Rose shrugged casually. "Sixteen, seventeen," she answered, looking ahead. She then turned to look at Sandy when the younger woman burst into bubbly laughter.
Rose watched her with envy. Even her laughter sounded carefree. She wondered if the younger woman had ever felt pain. She looked so innocent and naive, making Rose question why she allowed such an innocent person to get close to her. She wouldn't want to taint her innocence with her darkness.
Sandy threw her head back, laughing. She didn't know why she found Rose's words funny, but she did. She would probably find anything the gorgeous woman said funny, but she felt flattered and insulted that the woman beside her thought she was a kid.
"I don't know whether to be flattered or insulted," Sandy teased, her eyes and lips still laughing as she gazed at Rose softly.
"Why insulted?" Rose's brow furrowed as she stared at Sandy like she was a weird breed of animal she wanted to figure out.
"That you think me a kid." Sandy quirked a brow, her amusement dimming slightly. The last thing she wants is for Rose to see her as some kid.
"So, how old are you?" Rose posed seriously, still not ready to believe that the young woman beside her could be older than twenty.
She microscopically picked out the tiny details that marked the younger woman's youthful face. She has a clear, radiant complexion, huge grey eyes full of sparkles, and the free and carefree way she carries herself as if nothing bothers her. No one who has tasted adulthood could be this unbothered.
And let's not forget her diminutive size, worsened by her thinness.
"I am Twenty-six," Sandy answered with a bright green, the sparkles Rose just thought about glowing with her smile.
It took all of Rose's discipline not to show her shock. "You don't look it," Rose complimented casually with an honest expression.
"Thank you." Sandy bowed with a playful expression, wiggling out a smile from Rose. "Keys now," she stretches out her hand again.
"I don't know if I trust you to drive still," Rose said playfully, a light smile playing across her lips while her eyes smiled at the younger woman.
Sandy's breath caught in her throat at the smile, not because she hadn't seen Rose smile, but because this was a genuine smile compared to the cold one she usually dishes out.
Sandy raised her right two fingers in the air. "I solemnly vow to drive like a grandma until we reach the hospital."
The chuckle that spilled from Rose's lips was music to Sandy's ears. She felt pleased with herself for making Rose laugh. It felt like winning an Oscar.
Rose took out the keys and gave them to her, then relaxed and closed her eyes while Sandy took them to the road.
A few distances into their journey, Sandy sneaked a look at Rose. "Do you want music?"
Sandy felt comfortable in the silence between them. It was peaceful and unencumbered by tension. She is usually uncomfortable in silence, especially with her boyfriends. She always needs to fill the silence with chatter; it doesn't matter what they are talking about as long as they are talking, but it is different with Rose.
The silence felt so serene that she didn't want to break it, but she needed to ask in case Rose wasn't comfortable.
Rose didn't need the music. She hadn't felt this relaxed in ages. Something about the young woman beside her puts her soul at ease. She shook her head to the music offer while keeping her eyes closed. She was enjoying the peace in her mind and didn't want to open her eyes yet for fear of reality intruding.
YOU ARE READING
THE DARKNESS WITHIN
عاطفيةIs this love? When they were kids, she pledged to be his forever, words he took seriously and upheld. He guards her jealously and punishes her mercilessly when she misbehaves. He is very possessive of her and beats any man who looks at her the wron...
