Vincent's POV:
I felt a blanket fall over me. She must've thought I'd fallen asleep, and didn't say a word. She came down to sleep in the living room with me. I guess she wasn't so crazy after all.
I sat up on the couch, once I was sure she was asleep. She looked so peaceful, it reminded me of Urah. I couldn't help but watch her. She was a little spoiled, a little unbearable, but she wasn't the worst. I stayed up, in case he came back.
He didn't. Morning came, and I went to use the bathroom. Then I heard her call my name, and suddenly I wished she was still asleep. She wasn't the worst, but she was a pain.
*******************
Monica's POV
I woke up to my alarm and searched for my phone to hit the snooze button. I saw I'd missed a lot of calls and texts from my parents. Skimming through them, I understood that they couldn't come immediately. They promised to be home soon, and left Vincent in charge.
I wasn't too surprised. I didn't know of any cousins or uncles or aunts, so there was no one else. Vincent was a full time employee, not just a driver. He also executed some important tasks for my father. He didn't have much else to do as my father was out of town.
I couldn't even be mad about them thinking I needed a babysitter. I was an adult, but I was still terrified about being a target for a serial killer. Plus, I felt safer with Vincent.
Vincent.. Where was he? I sat up and scanned the room, wondering if he left already, leaving me there alone? I got anxious and walked up to my room to look for him. He wasn't there, so I went back down.
"Vincent?", I called from the living room. There was no answer.
I went into the kitchen, he wasn't there either. I ran outside, his car was still parked. I thought he had to be in the house. Or maybe the serial killer got him instead?
As I came back in, he was walking into the living room. So focused on his belt, he didn't notice I was standing there. I wondered if I should say something. But then he looked up for a split second, then back to his belt, and slowly up again at me.
" Good morning", he said and went back to his belt.
"Good morning. I couldn't find you so..", I explained, pointing to the door behind me.
" Really?", he asked, done with his belt. "I guess you're not sick in the head after all"
"What?", I asked, confused, a slight frown on my face.
" Well, when you asked me to leave yesterday instead of beg me to stay, I just assumed... ", he looked up and saw the expression on my face, then looked away.
"What I mean is, you were calm about everything. Which seemed more like a symptom than bravery", he explained.
I thought about it and couldn't conclude if it was a good thing or an insult, so I let it go. Walking over to the sofa I started to pack the blankets and fold them neatly.
"I also noticed you slept here. You didn't mention that you were scared", he said.
" Scared? I wasn't scared. I just didn't want to sleep upstairs ", I argued.
" So you prefer the sofa to your bed? Maybe tonight I'll just sleep there and you sleep here", he said, walking over to a sofa and sitting down.
"Sleep in my be....", I paused because something clicked in my brain. "Wait.. Tonight? You're.. Sleeping here?"
Vincent looked at me then away. "I guess it's intermittent", he said to himself, I could hear.
" What? ", I asked, confused at his reply.
" Your symptom. It's intermittent", he said turning to me. He realised I didn't follow.
"Your parents put me in charge. I'm sure they'll soon be home, so if we could..."
"No", I interrupted him.
He just stared with his mouth open. Then he looked away and sighed.
" Monica...", he started calmly but was cut short again.
"I'm an adult. I don't need a babysitter. Ateema's been gone a while now and I'm doing just fine on my own. I can survive till my parents come home", I was confused by my own words, but they just kept coming out of my mouth.
Vincent got up and stood before me. I felt the urge to look away.. And then I did.
" I'm sure you can. But I'm not sure I can", I looked up on hearing his answer.
"I didn't put it on my résumé, but yet I have been asked to babysit you", he took two steps closer to me.
" I haven't complained, and so, why should you?", he took another step forward.
"I'm not sure how long I'd survive with a selfish whiny ungrateful big baby like you..", he paused. "... I'm just going to do my job. You can carry on with whatever it is you do with your time, and I'll do my job"
He was so close to me I could hear him breathe. I started to feel weird in my stomach again. So I took a few steps back. He noticed i was uncomfortable and sighed, then walked back to sit down.
Putting his watch around his wrist, he tried to buckle it. I noticed he was a little annoyed, and I felt bad about the things he said. But he was right.
He got injured trying to help me, and I never properly thanked him for it. I thought I was okay with a babysitter, but i guess I really wasn't. I put the blankets down and walked closer to him.
"Where are you going?", I asked. He looked up, then away.
" Home. I need a change of clothes, you're coming with me. You can't be here alone", he said, still struggling with his watch.
"What?", I asked unconsciously
" We're not going to argue this again. If you would like to shower first, go do that. That way we can get breakfast while we're out", he said, finally buckling his watch.
His words echoed in my head a few times, before they stuck.
"Breakfast... Yeah", I murmured as I made my way up to my room, carrying the blankets.
I showered. After a long time of being indecisive about what to wear, I finally decided. I picked out a casual yellow gown for comfort. When o was ready, I went downstairs.
Vincent wasn't in the living room. I got my phone and headed out. He was beside his car, on the phone. I walked to the car and got in. After a few minutes, he got in too and we drove off.
**************************
He had a lovely home with beautiful decor. The walls in the living room were white, which contrasted the grey furniture and carpet. There was a big screen TV on the wall with a home theater set under it.
His whole living room had minimalist vibes about it; from the little art pieces to the little potted plants. There was a large see-through wall, with grey curtains hanging from the top.
The view was not bad. The sun shone through the glass and on the plants. It was all very relaxing.
I noticed a few pictures too. Vincent looked so normal in them. There was one of him with a guy. They looked very close. Then there was another photo of them, but there was a girl.
"Don't touch anything", I heard Vincent say as I tried to pick it up.
" I won't be long.", he said before walking through a door that led into the rest of the house.
"Could I at least sit?", I murmured to myself as I went closer to admire the plants.
"So... Where are we going?", I heard Vincent ask from behind me after about fifteen minutes.
I perceived his perfume and turned around. He held a medium to small blue bag in one hand, and had a laptop bag hanging from his shoulder.
" I'm picking the place?", I asked, and got up from where I sat.
He looked at me with raised eyebrows, saying nothing. I knew it was my cue to reply his question.
" Okay. Let's go", I said, and walked past him to the door we came in from.
*********************
Vincent worked steadily on his laptop while we ate. I was thinking about what I wanted to do with my last free day. I had a lot planned, which was weird. I couldn't think of anything.
"Two days of no school, and nothing", I said out loud.
Vincent looked up from his laptop for like five seconds and looked back. Then he took another sip of his coffee, and continued to work.
" Your messing up my space", Vincent said, eyes still on his screen.
"What?", I asked. He sighed and looked up.
" Your aura. Your being sad, it's a little distracting", he explained.
I was shocked at his theory. And then I found myself laughing. I could tell he was confused by that.
"You're so weird", I said between laughs. He didn't laugh though. So I tried to keep a straight face.
" Well I'm sorry Vincent, but, I can't help it. I can't just not be sad. I'm bored, and someone is looking to kill me. So if you have any suggestions...", I trailed off.
******************
Well I didn't expect that he'd ask me to help out with the work he had to do.. And it was a lot.
We went back to his place because most of the materials he needed to work on were there. It was better than to go back and forth.
He had me sort the papers, which I had no idea what was in them, by the way. But he gave them some official names, and explained which went were. He even had me get him a drink occasionally. I worked as his PA!
We worked non-stop for hours.. I'd say about four hours. Then, my part was over, but he was still busy on his system. I sat beside him and watched him work.
"Don't bother, you're never going to get it", he said, without looking away from his screen.
I scoffed and got up to get some water. When I got back, he held up a paper in each hand, looking back and forth, from one to the other. I sat down picking up the remote.
I felt him turn to look at me; felt his burning stare. I touched something in his living room after all. I still didn't turn to look at him.
I turned the TV on. It was a smart TV. I heard him sigh, and felt him look away back to his work. I opened Netflix, but I didn't have his password. I highly doubted that he'd ever give me it.
" it's 1974", I heard him say.
I turned to him, surprised. "What?", I asked
" The password", he said.
Then he looked up at me, and turned to the TV. That's when I understood. He turned back to continue working. I stared at the TV for a while and came up with an idea.
"Are you almost done?", I asked.
" I'm almost done, why?", he replied
"We should see a movie after", I suggested. He turned to me, surprised, then to the TV and back to his laptop.
He didn't even object. Which either meant, he didn't care enough to refuse or, he was up for it. I made my way to the kitchen to look for any snacks we could use for the movie.
I thought, if I was going to see the movie alone, I had to enjoy his snacks. I found some popcorn kernels in one of his cabinets. I also found a pan and some oil.
After sometime, Vincent came into the kitchen. He walked over to where I stood beside the stove top.
" What are you doing? ", he asked.
" Making popcorn", I answered smugly.
"Why didn't you just use the microwave?"
"Oh", I hadn't realised it was there. I was just excited to make it like Ateema used to. She never used the microwave.
Vincent didn't wait for an answer. He walked to the sink, washed his hands, and dried them on a towel that was hanging from.... I don't really know where it came from. Then he walked back to the living room.
In a few minutes I came in carrying the bowl of popcorn. He was on the floor again, focused on his phone. The milky aroma of the popcorn filled the room. I sat on the floor beside him, carefully so I didn't spill the popcorn.
" You don't have to sit here", he said
"I know, I just want to get comfortable", I replied.
Picking up the remote, I opened Netflix on his TV again and scrolled to find a movie. I stopped at a movie called, 'Twilight'. It's a vampire - werewolf movie. The synopsis seemed interesting too.
"Pick another one", he said.
I turned to find him looking at the TV screen. I looked back to the TV.
"Why not this one?", I asked.
I was surprised at the fact that he didn't just leave but actually asked for a different movie.
"I don't like vamp-werewolf movies. Just pick another one", he said.
" why don't you?", I became interested. "They give you nightmares?"
He laughed. He actually laughed at my joke.. It was a small laugh.
"No.. They're just ridiculous. There's a different story every time. And vampires? What's _their_deal? They get to live for a thousand years.. Oh no wait, they're immortal", he said sarcastically.
I was surprised to hear his reply. That's when I decided we had to watch Twilight.
" Have you seen this one yet?", I asked.
"No.. I don't need to", he replied. " it's the same"
"How can they be the same if the stories are different?", I asked.
He turned to me, and said nothing. Had no answer probably.
" Let's see how this story goes", I said, as I turned my attention back to the Tv and put the movie on.
I picked some popcorn, to celebrate my win.
***************
The movie was good. Of course every five minutes Vincent would point out how ridiculous something was and I'd argue, logically, from a vamp or werewolf's point of view.
Overall, it was a lot of fun. We had a few laughs too. The popcorn was almost gone by the end of the movie. It was a big bowl. We'd just finished arguing about something funny.
While laughing, my head fell on his shoulder. After laughing a while, I was tired. I let my head rest there. Then I came to the realization, and lifted my head to look at him.
"Sorry about that", I said trying not to laugh again.
But then our eyes met. And our faces were so close. And it's like one of the 'ridiculous' scenes he pointed out from twilight. My eyes went to his lips. The urge to laugh was gone, leaving the urge to lean in.
The sound of my own gasp startled me, knocking me out of it. I sat up straight so there was some distance. I cleared my throat which was stupid by the way. I don't get why people do that at such a time, it only made the atmosphere a lot more awkward.
Vincent's POV
She insisted on watching the vampire-werewolf movie. It had been a while since I kicked back with someone. I didn't want to leave just because she chose the wrong movie.
The popcorn was good. The crunch was different from microwave popcorn. We argued a lot about the movie. Some arguments were really funny.
At the end of the movie, she explained something and we laughed. But she laughed so hard she fell on my shoulder. I couldn't laugh after that.
I felt like screaming for help because of what I felt. How she made me feel. I knew the feeling. It was nothing short of trouble.
I thought of pushing her away and walking into the house, but I'd have come off as a sociopath. Then she lifted her head and turned to me, our faces inches apart.
"Sorry about that", she said.
At the time I just thought, what do I do now? What is this? Should I...? Maybe...?
Then she sat up, away from me. I was grateful.
I swallowed something I hadn't realised was lodged in my throat. I felt relief, and released the breath I'd been holding.
But it was too early for gratitude. Because she turned to me and said,
" Although.."
Then I felt her hand on the back of my head as she moved closer and kissed me.
*********************
This might be the longest yet.
I'm excited to know what happens next😂.
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