Chapter Nine: Mr Hazel
1472 Words
Soon, the semester exams commenced, and after days of intense studying, sleepless nights, and nervous anticipation, they finally came to an end.
For most students, it was a relief.
For Remire, it was a disaster.
When the results were released, Remire could barely believe what he was seeing.
His scores were terrible.
The same Remire who had once been one of the brightest students in his class had suddenly fallen so badly that even some of his lecturers began to worry about him.
He stared at his results in silence, frustration burning inside him.
How had everything gone so wrong?
He had barely been paying attention during lectures. He skipped classes, lost concentration during tests, and spent most of his time either thinking about Nila or trying to find ways to get her attention.
Now, the consequences were staring directly at him.
Meanwhile, Nila's results were completely different.
She had performed exceptionally well and was among the best students in her class. Kimberley followed closely behind her with an impressive result of his own.
Nila couldn't stop smiling when she saw her scores.
For the first time in a long while, she felt genuinely happy.
She had finally found something worth smiling about again.
And Kimberley had promised her something even better.
A vacation.
He had told her that immediately after the semester exams, he would take her somewhere beautiful where she could forget about school, stress, and everything that had happened.
And Kimberley was a man who kept his promises.
A few days later, Nila found herself in Cape Town with him.
The city looked like something from a dream.
The ocean stretched endlessly before them, the mountains stood proudly in the distance, and the cool breeze brushed gently against Nila's face as she stood beside Kimberley.
She turned toward him with a huge smile.
"Kim, this place is beautiful."
Kimberley smiled.
"I knew you'd like it."
They spent their days exploring.
They visited beautiful beaches, went sightseeing, tried different foods, laughed over silly things, took pictures together, and went on little adventures that Nila knew she would remember for a very long time.
For once, she wasn't thinking about Remire.
She wasn't thinking about Kelsie.
She wasn't thinking about the painful things that had happened at school.
She was simply Nila.
Happy.
Peaceful.
Loved.
And Kimberley seemed determined to make sure she stayed that way.
He held her hand while they walked.
Sometimes, when they were tired, he would pull her gently against him and cuddle her.
When they stopped somewhere to eat, he would sometimes tease her by feeding her himself.
Whenever she struggled with something tiny, he was there to help.
One afternoon, Nila sat down to tie her shoe, but before she could finish, Kimberley crouched in front of her and tied it for her.
She stared at him.
"I can do it myself, you know."
"I know."
"Then why did you do it?"
He stood up and shrugged.
"Because I wanted to."
Nila couldn't help smiling.
Another time, he helped her arrange her hair while teasing her about how long she took to get ready.
"You spend thirty minutes deciding what to wear just to choose the same thing you picked five minutes ago."
"That's because I have standards."
Kimberley laughed.
"And apparently I don't."
"You definitely don't."
He gently rubbed her hair.
"Brat."
Nila laughed.
She loved moments like these.
Kimberley listened whenever she talked, whether she was telling him a serious story, making a terrible joke, or simply rambling about something completely unimportant.
He listened.
That was what mattered.
Then one evening, something happened that Nila never expected.
They were staying in their hotel, preparing for the evening.
Kimberley was about to take a shower when he reached up toward his eye and carefully removed something.
Nila's eyes widened.
She stared at him.
"Wait..."
Kimberley turned around.
"What?"
"Your eyes."
He looked confused.
"What about them?"
Nila stepped closer.
She had always known Kimberley's eyes as deep brown.
But now...
They were hazel.
Beautiful, warm hazel eyes that seemed even more striking against his features.
"You wear contact lenses?"
Kimberley looked slightly embarrassed.
"Sometimes."
"Why?"
He shrugged.
"I don't know. I guess I feel shy about my real eye color."
Nila stared at him for a moment.
Then she smiled.
"You've been hiding these?"
Kimberley laughed softly.
"I wasn't hiding them."
"You were!"
"I just prefer the brown ones sometimes."
Nila shook her head.
"You shouldn't."
Kimberley raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
She looked directly into his hazel eyes.
"Because you look..."
She paused.
Kimberley waited.
"So?"
Nila's cheeks became warm.
"You look so handsome."
A small smile appeared on his face.
He walked closer.
Nila suddenly became very aware of how close he was standing.
Kimberley gently took her hand and looked into her eyes.
Nila tried to hold his gaze.
She lasted only a few seconds.
Then she quickly looked away.
Kimberley smiled.
"Why did you look away?"
"I didn't."
"You did."
Nila became quiet.
She couldn't explain it.
There was something about the way he looked at her that made her heart race.
Kimberley leaned closer and gently kissed her cheek.
Then he smiled and walked toward the bathroom as though he hadn't just caused her entire brain to stop functioning.
Nila remained frozen.
Her hand slowly touched the spot on her cheek where his lips had been.
Her heart was beating wildly.
She smiled to herself.
She was falling.
Deeply.
And this time, she wasn't afraid.
Kimberley wasn't like Remire.
He didn't make her question whether she was important.
He didn't make her feel unwanted.
He gave her peace.
And Nila realized she loved him.
She truly did.
Later that night, they walked together under the evening sky.
Kimberley wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer.
Nila rested against him.
"Kim?"
"Hmm?"
"Don't hide your eyes from me anymore."
He looked down at her.
"Why?"
"Because I love them."
She smiled.
"Especially the hazel."
Kimberley chuckled.
"So you like them?"
"I love them."
He shook his head.
"Then I guess I'll stop wearing the brown ones around you."
"Good."
Nila smiled mischievously.
"From today, you're Mr. Hazel."
Kimberley laughed.
"Mr. Hazel?"
"Yes."
She pulled out her phone.
"I'm saving your number with that name."
He watched her type.
"You're ridiculous."
"And you love me."
Kimberley smiled.
"Maybe I do."
Nila looked at him.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
She simply smiled.
She had finally found peace.
She had finally found someone who cared about the little things.
Someone who would carry her when she was tired during their long walks.
Someone who would tease her, listen to her, help her, protect her, and make her laugh.
Kimberley had no hidden intentions toward her.
He simply loved Nila.
And Nila loved him too.
Many girls in town dreamed of being with Kimberley.
He was tall, handsome, with blonde-colored hair and striking hazel eyes.
But despite all the attention he received, his heart belonged to only one girl.
Nila.
While Nila was living her happiest days, Remire was slowly falling apart.
He hadn't seen her since school closed.
He repeatedly asked Betty where she had gone.
Betty refused to tell him.
Remire even visited Nila's house, hoping to find her there.
But she was nowhere to be found.
He knew there was only one explanation.
Nila was probably somewhere with Kimberley.
And the thought drove him insane.
He wanted to find them.
He wanted to know where they were.
He wanted Nila back.
But for the first time, he had no idea what to do.
His frustration grew worse.
He started drinking, convincing himself that alcohol would quiet his thoughts.
It didn't.
One evening, his elder brother, Xavier, found him sitting alone with a drink in his hand.
"Remi"
Remire didn't answer.
Xavier walked closer.
"Drinking isn't going to fix this."
Remire finally looked at him.
His eyes were tired.
His face looked defeated.
"I don't know what to do anymore."Tears dropped down his cheeks and he brushed them off.
Xavier sighed and held his shoulder.
"Then stop running from the problem."
Remire looked away.
"Nila..."
Even now, her name was always on his lips.
Sometimes he even mentioned her in his sleep.
Xavier already knew about Nila.
He knew how close the two of them had once been.
He also knew that Remire was the reason Nila had pulled away.
He knew what Remire had done.
And now, watching his younger brother crumble under the weight of his regret, Xavier knew something had to change.
If Remire couldn't find Nila himself, perhaps he would have to help him.
But first, Nila had to come back.
And when she did...
Remire knew he would do everything possible to get her attention again.
Even if it took everything he had.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD