Thirteen- Lots of dates

Knowing how reluctant her body would be to get up in the middle of the night- especially after the day’s work, Chloe had made sure to set an alarm on her phone.

And it was currently piercing her ears and doing a good job of keeping her from hugging her pillow closer.

As Chloe got off the bed, her eyes landed on the clear night outside and her mind immediately went to the reason she was up at that moment.

The screams had a message but there was no way for Chloe to fully understand the message until she found the source of the cries. That was her main problem. It was as though the noise came from somewhere far away this minute, the next minute, the noise resonated all the way to her sole.

So, she had two choices to work on. She could search for any alternative routes at the two places she had heard the noise. And the other- easy yet difficult- option was to look for the blueprint of the building.

“Okay, let’s do this,” she said as she checked the time.

In no time, she was out in the quiet corridor and on her way to the basement, a flashlight in the pocket of her oversize PJs.

As she made her way downstairs, she noticed for the first time how lovely the room looked with low lights. It made the expensive arcs and designs seem like something vintage and nice to the eyes. Chloe realized then that she was always too focused on what she had to do, she never took note of her environment for a long while.

Maybe that was why Gabriel said she was like cupcakes with mean writings on them. She probably always wore a serious look every time.

Chuckling at her wondrous self, Chloe pushed open the kitchen door and after grabbing a bottle of water and making sure the dishes was done, she made for the store that led to the basement.

With the work she and Lucille put into Amir’s space, the room which would have felt chilly and seemed a bit scary, was cool to the sight. As soon as she was done admiring the setup which had neon lights included in its plans, she walked to the centre of the room and got to work.

She recalled her stance from earlier and maintained it. The scream from earlier rang through her brain and her head tilted to the right at an angle. She might not be able to particularly point out the exact direction, but she knew it was from the other side of the wall to her right that the noise sourced from.

She walked towards the wall.

As though it were a delicate thing, she gently placed both hands on what she calculated to be the center of the wall.

She was checking for vibrations, if really there was something or someone behind the walls no matter how far away, there just had to be something.

But, nothing came.

Next, she cocked her ear onto the decorated wood surface. Nothing came either.

Chloe was left with checking out the library and looking for the blueprint of the building. And, since blowing her cover was not her top ten agenda at that moment, she helped herself out of the room.

Gabriel was thankfully not in the library. He always had a habit of waking up very early when the night is usually still prominent and never went to anywhere else but the library. He treated that space like a shrine.

The small smile that tugged on her lip as she thought about Gabriel soon diminished and she walked to the spot she was to work from. Chloe knew she wasn’t going to get much from where she was standing but she stayed there anyway.

And, from there, she surveyed the space her eyes could reach as her ears listened patiently for the night breeze to carry along another cry.

Like earlier, it never came. But her eye caught something in the dim light.

Just a little forward on her right, she noticed few scratches on the floor. From just watching movies, she could deduce that something had been moved a lot on that spot. Slowly, like in a movie, her eyes traced the thin scratches to the bare wall.

Well, she knew better than to think that was all.

With the air feeling suspenseful, she walked towards the part of the wall targeted and began to press it in at certain points. The thought of something implicating being hidden behind the wall made Chloe’s head swell a bit.

Her rather time-wasting method worked. As though it were a Jack-in-the-Box toy, the wall popped open suddenly. Without wasting a second, Chloe pulled the hidden door out to reveal nothing but a bookshelf.

A bit disappointed, she moved closer to the shelf to check out the books that adorned it.

A frown appeared. The normal looking shelf became weird… or better put, creepy in an instant. All the books there had titles that suggested the genre had murder all over it.

“What are you doing awake?”

Chloe jumped.

As she turned her head and saw that it wasn’t Gabriel who had caught her rummaging through his weird collection, she let out a sigh of relief. After closing the door, she faced Nathaniel who was still waiting for a response.

“I couldn’t sleep.” He did not say anything, she decided to explain further. “When I become restless, I always tend to go through stuff. It is a habit I can’t help.”

Nathaniel’s hand went behind him as he stood straight. His eyes scanning her as though he was trying to see if she was lying, he said, “Gabriel doesn’t like anyone going through that part of his library. So, unless he shares it with you- which I doubt- do not ever go near it.”

There was something about the way Nathaniel gave warnings. Just like the last time, he was giving her the idea that they were indeed hiding something. “I will take note of that,” she finally said.

“Hmm,” was all he replied with.

“So, when is the date?”

His body leaned her way. “Date?”

“Uh… earlier today, this place was filled with placards and balloons that….”

“Wait, he really did it?”

“Who?” She was a bit confused.

Before he answered her, he pinched his nose as he seemed to recall something. “Yeah… I told Gabriel to come up with a grand idea that would help me ask you on a date. He suggested the balloon thing, but it was too cheesy to me. I can’t believe he actually did it.”

“You know just asking me directly was a very good option that could have worked, right?”

“The balloon thing was cheesy right?”

Chloe nodded. “Very.” He gave a low groan. “But it was nice regardless, so I will overlook the cheesiness.”

“Well, next time, I will take matters into my hands.”

“There is going to be another date?”

Nathaniel took a step forward that made her feel a bit icky inside. A good kind of icky. His eyes looked different in the low light. They looked as though they were dancing as they passed on a message to her eyes which couldn’t tear off his. “There will be lots of dates.”

She swallowed hard. He was affecting her in a way she didn’t want but couldn’t fight. “Until?”

“Until…” He leaned in, his intention unclear. Chloe just stood there and let only her eyes move. They darted from his lips then to his eyes continuously, like it were a survival cycle. “Until…” He repeated, but this time, his lips leaned in onto hers.

She jumped… in her head. In reality, she waited for him to take her like he did at the party. He did not. The kiss this time was simple, it was just a small contact that reminded her of the warmth she felt at the party. The warmth that made her into her fool for some hours.

When he retracted, a smile was on his lip and he reached for the base of her chin. Then, he resumed his response with a low, yet vibrating voice, “Until I have you craving for my touch, craving for my presence.”

Chloe’s lips fell apart, but no words came. She did not see that coming at all.

Before she could summon a response, Nathaniel was already taking steps out of the room. When he got to entrance he said, “See you at our date.”

Then, he left. He left her staring at nothing.

But he had her head racing.

His invitation sure was a plus to her mission. But… at the same time, it screamed trouble for her heart which always formed strong even though it was very fragile.

At that moment, it was a hundred percent certain that her heart needed protection. She had to do all she can to stop it from sabotaging the mission.

Well… she was Chloe Pepper, that simple task wouldn’t be too hard.