Untie the Knot

Chapter 8

Birds are chirping merrily while sun-dappled shadows dance across the whitewashed walls.

Smiling contentedly, I sigh into my pillow. I haven't slept like this in ages. The covers are so soft and fluffy that I'm tempted to just roll around and sleep some more.

But then something else is interfering with my perfect sense of contentment. A grumbling in my stomach, actually lower, my bowels to be exact. I decide to ignore it. The bed is just too nice and warm. The bathroom can wait.

I'm sure Haze doesn't mind that I'm sleeping in. At least he hasn't knocked at my door. Maybe I should check my phone to see if he's texted me? As I reach for it on the nightstand, a dull pain lances through my lower abdomen, reminding me of the fact that eggplants and I are not meant for each other. Ugh. Why didn't I think about that before stuffing myself with moussaka last night?

Fine. To the bathroom it is then.

Barefoot and with only my sleep-shirt on, I make a beeline to the bathroom. I'm grateful to have my own, even if I can't appreciate the lovely white and delft blue tiles with their decorative windmills right now.

Relieved and refreshed after a quick shower, I stroll back to the room to pick out some clothes and finally check my messages, when a tiny paper on the floor in front of the door catches my eye. I pick it up and turn it around in my hands. It looks like something ripped out of a children's notebook with cartoonish lion heads printed all over it. I unfold it, expecting some scribbles of a child, but the neat and clean handwriting makes my heart speed up.

Good morning Penny,

I hope you've slept well and are pleased with your room. I have to go out in the morning on some business inquiries but will be back around midday. Feel free to have breakfast whenever you want. The kitchen is fully stocked, but you can ask Kronos for anything you might need. I suggest you try the homemade orange marmalade if you want to give yourself a treat.

We can go and visit the orchards and greenhouses today if you want to. I'm looking forward to spending time with you!

Haze

PS: Sorry for the odd choice of paper, but I had to borrow one from Nemea.

I'm glad I'm alone in my room, wrapped in naught but a towel, staring at a piece of paper in my hands, grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Haze could have just texted me but opted for a handwritten note instead. On a piece of paper with lion heads and no less.

I bet if I showed this to Lucy, she'd let out an excited squeal and tell me that finding a guy who does this, is like hitting the lottery. Although I probably shouldn't trust Lucy's judgement when it gets to men.

It's just a note and not a confession — not that I'm particularly interested in...love. I don't believe in love. Mutual attraction, yes, but everything else is just a made-up concept by society to lure people into the trap of marriage. I only need to look at my mother to see where that leads. That's not a path I want to follow.

I fold the paper and drop it in my purse. Then I pull out some fresh underwear, socks, my trusted pair of blue jeans and a light cream-coloured sweatshirt. I tie my grey hoodie around my waist, just in case. Early days in spring are much cooler out here in the countryside than in the city. Once I'm all dressed, I proceed to brush my hair while I finally take a peek at my phone. There are two text messages from Lucy.

Just got to my parents' place. They already bombarded me with questions. You know how they are. But I'm not ready to tell them about the baby. It's bad enough with the break-up already. But I'll be all right. Don't worry about me.