. I don't know what could've happened if you didn't check on me."
"It's my job," she briefly replied.
"Mad?" I heard Hilary's voice behind, causing me to turn around. It seemed that she was also surprised that Mad already came back. "When did you—"
"Just an hour ago, through the front gate," she said, cutting off my woman.
Hilary chuckled. "Alright, why don't you join us for dinner?"
Mad shook her head. "Thanks, but I've already eaten. I just want to relax my body for now. You don't mind me using your jacuzzi, right?"
"Of course! We don't mind," I exclaimed, my voice was in a high pitch for some reason.
Hilary frowned at me before she responded to Mad, "Yeah, feel at home as always." Then she reached for my hand and intertwined it with hers. "Klo, let's eat."
I nodded but moved a bit to look at her bodyguard. "Thanks again, Mad. I owe you my life."
Mad snorted. "You don't owe me anything like that. Your life only belongs to you."
Her words astounded me. True, my life only belongs to me which that bastard didn't comprehend while he kept on claiming that it was his after he had saved me from that car accident. I wished he rot in the depths of hell for all that he'd done. But I also wished that he find a chance for redemption while he is being detained for twenty-five years.
Hilary led me back inside the apartment still holding my hand, leaving Mad to her privacy. My girlfriend gave me a sharp look once we reached the dining area. Then she stared down on my lips with a deep frown.
"Wipe that drool off your face, Klo," she said firmly.
"W-What? Where?" I questioned, lifting my free hand to feel if there was really a drool on my mouth. However, it looked like she was just messing with me. "There's no drool."
"Oh gosh, get a clue. I saw how you looked at Mad a while ago."
I laughed, getting the idea that she was being the typical Hilary again—the possessive one. "Yes, I was looking at her in appreciation because not only did she saved me, but also because she successfully caught that jerk."
"Didn't seem like you're staring at her like that. You are in awe of her body."
I smirked, knowing how to handle her possessiveness. Lifting one of her hands, I looked at her from head to toe while wiggling my brows. "What? That's impossible! I'm only slave to your body."
"Whatever!" Hilary turned her back to me, but the blush on her cheeks didn't escape my eyes.
I just followed her to the dining table chuckling to myself and then sat next to her. My gaze fell on the dishes she'd prepared for us and I felt my stomach roiled in excitement.
"I tried to cook something different this time for a change," she said, serving both of us a plate and silverware. "Eat. It's creamy chicken quinoa and broccoli casserole. At least, that's the name of the recipe I followed."
Wasting no time, I put a large portion on Hilary's plate first before placing almost the same amount on mine. Once I tasted it, I sexually moaned, my eyes were shut because of how delicious it was. I was so proud of her because her cooking skill was improving so much. She was seriously training herself to be my perfect wife— although she's already perfect for me.
"This— This is good. So creammmmy," I commented with a wide smile on my face.
Hilary arched her brow at me. "Just good?"
I nodded and gave her a sultry gaze. "Yes, just good because nothing compares to your creaminess."
Hilary laughed out loud. "Klo, you're so insatiable. You were drooling just a while ago at someone else and now, you're trying to be sexually smooth with me?"
I smirked, aware of where to navigate this conversation. "As far as I know, the only time when I drool at someone is when I saw this girl naked."
My girlfriend smacked my arm out of nowhere, her blue eyes were unforgiving as they stared at me. "Don't tell me there's someone else you're fantasizing about! Who is she!"
I rubbed my arm, amused at her flaming reaction. "Yeah, she's the girl I picture every second of my life since I saw her naked at the lake, skinny-dipping with me in the middle of the woods. Since that night, everyone becomes a gaussian blur in my eyes because she's the only one I see despite the shade of the dusk."
That statement made her speechless, knowing I was referring to her. She bit her lower lip to quash her smile but I could see the glow in her eyes anyway. Those words I uttered couldn't compare how much she put up with the difficulties I have in my life. In fact, those were just the beginning. I had so much store for her in the next days and the years to come.
"I love you, Hilary," I said softly, seeing that she wasn't planning to respond to my poetic set of words.
Finally, she couldn't able to suppress her smile anymore as she leaned forward to me, hugging me close. Replicating her warmth, I too embraced her, placing a gentle kiss on her head.
"I love you more."
Those words were so repetitive. We never missed saying them every day but there was still this flutter in my stomach every time. I wouldn't get tired of saying that I love her and of course, making her feel that way.
"C'mon, the creamy chicken quinoa and broccoli casserole of yours is already getting cold," I said, my tone was teasing.
Hilary chuckled as she drew away. "Right, Miss Smoothy."
I rolled my eyes with a lopsided smile and just let ourselves be whisked away by the night, creating pieces of our story.
...............
My own scream jerked me up from my sleep, putting my heart into an erratic beat. My chest heaved up and down as I released scruffy breaths. I looked to my side to see Hilary was still fast asleep then my eyes shifted to the wall clock, telling me it was still three thirty-three at dawn.
Pressing my palm on my chest, I deeply inhaled a lungful of air before releasing another slowly. It had been a while since the last time I had this nightmare. Yeah, it had been a long while since I saw myself screaming while being raped by that bastard repeatedly. It only stopped when I dedicated myself to the training.
Raking my fingers through my hair, I stared at Hilary again and then softly kissed her on the head. Knowing that I wouldn't be able to go back to sleep anymore, I silently crawled off the bed and headed outside. I just decided to run a few laps around the pool to stir my mind away from that ghastly scenes. I pondered about something else or more like I kept thinking about happy thoughts instead, forcing myself into a mental diet. Not satisfied at all, I started to grind my body with a set of push-ups with a jump in between, setting my body on sweat and fire.
"Can't sleep, loser?" a familiar voice startled me, causing me to halt.
Turning around, my eyes shifted at the woman who was sitting on one of the lounge chairs. She was just wearing a gray sports bra and black sweatpants. It seemed like she'd been there for a while now, watching me work out at dawn.
"Hey, Mad. Did I wake you up?" I asked as I started to get self-conscious with just my fitted tank top and cotton shorts.
She stood up and did a little stretch before her eyes locked on mine. "No, I usually workout at this hour. I didn't expect you to be here so it was really a surprise."
I cleared my throat. "Yeah, you're right. I don't usually get up at this hour. Well, I do when I was in the military camp."
She nodded. "Maybe you should start getting back in this routine. It will surely help your physical and mental state. But I advise you to do it properly tomorrow because the way you jump and go pump yourself on the floor tells me that you're frustrated about something. Is there something bothering you, if you don't mind me asking?"
I smiled bitterly. "It—It's nothing."
Mad silently stared at me for a brief moment before she nodded in understanding. "Alright, I'll let you have this area. I'll just do my run outside."
When she spun to walk off, I mentally hissed at myself first, contemplating if I should open myself to her or not. But I was in definite decision already when I stopped her with my hand on her arm.
"Wait. On the second thought, can I talk to you about something?" I asked, greatly troubled. "I just don't want to bother Hilary with this. I don't want her to get worried about me anymore. About this petty things."
"Sure." Mad released herself from my hold and then she sat back on the lounge chair, expecting me to sit with her.
I let out a sigh as I sat on the chair next to her. My eyes shifted up to look at the cloudless sky, giving myself a time to wonder. "Is it weird that I have this gut feeling that things are not yet ending?"
"What do you mean?" Mad asked back, her tone was flat though.
"I'm worried that Jet is going to come back to haunt us again," I directly said, this time, no filters in between. "There's a chance that maybe he let himself be caught that easily."
Mad softly laughed. "It wasn't easy."
I shook my head, grunting. "I know, but— I just know him. Why would he jump into the tiger's den if there's a huge chance that he'll get slaughtered?"
"Because he's dumb?" Mad said, this time, her voice was in confusion. "And for what reason he wanted to get caught?"
"I-I don't know."
I heard Mad exhaled a gulp of breath. "Maybe you're just in a state of disbelief. I mean, You've been fearing to get killed by his hands for a long time now but your mind still can't keep up with the reality that he's already paying the price for his sins. At least, before, you're expecting that anytime, he would jump to kill you. But now that he's already gone, you have this empty space in your senses that won't get filled anymore."
I closed my eyes and just spoke with the calm wind of the premature morning. "Maybe you're right. This is just me getting anxious over things that have already ended."
"Your mentality is still healing and that's totally normal," Mad added then. "I'm no expert when it comes to this but I think you need closure for your peace of mind."
Opening my eyes, I turned my head to look at her. She was also gazing up to the sky, with her arms behind her sides, supporting her weight. "You mean, should I go talk to him or something?"
Mad shrugged her shoulder. "Whatever floats your boat."
I chuckled, nodding. "Thanks for the advice though."
Mad turned to look at me. "You don't have to thank me. It's not for free."
"Even so, thank you."
Then a comfortable silence fell between us and I stared at the sky again with a lighter heart. Mad was right. I just needed to heal myself with time and all my nightmares would eventually be gone someday. And in order to heal, I had to face my fear again. I had to see him despite Quinn's disagreement with that idea. I needed to know what he has to say to me and maybe his words might push me forward to reality. Maybe seeing him detained would give me peace of mind. With those thoughts in my head, a decision was made already.
But of course, I still needed to talk to Hilary about this. I didn't want her to get worried, yes. However, she was already my life partner so I wanted to be true to her as much as possible. I just wanted all of these to end.
"Soon, I'll be gone anyway," Mad suddenly spoke, pulling me out of my thought abruptly. "My mission is done here and in three weeks, I'll be assigned to another. So you better straight yourself out before that, loser."
I stared at her blankly, not knowing how to respond. But I could feel myself being rob of a titanium shield. As if I'd been clutched of vulnerability and been shot after.
Mad stared back at me with a smirk. "Oh I forgot, you're not straight," she said, laughing at herself.
Then she stood up and jogged away from me, leaving me with a heavier heart. Although, it was my first time to hear her laughter, still, there was an invisible rock pressing my chest at the news of her departure. Surely, I would miss her presence but this wasn't it. It wasn't a sense of longing.
This was a great fear seizing my resolve once again.
.......