Blessing in Disguise

Chapter 16: The puzzle

"Don't hide it when you're sad or scared or angry... Don't hide your feelings from me. I want to be there for you, like you are always there for me."

"I'm not used to it..."

"The only thing we will do it like this. Every time you don't feel well, bite your lip and I will rush to give you a big hug to make you feel better."

Nyx shook her head chuckling. "Only a hug?"

James felt his face heat up. "And a kiss."

"Just one?" Nyx teased him again.

"As many as you want..."

***

Despite all that happened during the weekend, Nyx still didn't forget about that weird feeling of being followed when she came back from work on Friday. Nyx didn't dare to take these gut feelings lightly, for almost every time she felt something was amiss, something bad would happen. So, when she left the apartment on Monday, Nyx made sure she would be properly prepared if anything happened this time. She always had some means of protection with her whenever she left the house because it wouldn't be the first time she got attacked. On Friday afternoon she left her backpack in the apartment, a moment of carelessness from her. This time, however, she didn't.

Sure enough, when she dismounted the motorbike inside the garage, she heard footsteps approaching her from behind. The place was underground, and even though it was lit, that yellowish light did little to give her a sense of security. The footsteps, even though were trying to be discreet, they echoed through the spacious place. Her heart raced inside her chest as she turned around and saw a man with malice in his eyes. It was all thanks to her defence classes, fast reactions and the taser she always kept in her backpack that nothing bad happened to her. Either way, this event had scared Nyx silly.

It wasn't until the police came to get the unconscious man that she snapped out of it. Still, her complexion was pale, her heartbeat fast and her hands shook even while she was talking to Nick about what happened at the police station. Despite that, her voice was steady and her stiff expression at most made her look annoyed. This made Nick and Miller believe that nothing was wrong with Nyx.

However, when James rushed downstairs, for some reason that even he didn't know, a frown appeared on his face and his brows furrowed. His eyes fell on Nyx's face, subconsciously looking for any possible injuries... She really looked fine, but James could tell that she wasn't. At least not as much as she let others believe. Seeing her like this... sitting in a chair inside the police station, talking to a police officer, looking fine while hiding how she really felt... it awoke a strong perturbation in him. The uneasiness made him dizzy and nauseous. He wanted to leave, to turn his head and close his eyes, not to look at her any longer, but his feet were rooted in place, and he couldn't take his eyes off Nyx. He couldn't because something in him told him to rush to her...

Why... why does this feel so familiar?

What about this even feels familiar?

James couldn't understand.

"You came." Miller slapped his shoulder, not noticing that something was amiss with James and pulled him towards Nyx and Nick.

When Nyx heard Miller, she turned her head, and her eyes met with James's. She instantly noticed that he wasn't alright. The mask on her face that feigned calmness cracked. Her brows furrowed, her lips curved in a frown and her already pale face turned ashen. It took all her willpower not to stand up and rush to James and hold him in her arms. But her willpower wasn't enough to hide how anxious she suddenly got and to keep her quiet.