Chapter 11: Chapter 11

Chapter 11

I open my eyes wide as I look at him. My palms go automatically to my mouth. He is looking at me with his big brown eyes wide open. Needless to say, he is just as surprised as I am. He must be wondering why a filthy village girl is in this house and what she may be doing.

Well, I am wondering as well. What an arrogant and opinionated human being is doing here. Is he shadowing or hounding me? What could he be doing here at this time of the day? Is he here to ask madam Aliana to fire me even before I start working?

I hope not. I am truly hoping not. He is freaking me out. I know he has a right of being wherever he pleases but why here at this particular time of the day?

Why here specifically? I hope he isn’t here to rub it to my face that I am not that important for him to stalk me.

His haughty and conceited smile daubed and caked all over his face. I am scared of what might happen to me. I don’t know how fast he gets on his feet but he is now standing very close to me. So close that I am almost feeling suffocated and trapped.

He is smelling so good.

‘’You got to focus Clara!’’ I roll my eyes internally when she complains. My innate is always reminding me of this and I have never been grateful to her.

I bend down to pick the broken glass but he is already down before me and his fingers get there before mine, I pick a piece that ends up piercing my thumb making me groan in pain. I swear when he looks up at me and my eyes spot his big brown eyes, I forget the pain and I end up losing focus for a long second. I have never seen such beautiful eyes.

His hands move to my thumb and I pull it away. I feel goosebumps all over my body when his warm arm brushes my naked arm. I am here solely to work and not to notice beautiful eyes. I am trying really hard to avoid them.

‘’UM … please let me look at your thumb, you are bleeding.’’ He says gently. His voice is deep and low in pitch. I turn to walk away because I really do need to clear this mess but he clasps my wrist. He doesn’t do it roughly though, he is gentle, so gentle and he is not saying anything. His eyes are so intensely boring on my face and I redden.

‘’Sorry Mr. Harrison, or whatever you call yourself! Or should I call you Mr. Stalker? I ask him trying so hard not to smile at the names I just called him.

‘’It’s Harry. Please don’t call me those names because none of them is mine.’’ This is where you get to know that you are either too talkative or very loud for your environment.

The dude is talking quietly that at the moment I feel insulted.

‘’I don’t care! Just let me go.’’ I say pulling my hand away.

I heave a sigh of relief when I walk away and he doesn’t bother to follow me. I didn’t know that I was struggling to breathe but now I know because I am gasping really hard.

I head straight to the kitchen and when I meet Janet’s gaze, she automatically knows that I am in trouble.

‘’You look like crap!’’ she shouts when she opens her mouth.

‘’I know, please don’t shout it,’’ I say politely. ‘’I am in a mess.’’

‘’I am listening.’’

‘’I just dropped the jug and the glass I was holding earlier.’’

‘’What? You just did what? You are as good as a dead rat!’’ my heart sinks as she says the words and somehow, I feel guilty for whatever just happened.

‘’Jeez! Thanks for mentioning the obvious.’’

‘’Sorry, girl, I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. That’s madam Aliana’s favorite jug. She will kill you.’’ I know this is going to be my end here and that Harrison boy is to blame for this.

‘’Thank you,’’ I say taking the dustpan, a mop and mopping can. I want to clear the mess before she fires me. That guy just had to come here at this time, when I am just a day old to mess up things for me. This is just what I needed.

I am a let-down to my family.

I am busy cleaning the expensive and beautifully decorated mosaic floor curiously. I don’t know what I might have damaged. He is stealing glances at me and I think I am going to slap him in the face at this rate.

‘’Can I check your wound?’’ I shake my head firmly at that.

‘’You don’t have to, it is just a scratch and will be okay soon.’’

‘’Hey, I don’t bite. I don’t have any bad intentions and to be honest, I will just check your wound and let you be. Don’t be stubborn!’’

‘’Don’t you have anything else to do? Your stalking tactics are boring and not interesting at all.’’

I walk to the kitchen after collecting the pieces without caring if he just spoke to me. I have no idea where Madam Aliana passed because I didn’t see her go through the living room. She’s here, her eyes wide open at the pieces in my hand.

‘’What the hell happened?’’ she asks with a frown on her face and I freak out at her tone. I shake a little because of the fear that just rushed down my spine. The dustpan falls from my hand and I feel dizzy. My legs are weak and wobbly. I didn’t really plan for this but it just happened.

I try to respond to her but the stammering me who I dint even know existed comes out clearly.

‘’It … it … I mean it was just an accident.’’ I am just about to give up on myself when I feel two strong arms hold my waist from behind. I am surprised that he holds me and lets his chin rest on my shoulder. I didn’t know that he came after me.

I try pushing him away but I am way too weak to do that.

‘’And what do you mean it was just an accident?’’

‘’It was my fault.’’ He says firmly and without mincing his words.

Wow! This is pure drama. How can he stand in for me like that? What really is his intention? He wanted to clean my wound earlier, and he is standing up for me like this? I need to double-check myself.

He must be doing this with the intention of demanding something later.

This is too confusing for a country girl in the city.

‘’What do you mean it was your fault?’’

‘’Um … actually... ’’ He interrupts me before saying what I wanted to say.

‘’Well, I was putting some water in my glass when that happened. I am so sorry, Aliana,‘’ he explains well like it is true.

I don’t understand this guy, but I will not complain. I appreciate what he just did but I hate lies. Mum and dad would be so disappointed in me if they were to find out that this happened. I look at Janet who is looking at me like I owe her explanations. I don’t think I wanna talk about this any other time.

‘’Alright, Harry. Have you met Clara?’’ she asks gently and Harrison smiles as he removes his strong arms from the hold. She looks like she has softened a bit from the earlier incident.

‘’I met Clarita, even before you guys did,’’ I swear I feel cold all of a sudden. Why would he call me that? Do I look like I really like the name, Clarita? I want to tell him that the name is Clara, just Clara but I decide to keep that to myself. He doesn’t have to note that I dislike him, especially for calling me Clarita.

‘’Ooh! I didn’t know that. Why didn’t you tell me?’’ she asks with a slight smile.

‘’How would I know that she was coming here?’’ He asks jokingly. ‘’Am I some sort of a prophet or what?’’

Some jokes though. If he was to be a prophet, he would be such a prophet of doom, right? I shake my head when they keep talking. Janet hasn’t said a word but I know she will be grilling me later on.

‘’Welcome home, Clara.’’ He says just as madam Aliana asks him to go with her to the living room.

‘’Serve our breakfast, Janet.’’ I am desperately hoping that she did buy that lame story about Harrison being the one who broke the jug, otherwise, I feel like I will be forced to pay for the jug which I know will really weigh me down.

Harrison insists that he wants to check my wound and when Madam Aliana allows him, he leads me to some room that looks like an office. He gets a first aid kit and does first aid on the wound.

He covers it with Elastoplast. I bet he is a doctor even without inquiring. We don’t talk to each other the entire time that he does that. The wound isn’t really bad and I wonder what the fuss is all about. Some people can really exaggerate and that bothers me.

In the village, such things heal by themselves but in the city, it seems someone has to get first aid. This is nothing and I know I would have survived anyway.

The table is set by the time we walk out of the office. I feel really awkward when I look at my thumb. When he leaves I will pull down this Elastoplast from my thumb.

After breakfast, Harry asks if he can take me for a small walk and I bluntly say no. he was madam Aliana’s visitor and if I may say, I think I am taking his attention away from her. I don’t think she likes that a little bit.

‘’I cannot go on a walk with you, Harrison,’’ I say firmly looking at his forehead.

I have a very bad opinion about men and that makes me wanna stay away from them. I know I feel so many reactions. Different types when Harry is close, to me but trust me, those are reactions that don't have anything meaningful and I know it will end soon.

‘’Why would you not do that, Clarita?’’

‘’Clara! And to answer your question, because it’s working hours and I just cannot walk around with strangers.’’

‘’You think I am a stranger? I just cleaned your wound you know?’’ he says with a smirk on his lips. ‘’I even covered your ass when Aliana was getting worked up. Do you still think I am a stranger?’’

I nod gently when he asks that. ‘’You are and will always be one. Even doctors, clean wounds of those they don’t know and they still remain as strangers. You aren’t any different from them or are you?’’ I ask with confidence that I have never known existed in me.

‘’Hey, is that how you appreciate my good gesture?’’ I walk towards the kitchen and he follows me. I don’t want Aliana to hear my next response.

‘’Thank you Harrison, but that was uncalled for. I would have taken care of my wound anyway.’’

‘’Not professionally.’’

‘’Are you a doctor, Mr. Harrison?’’

‘’How did you know, Clarita?’’

I smile a little looking at him right in the eyes before responding quietly. ‘’You just confirmed the same.’’ There is something about him that fascinates and charms me.

‘’You either go for the walk with me, or I tell Aliana that you broke her jug.’’

‘’Are you blackmailing me, Harrison? Well, I think you should know that she already figured that out.’’

‘’You think so?’’

‘’I know,’’ I say with utmost confidence.

‘’Don’t you forget that I know her better than you do.’’

‘’But I am …’’

‘’Working?’’ I nod. ‘’Leave that to me.’’ He says turning on his heels and walking out of the kitchen. This opinionated dude is complicated.

My mouth hangs open at that. Blackmail is real. I knew he was really never doing this as a good gesture. He is an ass.