Ghost of My Heart

Chapter 20

Jennet rooted in front of him while scratching her neck again. ‘I can’t keep this up. He has to stop crying. Well, let see if I could be harsher on him.’

She approached the man and then, yanked him on the arm, “Stop crying. You’re a grown man!” Her eyes widened at the same time.

Hue flinched as their eyes met. That instant he burst into tears as if he saw a ghost. He moved to the corner and called her ‘mean wife’ countless times.

Jennet grumbled in annoyance. It ticked her when he called her the ‘mean wife’.

He made it look as if she bullied him.

She bit her inner lip, suppressing the anger that she kept within. She had no idea how to deal with him.

At last, she gave up and left the room with hands in her hair as she grunted in exasperation. ‘Argh, I need to clear my mind. This is unbelievable.’

As she walked down the stairs, Hue’s crying voice echoed in the empty hallway. Strangely, as minutes passed by, his cry grew louder to the point it became unbearable to hear.

She stopped at the bottom stairs with knitted brows. “Is he a baby?” she wondered, perturbed. After a while, she shook her head.

To execute her plan, she had to stay sane otherwise she would not be able to chase him out.

She retreated to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of iced cold water which she gulped down in one go. Slamming the empty glass on the table, she sat down while exhaling deeply to relieve her worries.

She glanced at the wall where the clock showed the time that was nearing six in the morning. ‘Great,’ she thought, feeling frustrated.

In another fifteen minutes, the alarm for six in the morning would ring. When that happens, she has to be ready for work which means she has to shower and dress. But, how can she do it when there was a man in the bedroom? Even if she chose to ignore his presence, she couldn’t because the walls were made of see-through glasses.

As she pondered for a better solution to her problem, Hue wailed even louder from upstairs. His cries messed her mood.

‘Oh God, please have mercy on me. Please make him stop before I commit something insane.’ She covered her ears while hitting her head on the table, grunting in exasperation.

As time went by, his cries didn’t seem to wane. Jennet lost her cool.

‘Argh, I can’t stand it anymore!’ She rose from the chair and climbed up the stairs with a burning heart.

She pushed the door open roughly and was about to thrash him with a chair but she stopped when she saw him staring at her.

Hue was sitting on the floor, hiccupping badly like a baby that had finally calmed down after throwing a fit. His face was red and wet because of the tears. He looked oddly fragile as if he could break at any moment if she shouted at him again.

Jennet winced in confliction when she saw him. Her reasonings fell out of balance.

An unbelievable thought crossed her mind, ‘Ah, he looks so cute and pitiful!’

She hated to admit it. But, she had a soft spot for pitiful looking living beings and she labelled them all as ‘cute’, and she hid that fact from everyone though.

“Please stop crying,” she said coldly despite pitying him. She stole a glance at him who had his eyes glued at her with disbelief flashed in his eyes.

She sighed deeply, ‘I’m going to regret this…’

She went to the dressing table and took a few plies of facial tissues. Then, she approached him to wipe his face.

Hue winced in fear and he puckered. Tears streamed down his face again before she could dab his face with the tissue.

Jennet lowered her hand. “I am not going to hurt you. I just want to wipe your tears,” she told him in a less intimidating voice.

Hue looked at himself and, before he could say something, Jennet went ahead to wipe his face. He stopped crying but the hiccups remained. He stared at her with his big, wet and red eyes. He was in puzzlement.

Meanwhile, Jennet ignored him although she was uncomfortable to be stared at by him. She wiped his cheeks, chin and chest where his tears had travelled. “Don’t you dare to cry!” she warned him after wiping the last remnant of tears on his chest. She had no idea why she chose to treat him kindly.

Maybe because she could not stand his cries? Yes, probably because his cries hurt her ears.

“Honey,” Hue called her, “don’t hate me, please...” He hiccupped again with his lower lip stuck out as if he was pouting.

Jennet raised her head and scoffed, “I don’t hate you. But, I want you to stop crying. Can you do that?”

There was a pause before Hue answered dejectedly, “Okay, I will stop crying…”

“Good!” Jennet inhaled in relief. ‘So be it if I have to treat him like a kid.’

She took another facial tissue and wiped his cheeks. After she was done, she tossed the tissues into a dustbin located near the dressing table. When she turned to look back, she found him staring again.

“Can you leave the room now?” she asked politely as not to intimidate him further.

“Do you hate me that much?” Hue shot a question, brushing aside her request.

Jennet slapped her head while sighing deeply, “Well, I don’t hate you. But, if you don’t leave the room like right now, I will have to hate you.” She glared at him.

She had to clean up before going to work. So, he must leave the room immediately. Also, when he leaves the room, she will have some time to call for help.

"Don't chase me out from this place or hand me to the officers," Hue begged softly.

Jennet clenched her jaws in surprise. How come he knew her intention? Can he read minds?

“You are not going to lie to me or abandon me, right?” he asked again when she gave him no reply.

Jennet chuckled, dismissing his doubt. “Pfft, why would I lie? I’m not. I’m a good person. I am not lying,” she said plastering her face with a forced smile.

Abandon him? Why would she do that? She still has a heart and mercy towards others. The saddest thing she could do to him would be; send him to prison for trespassing into private property.

Shortly after that, she explained, "I need to get ready for work. So, I need you to leave the room for a while. Give me some space to clean up."

Hue looked at her, staring deeply into her eyes. "If you are not lying then, give me a hug." He opened his arms widely. His eyes gleamed when he asked for it.

Jennet stepped back when anger spiked inside her. “I am not hugging you!” Her voice thundered.

Hue flinched and he immediately lowered his arms. However, his eyes turned glassy as he puckered again, ready to cry.

As if something snapped in her head, Jennet gasped in fright. She hurriedly got on her knees and hugged him tightly. “Hush, hush. Don’t cry. I-I’m hugging you now. Don’t cry, don’t cry,” she stammered. She patted his back gently, in the hope to keep him calm from bursting into tears.

On the other hand, she was oblivious that Hue was smiling sneakily behind her when she hugged him. He took the chance to hug her back.

When he felt a sheer volume and softness pressing against his chest, he tightened the embrace; to feel it more!

‘Ah, my honey is no naïve...’ He inhaled her scent deep into his lungs. He tightened his embrace.

Jennet contorted in pain and was short of breath. “Let go! Let me go! I-I can’t breathe!” She hit his back repeatedly, urging him to release her.

Hue let her go slowly and he immediately put on a sad-looking face before she could see his face.

Jennet scooted away from him, keeping a safe distance. “I hugged you and that means I am telling the truth. So, can you wait outside the room? I need to get ready for work.”

She pointed to the door. “Please…” she begged him again.

It would be the first time she begged someone to understand her need.

Hue’s eyes gleamed. “You want to take a shower? I want to join you too.” He was literary jumping in excitement. His eyes sparkled dangerously.

Jennet’s jaws dropped as soon as she heard him.