Chapter Seventy Five: feelings

"I should ehh, go..." 

She added.

Dennis didn't say anything, he just watched her turn and made her way to the exit. 

"Or you could help me change my plaster?."

Joleen turned, now facing him again, and for the first time, she noticed that he had series of objects scattered around his room. Some shattered and some still in place, she wondered what sport he had been doing in here. She saw his tie hung on one of the retro dining chairs in his room, So she figured that it was worn along with the white shirt and black Lenin pants which he still had on.

She watched him reach a particular shelf on the large retro shelf. He reached the one that was designed to open like a door, opened it, and got out a box from it. It was a moderate sizable first aid kit box. He left the shelf, moved to the bed, placed the box on the bed, and sat just beside it looking directly before him without taking his gaze toward her.

She stood still, not sure what to do next, her fingers fidgeting and her feet static. A few seconds passed and the room was just filled with their loud silence and the heat of the flames she was beginning to feel.

"Are you coming or you are just gonna stand there?" Dennis's husk voice absorbed into her body, as his gaze followed. She lowered her gaze, a little unsure if she could handle what he asked of her.

'yes you can, it's just to change a band aid she assured herself.

She took her gaze back to him and he made a facial gesture that simply meant; 'Hello! I'm waiting," she swallowed, then took the first step towards him, then followed another and another till she now got to him. 

She was feeling shyish, and oddly tender, whew! A box of emotions had suddenly been unboxed within her.

She slightly cleared her throat, but this was not as a result of throat blockage, but to boost her confidence.

She noticed Dennis's gaze on her and it followed her as she gently reached for the box. She ignored the fact that it was just a slight space that separated her from this man, She picked the slightly heavy box up and attempted to open it. It was hard, maybe it's been locked for while so she figured that was why it was stuck. She was in the middle of her struggle when Dennis reached for the box. His wide firm hands landed on her soft slender ones. She froze due to his touch and his gaze which was also directed towards her. She fixed her gaze at his wide firm hands which he had placed on hers. His hands were warm for someone who was cold hearted. His hand felt good on her hands, on her skin, his large hands that completely covered hers.

"Let me do it" he spoke in a tone that absorbed into her skin, maybe even her bloodstream. They were in his large spacious room but somehow the room had managed to seem smaller to her. Like they were in a box that could only fit the two of them. Joleen swallowed before releasing the box to him. He took the box gradually and his gaze equally left her with a slow pace. It took him one attempt before he had the box wide open. He then moved it to her. 

She took a deep breath as she finally caught his gaze but very briefly. She placed the box on the bed as she reached for the plaster inside it. 

The kits in the box seemed very used, the tape plaster looked like it was almost running out. Strange, but not strange. Dennis Wayne was definitely that kind of man that would need to use a first aid kit at least once in every week. 

She took out the pack of the ready to use band aid but she immediately realized that she hasn't taken off the old one nor have she cleaned it up. 

She dropped the plaster, realizing she was meant to clean it first.

She opened her mouth like she wanted to say something but didn't. She then finally reached for his old band aid and took it off. It was a minor laceration, but just slightly deep. She took her gaze off the wound, and then to his very soothing side view. So many questions she wanted to ask, but she somehow felt it was not her place to ask.

She then slowly returned her gaze to the box, reached for the gauze pad, and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, opened it then soaked the gauze pad by bending the bottle over. She noticed him still and steady as she got the cleaning solution ready. 

She took the cleaning gauze pad to the cut, she slowly wiped it as she noticed his teeth clench, probably due to the stinging pain. She was done cleaning it, she then reached the table and placed the used gauze pad on it, and returned to his side immediately. 

She reached the plaster and removed the layer that was protecting the gummy side of the plaster.

"What happened to your face?" She asked calmly.

She watched him show no signs that he had heard her, but she knew he did. She blinked twice then returned her attention to the plaster and then placed it accurately over the cut. 

"You are better off not knowing," he said turning his fierce gaze on her. His gaze moved to her lip and back to her eyes before he entirely took his attention away from her. 

She caught her breath just immediately after he left her side. She watched him move to the other edge of the bed, he reached for his shirt, throwing her a glance before he started undoing the button. She watched him get to the last one before taking the plain white shirt off. There was a fair amount of space between them because she was by one edge of the bed, and he was by the other side, but somehow she felt close and at the same time far.

His broad chest was all exposed to her face, his muscle locomoting with every small movement he made. She watched him toss the shirt to the swivel chair by his mini office setting space. Just as he tossed the shirt, he moved his gaze to her. She immediately looked away, but he already saw that she was looking. She moved her attention to the box before her, reaching for the Kits and then trying to put them back in place.

"What are you afraid of?" she heard his husk but calm voice ask.

She ignored his question, proceeded with putting everything back into the box, and went ahead to close the box. She took the box and placed it on the table then paused for a second.

"Why did you call for me?" She asked without turning to look at him. Without turning to set herself up yet again.

"Mmm," she heard him let out. She noticed he left where he stood, and now moved the other edge of the bed that was very much closer to where she was standing. 

He moves before the bed, slightly adjacent to her. He then sat on the bed before he spoke.

"About that," he said just as he sat down.

"When were you planning to make a complaint about Talon?" He asked, his voice steady, demanding but calm.

Joleen had thought of all the reasons he could have summoned for her, but she didn't think it was this. She thought maybe it had to do with what happened with him and Talon, but she just never thought it was this exactly.

"Uhh, I would have if I couldn't handle it," she responded bluntly. 

"Handle what?" He asked rhetorically.

"Picking up your property that he purposely tossed on the ground was your way or handling it?" He asked in a tone that seemed like her response put him off,"

'was he worried about her?

Was this his way of showing care?' she questioned herself.

"He could put his hands on you next time if you kept handling it that way," His tone was a little louder, but yet not aggressive.

"Like you do?" She asked as she finally took her gaze to his face. She saw him clench his teeth before he immediately took his face away from her, looking beside him, towards the window, but quickly returning the gaze to her.

The space between the end of his bed which was where he was sitting and the mini dining table which was was where she was standing was three feet away.

"I should go," she said, leaving the table and then proceeding to move past him. He immediately reached for her ankle and aggressively pulling her towards him as she almost fell on him.

Joleen shut her eyes due to the sudden pull, she felt his grip on her hands as it was tight.

The distance between them has been closed up, even with her eyes closed she felt it. She was before him, between his thighs as he sat with his legs open enough to fit her. One of his hands was on her ankles, gripping her tightly as the other was on her waist holding her softly. 

She opened her eyes gradually to find him staring deep into her. She slowly moved her gaze to her ankle which he held tight and almost immediately moved her gaze back to him. He got the message so he immediately loosened on her ankle. 

"You should have told me from the first day," he said, his voice soft as their gaze burned into each other.

"Not as if you were a fan of mine then..." She scoffed, then took her gaze downward where it met the tattoo on his chest. For someone who doesn't even like tattoos, she thought it was beautiful. well detailed and shaded. 

"And not even now," she added, taking her gaze back to him.

"You could have told my mom then," he said. 

She took her gaze away from him yet again, truth is that she didn't have any excuse for not letting the authority know that Talon was picking on her.

"Stop acting so tough," he said while her eyes still didn't leave his chest.

"Do what you have to do, what you need to do" he added.

Joleen scoffed as a way of opposing what he just said. She then proceeded to try to remove herself from him. 

"The world is a cruel place, no one really gives a shit about anybody," he said, stopping her from getting away from him.

'yeah, right,' she thought. Dennis Wayne was the perfect person to teach anyone how cruel the world is. He should understand how it works because cruelty was his department.

Besides all this lecture on the world's cruelty because Talon tossed her paper on the ground?

"I will keep that in mind," she said softly moving her gaze from his chest to his face slowly. 

She admired how his dark hair fell on his face, how his dark hazel eyes concentrated on just her. Was she that appealing to a man like Dennis Wayne? Why was he looking at her with such warmth? And why did she care about how he was looking at her?

Her eyes moved from his eyes to his lip, his very pinky, almost reddish lips. 

Her eyes went below his face and only then did his entrapping gaze leave her. 

"I should go," she said for the third time that afternoon, and yet her legs didn't act like she wanted to go. 

"Tell me..." He said, releasing her ankle and then moving his hand from his ankle to her hair, moving strands of her hair away from her face.

His words had gotten her attention, her eyes were once again on his.

"Why did you really come here?" He asked with a cool steady voice. 

"To find out why you requested that I come to see you?" She responded. 

She saw a little smile curl up on his lips, as his gaze moved to her lips and back to her face slowly.

Before she could think much about his alluring gaze, he reached for her already patted lips with his. His lips feasted on hers as she enjoyed every bit of it. His two hands on both sides of her waist pressed her closer to his firm body. The kiss was intense and devouring. One of his hands left her waist and gradually trailed through her back to her neck where it held her steady as their tongue twisting kiss continued. She returned every energy his kisses had on, Something within her made her feel like she had missed this, she had missed him! But she'd be damned to accept that.

Surprisingly and abruptly she broke off the kiss, and Since he wasn't so conscious, his grip on her wasn't so firm so she managed to easily break off from him entirely.

She moved swiftly to the exit, only turning when she got to the exit.

"Thanks for uhh, Talon," she said trying to not specifically say 'for beating up Talon.' 

His gaze was not towards her, he just looked straight before him without showing any emotion, only his usual stern look.

She saw he wasn't in any mood for thanks, so she reached for the door, opened it, and made her way out.

She moved swiftly downstairs, her fingers fidgeting around each other. Her heartbeat was fast, not because someone could see her, but because of what happened in there.

She went straight to her room and shut her door. She couldn't just wait till she was done with dinner so she could go back to the hospital where there was no Dennis Wayne. 

It was past six in the evening, she was set to leave for the hospital as they were done with the day's activities. She soon left, took a train went straight to her grandma.

'oh, poor Charles' she thought. She got to the hospital and she saw charles looking a little worked up. 

"You deserve more than eight hours sleep tonight," she said. 

Charles giggled, they hugged and greeted each other.

Charles had discussed everything that happened when she was not there with her, they had a brief before Charles concluded that it was time to go.

"Where were you heading to with Dennis Wayne that night that I saw you?" Charles asked almost casually, but the question had put her off. There was a time she expected that question, but since it almost seemed like he forgot, she concluded he was never gonna ask. 

It was a simple question because she had gone to a car designer's party with Dennis, but she knew telling him that Dennis would be assumed that Dennis had to go to a party with him would only sound exactly how she didn't want it to sound. 

"Uhh...

Yeah.." she stuttered, looking straight toward her as the awkwardness became loud.

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