Savior

Chapter Seventeen

Words wanted to escape my lips but I stood there like a deer hit by the headlights. The stare game he was playing was stronger this time and I had no clue why I was being subjected to his furious eyes. A chill went down my spine as the cold wind from the window which I remember closing earlier hit my bare back. Seeing me shiver Sole removed his jacket and threw it on the bed. ‘Take it.’

I had to keep my pride so I declined. ‘No thanks.’

He sighed and then picked it up only to put it on me himself. ‘No one here wants you to die of cold.’

‘Can I know why you trespassed?’

‘I know all the exit and entry point in the house.’

‘Window clearly is not one of them.’

‘Did you forget I used it back then when you had locked yourself in?’ I did remember it. My rooms lock was broken and I’d

forgotten to get it repaired. On the day there was an important submission in art school, by mistake I locked myself in my room. Sole had to come in through the window to save me. Both of us had laughed at the situation all through the day. Memories from the past never seem to fade, especially if they involved him. That was exactly what was wrong with me. The person I should’ve forgotten and removed from my mind has come to occupy it even more.

I folded my hands in front and then rubbed my arms slightly to keep myself warm. Sole closed the window to stop the wind from further attacking me. ‘Why are you here?’

He dragged the chair in front of my desk out and sat on it. ‘Ever since we’ve met again, we haven’t got a chance to talk properly.’

‘Not interested.’

‘But I am.’ He began folding his shirts sleeves. I was being intimidated, he knew I couldn’t run away for if I did my family would wake up and I didn’t talk he would wake them up himself.

Giving in, I sat on the desk, my legs hanging down. I made sure to move them back and forth for I knew it would be irritating the hell out of him. Three years ago when we were staying together in this house he would often scold me for this habit of mine. That time I complied but today I wasn’t going to.

‘Stop it!’ he said under his breath.

‘Why? This is my house. I can do whatever I want here.’ He stared at me, his eyes being half-hidden behind his messy hair.

‘I want to talk about something and it’s serious. Can you please behave?’

‘Whatever it is just say it quickly and leave. I have to go to work tomorrow early.’

‘After we broke up….’ So he was here to talk about this. It wasn’t that he was talking about something unexpected but it was something I didn’t want to talk about.

‘Leave.’ I said.

‘I won’t until I get answers to all my questions.’

‘Sole’

‘Luna, I need to know something and until I do, I won’t be leaving.’ He said affirmatively.

But I was adamant too. No past was going to be discussed especially in the house where we once live together. So I got up and removed the jacket he’d placed over my shoulders and threw it on the floor near his feet. ‘Take it and get the hell out of my house.’

This made his nostrils flare up and he got up with a jerk and pinned my hands where they were on the table. His face was so close to me that I could feel his breath. I tried to resist but his grip on my hands was strong. I moved my face away to look at the wall but I regretted it for when I looked in that direction, there it was. He noticed it too for he said, ‘I thought you were over me.’ I gulped.

He’d noticed the violin I’d kept these years. I should’ve thrown it away but I couldn’t, maybe because after everything that happened there still a cell in me which wanted to believe that he had an explanation of whatever he did. Three years I’d been low-key waiting for that explanation so that my pain would ease if not be gone completely.

Three years ago

‘Mrs. Anderson! Mrs. Anderson!’ I kept calling out her name but she didn’t answer. Moving from the living room to the kitchen I tried to locate my house-help who seemed to have vanished in thin air. Where was she? And not only her, some other staff also seemed to have been missing since morning.

It was evening and the only thing that I’d had since morning was a cheese sandwich. Since I didn’t trust my cooking abilities I needed someone to make me food and everyone in this house who seemed to have the ability to do so were missing. Sole was also not here. He’d told me he had some work outside so he would be leaving early in the morning. I wanted to ask what work he had or ho he was going to meet but didn’t for the fear of him thinking I was overstepping boundaries. We were together but there was yet to be a confirmation needed from both of us to make it official.

‘You were looking for me?’ Mrs. Anderson entered the backyard where I’d reached in my search for her.

‘Mrs. Anderson! Where were you?’

‘I was out to get some groceries.’ Someone needed to tell her she was out to get more groceries then everyone in the house combined

ate in a month.

‘Where is everyone else?’

‘The driver went with Sole. He needed to get some work done. And some have gone home for the holidays. I thought I’ll manage here alone since it’s just you and Sole.’

My mouth formed and ‘o’ and I nodded. ‘So now am I going to get something to eat or not?’

‘Sure. What would you like to have?’ She asked giving me a smile.

About an hour later Mrs. Anderson prepared me cheese pasta and baked my favorite brownies for me. Nothing was more devouring than the food that she cooked, not even the fancy cuisines Sole mad for me. As I dished on the pasta I heard some noise in the backyard.

‘Ignore it. The gardener is probably cleaning the backyard.’ Mrs. Anderson said seeing me almost get up, which didn’t after she said that.

‘Strange. Why is he working in the evening? Didn’t he go for holidays too?’

‘He will leave tomorrow.’

‘Oh’ I went back to eat the pasta but just then came another sound. Something fell, but what? I put my fork down and got up.

‘Let it be.’ Mrs. Anderson was trying to stop me again. She didn’t want me to go out, but why? I ignored her and did go out only to find…

‘Sole!’ I shouted when I saw him on the floor clutching his leg in pain. A set of electrician’s stairs laid there on the ground beside him. What was he doing here? My question was answered immediately when I looked around. The backyard was lit up with lights and lamps everywhere. Not only that, there were flowers and a table in between which was set up for a candle-night dinner.

I helped him getting on his feet. He scratched the back of his head and said, ‘Sorry. I wanted to surprise you but I lost my balance and fell.’

‘What is going on here?’ I asked.

He pressed his lips together and gave me a sheepish look. ‘Surprise!’

‘Sole!’ I looked at his leg and said, ‘Does it hurt much?’

‘Forget about that. Look around, do you like it?’ He asked.

‘Are you sure you’re fine?’

He came forward and hugged me. ‘I fine. Now look around.’ And I did. Everything was just beautiful. But why had he done this? There was no special occasion. ‘I need to ask you something.’ He whispered still embracing me.

I looked at his face. ‘What is it?’

He went to the table he’d set up in middle of the garden and then came back with a…

‘Violin!’ I exclaimed.

He walked over to me and then bends down on his knees. My heart started to beat fast enough for its rhythm to be felt without a stethoscope. Was what I was thinking right?

‘Luna, we’ve known each other for only two months now but this small time were enough for me to know that there was and there could be no one else.’

‘Sole.’ His name escaped my lips but nothing I could say after that.

‘I don’t think I can bear to be away from you. Nothing between us was official until now but I want to change it. Which is why I want to ask you today, will you marry me?’

I stood there staring into his eyes and there was nothing but sincerity. He was serious about this. Both of us felt something for each other and I wanted us to move from “like” to “love”. But he proposing marriage to me was a surprise. The question here was, was I ready to accept this proposal? He seemed invested but was my feelings on the same level as his?

‘You don’t have to answer right away. Take your time. I just wanted you to know where my mind was yet, so that when you’re ready you can meet me there.’ He smiled and got up. He gave the violin which I did take and noticed it was handcrafted.

‘Did you have it customized?’ I asked.

‘I did it myself.’ He confessed and my mouth fell open.

‘You made the violin yourself?’ He nodded. ‘How?’ I asked still in shock.

‘About a month ago I started taking classes and here’s the result. My teacher didn’t really think I would be able to pull this off but I

was adamant to make it. There had to be something special that I should give you when I ask you to share your life with me.’

Spellbound. It the word most apt for what I was feeling right now. From the setting to the violin everything was perfect but what attracted me the most was his words. They hit me in a way that even when my mind told me to be cautious my heart gave in and from my lips escaped the answer. ‘Yes.’

He looked surprised, so asked me to say it again and I did. ‘Yes. I will marry you, Sole.’ No more time did he waste to kiss me there and then and then pulled apart only to ask, ‘Did you eat something with cheese?’

‘How did you?’ And then I wiped my mouth cursing inwardly for not doing it before coming to the backyard.

‘Come here. I’ll help.’ He said and then grabbed my face with his hands, kissing me once again. When the kiss was deepened by him and I groaned, he picked me up in his arms and soon we were in my bedroom, leaving all thoughts, the dinner table, the lights and

Mrs. Anderson behind.

With both of us on the bed now, the making out intensified and Sole loosened the buttons of his shirt around his wrist. The digital watch that he was wearing beeped indicating his increased heart rate. He sat up on his knees and quickly unstrapped the watch, throwing it on the table.

‘Careful.’ I said.

‘Forget about it.’ He said and claimed my lips again. Someone would think he was intoxicated by them. I took his advice and my hands went to the buttons around his collar.

Next morning I woke up to someone I’d agreed to marry last night. My cheeks heated and he might’ve felt it for he whispered, ‘Tell me I’m the reason you’re blushing .’ I smacked his bare shoulder. ‘Ow!’

‘Go back to your room.’ I told him.

‘If you’re worried that someone might catch us, let me tell you, we’re in this house alone.’ When he said that, I looked at him in shock.

‘What?’

‘I gave everyone a few days’ holidays.’

I narrowed my eyes. ‘So it was you who emptied the house.’

‘I thought we might need the privacy and they might use the holiday to their privacy.’

‘Sole!’ I smacked his shoulder again and he laughed making me laugh too in the process.

Present

‘I don’t know how it got here.’ I lied.

‘There’re no wings on it. Clearly it was brought here by someone.’ He said.

‘Sole, just leave please.’ I said lightly pushing him away. But he didn’t budge. In fact he came close to me.

‘You were reminded of the day I gave it to you, right?’ Bastard. He knew me well. And to make matters worse my own body seems to have betrayed me for my cheeks colored instantly and he smiled seeing me blush. ‘Why don’t you accept it, you still want me.’

I looked at him and my eyes fell on his lips, he came forward and his hand came to hold the back of my neck.

‘Luna!’ Both of us who were so occupied in each other’s stares that we were startled when someone from outside the door shouted my name. Who was it now?