The Unseen

Chapter 13

"Well, I guess you are feeling much better," Grandma said a few moments later, adding another layer to my embarrassment.

I jumped up and away from him as if I had been scorched by fire, lowering my head in mortification. If the ground could have opened and swallowed me up, I would have felt better than being caught making out with a stranger in my grandmother's bedroom.

Andromalius looked at me smirkingly but luckily decided not to comment on my dramatic reaction. It would only add to my suffering, and he didn't seem to want to do that, teasing as he could be. Probably because of the unexpected moment of passion and understanding we shared.

"Yes, I am," Andromalius said, looking at me meaningfully as if he wanted to suggest I was a cure for everything that ailed him.

"Ahem, Grandma, we were just... I was just..." I started to explain, only to trail off into silence as no explanation was necessary.

After all, she saw what was happening; she wasn't blind. Besides, trying to convince her otherwise would have been foolish and disrespectful. Explaining why it happened was also impossible, so I felt silence was my best way out.

"Angela, honey, don't get so flustered," Grandma said with warmth in her eyes. "You've been talking about this charmer of yours non-stop since I learned about the world of supernatural beings. How do you think I know so much about him when I never saw him before?"

I was dumbfounded and mortified by that revelation as it made the smug expression on Andromalius's face even more prominent. For a second, I wanted to erase it with a well-placed kick. However, what she said made sense, and I couldn't allow my frustrations to win over. I was in the wrong. I needed to deal with my emotions quietly whenever he did something that annoyed me or made me confused. For him, it must be strange not to be able to communicate freely with the person he once told everything, with whom he joked around and could be his true self.

He had a whole life with me. Apparently, we were both sweet and sarcastic, gentle and passionate. I was only getting so irritated because I didn't remember it all.

"Because you talked about him non-stop," Grandma said after I didn't say anything.

It seemed she was determined to see me changing all shades of red.

However, seeing the happy smile blossom on Andromalius's face like a rose without any thorns of sarcasm, I chose not to deny the fact. Especially since getting just a bit of a taste of how I felt about him, I wouldn't be surprised if Grandma wasn't even exaggerating.

"Anyway, Andromalius, you should rest some more. Don't...exert yourself," Grandma said, emphasizing the last sentence. "I'll take care of the little one."

"Grandma, I haven't been little for a while now, and I can take care of myself," I said stubbornly, not liking how they seemed to be in a conspiracy to protect me.

"You will always be my little angel," Grandma said sweetly. "Now, off we go to the kitchen, or your boyfriend here will starve."

"I wish everyone would stop calling him my boyfriend," I mumbled quietly. "It's not as if I am not confused enough as it is, but they have to add to it with their own assumptions and ideas of who we are."

"Oh, and Andromalius, in case I don't get to see you later, thank you," Grandma said, looking at him with so much sincerity that it warmed my heart.

"For what?" He asked, still dazed by what had happened between us.

"For always loving and protecting my girl," Grandma said with tears in her eyes. "Even when everyone else would have hated her for leaving. It's nice to know someone will always stand by her side once I am gone."