Walls

11

The ensuite was not the best - Elias had seen better. But a dark and unsanitary toilet seat was what he got to work with here. He had cleaned the ugly strip of blood across his chest and drenched his shirt in places that were coated in blood so that it wouldn't look so bad.

All the blood washing down the sink was intensifying the harsh metallic smell lingering in the air, but Elias was not new to it. He had been in enough 'accidents' to be accustomed to it. What was worrying about the one he just crawled out of was the fact that apparently, he traveled 5 years into the future.

And also he somehow managed to piss a man off to the point that Elias now had a target on his back. That part also was not entirely new. He'd pissed off a couple men before.

With a long sigh, he raised his eyes to look at himself in the mirror. Sure enough, the man looking back was a lot more sophisticated than what he looked like during his time in college. Tame even.

Gone was the crazy long hair styled to the point of no return, replaced by a neater-looking cut. His usually bare chin was covered in a 5 o'clock shadow and what he hated the most was the look in his eyes - tired and mature. As if he was carrying the weight of the world. He wished it looked youthful and reckless.

He hated whoever he had turned into during the five years he could not remember. Fingers curled into fierce fists, he closed his eyes, wishing that his father had nothing to do with whatever was happening.

Elias had not had a good relationship with his father for a long time.

Letting out a long breath, he willed himself to relax. There were more pressing matters to consider. Like how his heart can't stop thundering in his chest each time he laid eyes on Abbie. Her doe-like eyes, her little lips, her heart-shaped face were somehow setting him on fire when he was in desperate need to cool down.

He couldn't also take his mind off the little tattoo under the thin necklace she was wearing. It was a 'J' inside a heart. His name did not even have a J in it. He had not expected the sinking feeling in his stomach, but it was not something he could ignore.

"Fuck," he whispered, opening his eyes, trying to erase the image of her eyes that were now vividly dancing behind his eyes.

She was not his type. More like he was not her type. She would never go for a guy like him... right?

Abbie was not his type, he repeated to himself. She looked like the conservative type - she'd like a more reserved guy. Not an adrenaline-junkie like him.

But was he?

One, he was wearing a suit. Something that Elias' dad had tried to get him to do for ages, but never could.

Two, he did look like a reserved guy. Keyword being 'looked'. He was feeling anything but reserved.

Elias put the shirt back on and buttoned it up. The wet patch on the shirt that he had washed the blood off of, stuck to his skin. Slinging his coat off the towel rack, he shrugged it on.

He was in a hurry taking it off, but now that he was killing time just to avoid the effect Abbie had on him, he took his time putting it on. His hands brushed over a tiny bulge under his chest - there was something inside his coat pocket.

He reached inside and pulled a tiny box. Resting on his palm, it looked like a miniature safety vault. But vaults were metallic. This box had a soft and velvety surface. He'd seen thousands of those before, but he did not remember how one got in his pocket.

Did he buy it? He did not think so.

He flicked the top upwards - there was nothing inside. It was empty.

*********

Abbie could not believe what Suresh had told her over the phone.

"Well, I had to get Jonah to hack into Elias' bank records to find out his credit transactions. Elias bought a room in a motel in Weeper's Creek, that's how we found you guys. Also, I hope you don't mind that I asked Jonah, you know, you guys were not exactly on good terms when he left."

"Yeah, yeah - I mean, no problem."

Abbie did not remember a 'Jonah', but Suresh had explained that Jonah was her ex-boyfriend.

Abbie rubbed the spot below the pendant she was wearing - the tattoo of a 'J' she had on herself. She still had a tattoo of the name of a guy who she apparently broke up with - that did not make a lot of sense to her.

When Abbie had asked why he had guessed that she would be with Elias, Suresh had gone silent for a second.

"You have a TV? Just turn on the TV," he had said.

"Yeah, but why the TV?"

"Just turn it on, Abbie. I tried to explain to Elias' personal security team that it was not necessary but they were going nuts when-"

"Personal security?"

"Just turn on the TV, Abbie."

The line had disconnected and Abbie had not bothered placing the receiver back on the hook before diving for the remote and switching on the old television.

The screen glowed with a breaking news forecast. Lips parted, she took in the headshots of Elias and herself plastered across the screen.

The door to the ensuite opened and Elias stepped outside, his eyebrows scrunched as he examined a blue velvety box, twirling it around in his palm.

"Why do you think I have a box for a ring with me?"

"Probably because of that," Abbie pointed at the TV screen. She watched the exact moment that Elias read the big letters on the screen and the look of shock spread across his face.

She turned to read the headline again, hoping that she read it wrong.

It read: Billionaire Elias Castaldo, the owner of Acute Inc. reported missing after his engagement to famous cybersecurity specialist Abigail Diaz last night.

Abbie looked down at her hands. Sure enough, she had an engagement ring sitting on her finger.