Wed or Dead

XII

Rafael was right next to me in a tailor-made black suit, something about him was refined, even aristocratic and completely different from the district in which she lived.

As we arrived at her apartment this time, Rafael decided to come in for tea. The door was open, so I didn't have to pull my keys out. He sent her a questioning look.

"The lock broke" technically Ethan broke it "and I didn't have time to replace it"

"When?" He asked, seemingly indifferent.

"About a week ago"

"So you slept with the door open this whole time?" this time she could clearly hear that his voice was full of disapproval. she looked down, a little embarrassed.

"Maybe?"

"If you intend to continue being so reckless I'm afraid to even with my help something bad will happen to you," he said drily.

"Sit down, make yourself comfortable," Eliana said, trying to change the topic from my person to something else. She got lost in my own thoughts, but she came back to earth quickly as she saw Rafael being near the almost broken plastic chair.

"No, wait, don't sit here!" she yelled in panic. As she tried to stop Rafael from sitting and potentially breaking it and falling down, she grabbed onto his arm protectively. When she realized what she have done, she pulled herself away, but it was too late, Eliana's cheeks were tinted in pink colour and Rafael smirked at me.

"You don't look like a type to throw yourself at a man. Noted"

"No I don't, I just... this chair can break any moment! I was trying to save, I had no intention to-"

"Eliana?"

"W-what"

"Stop being cute"

I- Um? What?

He shook his head, seeing her confused expression and sighed.

"Where should I sit then?" He asked patiently, but she could see his eyes were laughing.

"Sit on the couch, it will be more comfortable," she instructed. "What would you like to drink? Tea, coffee, water?"

"Tea, please"

"What about your bodyguard?" Eliana asked, addressing the presence of a man in a suit. He did not react to my question at all.

"Marco, would you like something to drink?" Rafael asked.

"No, thank you for offering, ma'am"

Eliana nodded and busied myself with making tea. For a moment there was complete silence.

Eliana bet Rafael was judging her apartment, and it had no right to get a positive grade. Social services barely accepted it as a place for Casey to live. The biggest problem was the cracks and watermarks on the ceiling. The upstairs neighbour flooded my apartment at least once a month, and he never felt obliged to pay for the damages.

Ah right, while we're on Casey's case, she's not picking up my calls. Now that I had Rafael's phone, Eliana could start bugging her more often with my calls.

The living room was connected to the kitchen, the sofa had an ugly raspberry shade that faded over time. Next to the sofa, there was a small coffee table cluttered with a pile of papers produced by Casey's custody and inheritance case there. Eliana pushed the papers away to put the cup of tea in front of Rafael. Rafael completely didn't fit the scenery, he looked as if he was copy-pasted into my place as a joke.

The small period of silence was interrupted by the loud moans of my neighbours. Eliana closed her eyes. Do they have to be this loud?

Okay, let's ignore it.