Chapter 27: Happy Seventeen
>>Corvina
My heart pounded in my chest as I stepped out of the bath, the warm tendrils of steam enveloping me like a comforting embrace.
Today's the day.
I'm seventeen now. But as soon as I woke up today, something has been bothering me. My heart rate keeps rising at random times. The anxiety in me caused me to get late for everything and I even ended up spending so much time in the bath in order to calm myself down.
I let out a soft breath as I walked over to my room but as I reached for my towel, a sudden movement caught my eye, freezing me in place with a sense of alarm.
It wasn't Nancy who was making her way through the doorway, ready to assist me with dressing. Instead, it was Hael – his presence a jarring intrusion into the sanctity of my privacy.
Shock coursed through me like an electric current, rendering me momentarily speechless as I struggled to process the sight before me. My mind raced with a thousand questions, as I frantically wrapped the towel around me.
And at the same time, without hesitation I ran for the nearest cover, the curtain. It was the nearest thing to me but in the confusion and hurry, the towel fell down and I almost tripped on it.
My mind was a mess but I somehow managed to reach the curtain and then I wrapped myself around it as Hael came in and stopped to look at me.
Serving as a flimsy barrier between myself and his unwelcome gaze. The fabric clung to me like a lifeline, offering a semblance of protection in the face of my vulnerability.
"Hael," I stammered, my voice trembling with a mixture of disbelief and apprehension. "What are you doing here?" I wasn't even sure how I had wrapped the curtain around me and so I had to struggle around a little to pop my head out of it while making sure the rest of it stayed intact.