Love Born From Revenge

Chapter 08.

Albert

I rub my eyes and turn towards the window to find moonbeam glimmers through the gap of my blue curtain, lightening my room up dimly. I propped up on my elbows, looking at the clock to see that it is just four o'clock in the morning.

"Still early," I murmur, yawning and dropping back to the bed, planning to continue my sleep.

Strangely, I can't. When my eyelids come to a shut, the image of a girl in a gypsy skirt and an oversized white t-shirt flashed before them.

The ghostly girl.

Pree Chan.

A slideshow of her face endlessly projected behind my closed eyelids like a show that has no end. It keeps replaying again and again in the back of my head. I should see Mia's face, for that girl is, without a doubt, my ideal type. However, Pree is occupying my head instead, especially a pair of her black eyes. I have never seen such sad eyes in my life.

Is she being bullied at school? Or is she having family issues?

I need to talk to her again, echo a voice inside my head.

"Yeah, I also need to apologize to her." I sit up on the bed and say to myself as if replying to the voice inside my head. Knowing I won't be able to fall asleep, I decided to go for my morning run.

Putting on all-black workout gear, I step out of the house. Usually, my morning exercise begins at five. Having one hour earlier today, I expect to run further than usual. Too bad, it is just an intention but not an achievement. My mind gets distracted while running, which exhausts me more quickly. I end up running the shortest distance ever in my entire morning running record.

All thanks to her.

I can't figure out why a girl such as her leaves a powerful impact on me. She isn't even my type, but there is something about her that keeps attracting me. And I am planning on finding out about it soon.

Coming back home, I meet my mom when I go to the kitchen for a glass of water. She is wearing a red apron and holding a ladle in hand.

"Morning, Al. You're up early today."

"Good morning, mom. Yeah, I couldn't go back to sleep, so I went out to run."

She glances at the clock before looking at me with slight confusion. "But you come back early, too."

"Yeah, it makes me weary faster than usual."

"It is unexpected to hear that from my athletic son," she smiles, walking to me and giving me a peck on the cheek. "Anyway, go take a shower. Breakfast will be ready soon. Come back down if you're hungry."

"Thanks, mom." I want to hug her but decide against it since I am all sweaty. Returning a peck, I say, "By the way, mom, when Chan is here, let him know I want to go out."

"Sure. But where are you going? You don't even know places around here."

"That's why I am going out. To get familiar with this place."

*******

"Young master, this neighborhood is the second-best in our city," says Chan, introducing me to new places as he drives around.

I ask him to give me a tour around the city, and he does a magnificent job with it. He brings me from one place to another and explains those areas in detail, like a professional tour guide.

"Not bad. But not as good as where I live."

He chuckles. "Young Master, your neighborhood is considered the best in our city. Ordinary people can't afford to buy houses there."

"Really?"

"Yes. That area is reserved for tycoons and high-ranking officials, both local and international. Just the service for that area alone is worth fivefold of my monthly salary."

"I don't know about that. My mom and my father are the ones who take care of it."

Chan only smiles and says no more. The drive goes on in silence until we reach another place that looks messier and smaller than the previous one. Houses look old as if they are built for more than a decade.

"What is this place?"

"It is Rose avenue."

"Rose avenue?" I look out the window wondering why the fancy name and the view are quite a contradiction.

"Hey!" Chan yells and honks. The car comes to a stop with a screech, bringing my head to bump to the front seat's headrest. "Watch where you're going when you cross the street!"

"I'm sorry," echoes a soft voice that belongs to a female.

"Just be careful from now on!" He rolls the window back up before turning around to ask me in a worried tone. "Young master, I'm sorry. Are you okay?"

I rub my forehead that must have turned red now. "I'm fine. What happened?"

"A girl crossed a street without looking."

"Did we hit her?"

"No, we didn't."

"That's a relief." I look up through the windshield only to see the back of a tiny figure walking away as if nothing has happened.

Although it is the back view, I can recognize that person clearly, given the gypsy skirt. It is the same as what she wore yesterday.

"Wait!" I open the door and step out of the car, running toward her. I don't know whether she doesn't hear or pretends not to hear, but her steps don't seem to slow down. Thanks to my athletic body, I can still catch up.

"Pree, wait!" I run past her and come to a stop, finally halting her.

"How do you know my name?" She glares at me as if calling her name is a capital offense.

"We're friends. How come I don't know your name? Full name is Preeda Chan, but people like to call you Pree. It's a cute name." I put on my best playboy smile, hoping its charm will calm her down somehow. Still, it isn't as effective as it has always been.

"You're wrong," she says.

"What?"

"We're not friends. We are just classmates." Her tone is stern, and her eyes are sharp. "Since we aren't in class now, we are just strangers. And I don't talk to strangers." Stepping aside, she walks past me.

This is clearly a sign of telling me not to get close to her. But what can I do? I've already set the goal to get close to this girl. There is no way I am going to give up what I haven't even started.

"Wait." I turn back and trudge next to her. "You can't say that we are strangers. We already know each other's name."

She remains silent, acting as if she doesn't hear me. I have no choice but to get her attention.

"What now?" She glares at me. "Why do you keep blocking me?"

"Because you refuse to listen."

Although she tries to be discreet, I can still see that she is rolling her eyes. "Then, will you let me go if I listen to what you want to say?"

Straight to the point. I like that.

"Sure."

"Then shoot. And be quick about it. I'm in a hurry. My mom is waiting for her ingredients."

I look down to see that she is holding a plastic bag with the tips of green veggie protruding from it. "That looks heavy. Let me help you."

She pulls the bag away. "No, thanks. I'm capable of doing it myself. Just say what you want to say."

I can't help but smile. This is the first time in a long while to meet this kind of girl. How I miss the play-hard-to-get type.

"I want to apologize to you." I am putting on a sincerely apologetic face.

"There is nothing to be sorry about. I was the one who didn't look before crossing. I already apologize to your driver. What else do you want from me?"

"No, no. It isn't about that." I hurry to explain. "I was referring to the time when I called you a ghost. You know, the first time that we met. It was silly of me to even think of that. I'm also sorry about staring at you. Like I've said, I don't know much about your culture yet. So I hope you can be lenient with me."

Pree looks at me with a hint of surprise. When I smile at her, she quickly averts her eyes to the pavement as if my smile can bite.

"It's okay. I already forgot about it."

"Thank you. That's a relief." A smile still plasters on my face. "Let me redeem my action by giving you a lift." I point to my car, to which she shakes her head.

"I already accept your apology. I need nothing more. Now, is that all you want to say?"

"Yes."

"Then, step aside. As you've promised."

As a man of my words, I can't help but do what she has said. Although I want to try offering her the ride one more time, I find it better not to. With this kind of girl, we need to take things slowly.

And I have a lot of time for this.

The moment I step back, Pree walks past me without sparing a glance. I hurry towards my car and tell Chan to follow her. Since she is walking, it means her house must be nearby.

Sadly, when our car begins to move, Pree is nowhere in sight. We've been circling the area a few times, but we still can't find her. It is as if she disappears. A frustrated groan escapes from my lips, unbelieving that I just let such a chance slip through my fingers.