Rose's POV
Sun rays touched my face lightly. I opened my eyes and turned around in that unbelievably cozy bed. The fresh scent of the sheets satisfied me in some way. I sighed in satisfaction. I could hardly remember when the last time I slept so well was.
I needed this, especially after the last night. Detailed explanation of the situation that happened yesterday demanded by Layla exhausted me to my limits so I fell asleep. I had in mind to ask Layla what happened to her when I wake up, though.
I looked around trying to find her, but she was nowhere to be seen. Vast luxurious room was empty and only thing I was able to hear was my breathing. I sat up with covers wrapped around me and just stared down thinking. Locks of my hair fell on my face, but I ignored them. I still couldn't believe I lived through that emotional rollercoaster yesterday. I snorted and started twisting the end of the cover.
Things were happening really fast, but I guess that life never waits so you can jump in and try to follow its pace or let it run over you. I was determined to at least try to catch up. Living is about loving, but not necessarily people. The most important thing is to love what you do with your time, and if anything, these last few weeks I definitely wasn't wasting it.
I lifted my head and removed my wild hair from my face. I noticed the white door, probably bathroom, and quickly jumped on my feet.
Hot bath sounded extremely alluring considering I haven't taken one in more than a year. I ran there and, when I saw big bathtub, I almost cried of happiness. I know it seemed bit too overdramatic, but... hot water â not common thing in region.
I let water fill the tub completely while I prepared my new clothes and put them on the bed. Then I finally got out of that ridiculous pajama-suit they gave me and went to the bathroom again. I closed the door and jumped in. Hot water relaxed my muscles and I closed my eyes. It felt like I was sitting on a cloud. For some time it seemed like the best place to spend the rest of my life. That was my happy place. I was in love with it.
I let out a deep breath and slowly dived in water letting it clear my mind of every thought.
Every drop of that liquid caressed my skin in the most beautiful way. For a moment I went under water and let the quietness heal my broken mind. I opened my eyes and looked up ignoring burning sensation of water on my eyes. I saw my hair floating around carelessly. The surface seemed so far away even though I knew it was only few inches above me. Sun rays played there freely and made the surface itself look like it was made of diamonds.
Slowly I started to feel my chest hurting so I emerged out of it.
I stayed in there for quite some time and when I finally decided to go out, water was almost completely cold. My fingers were wrinkled and I smiled at the sight of them. That didn't happen to me in a long time.
I took a soft towel that was laid by the sink and wrapped it around me. I opened the door and right that second cold air rushed in creeping in my bones and making me cringe.
I jumped from one leg to another trying to warm up. I hopped to the bed and grabbed my underwear. I put them on quickly and started to look for the rest of my clothes.
"Looking for this", I heard familiar voice from behind me. I quickly took the towel and put it around me as I turned to her.
"Geez, Layla"
"Oh, don't pretend to be shy with me; I've seen your ass before", she said handing me my clothes "and everything else". I glared playfully at her for a second and took it.
I let my towel fall on the marble floor and put on black leggings and oversized red sweater. My hair was still wet and cold drops of water were falling off of it on my back.
"Where were you anyway?" I asked Layla who was now comfortably lying in bed with her eyes closed.
"When?"
"This morning when I woke up"
"How should I know when you woke up?" she asked chuckling as she opened her eyes to look at me. I was giving her annoyed glare while trying to find hairdryer.
"Okay, okay", she said and raised her hands in surrender, "I'm kidding. I went to see when we are going back in the region, that's all"
"Is it, though?" I asked her with my eyebrows raised.
"I don't know what you are talking about"
"What happened with Kayden yesterday? We never talked about that part", I said and smiled because I finally found that hairdryer. I love hairdryers.
"Nothing"
I looked at her and saw that she was now safe from my glare under fluffy blankets.
"Really?"
"Really"
I rolled my eyes and started drying my hair in silence. Hot air was at first very calming and welcomed from my side, but after some time I remembered why I hated drying my hair before the alien apocalypse. After excruciating hours and hours of drying my hair I was finally done. With a sigh of relief I put it down and look at Layla who was still hiding under blankets.
I slowly walked in that way and crawled into the bed beside her.
"Spill the beans"
"There is nothing to spill", she said slowly. I removed blanket from her face and looked at her dangerously.
"Don't make me tickle you"
She widened her eyes and automatically covered her belly.
"Fine", she said, "you don't have to threaten me"
"I have to because I'm a gangster"
"You are a chipmunk"
We both laughed and I snuggled closer to her ready for her story.
"So?"
"So", she started talking and playing with the end of the blanket, "I went out trying to find you and suddenly someone tried to kidnap me and in the end I realized it was Kayden"
I looked at her in disbelief.
"Really? You're giving me a censured version, best friend"
"I'll tell you everything later, I'm too excited now about your renewed lover to talk about me", she said seriously and then looked around, "Where is he anyways?"
Like on cue, someone knocked on the door. The sound echoed through the room as we sat up not knowing what to do.
We heard the knocking again.
"Enter, we're decent", Layla said.
Door opened and revealed no one other than Kayden. He wore gray faded jeans and plain white t-shirt with unbuttoned plaid shirt over it. His hair was up as always and he was grinning.
"I'm glad", he said with twinkle of something in his glowing hazel-gray eyes.
"What are you doing here, Kayden?" Layla asked him rolling her eyes.
"I came here to see you of course", he said seriously. Layla gave him weird look followed by a frown.
Kayden raised an eyebrow and chuckled.
"Don't worry, I'm not here willingly. Rose's boyfriend sent me to escort you two in garden to eat"
I glanced at Layla and saw flash of something on her face, but it disappeared before I could recognize what it is.
"When did you learn how to knock?" Layla asked and he shrugged.
"I surprise myself sometimes too"
We got up in the same time and started following Kayden who didn't say another word. When I think about it, it was weird. If I ever had to describe Kayden I would definitely say a chatty sociopath. Maybe he finally decided not to torture us with his misplaced comments.
The three of us slowly made our way to yet another big door I haven't seen.
How big is this place anyway?
Kayden opened the door and revealed big garden full of ancient sculptures and gorgeous flowers. The grass was so green that it almost blinded me. There were weird-shaped trees, fountains and even a little artificial lake that gleamed beautifully. Everything was in such order that it almost seemed perfect.
I heard Layla taking a deep breath and turned to see her with closed eyes absorbing beauty of this place. I smiled and shook my head as she spread her arms feeling the sun on her skin.
"I love the Sun", she said with a sigh of satisfaction.
"Oh, really?" Kayden said rolling his eyes and bypassing her, "I hate that bloody thing"
Layla abruptly opened her eyes and glared at his back trying to drill holes there with her mind. He chuckled and kept walking.
When we noticed that he has no intention of waiting for us, we started walking trying to keep up with his pace.
"You are a grim person, you know that? Nobody loves grim hamsters like you", Layla said as she left my side to punch Kayden's hand lightly, "You need to stop ruining my fun"
"Fine"
Layla frowned and punched his hand once again.
"You can't just say fine"
"Fine", he said and moved faster leaving her behind. She gaped at him with her mouth widely opened.
"Get back here, you freaking grim hamster", she said and started chasing him.
I chuckled at her and moved in the shadow of one tree, when I felt light tingles on my upper arm. I smiled and wiggled closer.
"Did you miss me?" I heard Adrian's voice close to my ear.
"You shouldn't stand so close, somebody could see us", I said quietly as I turned around to see him. His warm, glowing green eyes caught my gaze and his lips formed a relaxed smile. He let his hand fall at his side. I felt coldness creeping under my skin on the same place he touched me a few moments ago. That never happened before. I frowned, but quickly shook it off.
Adrian leaned towards me and slowly made his way towards my ear.
"Maybe I don't care", he said seductively as he lightly caressed my arm starting from my wrist and ending on my shoulder. Tingles danced wherever he touched me making me go weak at the knees.
"Stop it", I said gently taking his hand in mine. I looked up deeply in his eyes looking for something, I don't know what exactly.
"How will we make it work?" I asked finally.
"Easy", he just said.
"No, Adrian", I said firmly, "there is no easy in this relationship. You don't even know what relationship is?"
He looked down at our intertwined fingers and brought them up to his heart.
"Will you teach me?" he asked looking up. His face looked so innocent and beseeching that I had to smile. He smiled back revealing his perfect teeth and never breaking eye contact.
"How can I teach you if I never had a boyfriend before?"
"Maybe we can learn together", he suggested sweetly.
"How do you suppose we do that", I said biting my lip to prevent the smile from spreading across my face.
He lifted our hands and lightly kissed mine.
"We just listen to that heart your people speak so highly of"
I chuckled and looked at the sky feeling the heat along with tingles running through my veins.
I fell for him. Oh, dear God, I fell so hard with no intention of ever getting up. And he only made it harder for me.
He let go of my hand and cupped my head making me look at him once again.
"Only clear thing is that I'm never letting you go; not now and not in the million years", he said and leaned in so close that our noses touched, "Do you understand?"
I nodded slightly and he smiled widely. I closed my eyes and he started slowly nearing my lips. Suddenly he backed away leaving the coldness to take place of tingles.
I opened my eyes and he was standing few feet away from me with emotionless face.
He glanced at me and whispered: "My brother is coming"
I looked away and smiled slightly. People don't say for nothing that the forbidden fruit is the sweetest.
Kayden's POV
"Get back here, you freaking grim hamster", Layla yelled and ran after me. I speeded ahead and left her chasing dust.
Take that spoiled little human.
She looked around and when she spotted me she sent a dangerous look my way. I waved at her with a smirk and she pointed one finger at me and then crossed her throat with it.
I shrugged and leaned on the tree. She started walking towards me angrily with her hair bouncing with every step.
When she finally reached me I smiled and disappeared, well not literally, I just jumped on the branch above her. Human eyes are so easy to fool.
She pressed her lips together and clenched her hands into fists.
"Show yourself, phantom", she yelled.
I whistled and she turned so quickly I thought she broke her neck. She glared at me and crouched down picking up a rock.
What will she do now?
She got up and threw the rock at me. I hardly dodged it and almost fell.
When I regained my balance I looked at her in disbelief.
"I can't believe you've done this", I said as I jumped down dodging another rock in meantime.
"Oh, now you're speaking to me", she said and threw another rock. It flew through the air straight to my forehead. When it was just a few inches away I caught it.
I looked at her with my best dark look and clenched jaw.
"If you don't stop, I'll start throwing", I said slowly, "and I don't miss"
She raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms on her chest.
"Oh, really?" she asked narrowing her eyes.
"Really", I said and fake-smiled. I turned around intending to find Adrian or Kael to finally send those two away, even back to hell as far as I'm concerned.
I heard something going through air, so I stopped letting a little stupid rock hit my lower back.
I turned to face her very, very slowly. I clenched my fists and tried to slow down my breaths.
"Why?" I asked in low voice trying to intimidate her, but she didn't even flinch.
"You need to stop being grumpy", she said with a shrug.
"I'm always grumpy"
"No, you're always Kayden", she corrected me making no sense what so ever, "and while we're still at it; why are you grumpy?"
"I had a bad dream", I just said. She raised her eyebrows.
"Well...I think you should get over it"
I looked away shaking my head.
"Well...I think you should back away", I said imitating her. She fake-laughed and I fake-smiled.
"You're not funny", she said and threw the last rock at me. It flew just an inch away from my ear.
"You're done", I said and made a few steps towards her to show her that I mean what I say even though I was too tired to do anything. I had one of those sleepless nights second time in the row so my head was killing me because of that â or maybe it was because of that alcohol and weird looking pills. I don't think I should mix them next time.
Despite my efforts to make her go away she just giggled like a child and started running.
Why does she have to drive me insane one day I don't feel like it? Well, I guess she has to be toughed a lesson.
I speeded and in matter of seconds I was in front of her. She bumped into me and fell on her butt.
"I'm going to rip your heart out", I said seriously.
"Be careful so you don't break it", she said and bit her lip mischievously.
"You think I'm kidding?"
"Oh, no, how could I dare to do that, dear God no", she started blabbing while she was getting up.
I took a hold of her hand and pulled her so her back was facing my chest. One of my hands was holding her tightly and with other I moved her hair.
"Don't play with me, little human", I said. She shivered, but I don't think it was from right reasons.
"Aye captain", she said breathlessly. I loosened my grip and she wiggled away from me. Her cheeks were flushed and she didn't look terrified.
"I always knew you wanted me", I said as I raised one eyebrow and crossed arms on my chest.
She laughed and winked.
"That's Kayden I know", she said and pulled me with her, "now let's find our two love birds"