Hate You Not

CHAPTER SEVEN

Adrian:

"ROSE!” Flames surround me, the heat burning my skin. I run around frantically; the smoke covers my view as everything appears blur.
“Where are you?” I open door after door, my eyes searching for a familiar figure. Where is she? Just where is she!?
I come across a door that is locked, I grab the handle and try to push it open, but it doesn't budge. I jam my shoulder against it, but the attempts are futile.
"ROSE! ARE YOU THERE?" I scream, but I get no reply. My body hurts from all the pushing against the door and the heat burning my body. This time, I throw my whole body's strength on the door and it finally opens. I push open the door, only one name on my lips, "Rose?"

______________________________________

Everything I am today, I had to work for it. There isn’t a single thing I have that was served to me on a silver platter. My history made me the man I am today. Cold, calculating, and cruel. I am not a good person, I neither claim to be. I destroy to get what I want.

I have lived like that for way too long now. In my twenty-seven years of living, I never made a mistake, never had any weaknesses, except one.

         Men like me aren't supposed to feel, but I did. I made a mistake, committed a sin. Do I regret it? No. And, if you ask me, I would do it all over again.

      I don't regret what I did, neither will I regret what I will do next. If it means I get her, then it's all worth it.

       I asked her a question, despite knowing the answer. I watch her looking confused, more like nervous. My presence made her nervous, I could tell that by the way she was gripping the book in her hands.

She glanced over her shoulder, probably hoping someone would walk through that door and pull her out of this situation. But, she’s highly mistaken. No one, and I mean no one would come between us anymore.

     "I asked you a question, Malvina." She jerks her head towards me and gulps.

"I just told you that I do remember you."A part of me hopes she does remember me, us. What we had, but no, she doesn’t and it’s fine, I will take my sweet time helping her remember everything once she is mine. But for now its best she remains oblivious.

“Are you sure?”

    "It was your car wasn't it, the one I fell in front of?" She says nervously. "I saw the same car earlier; it was parked outside the restaurant, kind of figured it out." She avoids my eyes.

The next sentence, her tone changes into a defensive one, "It wasn't my fault, though. So,I won't take responsibility for that." She raises her chin as a defensive gesture, and I find it impossibly difficult to resist the urge to grab her by the neck and kiss her.

      Before she can blink, I lean towards her and grab the swing rope behind her, my other hand grabs the back of the swing, caging her. The earlier defensive expression is replaced by a panicked one.

     I tower over her, our faces inches away from each other, her breath fanning my face. She gulps and glances behind her, hoping someone would come to help her, but no one will.

"Look at me." She does. "If I wanted you to take responsibility, you would. But I am not here for that, darling." She gasps. Again. She tends to do that a lot. I like the sound of it.

She doesn't say anything, so I continue, "Take responsibility? You will do that, but not for my car." This time, I lean back, giving her the much-needed space. She takes in a deep breath as if she was suffocating all this time.

"What do you want then?" She asks, a little annoyed this time. I smirk at her reaction. It's cute.

"Can you give me what I want?" I look into her confused eyes. She cannot give me what I want. Not yet. I remove my hands around her and sit straight.