The Devil's Love

||. Chapter 1: Housemates.||

Walking back home from a fully air-conditioned place was rather frustrating. The heat swimming across the wind was disturbingly annoying. Her fringes were a mess and her sweat had caused certain strands of hair to be stuck on her wet skin. It was tempting her to shave all her hair away as her fingers raked through the skin trying to swat away whatever heat in between. Taking a sharp turn near the playground, Ansel sighed comfortably the minute she set eyes upon a double story white house. It had been her safe zone and her sanctuary despite many years of uncountable arguments.

While she skipped over the large drain that had been too large for her steps, Ansel felt a sudden shiver of eeriness creeping up her spine. She felt as if there were two holes burning right through her skull. Turning around, Ansel saw a shadow by the tree. She stopped. The familiar itch to find out who it is was beginning to run through her veins. It tempted her like the dangerous bottles of alcohol, but she managed to whip herself out of it. She felt uneasy. The feeling of being watched felt like she was living in prison.

Ansel tightened her grip onto her new books before she fished out her keys clumsily to open the gate. She had enough horror for the day when the head chef mixed up salt and sugar. Clearly, she did not need another miss-match in life. Shutting the gate tightly, Ansel took one last glance around the area, the shadow behind the tree disappeared. As she was about to walk in, she caught sight of a familiar figure under the lamp post, a hood over the face and his palms tugged in the pockets. Wasn't the weather hot enough to burn him down?

"This is ridiculous!" Ansel shouted, announcing her presence and kicked her shoes off before entering the living room.

Ansel slammed the books onto the dining table, setting her eyes on her housemate who jumped at her announcement. She bore no mercy to her housemate's fear. Casting a side glance at his expression, she pulled onto the chair harshly and slumped herself down, spreading her legs opened while she loosened the knot of the ribbon around her neck.

Her hair was in a total mess. Sweat was trickling down from the corner of her forehead. Closing her eyes, she threw her head backwards and fanned herself frantically, hoping for the heat to disperse from her weary body. With a lazy move, she reached out, grabbed the nearest glass and poured herself some water to quench her thirst. Ansel gulped down the water hungrily without stopping to breathe before she continued, "I tell you, it is almost impossible! I think I was going mad, but apparently..." she paused. "I am not."

"Slow down, doll," Jiang warned as he turned to look at her for a moment. "I have no clue what you are talking about." He admitted truthfully while his hands were working on the strainer straining the spaghetti from the pot. Jiang sensed the silence in between them. He balanced the pot and added. "You do not just come in here and randomly talk about things I do not even have an introduction about. Let me guess, is this about Samuel?"

"What? Samuel?" Ansel scoffed, propping herself up comfortably. "This has nothing to do about him. Not even a single bit. Stop being ridiculous!"

Jiang squinted his eyebrows. Confusion was beginning to cloud his mind. He switched the tap on to wash his hands, wiping them off on the apron. Jiang crossed his arms as he leaned his back on the sink before looking into her eyes. A soft chuckle escaped his lips while he brushed his hair away from his eyes.

"Well then, excuse my old memory. I have been aware that my housemate is not just a dreamer but also a planner who has too many plans that I cannot even keep up with. Who is Samuel again?"

"Jiang," called Ansel seriously as she stared in his eyes, ignoring his question. "I am serious here. This is the sixth time in a week I have caught him following me. I have no idea who he is or where he came from. It is really creepy you know," she bellowed. "He is not even from my class or even my schoolmate."