"Harold took me to my room? How come I don't remember any of that?" Denise tried to remember anything about what her mother was trying to tell her but she could not remember anything.
"Because you were drunk. You kept murmuring a lot of nonsense when he was carrying you to your room. I heard you two when you came in last night and watched you two as he tried to get you in bed," her mother revealed.
Denise was beyond shock. She was totally embarrassed. She hoped she did not do or say anything embarrassing. She was a bit shaken for a while, then got off the stool and walked outside, while she was still in her pajamas.
"Denise, where are you going? Denise!" her mother called after her but she was long gone.
"I have to talk to him. Oh God! I hope I did not embarrass myself in front of him." She thought to herself.
She rushed to the boy quarters where Harold would be and knocked on the door.
"Harry, are you in there?" She knocked on his door, but had no answer.
She opened the door and took a peak in. Then she led her whole body inside, still calling Harold's name. She looked around, and when she did not get a reply, she walked out feeling a bit annoyed.
"Where could he be?" she asked herself.
Harold suddenly appeared from the direction of the front gates, looking as handsome as ever in his red lacoste shirt and blue jeans. Denise smiled sheepishly at him but caught herself and stopped smiling. She approached him as he also got closer to her. Denise's presence was beginning to affect him. He slowed down his pace, when he noticed she was approaching him.
"Where have you been? I have been looking everywhere for you," Denise said, when she got closer to Harold.
"I stepped out for a while. I needed to get something across the street. Why were you looking for me?" Harold asked, feeling like he was been interrogated.
"I just needed to find out something from you. About last night."
Harold tried hard not to roll his eyes. "What do you want to know about last night?" he looked a bit tired. He walked towards her and faced her, making Denise let out a shaky breath because of how close they were.
"I-I just needed to know... if anything happened between us last night?" she stammered.
"I don't understand what you are asking me? What do you mean by if anything happened between us?" he asked, his eyebrow raised.
"Come on, you know what I mean. My mother told me you took me to my room last night. Did I do or say anything embarrassing?"
Harold stepped back and smiled slightly. "No, you did not do anything or say anything embarrassing. You were drunk and could not even walk so I carried you to your room when we got home. Nothing else happened. Denise sighed in relief.
"Did you spend the night on my bed?" Denise asked suddenly, when Harold tried to leave. He stopped in his tracks and breathed in and out, then turned towards her.
"Yes, I did. And before you go thinking anything else, I did it because you asked me to stay. I shouldn't have, but I just could not leave you in the condition you were in. Does that answer your questions, Denise?"
Denise nodded. It was not a dream after all, Harold did sleep by her last night. She did not know what to do with that information. Inwardly, she was grinning so much.
"Well, I guess that's all I wanted to know. I believe you when you say nothing happened and I am really relieved I did not make a fool out of myself."
"Anyway, Denise. I thought you were going to work today. But your mother told me you weren't going anymore. Do you feel unwell?" Harold was looking at her with worry in his eyes. Denise could not stand it when Harold worried so much about her. She was almost driven to tears by it.
"I am fine. I am having this splitting headache that refuses to go away. By the way, the manager will take care of everything. He knows what to do. Well, I guess I better change into something decent. I will see you later." Denise turned away from Harold and walked over to the house.
Harold just smiled at her and also went back to his room. Denise's heart was beating so hard like she had ran a marathon. She leaned on the door and looked quite disturbed. She tried to calm herself down and even her breathing. She was panting real hard, and she was finding it hard to breath. Her mother walked up to her and slowly tapped her shoulder, making her jump up, looking startled.
"Baby girl, are you okay? Did anything happen out there?"
"Nothing mom. I just went to speak with Harold. I needed to know if I did or said anything embarrassing last night. And... I don't know..." it was getting difficult for Denise to breath again so her mother helped her sit down on the chair and tried to calm her.
"Denise, come on, breath my dear. Breath slowly. Yes, that's it. Now, tell me what really happened?"
Denise followed what her mother said and breathed slowly. When she was finally breathing normal, she turned to her mother.
"I can't do this anymore, mother. I try so hard to control myself around him but I feel like my resolve is breaking. I can't think straight when he is close by, mother. What could be wrong with me? Why am I having these feelings for him?"
Her mother knew who she was talking about, once Denise opened her mouth and smiled knowingly.
"So you do love him. I feel like both of you are in love with each other but are too afraid to tell it to each other. I don't see what you are afraid of. Why don't you tell him how you feel about him? That is the only way you can know the truth about what he also feels for you. If you don't, you will always continue to wonder like this. I don't think that is what you want."
Denise looked at her mother like she had just stated the impossible. "What?! You want me to be the one to approach him with what I feel about him? I can't do that mother. It will be too awkward for me. And I won't be able to face him if he even rejects me. No, I can't risk that." Denise shook her head.
"Let me tell you something, baby girl. You see, Harold and you have gotten along for quite a while. You both have been friends for a while so you know almost everything about each other. But, one thing you should know is, Harold will never approach you with this matter. Because do you know why, my dear? He feels he is not in the same social standing with you and that he does not deserve you. So it is up to you to take the initiative and make him understand that you don't care about him not being up there with you. Think about it."
"You are right, mother. Harry is that kind of person. Even when we began to get along, it took him sometime for him to be really comfortable around me. But, mom, I... still can't tell him how I feel. I'm scared."
"Aww, dear. Come here." She curled herself up by her mother's side as her mother held her in a hug.