Going for a drive.
854 Words
Luca opened the door slightly and peeked into the room. Amanda laid on her bed, fast asleep. It was late in the evening, his drive into town had taken longer than expected. He placed his gift by her bedside shelf and took a moment to stare at her. Her chest rose and fell as she slept, a streak of moonlight outlined her restful face deep in slumber. The curtains rustled, breeze blew in from the terrace and she shivered.
He went to her wardrobe and brought out a duvet, he covered her with it and she snuggled deeper into it; a satisfied smile on her face which brought a smile on his. Nowadays, her smile was rare, she hardly smiled at him unless prompted. He supposed he had no one to blame for that but himself, he knew he had hurt her and he wished with all his heart he could turn back the hands of time but wishes were for fairy tales; now all he could do was make up for lost times.
He closed the door to the terrace, walked back to the bed and placed a kiss on her temple. She sighed in content and he wondered if there was another man back in Nigeria who kissed her temple just as he did. He knew he had no right to feel such but the thought saddened him. Alex, the name flashed in his mind again like a neon sign. The man was of importance to Eku and not knowing his place in her life bothered him to no end.
He walked out of her room and closed the door, his room was opposite hers, he’d deliberately arranged it so he could have access to her at all times. Knowing she was just next door helped him sleep better at night, as opposed to having her on another floor. He entered his room, locked the door and whipped out his phone from his pocket. He placed a call to the one person that could help him with his dilemma.
Daylight trickled in through the windows, casting rays of sunlight all over the room. Amanda opened her eyes and stretched her body. She yawned and turned her head to the left, away from the direct sunlight and jumped in fright. Luca sat on an armchair, a steaming cup of coffee in hand, staring at her.
He smiled and thrust the cup at her. “Good morning, I brought you coffee.”
“Geez Luca, you startled me.”
“I’m sorry, that wasn’t my intent.” He apologized.
She took the cup from him and placed it on the bedside shelf. She got up and went into the bathroom to take care of her daily hygiene. A few minutes later, she came out with a freshly washed face and picked up the cup, took a sip from it and faced him.
“Why are you in my room so early in the morning?”
“Its not so early in the morning, it’s 9:14.” he replied.
She glanced up at the clock on the wall to confirm it was indeed 9:14. She frowned, she’d never slept in so late before; not even when she was under so many pain medications.
“Well I’ll rephrase then, why are you in my room?”
“I brought you coffee,” he replied and got up from his seat. He towered over her and she had to look up at him.
“And I thought we could go into town today, you know, check out the scenery, do a few shopping. What do you say?”
She eyed him suspiciously. This was his way of offering an olive branch, she knew. He wanted the tension between them to dissipate. The prospect of going into town filled her with glee. Florence was popularly known as the city of love, she wanted to explore the sites it was popularly known for and if possible, all of Italy before she had to go back to Nigeria.
Her mood dampened just as suddenly as it soared. She stared at her leg still encased in a cast. “I don’t think that’ll be possible though.” She muttered sadly.
He picked up an object by the side of her bed, it was a walking stick. She hadn’t noticed it before. “I got you this yesterday so you can move around easily without help.”
She took it from him and stared at him in wonder. He had gone into town just to get her a walking stick; she felt overwhelmed with gratitude. She smiled at him with a teary gaze. “Thank you.” She said.
“Its nothing,” he replied and cleared his throat. “So, about the drive into town, do you want to go?” he asked almost shyly.
“Yes. I’ll go take my bath now and join you downstairs for breakfast.”
He nodded his head at her response and left the room.
- Writer
