Chapter 122: My best friends.
Leilani.
I woke up today with a fever. My body ached tremendously, and it was not in the ’My mates just fucked Chalice kind of way.’ This one was raw. It was severe. It sent chills down my spine and rattled my bones so much I could hardly walk without tripping over once or twice.
But do you know what was strange?
The fact that besides being feverish, I felt insanely strong; and I first noticed this when I picked up the stool close to my bed whilst looking for my shawl only to notice that it didn’t seem to weigh more than a piece of cloth.
I tried again with something heavier... and heavier... and heavier until I found myself picking up the refrigerator in my kitchen. However, I was soon snapped out of this maniacal rampage when its door creaked open and the contents in it spilled out, scattering on the floor.
I gasped.
My eyes widened. Even my heart too began to race; And then, like a movie, it began to dawn on me that what just happened wasn’t normal.
That I am not normal.
My legs shook as I ran upstairs to my room, and upon arrival, I picked up my phone with trembling hands and shot a quick text to the number of the one person— no, scratch that— the two people I knew I could trust;
Maya and Jarek.
They arrived at my house about less than thirty minutes later, each of them bearing goodies like fruits, snacks, chocolates... and just whatever anyone could use to cheer a depressed sick girl.
And that’s precisely because I’d simply told them I was depressed and sick.
—Because I couldn’t bring myself to tell them that I woke up with a weird kind of strength, so weird that I could’ve possibly lifted up my car effortlessly if given the proper motivation.
Another reason I couldn’t tell them was because strangely after the refrigerator incident, I’d become weak, so weak that I could no longer undo the mess I’d created in my kitchen.
"Jesus, Leilani!" Maya screamed in astonishment, and that seemed to snap me out of my train of thoughts. I glanced up quickly, ignoring Jarek’s gaze as my eyes fixed on her.
"What is it?" I asked in confusion.
She rolled her eyes at me and snorted; "What kind of earthquake happened in your kitchen?!"
And as soon as I heard that question, I stilled. My heart began to race rapidly and my tongue felt frozen to the roof of my mouth.
I couldn’t bring myself to tell her the truth, and at the same time, due to my sudden brain freeze, I couldn’t come up with a lie, so I shrugged instead.
"Don’t give me that!" She snarled, causing Jarek’s eyes to thin as he turned to glare at her. "There’s a mess in your kitchen and you can’t possibly shake that off by shrugging!"
"Goddess, don’t yell at her!" Jarek growled in his Alpha voice, causing Maya to cower, her eyes showing slight fear.
His reaction rattled me— it warmed my heart too— but it rattled me nevertheless, and in a desperate attempt at smoothening the tension between them, I dropped my voice, took his hands in mine and said; "Don’t growl at Maya..."
His eyes darted to my face and then to behind me where Maya once stood. I turned around then to see that she had retreated back into the kitchen. He sighed; "I didn’t mean to." He mumbled, "...I just reacted when I noticed that you were uncomfortable with the scrutiny and she kept pushing."
"She’s like that with me." I said softly, then with a lighter tone, I added; "I’m like that with her too. It’s why we’re friends. Moreover she’s going through a rough patch right now too."
At my words, his gaze softened. He nodded once and patted my hair with a gentle smile playing on his lips. Then with a serious face, he asked; "What’s the mess in the kitchen?"
That question had my face staining a bright red— not because I was blushing, but because I was embarrassed. I dropped my gaze and muttered; "I accidentally fell my refrigerator."
That made his eyebrows shoot into his hairline. "Huh?"
"Yeah, you heard me right. I accidentally fell my refrigerator. It was an accident."
For a moment, Jarek looked like this was the most egregious thing he’s ever heard. He froze for a moment, his eyes drilling into mine with a look that screamed: ’I don’t believe you!’ But just like Jarek’s usual behavior, he didn’t push it.
Instead he smiled and muttered; "Okay."
My head snapped up and I watched him quietly.
"I need to go and help Maya with it then... and, you know, apologize to her for being so protective of you." He said, and with that, patted my head one more time before slipping out of the living room to the kitchen.
I watched him go in silence, my heart hammering in my chest whenever I remembered the look in his eyes... and the kiss we shared two days ago.
Something within me feared that he was still slightly mad at Maya because she’d been the one who had disrupted the moment, and that in itself was funny to me.
While waiting for them to finish cleaning up my kitchen, I sat, watching the TV until... my phone began to ring.
I froze.
My heart somersaulted in my chest because... It was Zevran.
What the hell does he want this time?
In confusion, I stared at the phone’s screen, letting it ring until it stopped. But just as I sighed in relief, thinking that he wouldn’t call back, he called again. And again. Until I began to panic.
What if it was about Kael?
What if something’s happened to him?
Is he dead?
As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I quickly dispelled it because I knew that it was impossible. If he had died, I would’ve felt it.
Another disadvantage of sharing a mate bond with someone was the nerve wrecking ache you’d feel at their demise.
—And it was why I never forgave the triplets for allowing my parents to hold my funeral, because they of all people would’ve known that I wasn’t dead.
Slowly, I picked up the phone and pressed it against my ear, my breath coming in shallow pants as I waited to hear what he had to say.
He drawled; "Hello, Leilani."
"Hey, what is it?" I answered quietly, forcing all the coldness into my voice as I spoke.
I didn’t want to give him the impression that I was worried about Kael. I didn’t need him to know that I was almost hyperventilating at the thought of this being bad news...
His voice came through the speaker again, distant yet pleading, he said; "Please can you come to the hospital today?"
The question threw me off guard for a moment. I frowned. "Why?"
"Because Kael is in a bad state. He’s not woken up yet. We don’t know what’s happening to him but he keeps calling out your name in his sleep or coma... or whatever it is, and..." his voice trailed off and I heard him cough, making me realize that he was on the verge of a meltdown.
My heart ached, and I cursed this mate bond for making me feel this way... for making me feel pity for certain men who never pitied me when I needed it the most.
I didn’t know what to say to him. I didn’t want to go to the hospital either; So in response, I kept quiet, listening to him continue to rant on and on about how he was sorry and how he wouldn’t disturb me after this one time.
I sighed after a while as cold sweat broke out on my skin. I said; "I don’t know, Zevran. I don’t feel too good myself."
"Leilani, please I beg you!" He cried, probably thinking that I was lying about not feeling good. "I’ll really never disturb you after this. All you have to do is talk to him. He wouldn’t respond but I’m sure as hell that he’ll know it’s you."
A beat of silence passed between us— silence that was charged with unasked questions and tension. I tried to breathe through my nose but my lungs felt too heavy to exhale air.
"Please..." his voice came again, and finally, I decided to help.
’Just this one time,’ I thought to myself.
Never again.
I sighed loud enough that he would hear and drawled; "Okay, I’ll come today." I said softly, but before he could reply, I dropped the phone and covered my face with my hands.
"I’ll go with you." A voice suddenly said from beside me.
Just then, I raised my head to meet Jarek’s gaze, and the look I found in those eyes had my breath hitching.
His fingers slowly brushed against the side of my face, setting my skin ablaze as he drawled; "I’ll come with you, okay?"
I nodded, but before I could answer, another voice chirped in; "And me too!" It said, and I didn’t need to check to know that it was Maya.
I smiled.