When Neera woke up, she felt like she had slept for days. Fully rested, she thought of the weird dream she had: she had met Theo (of all people!) where they had last seen each other (of all places!), and they had been attacked by something and then...
A strange feeling crept up her spine as she paid attention to her surroundings. Even before she opened her eyes, she knew she was not in her bed: these were not her sheets, they felt foreign. Opening her eyes wide she looked around the stranger’s bedroom, panic seizing her once again as the events of the evening came back to her as facts, not dreams. She looked at her watch: it was past midnight the following day, 18th May. What felt like days of sleep had been in fact only a few hours.
Sharpening her senses, she tried to reason. She was still in Andrea’s bedroom, but she was alone. Though it was past midnight, she could hear various people discussing in a nearby room. Could Andrea and their mom have visitors, at this hour? And Theo! Was he still in danger? How could she have fallen asleep with all that was going on? She thought back to when Andrea caressed her cheek: had they drugged her without her knowledge? Despite the temperature being quite warm that late spring, she shivered.
She then quietly tiptoed towards the door, trying to grasp at the conversation in the next room. There were at least four or five people having a heated discussion. She recognized Andrea’s voice, not aggressive anymore. She heard a woman’s voice, that seemed to always try to top everyone else's; she sounded familiar, but she could not quite place it... There was an unidentified man as well, and perhaps another woman? She could not tell exactly.
Then her heart skipped a beat. Theo’s voice reached her ears like music. Though he sounded calm, she could tell he was tense – but at least he was safe!
She could not hold in a sneeze. “Achoo!”
The conversation came to an abrupt stop in the other room. Neera heard a chair sliding on the floor as someone was getting up, and hurried to the bed. The door creaked open and Theo gingerly entered the room, closing the door behind him.
Filled with relief at the sight of him, Neera jumped off the bed and ran over, embracing Theo without thinking about anything else but him being safe. Hesitantly at first, Theo wrapped his arms around her, and squeezed her to his chest.
After a few moments, realising how impulsively she had just run into Theo’s arms, Neera’s cheeks flushed and she pulled back. Theo let her step back but held her by the shoulders. Tilting her chin up to face him, he asked, “Are you alright, Nyr?”
Neera nodded, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. “I was so scared, Theo, I thought you were going to get hurt. That person...”
“Don’t worry, Nyr, it’s over now,” he reassured her in a soft voice. He guided her to the bed again, where they sat side by side. Neera looked up at him, her heart beating fast at the sight of his gorgeous face, eyebrows knitted in worry.
He lifted a hand as if to caress her cheek, but hesitated and let his hand drop with a sigh, his eyes averted. “I’ll take you home,” he said, looking at her again with a tired expression.
Neera nodded, and let him guide her toward the door. They went down the corridor, and Neera tried to peek in the room from which she had heard the voices, but Andrea shut the door as they walked by.
They reached the street and headed down an alley. She was starting to wonder if they would have just walked the three miles to her apartment when Theo stopped by a motorcycle.
Her heart did a little jump as she recognized the vehicle: it was the bike Theo had received on his 18th birthday, a red Norton. They had gone on so many trips on that very bike, back then...
Theo handed her a helmet, with a crooked smile that made him look so much like his younger self. He straddled the motorbike. “Are you coming or what?” Happy like a kid on Christmas day, Neera hopped on back, and Theo started the motorcycle.
In only ten minutes they were parked by the front door of her apartment building, up on the Ferdinandeo hill.
She hesitated by the door, unsure of how to say ‘good-bye, thanks for the ride and the terrifying evening’.
“Can I come up?” Theo interrupted her thoughts.
Turning purple, Neera stupidly asked, “What?...”
He chuckled low, then explained, “I just want to make sure your house is safe, then I’ll leave.”
Still embarrassed at her own inappropriate thoughts, Neera nodded and led the way.
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