If Things Should Stay the Same

Chapter 14: Bonds

The air was still heavy with steam despite the exhaust fan lightly humming in the background. Droplets of water condensed around the corners of both the glazed windows and the mirror. The glass door to the shower cubicle swung wide open as he stepped out and grabbed a pair of towels from the nearby rack mounted on the wall.

He draped one of the towels over his shoulders while using the other to dry himself, running it against his wet skin to absorb the moisture before wrapping it around his waist when he was satisfied that his body was no longer dripping wet. As he headed towards the door of the bathroom, he then took the towel over his shoulders and began to vigorously rub his hair dry.

A nice hot bath was just what he needed after getting thoroughly soaked on that third time they rode on the Slide-'N-Dive. Walking around in wet clothes was indeed a challenge – the sloshing of his shoes with each step, the added weight creating a feeling of stiffness when trying to move, and not to mention the night breeze which chilled him through the soaked fabric. Yet he could not deny the exhilarating experience he had on the ride – the sudden steep drops, the sharp turns and the blazing speed at which the water was carrying their raft on.

He thought it was a fair price to pay for the fun. Besides, Aiden had been thoughtful enough to prepare a spare change of clothes and some towels in the car when the three of them were picked up.

Finishing his bath, he was ready to call it a night. Reading up to prepare for the entrance exams in the coming months. He needed to make sure he got into only the best universities for medicine. The warm light of his bedside lamp was waiting. As were the textbooks his parents had loaned him to study.

Just as he twisted the knob and pushed the door open, he was surprised to see another person standing by the entrance of his room. It was possible that he might have not have heard the door opening while the showerhead was running. But he had not been expecting anyone to be coming into his room at this time of the night. For any reason whatsoever.

The figure was a few meters shy from the illumination emanating from the bathroom, making it hard to discern his identity. With the clothes seeming loose enough from the shape of their silhouettes, it was just as difficult to tell the stranger's body build – besides the fact that it was likely a man, judging by the flat chest and the short hair.

He was about to call out on the unwelcome guest when the latter suddenly stepped into the light emanating from the bathroom before speaking. "Greetings, Master! Forgive the intrusion. I just-"

"Whoa! And now, you too?" Alex could not contain his surprise. He never got used to Joshua managing to enter his room without him noticing. And now, he had to deal with another one who had somehow picked up the skill as well, much to his chagrin.

The most puzzling part of it was that it had to be Sev. And not even in the first twenty-four hours on the job.

"I'm sorry. Did I... scare you?" Sev asked, sounding more unsure than concerned. However, contrary to his usual mannerism of nervously clutching both hands in front of his chest when apologizing, he had his arms by his side while speaking in an unusual calm expression.

Alex's irritation at the unwarranted presence incited him to correct the latter with a wry comment and a cross look. "More like startled."

Pressing his lips together for a short moment, Sev then simply made a significantly low bow as he apologized again, sounding more formal than ever. "I'm sorry to have startled you." As he lifted his head, he cautiously made eye contact with Alex. A small speck of fear briefly shone in Sev's eyes before quickly dissipating into a glimmer of cheerfulness. "I forgot to greet you 'Happy Birthday' while we were out. Well then, happy 25th!"