There is a friendly football match between Emily's school and another school from the north, which also happens to be Harry's former school before he moved here. The game started seventeen minutes ago and it is still goalless.
Anyway, Emily stands on the sidelines of the pitch, watching the boys chasing a ball. Meanwhile, Katherine and Laura are sitting on a bench behind her, talking and occasionally laughing when Anthony missed the ball at his foot and accidentally passed it to the one of the opponents. Emily just smiles at that.
Three minutes later, the referee blows the whistle after two people collided at the middle of the field. The players start surrounding them and the incident when Thomas injured his ankle springs into Emily's mind. She admits she is worried that her twin brother might be the one who is sitting on the ground. Thus, she cranes her neck to see better and silently prays that her assumption is wrong.
Emily sighs in relief after noticing that Thomas is standing with his teammates whilst talking to Anthony who is actually the one sitting on the ground glumly.
Wait.... Anthony?!
"Is that Tony?" Katherine, who suddenly appears beside Emily, asks.
"Yeah."
"Is he okay?" Katherine asks again.
"I don't know. Maybe he just tripped and sprained his ankle? I'm not sure..." Emily rubs her chin, thinking that playing football has its pros and cons.
"I hope he's all right," Katherine states, making Emily nod in agreement. She then sits on the bench with her and Laura after the referee has decided to continue the match.
While Emily sits comfortably on the bench, she starts to feel sleepy as she puts her head on her hands. She admits that she is not a fan of football and not interested in watching it.
"Is he okay?" Laura exclaims all of a sudden.
"Who?" asks Katherine.
"Anthony," Laura answers shortly and points at Anthony who stops running momentarily and puts his hands on his knees before continuing to stride.
"I think he's got a problem with his leg. Do you see he's limping?" Emily joins the girls' conversation.
Katherine looks at her watch. "It's only five minutes before half-time. Do you think he can hold it for a little longer?"
The girls shrug, not knowing what to say or predict. They just wait until the referee blows the whistle, which happens exactly five minutes later.
The players from both teams begin to gather in their respective spots and when Emily's eyes have found Anthony, she immediately gazes at his leg which has a big, red stain on one of his socks.
"Hey," Anthony waves his hand at the girls who are staring at him with their eyes gleam with concern and confusion.
"Anthony... Your leg... It's bleeding!" Katherine points to Anthony's leg.
"Yeah, I know," Anthony sighs, sits on a bench and removes his shoes and socks. Emily widens her eyes at the sight of the hideous wound and blood on his shin and instinctively backs away.
"Come on, Em. Don't you want to help?" Laura says teasingly after noticing Emily's reaction and nudges her.
"I'm sorry. I can't......" Emily steps backwards whilst watching the paramedical team tend to Anthony's injury. She keeps on walking until she feels her back bump into someone's chest, causing her to turn around.
"Where's my water?" Thomas asks as soon as his twin sister faces him.
Emily furrows her eyebrows, situates her hands against her hips and tilts her head. "I beg your pardon. I'm not your assistant."
"Who said that you are my assistant? You need to get me a bottle of water because that's what little sister is for," Thomas emphasises the words 'little sister' whilst prodding Emily's shoulder.
"Don't call me 'little sister' when you're just a few minutes older than me," Emily snarls and smacks Thomas' hand off her shoulder.
"Yeah, but still little..." Thomas pats Emily's head which is on the same height as his shoulders, just to annoy and provoke her more.
They both already knew that Thomas is the older twin because their father, Andrew told them several days ago. He told them that Emily was born two minutes after Thomas as she was smaller, compared to her twin brother, who was larger and heavier. Meaning, Emily is two minutes younger than Thomas.
Anyway, Emily purses her lips and clenches her fists as she waits for the right time to snap at Thomas. Nevertheless, there is another female voice interrupting her action.
"Thomas....., right?" a girl asks and taps Thomas' back.
"Yeah," Thomas turns around and nods his head.
"You must be thirsty. Here's your water," the girl gives Thomas a bottled water and smiles sweetly.
"Thanks," Thomas smiles back.
The girl seems speechlessly awestruck and keeps staring at Thomas before Emily intrudes her daydream by clearing her throat and saying:
"Do you have anything else to say? If the answer is no, then you can leave."
Emily realises she sounds rude, impertinent and disrespectful. Despite that, she personally does not like it when a girl tries to flirt with Thomas and wants to impress him. She bets Thomas will also feel that way if boys want to flirt with her.
The girl looks embarrassed as she snaps out of her trance. "Sorry. Bye," her face obviously turns red and she quickly turns away.
"Bye!" Thomas exclaims, causing the girl to look back at him and smile shyly.
He turns around to face Emily who is gazing at him with an unreadable expression.
"What?"
"Do you know her?" Emily folds her arms.
"I saw her somewhere, but I don't really know her. I was just being nice to her as you made her embarrassed and uncomfortable," Thomas shrugs and then seemingly scolds Emily at the end.
Meanwhile, Emily stares up at her twin brother indignantly whilst thinking of the best words to say, but to no avail. She just sighs and rolls her eyes instead.
"What's wrong with Anthony?" Thomas gestures with his head at Anthony who is now has a bandage wrapped around his shin and talking with his other friends.
"I think he injured his leg," Emily replies and follows Thomas heading towards his skipper. When she realises that she might be surrounded with boys if she goes further, she intuitively stops a few feet from them, casually watching Thomas, Anthony and their friends chatting, bickering and discussing the new strategy they want to use for this match. Oh! Their coach is there too.
"Danial, you're the captain," says Anthony whilst tossing a 'captain' band strap at a boy who easily catches it with one hand.
Then, their coach gives one last speech before telling them to go out to the field and play their hearts out.
"Come on, boys! Make me proud!" Anthony shouts and his teammates salute him.
"Emily!" Thomas calls, causing Emily to look up at him. When she does so, he swiftly throws his bottled water at her and she catches it recklessly, almost dropping it. He quickly turns around without even noticing Emily's death glare which is directed at him.
The players from both schools begin to gather at the field and when the referee blows the whistle, the match continues to the second-half.
Emily walks towards Anthony and sits beside him. They both watch the match in silence before Emily decides to speak.
"How's your leg? Is it too bad until you cannot play?"
"It's getting better. The coach told me to rest because if I keep playing in this state, I might hurt myself even more," Anthony replies and watches Emily peeking at his bandage. She tries to examine it closer, but is too afraid to do so. Thus, he playfully moves his leg towards her face, making her recoil from him briskly.
"Why are you scared? Did you say you wanted to become a doctor? Like your stepbrother, Stephen?" Anthony asks with amusement.
"No, I never said that. Maybe Grace did," Emily frowns.
When Anthony came to Emily's house last weekend, he was always with Grace and Sam. She knew that he became instantly close with them as they reminded him of his late little brother who died a few months ago due to leukaemia. He seemed strong outwardly, but she knew that he was broken inside for he was really close with his deceased brother. He even tried to hide his tears at the funeral, but his watery eyes told him otherwise. Hence, she and Katherine want to try their best to make him happy because that is what friends are for. And he seems okay now.
"So... What do you want to be when you grow up?" Anthony's voice cuts off Emily's thought.
"Umm... I don't know. Just be a useful person, I guess?" Emily shrugs. Honestly, she really does not know what her dream ambition is. She used to dream of becoming a teacher or a zoologist, but now she is not entirely sure.
Anthony rolls his eyes at Emily's answer and then they are back to watching football and sitting in silence, but not for long.
"Hey, where's Kate?" Anthony suddenly asks.
"I don't know. I thought she was here with you," Emily looks around, raising her eyes to scan the crowd to capture the figures of Katherine and Laura. After that, her phone beeps. She glances at it to see that she has gotten a message from Katherine.
Sorry, Em. I had an emergency at home and my mum just fetched me and Laura. Tell Tony I said good luck and speedy recovery!
Emily shows the text to Anthony who just nods and leans back to the wall, sighing.
"Are you okay? Do you need anything?" she questions after noticing Anthony closing his eyes tiredly.
Anthony opens one eye, giving Emily a sideward glance. He hesitates before saying, "Could you get me a bottle of Gatorade?"
"O..kay. Where do I find it?"
"Try looking at the kiosk," Anthony answers shortly and closes his eyes back.
Emily nods, stands up and walks away. Before she goes completely out of sight, Anthony calls out the words 'thank you' which she acknowledges with an 'okay' gesture.
There are just five people at the kiosk, buying food and drink and other necessities such as stationery. Emily immediately searches for a bottle of Gatorade at a small fridge which is located at the front of the kiosk. As she picks out one bottle, she also takes out a few banknotes from her pocket. She goes to the cashier and pays for the Gatorade and a packet of biscuits.
"Thank you," Emily smiles at the cashier who is a younger student, and leaves the place, putting the change in her pocket. That is when she stops walking as she feels like she is missing something. She digs her hand deeper into the pocket.
Her pen! It is not there, in the pocket, where she usually keeps it in. She loves that pen. Her doctor gave her the pen when he noticed how bored she looked as she sat on the hospital bed, staring out the window. Although there was a television in the hospital room, she still felt empty. One day, the doctor brought a small notebook and a pen that both have the hospital logo on them and handed them to her. She gladly accepted them and used the notebook as her diary during her stay at the hospital. Moreover, she also came to know that her doctor was Stephen's mentor when Stephen was a trainee at that hospital and their friendship is still blossoming until today.
Anyway, Emily goes back to the kiosk which is located near the canteen. Maybe she dropped her pen when she was taking out her money from her pocket. She walks with her head down until she arrives at the fridge. Nothing is in sight. She sighs in defeat. That pen is not so small. How does she overlook it on the ground?
Out of the blue, she catches a familiar voice that she has not heard for a long while.
"Are you looking for something?"
Emily slowly lifts up her head and meets the cold eyes of Nicholas Blondeau.
"Uhh...." Emily does not know what to say. The words seem to get stuck in her throat.
"Is this what you're looking for?" Nicholas Blondeau holds out Emily's favourite pen. His face shows an emotionless expression. Not evil, teasing or jovial. Just nothing.
Emily's heart flips around in her chest. Yes, she was surely searching for that pen. However, she is too dumbfounded to answer Nicholas and just stares at her pen, not at him. Honestly, she is afraid that he might get revenge on her by snapping the pen in two parts and throwing the bits away. After all, she used to humiliate him in front of his friends by punching his face.
"Hey, Nic! What are you doing here?" Raymond shows up out of nowhere and pats Nicholas' shoulder. Then, he looks front and sees Emily standing straight and clutching her bottle and packet of biscuits.
"Oh, hey, Emilio!" Raymond waves his hand at Emily, his other arm is now on Nicholas' shoulder, leaning against him. He looks at his friend, the pen and then Emily. "What are you doing? Did you take her pen?" he points at Nicholas' hand, which is still holding Emily's pen.
"No, I found it. I'm assuming it was hers. But she seems speechless and scared of me," Nicholas whispers the last part at Raymond. Unfortunately, Emily can still hear him.
"Is this yours?" Raymond gestures at the pen, earning a slow nod from Emily.
"Well, then, take it."
Emily gazes at the two boys suspiciously and reprimands herself for unnecessarily being afraid.
'They can't do anything to you. There are a lot of people here. If they do, you can run away or fight back,' Emily tells herself inwardly.
Eventually, she takes a few steps forwards and stares at Nicholas' outstretched hand. She reaches out hers towards his and carefully retrieves her beloved pen. Silently, she lets out a sigh of relief.
"Why are you scared?" Raymond asks amusedly.
"I'm not. Just....."
Worried for my safety, even though I shouldn't feel that.
"Whatever. Time to go," Nicholas turns away and pats Raymond's shoulder, encouraging his friend to walk with him.
"Hey," Emily calls out, causing Nicholas to turn back around and face her. "Thank you. And sorry. Bye!" she says and walks away as fast as lightning, not turning back to see the boys' reaction.
Along the way back to Anthony, Emily keeps thinking why she apologised. Maybe because of the punch? Should she be sorry? Nicholas really deserved it, right? Ugh.. The word 'sorry' just slipped out of her mouth and she could not turn back the time to change it. Perhaps the boys did not even hear her as she spoke softly and quietly.
Finally, she has arrived and stands beside Anthony without him knowing about her presence there, for he is too engrossed with the football match. Hence, she puts the slightly cold bottle of Gatorade on his right cheek, completely surprising him.
"What the f--"
"Ah, ah.. No cursing," Emily wags her finger at Anthony, practically scolding him, making him frown at her. She chuckles, sits down and hands him the bottle.
"Thank you. I'll pay you back," says Anthony whilst opening the cap of the bottle.
"No, no. This is my treat," Emily shakes her head. "And also this," she reveals a packet of biscuits in her hands.
Anthony stares at the packet with furrowed eyebrows. "But, I didn't ask for any food."
"I bought this for you. You have to eat something after getting involved in a tiring game," Emily transfers the packet from her hands to Anthony's.
Anthony obediently accepts and begins eating the biscuits. He offers one at Emily, but she shakes her head, saying she is full. He insists and states that this is her favourite type of biscuit, which is a sandwich biscuit with blueberry jam in the middle, making her give in and take one of them.
"Thanks. You're so sweet," Emily says sarcastically.
"I know. I'm sweet and sweaty," Anthony grins and fans himself with his jersey, making Emily laugh at his statement. "What were taking you so long going to the kiosk? Were you lost?" he asks after that.
"No, I just met two monkeys there," Emily blurts out, referring to Nicholas and Raymond.
"What?" Anthony creases his forehead in confusion.
"No, nothing. I took some time to choose the best biscuits. There are just a few types of them in the basket," Emily replies spontaneously.
It is true. Emily is a bit picky when it comes to choosing biscuits to be eaten. Moreover, she does not want Anthony to know that she crossed paths with Nicholas Blondeau and Raymond. It is not very important for him to know.
Anyway, Anthony nods his head and returns to watching the football match, much to Emily's relief.
*******
The match ends in 2-2 draw. James scored the last goal which avoided them from losing the intense game. Anthony has gone home after the game, accompanied by his worried sister who treated him like a precious baby. Emily laughed so hard at him, making him send her a threatening glare.
Right now, Emily is heading towards the entrance of the gym, which overlooks the field and where most players gather at and have fun joking with each other. She tries to look for Thomas, so she moves a little forward. She does not decide to join the boys as they are practically wrestling and throwing water at each other, like a group of 5-year-old children. Unfortunately, one of them takes it too far and mightily splashes a bucket of water at his friends, causing the water to spread everywhere, even at the spot where Emily currently stands. Her dramatic gasp after realising that the right side of her body and hair are wet, gains the attention from the boys, who suddenly go quiet and stare at her in astonishment. Even the two boys who were wrestling on the ground just now instantly stop fighting and turn their heads at her.
"Emily Robertson! I didn't see you there, really!" one of the boys exclaims and runs towards Emily. Maybe he is the one who poured the bucket as he looks guilty and scared.
Meanwhile, Emily sighs and runs her fingers through her partially wet hair, separating the wet part from the dry one.
"Don't tell Thomas I started this or I will get something worse than a slap," he says half-jokingly and half-seriously.
'Is he afraid of Thomas?' Emily tilts her head at him sceptically, though she cannot hide the sly smile on her face.
"What happened?" Thomas finally appears beside them. He looks at his twin sister and frowns after noticing the condition she is currently in. Then, he squints his eyes at his friend who grins sheepishly at him.
"May I ask what actually had happened?"
Emily and the boy look at each other for a moment before the latter starts to speak.
"She was suddenly here when I poured out the water from that bucket at them," he points at the bucket lying on the ground and then at the group of boys who are watching the predicament.
"It was just a small matter. It's not like I'm drenched," Emily waves it off.
"Oh.. But he has to get the consequence," Thomas says without looking at Emily. He only gazes at his guilty friend whilst smirking evilly.
"Tom... It's not --" Emily stops defending the boy when Thomas pours out a bucketful of cold water on his friend. She gapes at them in surprise. Where did Thomas get that bucket? She did not see him coming with it.
"Hey!" the boy exclaims angrily, causing Thomas to laugh. Then, the water fight starts and Emily runs away from it. She does not want to get wet again!
She watches the boys, specifically Thomas, splashing water at each other like children. She shakes her head. She went there to wait for Thomas so that they could go home together. But now, he is too busy playing with his friends until he has forgotten about her. She is in a sulk, so she goes away and sits on a spot where the Sun seems to shine on the most, for she wants to dry herself.
As she closes her eyes and enjoys the ray of sunshine, James approaches her.
"Hey."
Emily opens her eyes and looks over her shoulder. "Oh! Hi, James."
James sits beside Emily, keeping a moderate distance between them. He glances at her who keeps brushing her wet hair with her slender fingers.
"I'm sorry I didn't bring you any towel. They used all of the clean and dry ones," James says, referring to a stack of clean towels that the school had provided for the match.
"Oh, that's okay. Thankfully, I'm not really drenched to the skin," Emily smiles. "Why are you not joining them playing water fight?" she points to the group of joyful boys.
"I just had a shower," James gives a short reply.
Emily nods her head as she understands the meaning of James' answer.
"Where's Anthony? Has he gone home?" James turns his gaze at Emily.
"Yeah, right after the match, his sister fetched him."
James nods and then thinks of something before asking, "Is he okay?".
"I think so. He almost jumped to his feet when you scored the final goal, so I think his injury isn't so bad," Emily laughs to herself as she visualises the moment when Anthony shouted victoriously and almost leapt to stand on his feet before she quickly stopped him, worrying that he might unconsciously hurt himself.
James suddenly lets out a hearty laugh after hearing Emily's story, causing Emily to join him. "Really?" he sighs deeply and props himself with his elbows pointing backwards.
"And congratulations on the goal! I saw it. It's so amazing!" Emily comments honestly, earning a sincerely heartfelt smile from James. She unawares looks into his greenish-blue eyes and gets lost in it. It feels like she is entering a mysterious, yet intriguing cave which is full of jade and turquoise. She never realised before how beautiful his eyes are. She almost forgot about him during the football match and only noticed his existence when he scored the last goal. And now, he is sitting beside her and facing her and smiling at her with his gorgeous smile. She wants to cherish this very moment and spend time with him. Nonetheless, the moment is short-lived because something black and diminutive flies across her face and descends on her forehead.
"Aahh!!" Emily squeaks when she feels the tiny feet of the unknown creature crawling on her skin, tingling her. That noise, which is not too loud for everyone else to hear, causes James to turn at her.
"Emily, relax.. The more you keep squirming around, the more it keep crawling on your face," James tries his best not to laugh as he moves closer to help Emily getting rid of the thing that scares her.
Emily refrains herself from wriggling and stays stiff with her hands ball into tense fists on the ground. She eyes James making his way towards her and his hand reaching out to her face. When his fingers brush her forehead smoothly, the butterflies are already flying and scattering aimlessly in her stomach. She is not sure where to look, so she just stares at his hair instead. His coiffure is naturally wavy and a bit messy and it surprisingly calms her.
"Okay.." James softly says and leans back after retrieving the creature from Emily's forehead. "Look, it's just a cute little ladybird," he smiles at the red with black dots ladybird before letting it fly away. "You're safe now."
Emily stops staring at James' hair and blushes. "T-thank you," she scratches her head in embarrassment.
"Are you scared of insects?" James asks in amusement.
"N-no! I'm usually not. Sometimes, I get scared when they suddenly approach me. But I usually don't get scared that easily," Emily tries to act calm and collected.
"Really?" James raises an eyebrow teasingly and then laughs.
Emily pouts sulkily when James makes fun of her. She is about to fold her arms and be angry with him when she reminds herself not to be selfish and to enjoy the sound of James' jolly laughter. Thus, she changes her pout into a genuine beam whilst staring at James as his light brown hair turns to blond when the Sun shines on his head. She could take out her phone and take a mesmerising picture of him right away if it is not for the footsteps she hears behind her, along with a feeling of a large fabric landing on her head. Confused, she turns around first to see Thomas standing with his arms crossed. Then, she slowly realises that Thomas threw a towel at her head, which she is eternally grateful for. Without wasting much time, she wraps the towel round her body because her hair gradually starts to dry up.
"Hey," James stands up, followed by Emily.
"Finally, you're here! Was it fun playing water fight with them?" Emily asks whilst folding her arms, staring at Thomas from top to bottom and realising that he had changed his outfit.
"Yeah, it really was! I wish you were there," Thomas smiles mockingly, causing Emily to roll her eyes.
"So.... When are we finally able to go home?" asks Emily.
"Right now."
"Yayyy!!" Emily jumps on her feet and then turns to face James. "Bye-bye, James! Don't tell anyone about what happened earlier, okay?" she whispers at the end, referring to the time when she got scared of the ladybird.
James stares at Emily quizzically before nodding his head and winking at her.
Meanwhile, their interaction does not go unnoticed by Thomas who is watching their every move and furrowing his eyebrows in confusion and slight anger. He feels angry not because of his twin sister and best friend's interaction with each other, but because of the fact that they both are hiding something from him.
"What are you two planning, huh?" Thomas asks in irritation, but still acts calm and relaxed.
"Nothing. I'll wait at the car," Emily realises that she has crossed the line and walks away to save herself. When she is behind Thomas, she throws an assuring, yet apologetic smile at James who is about to get interrogated by Thomas.
While waiting for Thomas, Emily recalls the moment when she looked into James' majestic eyes. He was looking into hers too, but she does not know what he feels about her. Does he assume her as a friend only and nothing more? But..... What about the time when he got nervous around her? Or when he treated her gentlemanly like she was a princess? Maybe she misinterprets his action and thinks that he actually likes her. She knows that he is genuinely chivalrous, not just towards her, but also to other girls and women. And that is one of the reasons why many girls like him, including Emily. Although he has good looks and personalities; intelligence and activeness, which makes him admirable and respectable, he is still humble and modest around other people.
But still.... Emily wants to know what James feels towards her. She does not know how to read people and their actions. She admits that she is naïve.
"Let's go."
Emily is brought back to reality after hearing Thomas' voice. She blinks her eyes and turns at Thomas who is just opening the car door.
"Where did you get this towel? James told me that your friends used all of the towels," Emily asks when she has comfortably situated herself on the passenger seat.
"I always bring an extra towel from home," Thomas replies with his eyes still focused on the road.
Emily nods and wraps her body with the towel tighter. She is about to thank Thomas for his hospitality and gratuity when he changes her mind by saying:
"Plus, I don't want my car to get wet because of you."
That statement makes Emily purse her lips indignantly at Thomas. She rolls her eyes and turns to look out the window instead, watching the birds fly over the clouds and then perch on a tree branch.
"Are you scared of a little ladybird, Milly?" Thomas asks with a childlike voice whilst giving Emily a sideward glance.
Emily turns at Thomas and knits her brows. "H-how did you know? Did James tell you?"
"Of course he'd tell me," Thomas laughs. "If I were him, I would take a picture of your ugly face when you screamed," he then mocks Emily by screaming softly and in a girly way.
"I didn't scream. I just squeaked," Emily says calmly, yet glumly while folding her arms.
"Yeah, like a mouse."
"James wouldn't do that - taking an ugly picture of me," Emily accidentally lets the words slip before she bites her tongue and mentally slaps her forehead.
Thomas swivels his head at Emily and the latter's heart literally stops when he squints his eyes at her, seemingly scrutinising her behaviour and reading her mind. Meanwhile, she pretends to play with her damp hair and stares at the road, trying her best not to panic. She internally sighs in relief when Thomas focuses back on the road, but the feeling does not last long.
"Hmm... You think like that because you like him," Thomas states.
"What? No! Who said that I like him?" Emily unconsciously folds her arms and blushes.
"Hm-hm...." Thomas smirks teasingly, making Emily blush harder.
Emily bites her lips in embarrassment whilst thinking of the words to say. "W-what's wrong if I do like him?" she cannot help but to ask that question.
"Nothing. It's just......." Thomas trails away and then looks at Emily quizzically. "You really have feelings for my best friend, eh?" he raises an eyebrow.
Emily stays silent and stares at the dashboard, ignoring Thomas. However, she feels guilty for doing so, hence she turns at him. "What do you think?"
"I think I'm right," Thomas nods to himself.
"Are you angry?" Emily asks softly, glancing cautiously at Thomas.
"I don't know. Should I?" Thomas shrugs.
"I think.....in boys' friendship, there is one rule that forbids you to fall for or be together with your friend's sister," says Emily.
Out of the blue, Thomas bursts out laughing, making Emily wonder if she has said something wrong or hilarious.
"Why are you laughing? Stop it!"
No matter how much Thomas truly wants to have fun, he only laughs for a few seconds for he has to focus on the road. He sighs deeply, rumples his hair and says: "What kind of world are you living in, Milly? There's no such rule. Maybe it exists somewhere, but not in my friendship."
Emily, who is confused and dumbfounded, just nods her head and listens to Thomas.
"If you love someone, then go for it. If they make you happy, we can't stop you, unless we know that they are bad for you," Thomas states.
Emily is about to smile when her twin brother points his finger at her and pokes her cheek.
"But for you, you have to wait until you're 18."
Emily frowns and opens her mouth to protest when she suddenly changes her mind. "All right, I don't care. It's not like I desperately want to be with James. I want to focus on school and.....I'm not ready yet," she whispers the last part to herself.
Yes, it is true. Emily is not ready for commitment. Personally, having a significant other in one's life needs courage, sacrifice and many other important values. Through this way, the relationship will last longer and forever. That is what Emily thinks. She wants a serious relationship and to find someone whom she can spend the rest of her life with.
Her thought abruptly stops when her phone rings, indicating that there is someone calling. She looks at it and sees an unknown number, making her wonder if she should answer it. Maybe it is someone she knows who is using another phone number? Or someone who called the wrong number?
"Who is that? Why aren't you answering?" Thomas asks when he realises that Emily just stares at the screen of her phone and does not make an attempt to answer the call.
"It's...... It's an unknown number," Emily shows her phone.
Thomas squints his eyes and decides to stop his car at the side of the road and answer the call himself. He takes Emily's phone and slides his finger across the green button on the screen and immediately puts the phone at his ear.
Meanwhile, Emily stares at Thomas and waits for him to say something. Actually, she wanted to ask him to put the phone on speaker, but after looking at his serious face, she chooses to shut her mouth.
Silent.
Thomas does not say anything, even a 'hello'. He just creases his forehead and listens.
Then, something crosses Emily's mind.
'What if Freddy called her in order to track her down?'
Swiftly, she reaches out her hands and puts them on one of Thomas' arms, gaining his attention. She shakes her head and makes a comprehensible gesture with her hands and expression to tell him to end the questionable call.
And Thomas obeys her. He hangs up and hands her the phone.
"Who is that?"
"I don't know. It was silent at the other line. Wait, not actually silent. I heard a heavy breathing and maybe hushed voices....? I'm not sure," Thomas shrugs.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Emily lifts her eyes from her lap to Thomas' concerned face, earning a sedate nod from him.
Suddenly, there is a car approaching them from behind. It slows down until it stops right beside them, at Thomas' side. Emily shrinks back against the seat whilst staring at the car through the tinted window.
Thomas rolls down the window as the person from the mysterious car does the same. It finally reveals the face of......their loyal bodyguard.
Emily starts to calm down, the beat of her heart goes normal and she sits straight, yet confidently.
"Is everything all right, Mr. Robertson?" the bodyguard asks.
"Yeah, we're fine. I was just answering a call," Thomas says.
Both of them talk for a bit and then continue the journey to the Robertsons' residence.
As soon as the car parks in the garage and Thomas turns off the engine, Emily briskly unclips the seatbelt and turns to open the door when Thomas stops her with a gentle, yet firm pat on her shoulder. Reluctantly, she faces him.
"If you're uncomfortable with what happened just now, we can talk to Dad about it, okay?" Thomas' blue eyes search for Emily's ones and for a split second, she seems ambivalent, but when she meets his eyes, she evidently relaxes.
"Okay," Emily nods and smiles to reassure Thomas and herself.
Thomas smiles back, giving Emily's shoulder a light squeeze before exiting the car, followed by his twin sister.
Along the way to her bedroom, Emily cannot help but think that she might put her family members in danger and she does not want them to get hurt because of her.
_________________________________________
Chapter 22 ~!
Not all happiness lasts for ever.
Thank you very much for reading ~!
♡♥♡♥♡♥
Bye-bye !! Love you ~! ❤💙💜