The Risen HODWII

Chapter 12 : Handkerchief

I woke up to see mesmerizing blue eyes staring at me. She smiled softly. “Good morning,” she greeted. Oh, how much I wanted this to happen every morning.

I pulled her closer to me and smiled. “Good morning! Did you have a good sleep?”

“I did. Thank you,” she answered, smiling. I would never get tired of seeing her smile...

I got up from bed. “I’ll go take a shower. Wait for me here, okay?” I said, and she nodded. I left the room and went to the boys' room to shower. My clothes were there.

I opened the door, relieved to find that Coby and Adrian weren’t there. Where could they be? After finishing up, I headed back to Stella's room. When I opened the door, I saw her holding something carefully, gazing at it intently. As I walked closer, she immediately hid it.

“What is it?” I asked, curiosity filling me. Why did she hide it from me? I stopped in front of her.

“What is, what?” she replied innocently, avoiding my gaze.

“Don’t play with me, Stella. Why did you hide it?” I pressed, wanting her to tell the truth.

“I-It is special to me,” she said, looking down.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to invade your privacy; I was just cur—” I stopped when she handed me a... handkerchief?

“This was it. It is special to me,” she stated, looking at the handkerchief as she smiled.

A red handkerchief with white polka dots... It looked familiar, but I couldn’t recall where I’d seen it before.

“Why is it special to you?” I asked, curiosity piqued. Her smile never faded as she bit her lip. “Someone special gave that to me.” Someone? I felt a pang of pain in my chest.

“Do... do you like him?” I asked hesitantly.

She looked deeply into my eyes and smiled. “I like him more than anything. I’ve loved him since I was a child.”

I gulped. I... I thought she loved me. “Does he know?” I couldn’t explain what I felt... it hurt a million times.

She suddenly turned sad, looking down once again. “I never told him how I feel... I don’t think he knows.”

All I wanted was for her to be happy, and if her happiness meant that man, then... “You should tell him. Tell him what you feel. Your happiness will be mine too.”

“But... what if he doesn’t like me?” she asked, worry creeping into her voice.

“He will. No guy can resist your charm.” I smiled, though it wasn’t genuine.

“Really!?” Her eyes sparkled. She truly loved that man... and again, I felt my heart crash.

I nodded. “You’re now free, Stella. Don’t think of the marriage contract anymore. Consider it off. Just... go to the man you love.” I couldn’t handle it anymore, so I turned my back to her and started walking toward the door.

“How could you turn off the marriage contract? I worked hard for that.” I froze; her voice was cold and not the usual soft one. The last time I heard it was... in the van.

I slowly turned to face her. Her expression was dull... and emotionless. Uno.

But wait—“Wha-what did you just say?” I asked, clarifying what I had heard. She... worked hard for the marriage contract?

“You heard me right. Don’t ever close the contract, or you’ll face consequences,” she stated coldly.

“What did you do?” I was too confused. She loved someone; why would she stick with me?

She looked into my eyes. “I pleaded with Mom for it.” She suddenly smirked. “And I threatened the girl who was supposed to marry you. I made sure it was me and no one else.” Her voice was frightening...

“You did what!?” My heartbeat hammered in my chest. Was it happiness? Fear? Pain? What the fuc*!

“Tch. Stupid,” she said as she walked toward me.

Did she just call me stupid!?

“How... how about the man you love?” I asked, stepping back. I didn’t even know what to do! She saw my reaction and, I think, I just made her mad.

“The owner of this?” she asked, waving the handkerchief as she continued to approach me.

I nodded, but when I stepped back again, my back hit the wall, and she was right in front of me. Oh, shit! I was trapped!

“Here. Don’t you remember?” She forced the handkerchief into my hand.

“Remember what?” I asked, looking at the handkerchief once more. Suddenly,

**Flashback**

I was walking toward the playground, singing “Jingle Bells” while playing with my red polka dot handkerchief. Suddenly, I heard a little girl crying. Following the sound, I found myself in the blue tunnel of the playground.

Inside, I saw a cute little girl, probably nine years old, one year younger than me.

I crawled toward her. “Hey, why are you crying?” I asked, concerned.

“My knee is bleeding...” she sobbed harder.

“Stop crying. Let me see it.” I inspected her knee.

“It’s just a scratch. It will heal. Let me handle it, okay?” I asked for her permission.

She nodded while still sobbing.

I blew gently on her knee to ease the pain, and she flinched occasionally. I took my handkerchief and tied it around her knee to cover her wound. “This handkerchief is very important to me because my mom gave it to me last Christmas, but I will give it to you so you will stop crying.” When I finished, I added, “See? If you look at it, you can’t see your knee bleeding. So stop crying, okay?” I said.

She nodded and smiled. So cute! “Thank you!” I was frozen when she suddenly hugged me.

“You’re welcome,” I said when she pulled away. We crawled out of the tunnel.

“Thanks again,” she said gratefully when we were completely out.

“No worries. I’ll be here if you need me,” I promised.

“Ouch!” She rubbed her head when a small ball hit it.

“Hey! Why did you do that?” I yelled at the little boy behind her. He was the one who threw the ball.

“Stella, crying baby. Stella, crying baby. Stella, crying baby,” he mocked repeatedly.

“Stop it!” I yelled again.

“What!? Loser!” he yelled back.

I picked up a stone nearby, but when I faced him again, he ran off in fear.

“Tch. What a coward,” I murmured. “Are you okay?” I asked her again, concerned.

“I’m fine. Thank you!” she exclaimed, smiling widely.

“If someone dares to hurt you again... tell me. I will become your husband so no one will ever hurt you,” I stated with determination.

“Really?” she asked, wide-eyed.

I nodded, smiling. “You will be Mrs. Barren.”

“What’s your name?” she asked.

“Lucas!” Oh, shit! Mom is here!

“Oh no. I have to go. I hope to see you again...” I kissed her cheek and ran away. “Bye!” was the last word I said, leaving her stunned on the spot.

**End of Flashback**