Chapter 25

Andrew spotted Angel from the moment she appeared through the lecture theatre door. He smiled to himself, feeling an unexplainable nervousness at the prospect of sitting with Angel for a lecture. He was about to wave at her when Daniel stood suddenly and stole Angel’s attention with a full-arm wave. Andrew watched bitterly as Angel made her way towards them, after having smiled sweetly at Daniel. That smile should have been his, he grumbled mentally.

“Hey,” Angel greeted the two guys unsurely. It was the first time she is attending a lecture with guys, and the fact that Andrew was one of them made her quiver even more with apprehensive anticipation. She just stood there morosely, uncertain of where she should sit. Would it be weird if she moved in to sit next to Andrew? She thought, and smiled shyly when she saw Andrew watching her keenly.

But Daniel did not notice this subtle exchange as he cleared the seat next to him and directed Angel to it. Angel looked from the seat to Daniel, and then to Andrew, who she noticed seem slightly irritated. She decided she wasn’t bold enough to express her preference for the seat next to Andrew, so she obliged and sat down beside Daniel. Daniel beamed at her, utterly unaware that Andrew was not pleased with that seating arrangement, what with that blob of oblivion separating his Angel from him.

Before Andrew could call Angel’s attention to himself, she began speaking to Daniel, “what happened to Grace yesterday? Is she alright?”

“I think she had a mild panic attack,” Daniel replied, totally missing the way Andrew was glaring at him, “some guys just don’t know when to quit,” he said that through gritted teeth.

“Oh,” Angel said pensively. Grace has always been weary about guys, but a panic attack is a little too extreme. Something just doesn’t add up. “So what happened after you took Grace outside?” Angel asked again.

“Erm,” Daniel began, but feeling really uncomfortable recounting the entire encounter, he merely said, “I took her to the bus stop outside, and waited until she stopped crying.”

“She cried?” in front of you?! Angel mentally exclaimed. But why? Grace never cried in front of anyone! She looked Daniel over from head to toe, wondering just what kind of relationship exists between him and Grace.

Andrew didn’t like the way Angel was now looking at Daniel and interrupted, “Angel, what are we doing for lecture today?” he slapped his notes onto his writing desk.

Daniel answered immediately, “We’re continuing with Novas and Supernovas today,” and turned back to Angel, earning a dirty look from Andrew which grew progressively more vicious each passing moment.

“Can I borrow your notes for last week’s lecture?” Andrew addressed Angel again with an amiable expression totally disparate from the one he was looking at Daniel with.

“But you didn’t miss last week’s lecture, why would you need the notes for?” Daniel asked benignly.

Andrew resisted the urge to kick his wonderful-friend-cum-brother in the shin. His smile began to appear a little forced as he sent a piercing look at Daniel, who seemed exceptionally thick today; for Daniel merely blinked in puzzlement at Andrew’s antics.

Angel, while she wasn’t entirely sure what Andrew was upset about, felt like she had to do something to smooth out the crease between his brows. She took out last week’s notes, wrote a small note in pencil at the front, and handed it to Andrew.

Then, she resumed the conversation with Daniel, paying close attention to the way he spoke about Grace. If this man could get past Grace’s defenses so easily, then it is up to her to assess his trust-worthiness.

At this point, Andrew seemed less disturbed with the conversation that he was so conveniently excluded from. After all, he looked fondly at the pencil note written in her neat handwriting; Angel has just asked him out for lunch.

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Chapter 24

Her head felt like it had been run over by a truck, and that persistent ringing in her ears had forced her to stir fully awake. Which was a very painful thing indeed, for she could now feel very clearly her entire body throb with a sore numbness. She wanted to open her eyes, but found that she could not. She started to panic, but just then, she felt a reassuring warmth envelope her left hand.

“Gab?” Emily said, her voice sounded horribly raspy.

“Emily, you’re awake!” came the familiar voice, which calmed her nerves down, “How do you feel?” Gabriel asked, the concern thick in his voice. Emily felt his large hand brush across her cheek.

“I can’t see.” Emily said helplessly, feeling the panic return.

“Of course you can’t,” Gabriel chuckled, “your eyes aren’t open. Try opening them slowly.” He stroked her closed eyelids gently.

Emily slowly blinked her eyes open; the sight that greeted her made her giggle slightly. Gabriel’s hair was standing in every direction possible, and he had this huge reddish press mark on his temple. She wanted to get up from the bed to do something about that ridiculous hairdo of his. But Gabriel gently, yet firmly, pressed down on her shoulders.

“You shouldn’t get up yet,” he admonished, but bent towards Emily when she waved for him to get closer. Emily reached up and weaved her fingers through his hair, taming the haphazard strands. Once she was satisfied with the more presentable look, she smiled and turned to look at Gabriel. She was slightly taken aback when she saw an unreadable emotion in his eyes. And the way he was fixedly looking at her now made her suddenly aware of his closeness. Funny, she thought, that has never made her this nervous before.

A sudden stinging pain elicited a moan from her, as she shut her eyes and tried to block out the pain.

“What’s wrong?” Gabriel’s anxious voice drifted to her ears.

“My head hurts. What happened to me?”

“You don’t remember? You fell down the stairs at Kevin’s,” Gabriel frowned most deeply, “thank God you’re alright!” he said and leaned down to hug Emily against the bed, and whispered into her ear, “I swear I’ll never let you get hurt again.”

Emily gasped silently when Gabriel’s lip brushed against her ear. She remained as still as possible, expecting Gabriel to end the embrace any moment now. But he didn’t move away. Instead, he pressed himself closer.

What is he doing? Emily thought, suddenly finding it difficult to breathe. The warm weight of his body on top of hers was, for the first time, making her extremely aware that Gabriel is a full grown man. She opened her mouth to say something, but the words felt choked up at her larynx. She found that she couldn’t move, but her eyes widened when she felt his chest expand in a deep intake of air.

Did he just smell my hair? Emily felt her heart make a loud thump against her chest.

Just then, the door squeaked open. Angel and Andrew strolled in just in time to see Gabriel pull away from Emily hastily, his face colored with embarrassment. But the two intruders pretended not to have seen anything, and moved casually towards the bed.

Angel was most relieved to see that Emily has woken up, but that wide-eyed shock on her face seemed highly suspicious. She took a concealed glance at Gabriel, who was rubbing his neck and determinedly looking away from the bed.

“Hey Emily, I’m so glad you’re awake,” Angel returned her attention to Emily, making no effort whatsoever to hide the amused smile spreading across her face. It seems like something has changed between those two.

Her voice jolted Emily out of her trance. What was she thinking? There was no way Gabriel would do something like that. She tried to get up but the dizziness made her world spin. Gabriel rushed forward to stop her from falling off the bed, and helped her get into a comfortable sitting position. Then he stepped back, looking resolutely away again.

“Hi, Angel. I’m fine now,” Emily smiled warmly at her friend, and then looked at Gabriel, confused and slightly hurt. Sure, that closeness just now scared her a little, but anything is better than this intangible distance he has shoved between them.

“The doctor says you probably have to stay in the hospital for another couple of days, just in case. You never know what you’ll get with head injuries,” Angel said, not missing the slight gleam of longing in Emily’s eyes. She turned and pulled Gabriel into the chair next to Emily’s bed, “will you peel this apple for Emily? I’m calling Grace to let her know Emily is awake.” she said, handing him an apple and a small fruit knife.

Gabriel looked uncertainly at Emily, and then dropped his gaze quickly to the apple he held, suddenly obsessed with its peeling.

Emily blinked in surprise. Was that a blush on Gabriel’s cheeks? So, he was just as uncomfortable with that inexplicable embrace as she was. She smiled as she admired the adorable attention Gabriel was paying to the apple.

Angel quietly hooked her arm around Andrew’s, and together, they slinked out of the ward unnoticed.

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Chapter 23

The tears wouldn’t stop. It was as if she couldn’t control it. She wasn’t particularly upset with anything. She was even sure she wasn’t feeling anything at the moment. Still, the tears kept streaming.

Grace thumbed over the handkerchief Daniel gave her, conspicuous wet patches now covering almost the entire fabric. She frowned, unable to comprehend why she couldn’t stop crying. She lifted the handkerchief and wiped angrily at her tears. Before new tears could cloud her vision again, she saw that Daniel had offered her a handful of toffees.

“When I was little,” Daniel said in a calming voice, “I used to cry very hard whenever I got injured. My grandfather would give me some toffees, and after I took some, it didn’t hurt as much. I think they also have anti-crying properties,” he said as he took Grace’s hand and pressed a toffee into her palm.

Grace looked up at Daniel, who was smiling kindly at her. Somehow, the toffee seemed very inviting. She opened the forest-green wrapper and popped the candy into her mouth, feeling the sweet warm creamy taste saturate her senses.

“You know, I hate the rain,” Daniel spoke again, ignoring the raised eyebrow on Grace’s face, “the day my grandfather died, it was pouring like nothing I’ve ever seen.”

Grace wiped the last of her tears and turned fully to Daniel now.

“We didn’t have an umbrella,” Daniel continued, tilting his head to look at the stars, “so my mum made us wait out the rain under a pavilion in the middle of a park. When we finally got to the hospital, my grandfather was gone,” Daniel paused here, and Grace saw that he has closed his eyes in a pained frown. Grace didn’t know why he was telling her about his grandfather, but she waited patiently until he spoke again.

“I was eleven then. And as far as I was concerned, the rain took my grandfather from me,” Daniel’s voice still sounded a little strained, “Even after so many years have passed, I still feel that loss whenever it rained.”

He turned to look at Grace now, peering right into the depths of her soul, “Everyone has their own dark memories,” he paused meaningfully as he watched the light in Grace’s eyes dim slightly. Then he said, “I’ve never told this to anyone. If you keep this a secret, then I will also not tell anyone how you cried like a baby in my arms,” the corners of his mouth curved up in a mischievous smirk.

Grace hurriedly looked away. Had she really wrapped herself around him and cried into the curve of his neck? What in the heavens made her do that? Wasn’t she allergic to guys? Oh gosh, this is so embarrassing.

Daniel, on the other hand, was tremendously enjoying the results of his teasing. He never knew how a blush could look so enchanting on her. He brushed her fringe away from her eyes and spoke again, “You can always come to me if you need a good cry,” he paused to smile, “I certainly don’t mind having a pretty girl like you pressed up against me like you did a while ago,” he said cheerily.

Grace bit her lower lip and blushed even more fiercely; unaware of the effects that action was having on Daniel. Daniel stared at her more intensely, feeling like he would do something entirely inappropriate to the girl, and absolutely nothing could stop him. Not even the self-control he has always been proud of. He couldn’t resist moving closer, and closer. The scent of her shampoo seems to allure him even more. He watched as her lips bloom a rosier shade of red from her nibble. Oh my God, Daniel thought, I am so not supposed to do this. And he leaned in closer, angling his chin for a perfect touchdown.

Suddenly, Grace’s mobile phone emitted a loud melody. Daniel pulled back so forcefully he almost fell off the bench.

“It must be your friends,” Daniel said, “they must have been very worried about you.” He didn’t know whether he should curse at whoever sent that text message, or be thankful it stopped him from...…. whatever he was about to do.

He suddenly felt a terrible urge to growl.

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Chapter 22

Angel felt like her world has been turned upside down. In the space of a few minutes, two of her best friends were hurt so painfully, and she couldn’t do a single thing to make things better. The helplessness was shredding her heart.

She looked at the closed door behind which Emily laid. Then she looked at her mobile phone with Grace’s number screened boldly across it. But what could she accomplish? What could she do for her friends, whom she held so dearly to her soul? She slumped onto the floor, defeated.

Andrew knelt in front of Angel and placed a comforting palm on her shoulder. He knew it must be very hard for Angel to see her friends like that. He couldn’t even bear to imagine how he would feel if Daniel and Gabriel were to be harmed at the same time.

He drew her closer, so she could lean on his shoulder. He knew that his silly girl wanted nothing more than to sit by her injured friend, but she held back knowing Gabriel needed some time alone with Emily. He also knew she needed to know how Grace is doing, but was afraid she might make things worse. His Angel is always so endearing in her thoughtful ways. But he really hated to see her so worried and upset.

He stroked her hair tenderly and spoke, “Just give Gab a little more time alone with her. You know he needed it.”

Angel nodded her head against him.

“It’s a miracle she only sustained a mild concussion and a fractured leg,” he continued in that deep soothing voice of his, “she will wake up in no time.”

Angel nodded silently again.

“And Grace is with Daniel. He’ll take care of her,” he said as he noticed how Angel was fully leaning on him now.

Angel closed her eyes and nodded weakly again. She didn’t know how Andrew could make her feel better with those simple words, but she needed to hear more. His voice was the only thing she could cling on to in this otherwise silent world.

“Daniel is a good man. Even if he is clumsy around a girl, he’ll be able to comfort Grace in his own way,” Andrew carried on, hoping to distract Angel with his voice. He searched for happier things to say, “When we were in junior college, a girl sprained her ankle badly during PE and couldn’t stop crying. Do you know what he did?” he paused, hoping to elicit a verbal response from Angel. She hadn’t uttered a single word ever since they stepped into the hospital.

But Angel merely shook her head. Andrew exhaled in disappointment, but continued, “he handed the girl some toffees and told her that it wouldn’t hurt so bad if she took some. I still can’t believe it worked!” Andrew said with a chuckle. He was slightly relieved when he saw Angel smile in return.

“Maybe he’s giving some toffees to Grace as we speak,” Andrew said jokingly, pleased to hear Angel’s quiet laugh.

Angel straightened up to look at Andrew. She was really glad he was here with her. “Thank you,” she said sincerely. Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

Andrew was genuinely unprepared for this. And from the adorable blush on Angel’s face, he could tell she was just as surprised as he was. He turned away from Angel to hide that uncontrollable grin that was spreading across his face.

“It’s my honor and duty,” he tried to say in a calm and collected tone, “you know, you could send Grace a text message to ask her how she’s feeling now. That way she wouldn’t be obliged to answer if she didn’t feel ready to.”

“Really?” Angel asked, looking straight into Andrew’s eyes, the blush still evident in her cheeks.

Andrew smiled and nodded, “and when you’re done with that, we can go in to see Emily.”

Angel beamed at Andrew, and began typing a message to Grace.

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Chapter 21

It was too quiet. Too dark. Too empty for Gabriel to focus on anything but the frighteningly still body in front of him. He held her hand more tightly in his, taking some comfort in her warmth. Just three hours ago, Emily was bouncing happily around him, trying to steal his apple martini. But now, she lay in this deathly white bed looking as if she’ll never wake again. How could he have allowed this to happen? How could he have let her take the fall for him? He was supposed to protect her, not let her get seriously injured like that! He’ll never be able to forgive himself for this.

“Emily,” he whispered softly, gently brushing his hand across the thick bandage wound around her head, “I’m sorry,” he said with a trembling voice dangerously perched on the verge of breaking. He really hated himself. If he hadn’t pushed Kevin, Kevin wouldn’t have pushed him, and Emily wouldn’t have to…..

“Emily,” he uttered again, reverently. He brought the hand he has been holding to his lips and kissed it lightly. He silently vowed never to let the woman he had grown to love get hurt like this again. He’ll watch over her with every fiber of his being. He knew now, that he had been wrong to think he would be content with her friendship. No, he could not lose her again. Not to a fall down a flight of stairs, and most definitely not to another man.

He wanted her to be his.

Gabriel shut his eyes tightly at the sudden surge of an emotion so fierce he was sure it would consume him. He never knew he was capable of such possessiveness, and he was afraid. Truly afraid that it will eventually hurt the one he loves most. When he opened his eyes again, he let his gaze fall on the unconscious girl. He looked intently at the face he had etched so deeply in his memories, and sighed. He knew he could no longer hide behind the glass wall he had construed between him and Emily. He could no longer pretend that he was satisfied with just watching Emily from a distance.

But for now, he would wait. He would see to it that Emily is well again. And then, he will hide his feelings no longer. He will always be there to love her, and to protect her. He bent forward and sealed that promise in a kiss on her lips.

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