Runa never intended to eavesdrop on the conversation, but without realizing it, she got carried away and felt annoyed at the boy, who said rude things to the girl. When the woman cried and ran away, Runa breathed a sigh of relief because it meant the boy would also go, and she could continue her tree-climbing activities.
But when Runa leaned slightly down to see if the boy had left, her mountain sandal lost its grip on the branch's surface and she fell. Her heart seemed to jump out of her chest as her body hit the small branches as she slid down. Her hands fumbled for a grip, but all to no avail. Runa shut her eyes and let out a small scream when her body suddenly stopped. Slowly, she opened one eye and tried to understand what was going on. Her body swayed in the air, spun slowly, and finally stopped before a pair of amber-colored eyes.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"
Oh… damn.
Runa felt a painful grip on one of her legs. She tried to look up, and even though she couldn't see it clearly, she knew that one of her legs had been caught in a tree branch. Damn mountain sandals, Runa thought.
Now she was hanging upside down like a bat, and her face was right in front of Arden's. Her tank top fell and piled up on her chest. Arden looked away for a moment just to come back and stare at the black lacy bra that Runa was wearing. Runa widened her eyes and pulled her tank top up and held it with both hands.
"What are you looking at?" Runa snapped.
Arden did not respond to the question. Instead, he said, "After smoking, then now falling from the tree? What exactly kind of girl are you?"
"Shut up."
"Keep speaking harshly to the only person who might help you."
Runa's grip on the end of her tank top got stronger. Her head started to feel dizzy and her legs became numb. Her body swayed slowly, and her eyes dimmed.
"I don't need your help," said Runa. "I can go down myself."
Arden stepped closer, and now Runa could see how thick and black Arden's eyelashes were. "Ooh… really? Let me see it, then." He folded his arms across his chest and waited.
The sound of the waves in the distance filled the silence between them. For a while, Runa was lost in Arden's gaze on her. The amber color in his eyes had an unusual shimmer, which reminded Runa of something. But with her upside-down position and Arden's intimidating gaze, Runa couldn't think of anything.
Runa blinked and tugged her tank top into her shorts, then she took a deep breath and swung her body back and forth. Then, with one jolt, she arched her body up and gripped the branch that caught her leg. In a few seconds, Runa escaped. Now her body was no longer hanging upside down, and she swayed slowly before sliding down.
One thing Runa didn't consider, her legs were stuck in numbness which made her landing not go smoothly. She almost fell backward, but she held herself up with both hands. Runa winced when she felt a jolt of pain in one of her ankles. It looks like she sprained it.
Runa landed with her back facing Arden, so Arden couldn't see her expression of pain just now. When she stood up and turned to face Arden, she acted as if nothing had happened.
"See?" challenged Runa. She was on her hips and put her weight on her healthy leg.
Arden just stare at her until she felt awkward. His hands were still folded in front of his chest. He glanced at Runa's sprained ankle and then looked back into her eyes. "Not bad," he said with a poker face.
If Arden really admired her gymnastic abilities, Runa didn't find that admiration in the tone of his words or the look in his eyes. Arden seemed to think about something else. His gaze on Runa had now looked blank.
"I'm guessing you could walk back to the bar by yourself?"
"Absolutely." She moved, and the throbbing pain in her left ankle made her flinch. But she could still maintain her expression.
"Okay." Arden shrugged, then turned around and walked away, leaving Runa alone.
After Arden was out of sight, Runa's shoulders dropped, and she winced in pain. Carefully, she sat down and straightened her right leg, and bent her left leg. She observed her left ankle, which was getting bigger and redder. Runa took off her mountain sandals, struggled to get back on her feet, and limped to Delmara.
When she got there, Runa's friends showered her with many questions. They want to know what happened to her and where she was, what took her so long. Runa felt overwhelmed and Mandy came to the rescue. She called one of Delmara's staff and asked for help to give first aid to Runa's feet.
"What happened??" Mandy asked, worried.
"I slipped in the toilet," replied Runa, followed by a grin.
Mandy and Delmara's staff led Runa to a staff room behind the bar. They led Runa to sit on a sofa and carefully raised her sprained leg onto the sofa. The staff left and came back with a basin of ice cubes and a small towel. He began to compress Runa's ankle.
"You wanna come home after this?" offered Mandy. She had been holding Runa's hand and looking at Runa as if she was in a critical state.
"Sounds good," Runa replied with a faint smile.
About half an hour passed and the swelling on Runa's ankle seemed to have lessened. Runa thanked the staff, and he helped her walk to Mandy's car. Amid their brief trip to the parking lot, Runa saw Arden with his group. They were chatting while sitting on their motorbikes.
Suddenly, Arden turned to look at her, and they stared at each other for a few seconds. Then Arden's gaze slid down to Runa's ankle, after which he turned to his friend and Runa looked away.
---
Mandy steered down the road beside the Crown family property, then stopped in front of towering double iron gates. A guard opened the door and frowned as Runa got out of the car and limped into the yard, but the guard didn't ask or do anything.
"You should have asked your father to build an asphalt road that leads directly to your house. So I don't have to park outside the yard and I can just take you inside," Mandy mumbled. "And look, that guard of yours?! Is he blind?! How could he just stand still and do nothing?!"
Mandy, who is small and shorter than Runa, looks exhausted as she carries her along the mossy path under the thick trees, which leads to Runa's tiny house. After reaching the terrace, Mandy led Runa to sit on one of the metal chairs there, then Mandy bent down and put her hands on her knees.
"Finally!" moaned Mandy, between gasping breaths. Her shoulder-length red hair was drenched in sweat and stuck to her forehead and neck.
"I'm sorry," said Runa, feeling guilty seeing her friend exhausted.
Mandy shook her head. "Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault." Then she extended one hand toward Runa. "Give me the key."
Runa opened the small bag she was carrying and reached inside, looking for a string of keys and giving it to Mandy. "The black key," said Runa.
Mandy raised an eyebrow when she saw how many keys Runa had, but she didn't ask anything. That's one thing that Runa likes about Mandy. She never pressures Runa to tell her something she doesn't want to tell.
After entering the house, Mandy helped Runa sit on the sofa near the window, then she sat there too.
"With a leg like this, someone must accompany you, Runa."
"I'm fine. A few more days to heal. It's not the first time I've sprained my ankle after all."
"Yeah, but it's the first since you've lived alone, right?"
"Yeah..."
Mandy twisted her lips and looked at Runa. "How about I stay here until you get better?"
Rune sighed. "I'd love to, but you know the rule."
"Sometimes I don't understand your father's way of thinking. After asking for a dispensation from the campus so that you don't live in a dorm during your first year, then he allows you to have your own house with some ridiculous conditions," said Mandy. She ended her spill of annoyance by rolling her eyes and exhaling deeply through her lips.
Runa smiled, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "Neither do I," she said.
Mandy tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and stood up. "Then I will accompany you until later tonight. I don't have a curfew and as long as I don't stay over, we're not breaking any rules, right?"
"Only until eleven," Runa corrected. "That's my curfew."
"Fine."
When Runa caught the twinkle in Mandy's eyes, the enthusiasm she radiated made Runa smile.
"I'll make dinner," Mandy said while walking into the kitchen and opening the fridge.
"Since when can you cook?" asked Runa, half-jokingly.
Mandy chuckled and closed the fridge door, then narrowed her eyes at Runa. "If it's just spaghetti, I can do it."
Runa pouted. She knew Mandy had never touched the cooking utensils in her house.
"Go ahead. I really want to taste your cooking," challenged Runa, giving Mandy a mischievous grin.
Mandy walked back to the couch and grabbed her phone. "Now that I think about it, I'm not in a good mood for cooking today," she said. "I'll just order some food for us."