Don't give up on me.

THIRTY

The next day when she woke up, with the sun shining directly in her eyes— Johum know that it was no where 79 near morning. The sun wasn't that high up in the morning and surprisingly, she did remember what happened last night. What happened was strange with Zayan trying to explain his actions when he absolutely didn't have to. He was not the kind of person to actually explain why he did what he did, and the emotions that swamped her after his confession were just too much for her to handle.

So she relished the kiss that he gave her after that— scowling at herself now. She was overwhelmed with guilt, regret and shock. Although she didn't fully believe what he told her but she didn't have any reason to doubt him now, because how would he know what Domenico told her to mimic exactly those words?

She had long ago realized that she made a mistake by siding with Recugglia but what choice did she have? Zayan was trying to get into her pants at every chance he got and she wasn't sure if this involved feelings or it was just his lust speaking. She was confused. She did want to leave everything behind and just move on with him but how could she? How could she just forget everything and move on when a few weeks ago she had made a deal with Raccuglia— just to seek freedom from Zayan's clutches.

How could her feelings just change in matter of days when a few weeks ago she hated him with every fiber of her being. No, she wasn't in love with him— she wouldn't be. She didn't love Za'ir like before but she still had feelings for him. She wasn't over him and still thought about him, and just those thoughts brought tears to her eyes. She was helpless, what could she do? She couldn't just open up her heart and remove the feelings that were there for a long time.

Johum sighed and pulled up covers to her chin, turning away from the window. She was about to close her eyes when she noticed the room she was in. It wasn't the room assigned to her. She looked around and her jaw dropped at the beauty of the room. It was themed maroon and gray, the quilt was light ash gray, the pillows a rich maroon. The curtains were a mixed maroon and gray with beautiful tassels.

Was it— was it Zayan's room? It did look manly but there were no pictures so she couldn't guess. Johum sighed and a yawn left her mouth. She removed the covers from her body and noticed that she was still in her swimsuit. She frowned and got up from the bed. She decided to confront Zayan today and talk to him in detail about that blasted antidote and all the things that had been going on for past few weeks.

She couldn't forgive him for betraying her but at least she could be civil, they couldn't be at each other's throats all the time. Maybe that would lead to something good. And honestly, she wanted to end all the quarrels that daily happened between them. Maybe if she talked to him properly, she could get out of the deal that she made with Reccuglia.

Noticing her bag at the corner of the room, Johum gathered her jeans and tee shirt from it and went inside the bathroom. The hot shower felt good as it washed away all the chlorine from her body that had stuck to her skin from the pool. She showered for good half an hour and then dressed in to her clothes.

Not wanting to put on any makeup— that was rare for her because her lips were always painted in dark red lipstick and her hair in ponytail, she left her hair open to let them naturally dry and walked downstairs.

She definitely was late because downstairs in the dining room, everyone was having their breakfast and as soon as she entered, everyone stopped eating. Feeling awkward, she shifted on her feet and gave them all a smile before taking a seat besides Ramlah who was looking at her with amused glances. Johum gave her a confused look but decided to ignore it for the time being.

She started her breakfast in comfortable silence since Zayan wasn't present in the room and he was the one who unnerved her. Half way through breakfast, Slade stood up and excused himself. He walked upstairs and everyone stopped chatting and eating like it was unusual for someone to leave breakfast table like that. Johum shrugged and looked and Ramlah.