CHAPTER 19

The buzzing of the alarm clock besides my bed woke me up from the sleep I was just beginning to enjoy, as I had been crying over my broken heart all through the night.

I wasn't really feeling like going to school but staying back at home would make him laugh at the supposed "victory" he has over me, and I would not give him that opportunity.

Hiding in my room as a coward wasn't Valerie Gonzalez. She is a strong, beautifully confident, smart young lady and I was going to show him that it took me just a few hours to finally get over him.

Getting dressed, I left the room, walking down the stairs as I headed for the dining table to have breakfast, only to meet with him sitting at the breakfast table, waiting for someone I hoped wasn't me.

"You're here, Princess! Come let's have breakfast together." He smiled annoyingly at me, pointing at my favorite breakfast buffet on the table.

"I suddenly lost my appetite. I'm off to school." I said, turning around almost immediately as I headed for the front door.

"Valerie!"

"Yeah, what do you want?" I yelled at him, shoving away the hand he had on my elbow.

"I love you princess and I'm sorry about..."

"I'll be late for school." I blurted, walking out through the door to meet Ramsey waiting by his car. His beautiful face calmed me against my wish as I felt lighter inside me.

"Hi beautiful!!" He waved happily at me, as I walked towards him.

"What are you doing here?" A soft chuckle escaped my lips, as I raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm here to take you safely to school."

"You..."

"I won't take no for an answer though." He said, opening the door for me to get in, as I obliged the request with a smile.

"I brought a sandwich. Hope you haven't had breakfast yet?" He said, pulling out a wrapped sandwich from a small bag in the back seat.

"No, not yet."

"Great. So just have that as I do the driving."

"Thank you Ramsey. I really appreciate this kindness."

"Anything to get your face shining brightly with a smile." He smiled warmly at me, his red eyes sparkling under the morning sun.

The ride to school wasn't as quiet as I had thought, as Ramsey was a real distraction from the thoughts of Daemon.

"I'd pick you up from school later in the day, okay?" He said reassuringly.

"You don't have to. My car is still here, you know right?"

"I'll be here at the close of school to pick you up, Valerie Gonzalez."

"Then I will see you then." We chuckled.

"Have fun at school today." He waved at me, driving away almost immediately, as he left me to find my own way into school.

Yeah, it's going to be extremely fun because I was going to know if I could literally walk through Daemon no matter what, because for me, he never existed and that's all there is to it.

WRITER'S CORNER

Daemon, who stared curiously at Valerie's face as she walked into the classroom, had his dead heart beating once again. He was scared of seeing tears in her eyes yet again but her eyes caught his gaze, causing her to stop for half a minute, as she contemplated within herself shortly. She knew more than anyone else the dangers of showing off her weakness to him, and so, she continued her journey to her seat.

Somehow, she still felt his gaze on her, but a confused Valerie concluded it was just his way of making sure he succeeded in hurting her completely; a mission she was going to make sure he fails completely.

"Okay class, I have the test scores for the last assessment with me..." The teacher, who had walked in with some scripts in hand announced to calm the rowdiness of the classroom.

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Time went by faster than usual, maybe because Daemon craved a little more time to feed his gaze with her beauty, but as the bell rang, he watched her hurriedly gather up her books, headed for the door.

He followed closely behind her, as she seemed rather excited for someone who was supposed to be heartbroken, only to see Ramsey standing besides a car with hands folded across his chest.

"What is that jerk doing here?" He asked no one in particular, as he watched her take steps towards his smiling face.

"What did I miss here?" His eyes grew wide open, as he saw him take her hands and help her into the car, strapping the seatbelt gently across her.

A naughty smirk curved on Ramsey's face, as he waved naughtily at the angry looking cousin of his, who tightened his fists, walking round the car to the driver's seat.

The car soon came alive and sped off almost immediately, leaving Daemon trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

On one hand, it was comforting to know that she wasn't still sad and crying over him, but on the other hand, it annoyed him to know she found comfort in no other person but Ramsey: he was furious. He needed someone to talk to, who would give him a clear advice but he couldn't bring himself to even discuss the issue with Seth. All on his mind was Ramsey and Valerie spending too much time together and alone; he didn't want that.

But seeing her hurt wasn't entirely what he wanted either.

Was this how this love thing feels like? The confusion and pain?

"Hi Daemon, I..." A girl was saying besides him, tucking away a strand of hair shyly, as Daemon, who was uninterested in whatever she had to say, walked out on her, headed towards the main gate. He looked at the empty road, as his mind showed him the image of Ramsey's car speeding off into the early sunset.

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"Hope you're enjoying the icecream?" Ramsey asked Valerie who was seated on the park bench.

"Yeah, it's my favorite flavor after all."

"I'm glad." He smiled, as Valerie continued with her icecream staring at space at intervals.

"Valerie"

"Huh?"

"I have something that I've been meaning to tell you." He turned towards her, holding her eyes in his.

"Something? What's that?" She said slowly, her hands trembled with the spoon, as she stared back into his eyes.

"I like you... No..." He shook his head from side to side, ".... I'm in love with you Valerie Gonzalez." He confessed his feelings finally, and waited eagerly to hear the thoughts of her heart, but all he could hear was her confusion and fear.

"I..."

"You can keep your feelings to yourself, Cousin." Daemon's voice broke through the eerie silence.

"Daemon..." Valerie looked up at Daemon, who took the cup of ice cream from her grip forcefully, placing it on the bench, with Ramsey looking as surprised as Valerie.

How did he find them? How did Daemon know where to find them? Why did he have to show up at this exact moment and not like an hour later?

"We are leaving, NOW!!" Daemon yelled, pulling possessively at her wrists.