Rune
Cold... alone... not alone... heavy breathing chasing me... trying to run... fast... ominous laughter... pain... a lot... blood... begging... Akara... AKARA!
"Rune!"
I opened my eyes with horror, shaking all over. I sucked in shaky breaths to calm myself down and suddenly I was pulled into something hard yet warm.
"It is okay... you are okay... it was just a nightmare," a familiar voice repeated again and again in a soothing manner.
Gradually I came around and pulled myself back from Akara's chest. I shivered with the loss of contact, so I hugged myself to keep his lingering warmth.
"I am sorry..." I murmured without having a clear idea what I was sorry for.
"Why? You didn't do anything wrong," he said softly, checking me up and down with a frown.
"Still... I woke you up and made you panic," I replied, finding the reasons why I had to apologize to him, "I should still be under the effect of the previous incident."
He rubbed my arm sympathetically, but his gaze was averted from mine. We stayed like that for a short while until Akara broke the silence.
"It is three am, you should get some sleep."
Even the mention of the word 'sleep' made my breathing erratic as the pieces of the nightmare flashed through my mind.
"Breathe... everything is fine," Akara rubbed my arms reassuringly and taking his advice, I breathed in and out a few times.
"Better?"
"Yes... thank you, but..." I mumbled but couldn't muster my courage to continue.
"Hmm?"
"Can you..."
"Can I...?"
I took a shaky breath and blurted out "can you talk to me for a while?"
Akara let out a soft chuckle and the expression in his eyes softened, "as you wish, young master."
"No," I said, staring at him with determination, "the decision is yours, I am not forcing you."
He was taken aback, I could see in his eyes. I heard him sighing before he said "I would love to talk with you."
I brimmed with happiness, hearing his positive reply. I lay down on the bed and Akara mimicked me before covering us with the blanket. Now we were lying face to face with the soft light of the bedside lamp illuminating Akara's face partially, giving him a softer aura.
"Do you have any plans for the future?" I asked randomly.
"I will follow you, young master."
I shook my hand in between us, dismissing his words, "you are not my puppy, you should have your own plans."
He sighed before nodding, "what about you, have any plans? or just taking over the hotel?"
I shook my head, "I want to open a small cafe at the seaside," I said honestly, "I want a simple life unlike my father."
Akara narrowed his eyes as though he was sceptical, "Mr. Aof would never let you do that."
I sighed, "yeah, you have a point, he is too demanding, right?"
"Still, you are lucky to have him, he cares about you a lot," he said softly, but there was an underlying coldness in his tone.
"How did you end up as my father's adoptive son?" I asked unwittingly, wondering if that coldness had something to do with his past.
Hearing the question, Akara's gaze hardened, "my parents died in an accident and Mr. Aof adopted me."
Well, it was the most general explanation one could ever give. Indeed, I wanted to ask further, but something in his eyes shushed me. Feigning a cough, I thought changing the course of the conversation would be wise.
"What kind of a house would you like to own?" Very unique, right? Damn...
His gaze softened again, "I don't know, anything will do as long as it is mine. You?"
"I like houses like this one, but I am not that picky. As long as it is not a flat, it would suffice," I said, trying not to sound so spoiled after his sad answer.
"Why don't you like flats?"
"They look stuffy and too crowded. Even just by looking at an apartment building, I feel suffocated."
He nodded insightfully and silence filled the semi-dark room. Fearing he might fall asleep, I came up with another random question.
"What is your favorite food?" I know it is like a kindergarten-level question, but it was the first to pop up in my head.
Hearing my silliest question, Akara's lips curved upwards, forming an amused smile. Thinking for a second, he said "Tom Kha Kai."
"Oh, nice. Mine is Chicken Pad Thai, so we both like chicken, but on the plate... I am afraid of chickens... alive chickens..."
Somebody should slap me! What gibberish am I spouting?!
As expected, Akara's lips curved more with the amusement dripping from his face.
Damn!
"I am sleepy all of a sudden!" I exclaimed and buried my head into the pillow, shutting my eyes close.
"Good night, young master," Akara turned off the light and a second later, I felt his hand on mine.
Being grateful for his kindness, I drifted off to a peaceful sleep.
YOU ARE READING
Ambivalent
Romance[Completed] A foster son has to be the bodyguard for the real son... can they keep a professional relationship or love is inevitable? Cliche, isn't it? But what if there is more to the story? What if nothing is as it seems?
