"Miss! Miss! Wake up! You have been soaking so long you might catch a fever." Millie's worried face was hovering over her as her view came into focus.
"Millie?", she asked disorientedly. Oh my goodness! I'm back.
"You have been here in the bathroom for 2 hours Miss and had fallen asleep. Please dry your hair.", Millie handed her the towel as she went out of the bathtub groggily.
So, it was all a dream? Such a weird thing to happen. And it felt so real!
" Thank you for waking me up Millie." Avery walked to her closet and chose a mint green sundress which fit her body perfectly. " I'll go down for lunch after I dress up."
"Ok Miss. We'll wait for you downstairs." Millie went as she wondered why her mistress was so shocked when she woke up.
Avery continued to gaze at herself in the mirror in confusion. The warmth of Terrence Chang's embrace and her terror of Xander Yu felt so real that she shivers everytime she thinks about it. The connection she felt with Terrence is something she haven't experienced her whole life. She felt so bereft when she left his embrace.
Dang! Is this a result of having had no botfriend and transferring to a new place? Maybe she needs to get laid! It felt eerie though that the room looked the same.
Avery went down for lunch and surprised everyone when she asked them to join her. They had prepared a sumptous meal of pork, chicken and seafood as they didn't know her preference yet.
The Lus were very happy. It seemed that even if the new mistress doesn't smile a lot, she has a kind heart.
"I'd like a tour of the whole villa after lunch so I can familiarize myself." Avery told them.
"Of course Miss! The villa is our pride here and it will be our honor to show you around." Butler Lu said enthusiastically!
After lunch, they went around the garden which was beautifully landscaped. Avery started to feel chills when she noticed that it looked exactly like the same garden in her dreams.
"Your grandmother ensured that no changes were made in this garden as it was first landscaped to retain its historical beauty. Beautiful, isn't it Miss?"
"Yes, it is." Avery answered shakily as she pondered why her heart started to beat erratically.
"We have excellent horses here Miss. You can try them some other time once you have settled. Millie can accompany you.", Mrs. Lu quipped in.
What she saw impressed her. Everything was neatly and cleanly maintained. When they went to the library afterwards, she was surprised by the vast array of books that lined the wall.
" These books were already here since we've moved in Miss. Your grandma loves to spend time here everyday."
" This is an impressive collection indeed. I'd love to read here too. Looks like they have books even in Latin."
Her attention was caught by a portrait in the wall covered by cloth.
"Butler Lu, can you uncover that? It must be a picture of Grandma.", she said excitedly.
" Alright Miss. I'm excited to see it too. We haven't seen this either since its already covered when we arrived here and your grandmother has strict instructions not to touch it."
"Really? That's interesting. Common, get that cloth off.", Avery rushed giddily.
What she saw when the portrait was unveiled made her blood run cold and drained her face of color. "Oh god! It can be!," her mind silently screamed.