Tulip's Destiny

XXXI - Never Let Go Again

Raine woke up to an unusual feeling. Her body ached, and she couldn't move a muscle. She forced herself to sit right up, looking around the room. "Shit! Where am I?" Raine hissed, she held her hand up noticing the dextrose. "What did I do now?" Raine groaned, scratching her head in distress. "Getting hospitalized was not on the list. This'll cost me a fortune."

"You're awake." A nurse greeted, checking her clipboard. "Your vitals are stable. Do you feel anything? Do you need anything?"

"No, thank you." She smiled in embarrassment. "Can I ask you what happened to me?"Before the nurse could even open her mouth, the door silently swung revealing a tall young man. "I'll talk to her, thank you." The man said, making the nurse slip out in cue. Raine rubbed her eyes, blinking momentarily as he walked up to her. "Bleu?" She stared at him, looking at his ocean blue eyes and dirty blonde hair. "How are you feeling?" He asked. Raine took a moment to recall the photograph. He looked exactly like him. "Fine. My chest just hurts a bit." She replied, crunching her eyebrows in confusion. "Who are you?"

"It's me, Gelo." He smiled, patting her head. Raine looked at him, confused. "Have we met before? What's your whole name?" She asked, impatiently waiting for an answer.

"Mikhail Angelo Mero..." He said. "Mikhail..." Raine repeated. As if by nature, she threw herself at him. Raine hugged him tight, crying in his chest. He held her with warmth caressing her back in comfort. "I was looking for you." She chuckled, tears rolling down her cheek. "There, there, Tulip... I'm here now." He whispered affectionately. His words sent shivers through her spine, then her head began spinning again. Only to wake up by a gentle stroking through her locks, the man spoke. "You made me worried." He sighed, kissing her temples.

"I'm sorry. I can't remember anything." She said, forcing herself to get up. The man tried to carefully sit herself up. "Don't strain yourself just yet. You almost drowned." Raine looked at him attentively. "I was driving on my way, then as I looked out the window... I saw a girl from a distance drifting off to the ocean so I rushed to get you."

"You saved me..." She thought. "Have we met before this?"

"Many times, you'd be surprised actually. Let's just say we're close." He began. "I'll cut you the drama and let's start anew."

"Gelo... we danced at the ball!" She chirped, he only nodded with a smile. "There's a lot going on. More than the masquerade alone, but yeah... I was there." He replied pensively, taking her hand into his. "I'm sorry, I left you before. But now, I'm here, I'll never let you go again." Gelo muttered, kissing her hand. Raine couldn't help, but feel delighted with the meeting. However, she just can't shrugg something off her shoulders. She found Bleu. Or did he find her? If they did have a past she can't remember, why come back now? Nonetheless, she could feel her insides in havoc, just staring at his ocean blue orbs glimmer. In exhaustion, Raine fell asleep while he caressed her hair with affection, whispering sweet nothings at her. Soon she was awoken by the loud thud from the door. Manuel rushed in, inspecting her body. "Raine! Are you okay? How do you feel? What happened?"

"I'm fine! And I found Bleu" She beamed, making Manuel fumed in irritation.

"The hell are you saying? What did I tell you before I left? I thought I made it clear to not leave the perimeter of the hotel." He bursted out. "And why did you leave? You went out just to freaking look for that non-existent bastard?!"

"Manuel, I'm fine." She reasoned. "You could have died!" Manuel shouted. "I didn't and I saw Bleu. He was the one who saved me." Raine giggled. "That's bullshit! You know what this is bullshit! You're going home. I don't even know why I agreed to this." Manuel scolded her, pacing the room in frustration. "No. You can't decide for me. Who do you think you are?" She glared, making him look at her directly in the eyes."Raine, you almost died! We were worried. I spent 17 whole hours on a plane praying to come here and see you alive." He grumbled, catching his breaths