Chapter 2

• Rose Greyson
• Like someone whose mind is being controlled, I listened to the stranger as he gave me instructions and closed my eyes. Falling into yet another darkness of mine.
• I unwind my eyes to a familiar surrounding. Our house. "Oh my God, Rose. You're finally awake," I heard my mom's shaky voice. Just by the expression in her eyes, you could tell how worried she was.
• She helped me up to a sitting position. "How long have I been sleeping? And where is he?"
• "Who? Who is he?" Mom asked.
• "The guy that was here earlier."
• "No one is here. You were brought back home after you fainted. Are you okay, dear?" I held onto my head as I tried to recall all the events. Was it a dream? I remembered him soothing me, calming me down with his melodic voice. Was that all a dream? Surprisingly, I didn't feel any more pain. I felt strong as before.
• "Dear, why didn't you tell me you were not feeling too well? We could've postponed it. Why do you have to fall sick on your first day in school?" My mom's voice snapped me back to reality. She was rubbing my hand in a soothing manner.
• "Mom, how did I come back home?" I asked. I needed to be sure it wasn't a dream.
• "Of course, you were brought back from the school."
• "I mean the person that brought me back."
• "I don't know. It was some guy and a girl. Though they came with the school car."
• Some guy and a girl? I repeated in my head. What could that possibly mean? Was it a dream or reality? I can't seem to wrap my head around it. However, the main question is, why did I faint? Last time I checked, I was fine when we left the house. Then what happened?
• "Enough of the questions. Don't think too much. What matters is you're fine now. I've made some soup for you. Eat and take your drugs," Mom ushered much like commanded.
• I was only forcing myself to eat, but my mind wasn't together with my body. I can't seem to get the thought of the strange man out of my head. It felt too real to be a dream. Could it be he was the 'some guy' Mom was talking about? "If you're not going to finish that soup, allow it to rest. You've been drawing circles on it for how many minutes," Mom spared me a deathly glance.
• Initially, I wasn't that hungry. I only decided to eat for the sake of the drugs. I can't take drugs on an empty stomach. The best thing is to cut the soup some slack. And I did that. Stored the leftover in the refrigerator. "Don't forget to take the drugs," Mom ushered as I was making my way to the room.
• "Okay, Mom," I said almost to myself. I grabbed a bottle of water and then proceeded to my room. The drugs were already sitting by my bedside. I took them as per the instructions and lay back on the bed to rest so that everything would digest.
• Rose! Rose!! Come, Rose You belong to me, Rose! Rose!
• I jolted up, snapping my eyes open. I held onto my racing heart, panting hard. I reached for the bottle of water beside me and gulped down the remaining. What did I just dream of? Someone calling my name. Who? Why?
• At first, I wanted to go talk to Mom about it, but then it would only make her more worried than she already was. I don't want to add more to her. It's just a dream, not something for me to worry about. With that thought, I adjusted myself on the bed and switched off the lamp light.
• Morning came faster than I anticipated. "Morning, Mom," I said in a not-so-clear voice as I sat myself on the chair.
• "Morning, dear. How was your night? Hope you're feeling better. If you can't go-"
• "I'm fine, Mom. I'm not feeling any pain anywhere," I assured her, squeezing her hand from the table.
• "Alright then. Eat your breakfast, and I will drop you off. Since I'm going out also."
• "Alright, Mom." I pushed forward my breakfast.
• "By the way, this letter is for you. I forgot to give it to you last night." She passed me the small white envelope.
• "Thank you, Mom." I finished my food first before giving my attention to the white envelope.
• Get ready; your mate is coming for you.
• I read and read it over again to make sure I'm seeing correctly. I burst into a fit of laughter. What a joke. Who is trying to play a prank on me? Mate, my foot! Let's see how someone will come and claim me as their mate. I folded the paper and dumped it inside my bag.
• "What's making you laugh?" Mom asked as she made her way towards the entrance door.
• "Nothing, Mom. Just some rubbish jokes."
• Mate or no mate, I don't believe in that. Another laughter escaped me, making Mom look at me weirdly. "I'm fine, Mom. I'm fine," I said, forming my lips into a thin line.
• We shall see.
• Like yesterday, Mom dropped me at school and went on her way to her workplace. From a distance, I sighted Nora making her way inside too. Before I could look for a way to hide, she had already seen me. "Shit!" I muttered.
• "Hi, Rose," she said when she approached me.
• "Hi, Nora," I ushered back with a smile.
• "Hope you're all better now. You looked like shit yesterday." Okay, if Nora doesn't know about it, who will?
• "Yeah. I'm all better. Thanks for the care."
• She formed her lips into a thin line. "It's okay. All thanks to Rob. He was of great help."
• "Rob? Was he the one that took me back home?" I asked. For the first time, getting interested in Nora's stories. I won't be surprised if she knows everything about the school, the gossips.
• "Yeah. Kind of. He came out of nowhere and volunteered to take you home. And we took you home. Girl, your mom was damn worried." Could he be the same guy? The melodic voice? I wasn't able to make out his face since I wasn't in my right state of mind.
• "Is the Rob guy in our department? I need to thank him," I asked as we walked through the hallway.
• "Yes and no."
• "Yes and no?" I repeated. "What's that supposed to mean?"
• "He's in the department, but he barely attends any classes. Same goes with his gang. They are like lightning bolts. They come and go whenever they like," I listened as Nora narrated to me.
• "By the way, don't bother yourself thanking him. They don't accept thanking or apology. In fact, if by chance you meet him anywhere, don't look his way." She patted my shoulder for a mere second before sliding the door to the lecture room open.
• Wow. What a story. How can someone go to the extent of paying all the school fees, the procedure, and not attend classes? Do their parents know about it? And much to say, does the school know about it?
• "Excuse me." I was snapped back to reality by someone's voice. I didn't miss the look she passed me.
• "Sorry." I flashed her a smile, giving her way. Then followed suit as she entered. Nora was busy talking with some guys. So, I didn't even bother to go her way. I grabbed an empty seat at the back. I have a thing for sitting at the back when in class. Most especially by the window. So that whenever the lecture is getting boring, I will look through the window and get my mind off things.
• I stared out of the window as the wind cascaded through it, sending chills down my spine. I love a mood like that. How it calms my nerves down. The mood didn't last when silence prevailed as the professor entered.
• Nora passed me a wink from where she was sitting amidst boys. I've known her for only a day, but I would say, she's the kind of person that doesn't care about what others think of her. She does her thing in her own way.
• The first lectures ended normally, and we proceeded to the lecture theater for the second class. This time around, Nora and I sat in the same direction. Surprisingly, she was calm. And I couldn't help but ask, "Are you okay, Nora?" Wonder what's making her that quiet.
• Her brows creased in question. "For?"
• "You seem quiet. And earlier you were on top of the mood," I said, my eyes darting from left to right.
• "You will find out the reason for me being quiet. It—Ehem..." She cleared her voice when the door was slid open and the professor entered. For a moment, my mind went blank. Like totally blank. From the very first step he took, an aura was lurking around him. It has been a while since my hormones rose at the sight of a handsome man. I don't know how it happened, yet our eyes met. And I could swear something clenched in my heart as my eyes fixed on him. All of a sudden, those strange voices began ringing in my head.
• Rose Come to me, Rose. You belong to me.
• I don't know why, but I feel like there's some connection between us. Like I know him from before. How my body completely went numb at the sight of him. And how the beating of my heart increased when he stared at me.
• "Who is he?" I found my lips muttering out without control.
• "The English literature professor. And the reason behind my calmness."
• Wow. He looked young to be a lecturer. And I will have to admit, he's undoubtedly handsome. Like, he screams rich.
• The whole class took its silence as the professor began his lecture. No noise. Just total concentration. I didn't know when a laugh escaped me looking at how focused Nora was on the professor. She was literally staring him down.
• "Hey," his deep accent voice blared through the speaker. His eyes darted toward our direction. I glanced back to check who he was referring to.
• "You turning back. Get out of my class."
• "Me?" I asked, confused.
• "I don't tolerate noise-making in my class. Especially laughing. So get your dumb head out of my class." It took me some seconds to take in what he said. All eyes were on me then.
• "Shit, Rose. You got yourself in trouble," Nora whispered beside me.
• "What trouble? Did I do anything?" I asked.
• "Before you get yourself in more trouble, dear, I advise you to leave the class. Mr. Hunter isn't a forgiving man," someone said behind me. Up to that moment, I was confused as hell. I know I didn't make any noise. And talking of laughing, it wasn't intentional, and I can't call that laughing since I didn't make any sound.
• "Just go, Rose. We'll figure it out later." And just like that, I grabbed my bag and made my way to the door. Just when I was about to open it, his voice echoed all over, adding to my already embarrassed self.
• "You're banned from attending my class for the next month." Gasps followed all through. I bit my bottom lip and made my way out. I didn't stop until I reached the nearest bench outside. I placed my palms over my racing heart.