Chapter 43: A Little Care

< Shirley >
"You know, nobody ever told me anything about themselves as if I wouldn't even understand. But then again I never tried to understand either. I was always lost in my own thoughts. I was selfish. What am I saying? I still am. Yet, they never complained..." I kept telling him about my feelings and Dylan calmly listened.
Suddenly my stomach grumbled. That was when I realized I didn't have any dinner.
"Are you hungry?" he asked and I hid my face with my palm out of embarrassment. I slightly nodded. "I will bring you something to eat," Dylan said and tried to get up.
I stopped him. "No, don't go."
"I will be back before you know."
"But I am not done with my boring story." I pouted and crossed my legs.
He chortled and said, "I never said you couldn't continue without me." With that, he removed my arms and went away.
Whereas, I stayed there sitting on the ground. I stared at the starry sky. The sky was so beautiful, just like him. But his smile was brighter than any stars.
These feelings... I couldn't comprehend them. But I love getting these weird feelings. They somehow made me feel so good.
And it was like Dylan was expressing his feelings more and more each passing day. Right now, he was a different person from the first time I met him—a different person who was sad and needed love more than anything in this world. Otherwise, he always covered his sadness with his rudeness and sarcastic behavior.
Among all of the stars in the sky, one of them was shining brighter than any other stars. It made me want to reach out for it. I forwarded my right hands towards the direction of the sky. I tried to catch the star but it was out of my reach, just like Dylan.
Why was I comparing everything with him?
"I am back with your food." I glanced at Dylan who had a plate filled with food and a water bottle in his hand. "Trying to reach out for the stars like me, I see." He placed the plate and water bottle in front of me and sat down beside me. "Sorry, there isn't much left. Since I am the only one home, Trisha made dinner for me only," he apologized even though it was more than enough. How much did he think I ate?
It was one of my favorite dinners, fried chicken and waffles. My mouth watered at the sight. I hungrily grabbed the plate and started digging into it.
Dylan chuckled, saying, "Someone just became a hungry monster."
"Haww wudh yhu udheristandh mai haugar?" I asked with my mouthful.
"You mean to say how would I understand your hunger?" he said my words in a clear voice.
I nodded.
Dylan let out a sad chuckle as if pitying himself. "There have been days when I had to starve for two-three days. And you say how I would understand?" he murmured. I stopped chewing the food in my mouth and looked at him. "Why did you stop eating?"
"Huh?" I looked back at my food and gulped down the remaining portions. Once I was done eating, I drank water and kept the utensils beside me. Meanwhile, Dylan was just staring at the stars, reminiscing something deeply.
A question arose in my mind.
"Dylan," I let out and he hummed in reply. "You never told me anything about your biological family. We have known each other for more than three weeks now."
Yeah, I knew three weeks is a lot less time but yet I wanted to know. My curiosity about him never seemed to end.
"Because there's nothing to tell about them," he answered curtly.
"I still want to know," I stated.
"I'm not telling you."
"Pretty, please?" I batted my eyelashes.
"No."
"The prettiest, please?"
"You're stubborn as always." He rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. "But are you sure you want to know?"
I nodded, locking my eyes at his face.
He took a deep breath and started, "In my family, there was my mom and my little sister. My mom was a lawyer. She was really kind and affectionate towards everyone, even though she belonged to an aristocratic family. She also used to run many orphanages. She always used to scold me for my pranks. At the same time, she always cared for me more than anyone else."
He was a prankster from childhood. Why am I not surprised?
"My sister was six years younger than me. She was my prized possession. I adored her. I always used to make her cry. Then she used to complain to Mom like 'mommy, mommy, bro is bad' and cry. She couldn't even pronounce my name properly. That's why she called me 'bro'." A sad smile was intact on his lips the whole time he kept talking about his family.
"But then my mom was murdered in front of our eyes when I was ten years old because she was fighting a case against a Mafia. She had collected much evidence. When we were on our way to the court, some people stabbed her seven times and killed her brutally. From that day my life became a living hell."
"My little sister, Cordelia was killed when I was twelve years old." He paused for a while and said, "Why are you crying?" His words made me realize I was crying. I didn't even know when I started tearing up. "Don't cry. You look like a ghost." He caressed my cheeks and wiped my tears.
"What about your dad?"
"I don't even want to remember him. He was not a father, but a monster. He is one of the reasons I joined the mafia. To avenge the seven years of my life."
"What seven years?"
"You don't wanna know that." The bitterness in his voice sent shivers down my spine.
Just imagining his life made me want to run away and hide myself in a corner. He lost the persons he loved the most in front of his eyes. I didn't know what happened to him in seven years but I did know they were not very pleasant.
"Is he alive?" I asked curiously.
"He won't be." He stared at the ground when he said that. It was like his mom and sister were high as the stars and his dad was low as the ground.
"Who killed your mom and sister?"
"Don't ever try to know that," he answered, looking into my eyes painfully.
Just then a breeze of wind hit me, making me shiver. "Why?"
"Just don't," he whispered into my ears, leaning closer. He removed his black jacket and put it over me. "You're shivering."
"Thanks," I mumbled.
Once there was a time when he refused to lend me his jacket and now he gave it to me without even asking. So much has changed. Or maybe he was just being generous as he was talking about his family. I could never say for sure.
"Enough with my sad story. I am glad you didn't fall asleep." Dylan faked a laugh and reverted his hands from my cheek. "Geez, you must think it was one hell of a tragic story, huh? But you know, I wouldn't call it that. At least, ten years of my life were blissful."
"What about the rest fifteen years of your life?"
"I don't even count them as my life."
Hats off, Dylan. I would have been broken into pieces if I were in your shoes.
"You didn't tell me the full story. What you told is just a part of your life. There is more to it, isn't there?" I asked.
"As I said, I don't count that as a part of my life. Talking about the tragedy." He smiled sadly. "To be honest, that wasn't even the ten percent of it." His voice was so soft but the pain behind those words hit me hard. I wanted to comfort him but I didn't know how. "Now don't start pitying me."
"I'll never pity you." I held back a sob. "But c—can I give you a hug, please?" I flashed him my puppy eyes.
"I think Dina rubbed on you a lot. You've become clingy," he joked.
"Oh, shut it." I wrapped my arms around him and rested my head on his chest. I could feel he was kind of startled but didn't object either. Neither did he hug me back. I smiled to myself, burying my face in his chest. I let the tears flow as he wouldn't see me anymore.
I listened to his steady heartbeat. Why was his heartbeat so calm and mine so wild?
I don't know how long it had been but I felt so sleepy so I closed my eyes. He was just too comfortable to resist the urge to sleep. Therefore, soon sleep engulfed me.
Next time, when my eyes fluctuate due to dim sunlight, I realized I was in someone's arms. Heat rushed to my cheeks, realizing who it was.
I glanced at the sky. There was a grey hue all over the sky. The sun was still rising. Birds were chirping in rhythm, sounding like music to my ears.
We were still on the terrace, sitting on the ground. Dylan's arms were secured around my waist, whereas mine were around his. My head was buried in his neck and his chin was resting on my head.
I noticed the black jacket was still on me.
What if Dylan caught a cold because of me?
But my body temperature should have given him enough warmth.
I tried to look at his peaceful face. He looked so adorable. His hair was totally disheveled, giving him the sexy look. I didn't try to move much since it could disturb his sleep.
As Dylan was so close to me, one could already imagine the condition of my heart. I wouldn't even bother describing it.
I suddenly felt him moving. I immediately closed my eyes. While listening to his steady heartbeat, I decided to fall asleep again because it was one of the best things that ever happened to me.