CHAPTER - 11

Rowen ran with all he has, Sapphire's body kept slipping on his back but each time it happens, he adjusts her,

The rain drenched his shirt as he ran the remaining meters to the hospital, he got there and dashed in fast

"Please attend to her right now.....now please" he said to the interns he met at the hallway

He was led to a ward and he placed her on the bed, a doctor was quickly called and he came within seconds

He checked her heartbeat and sighed

"She passed out as a result of panic?" He said

"I think so, we watched an horror movie, I never knew she's not tolerant" he replied breathlessly

" She got panic attack, people who are scared of horror shouldn't watch horror movies, it's dangerous sometimes" the doctor said

" I really didn't know she's scared....I mean... she's one crazy badass and I wasn't expecting that kind of weakness, and besides...she didn't tell me" he replied quickly

The doctor sighed and checked her heartbeats again,.."it's becoming normal, she just needs to rest and she'll wake soon" he assured

" Really?, She'll be fine?" Rowen asked to be more sure

" Trust me" the doctor replied and left

Rowen sat on a chair beside her bed and sighed

"I was fucking scared" he breathed, touching his chest and that's when he realized his shirt wetness

"Damn... can't believe I ran here in the rain....I'm crazy and I admit" he said to himself

He looked at her on the bed again, no one will agree that she's a badass seeing her like this, she looks so simple while asleep

He smiled, feeling a little bit cold. "Gosh.... it's so cold tonight" he said and decided to take off his wet clothes since it's contributing a lot to the cold, he took it off and stood, covered his body with his arms as he walked around the ward

Luckily there's an heater in there so he quickly put it on and felt better, he went to her and sat beside her again

His hand slowly moved to her hair and he touched it slowly, rubbing it gently with his palm

"She's beautiful" he whispered, scanning her face with his eyes, he touched her face and his palm stayed on her cheek for long then it mistakenly touched her lip,,

He thought about the other day when she kissed Seth in front of him and cursed Seth under his breath before starting to caress her curvy lips, she scrunched up her face and he quickly removed his hand

Her eyes flew open and she quickly sat up, holding her head

"What....what happened to me" she said, looking ahead

" You're finally awake" Rowen said beside her and she quickly looked at him, shifting back on the bed

"What are you doing here?, Why are we here?, Where are we?" She asked all at once

" You passed out after watching the horror movie at the cinema don't you remember?" He said and she sighed

"I passed out?, Must be panic attack again" she said, getting down from the bed

" And why didn't you tell me you're not comfortable when I asked you.... dummy" Rowen said

" I just didn't want to show my weakness to a monkey" she replied

" There she goes again...but I saw it anyways....I carried you here on my back, you won't know how scared I was" he said

" And why would you choose an horror movie for a date, are you from planet Mercury?, Aliens can do better" she said

" Really?" 

" Of course, I've never seen a guy pick horror movie for a date, you're really a monkey" she said and he smiled

" Thanks" he said

" And why aren't you wearing a shirt?, Are you trying to seduce me?, News flash for you... you failed ... Woefully" she said

" I carried you here on my back in the rain.... can't you be nice for once?" He said

" It rained?" She asked surprisingly

" So you forgot?, It has started raining before you passed out, how do you manage to top the class when you don't even have a retentive memory" he said and she smirked 

" I won't give you an answer to that cos you might cry.....you really carried me here on your back?" She said 

" Of course, and I almost caught the flu cos of my wet clothes but thanks to the heater" he replied and Sapphire sighed

She went mute for a while before looking up at him

"Thanks" she said and he smiled

"That's the Sapphire I know, you hate ungratefulness right?" He said

" Don't feel too good monkey" she replied, walking out of the ward

" Hey wait for me!" Rowen shouted after her, rushing to meet up

Thankfully, the rain has stopped when they got out of the hospital ..

"It's a cold night" she said , holding her arms 

He suddenly took her hand and pulled her along

"Hey where are we going" she said

"Zip up your mouth and just follow me" he replied

" I'm not as easy as you're making it look like, I might just punch you" she replied

" Then punch me" he replied, facing her

"Wait till I lose it" she replied and he smiled before continuing to pull her till they got to a thrift clothes store

He took her in and picked the first blue hoodie he saw, he gave it to her

"What?" She asked

"You complained about cold, I hate complaints" he replied and she rolled eyes at him before taking it, she put it on and Rowen found one for himself too, he finished zipping it up and saw she's still struggling to zip up hers

"It's so hard, jeez I hate it!" She complained, wanting to do it forcefully

Rowen walked to her and hit her hand away

"Destroyer" he said and tried zipping it too but it won't move, he looked at Sapphire and met her glaring at him

"Do it" she said

"Oh I guess the zip is broken, you can just choose another one" he said and she scoffed before pulling it off, she took a white one and easily zipped it

Rowen payed and they left the place

"One hour date turned to three hours date" she murmured, checking the time, it's past 10

" I'm sorry, I never knew it'll take so long Rowen said

She nearly stepped on a waterlogged spot but he quickly pulled her away from the lane

"Watch where you're going dummy" he said

" You're the real dummy... monkey" she replied and he smiled again

"You have the power to make people smile" he said

"Oh really?" She said

" Of course" he replied, sighting a snacks store

"Care for snacks?" He asked

"No, I need to get back to the hostel five minutes from now, Nadia will be so worried" she replied

Luckily, they saw a cab which they waved down and got in

"The carats hostel please" Rowen said and the driver moved the car

" What about your car?" She asked

"You don't remember it didn't come on?, I'll just dispose of off, dad can always get me another one" he said

" You're lucky" she said,

" Why?"

" Nothing" she replied and suddenly heard police sirens from afar, that reminded him of Seth and she smiled widely

She looked out of the window and imagined the ghost scene again, how she clinged unto him and how he protected her out of the arcade,,

Her mind got occupied with him so much that she's unaware of when they got to the hostel

"Hey dummy we've arrived" he said and that jerked her back to life, she came down from the car with him and he made to pay but she was faster, she payed the driver and he left

"I should be the one to pay" he said

"I hate when only the guy spends all the money " she replied and started going in

He watched her leave and every part of him is obviously against her leaving but what can he do...he's sure that tonight won't be a night of sound sleep cos she's all he'd be thinking about

He rushed to her and blocked her

"I told you I might punch you if I lose it" she said 

Instead of talking, he suddenly took her left hand and kissed the back of her hand

"Goodnight' he said slowly, looking into her eyes before going in

" What did he just....do like seriously?, He's growing some nerves....the boyish little Rowen?, Oh kids grow up fast these days I can't believe this" she laughed as she went in too

"Baby fire you're late, I was so worried, I called but your line was off" Nadia said Immediately she came in

" I'm so sorry babe, something came up but I'm here now" she replied, taking off her sneakers

" Your hoodie looks good" Nadia said, looking at the hoodie she's wearing

"Oh this?, Monkey got it for me when I was feeling so cold" she replied, taking off her jean trousers, she put on black long tights instead before jumping on the bed

"I want the full gist of how it went" Nadia said

" I don't want to talk about it seriously' Sapphire replied

" Please...." Nadia pouted

"Witch ok...we went to a cinema... watched horror...I got scared....ran out of the cinema...got in his car, the car won't start...it started raining....I passed out, woke up to find myself in an hospital....he said he carried me to the hospital on his back in the rain blah blah blah..." Sapphire said, breathing loud after she's done

" He carried you on his back to the hospital?, In the rain" Nadia asked

"Yes" Sapphire replied, laying on her bed

Nadia layed back on her bed quietly too, thinking hard about that line 

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Seth's room

He drank water for the sixth time in the past three hours and right now, the only thing his stomach needs to become a fish pond is fishes

He hasn't been able to sleep, there's a novel in front of him which he's trying to read but he can't just wrap his head around it 

He stood from the reading table and started walking around the room

He did an headstand eventually but he stood after five minutes

Nora spoke to him earlier today and they almost spent three hours chatting,,

He should be happy but seems he's not

"Where was she going with him?, Why did she enter his car?, As hard as I don't want to think about it, these two questions won't leave my head like....damn!" He said, sitting back on the reading table,,

He covered his face with his palm and when he removed it, he licked his lips then dropped his head on the table

🌹🌹🌹

Rowen's room**

"Can you just stop laughing?, I need to sleep here!" Hardin shouted for the uptenth time since Rowen came back, he has been laughing like a maniac

"Hardin she's so warm to be with, she sounds harsh sometimes but even her harshness is cute" Rowen laughed

" Finally a lunatic in the house...." Hardin said, covering his ears with his pillow

" And she's so pretty, she's the best view I've ever seen I swear... and her lips... have I told you how soft it is?, I touched it earlier and I almost kissed it.... can't wait to taste that someday....jeez!, Hardin I'm going crazy!" He screamed again

" Rowen!!!!!" Hardin shouted

🌹🌹🌹

Next morning**

"Did you see the class group update?, Professor Finn wants the class to stage a drama...." Sapphire said, checking her phone after dressing up

" I saw it too, I wonder what it'll be all about and if I'll be in the cast, I should be given a good scene" Nadia replied

" I hope so too, let's go to the cafeteria I crave for snacks" Sapphire said

" No baby... you've taken your bath but I haven't cleaned up... my hair is all a mess are you expecting me to go like this?" Nadia pouted

" Ok I'mma go alone, what should I get for you?, It's Sunday!, Eat something yummy!" Sapphire said

" Hotdogs....pie....I want cakes too" she replied

" Exactly what I want too, I'll be right back" she said and left

Nadia sighed, she stood and went to the closet, she took the white hoodie from last night and sighed

"Rowen" she whispered

🌹🌹🌹

Sapphire bumped into Jacinthe just in front of the hostel, Jacinthe waved and she thought of returning it, maybe she's not like her friends

"Hey" she waved

"Whoa!, You replied me.....truth is I've always admired your personality right from your day one here....I just love fierce girls" she smiled

" Oh... Thanks... how are your masters doing?"

Jacinthe swallowed hard before answering

"They'll be discharged tomorrow or the day after" she replied

" It'll be good to stay away from those losers, it'll help you" Sapphire said and started leaving

" I can say hi to you sometimes right?" Jacinthe asked

"Sure" Sapphire replied and saw Seth checking out a new bike at the park

A smile formed on her face before she knew it, she walked to him

"Hi" she said and he looked up, he stood when he saw it's really her

"Sapphire" he smiled and she continued looking at the bike

"New one?" She said

"Of course, I just got this" he said

" I'm sorry I made you lose the other one" she said

"No it's ok, it's not your fault....I'm going for test drive with it right now" he said and climbed on the bike

He started it and looked at her

"Care to go with me?" He asked 

"Maybe" she replied , hiding the happiness in her voice

"Climb on, I'll take you somewhere" he said and she quickly climbed the bike, forgetting she was supposed to go get snacks

Seth suddenly revved the bike down the park and she held him tightly,,

They got to the main road and she was expecting him to tell her to remove her hands but he didn't

Her nose Inhaled his body scent again, he smells like Jasmine perfume, maybe he uses the brand

"The bike works so well, more than the former one" he said 

" Yes....true" she replied and he smiled 

He entered the arcade and fear gripped her

"Are we going into the arcade again?" She asked

"We won't go deep don't worry, and it's only haunted at night, not in the morning like this" he replied

" Ok" she replied though that didn't hide her fear

They got to the base of the tree they sat at the other time and he stopped the bike, they both came down and he took her hand

"I'm here, nothing will happen so let's go I really have something to show you" he said and she nodded,,

He started walking down the slope with her and soon they got to the base of a mountain, it's not too high though

They started climbing for over three minutes, they got to the top and her eyes widened,..... down the other side of the mountain is a flower bed, so beautiful with different kind of sweet smelling flowers

The sight is just too beautiful to behold from the mountain they're standing on

"Damn!, This is the most beautiful sight I've ever seen" she said, still stunned by the sight

" When I told you there's a mountain the other time, you said you wished you could come, then I thought that wish should come true" he said , looking at the flowers too

Sapphire looked at him and smiled before inhaling the flower scent 

Seth sat on the plain part and she did the same

"You do come here?" She asked

"Sure, almost everyday... this is the only place that embraces my sadness" he replied

" You're sad?" He asked

" I'll share my story with you someday, not now" he said

"I wish you'd be happy, life is short you know" she said and he smiled

" I know right?, But when everything is against my happiness, nothing can be done" he replied, his mood changing to sad

" I'm sorry about that" she said and he looked at her, he only smiled before looking away

"So....you went out with Rowen last night?" He asked awkwardly

"Yes...I went on a one hour date with him to make him stop disturbing me" she replied

" Oh" he replied and sighed then suddenly faced her again, he touched her hair, removing a thread from there

"Must be from my bed" she said

They watched for ten more minutes before deciding to leave but on getting to the base of the mountain, she saw a river

"A river?" She said surprisingly

"Yeah" he replied, staying beside her

" Why do I feel like swimming so much right now" she said sincerely

"You can, it's clean" he replied

" Meaning you've swam in it before" she said

" Countless times" he replied and she started walking closer to the river

They got there and Seth took off his trousers and shirt, leaving only his shorts

"Wanna swim too?" She asked

"Well maybe your decision made me grow interest" he replied, entering the water already

He got in and dipped himself in before surfacing again, she only stared

"Not interested anymore?" He said

Sapphire took off her blouse, thankfully she's wearing a singlet

She took off her trousers too, leaving her in her black tights

Seth couldn't look away from her as she stepped into the water with him, she's too hot to take his eyes away from

She continued getting in, locking eyes with him throughout till she got to him, the water is on her waist level, she smiled and he returned it

" Should we do it together?" He asked

"I dunno" she replied and he slowly slipped his arms on her waist, pulling her closer and that made her arms travel to his shoulders

"Let's skin dive" he whispered and she closed her eyes

He stared at her for a minute before diving their bodies underwater....