Later that day, Matthew was supposed to meet his friends at Daxon's apartment but Daxon said that his apartment was a mess so they decided to meet at Timothy's place instead. He doesn't know if Timothy was fine with them hanging around his apartment because he never says anything. Though he doesn't look like he minds at all, he doesn't look like he doesn't mind it either.
Blame it on the poker-faced mask that Timothy always wears.
Nevertheless, it never stopped them from hanging out in his apartment.
Matthew sat on Timothy's sofa while Nic and Mason were talking to each other. He was thinking about how he was going to start bringing out Olivia's theory about the existence of a vigilante that was targeting people who were abusing women and children in any form.
He knew that he had to address the issue sooner before it became more complicated. He needed to tell his friends and talk to Olivia about it as well. So Matthew took a deep breath and prepared to speak.
But before he could open his mouth to say something, the door to Timothy's apartment burst open. He looked in the direction of Timothy who was busy working on his computers and saw that he was not startled and doesn't seem annoyed as well that someone just came barging into his apartment. It was as if Timothy had already expected that someone would arrive.
Now that he thought about it, Matthew realized that maybe, Timothy was fine with them hanging out in his apartment. Because if he was not, he wouldn't have given them the passcode to the smart lock of his door.
Matthew looked in the direction of the door and found Daxon walking in. It has been more than two weeks since they last saw or heard from him and he looks…fine.
They had seen Daxon come out of his apartment before, after locking himself up for two weeks. He looked like he didn't shave or shower whenever he locked himself up. They doubt if he even eats or sleeps. But this time, Daxon looks like he had already caught up with sleep ever since he came back last night. He had already taken a shower and shaved as well.
"Where have you been?" Nic instantly asked him because no one really knows where he was when he left his apartment. All they knew was that Daxon just locked himself up in his apartment. It was just recently that they heard from Lily, his mother, that he left and gone somewhere. Although Daxon told Lily where he went, they doubt if it was the truth. He could have gone somewhere.
"Hellebore," Daxon nonchalantly replied as he walked towards them and plopped himself on the single armchair. Though he had already slept, showered, and shaved, it seems like he still needs more rest.
Nic's face darkens. Then he shook his head. "No, you were not. I checked with my Mom and said that you weren't there," Nic said. He was talking about their vacation house by the lake at Hellebore. Because that is the only place he could think of where Daxon went. Nic's parents give them liberty in the vacation house. But Nic's mother strictly instructed them not to bring outsiders.
Daxon gave his cousin a dry look and said, "The lake house is not the only place I can go to at Hellebore," Then he leaned his body on the soft chair which was not there before. It was a chair that Megan bought because she thought that one sofa is not enough in Timothy's apartment which is always flocked with unannounced visitors.
But Megan fell in love with that armchair because it was so comfortable so she claimed that the chair was hers and no one is allowed to sit there if she is present. But since she is not, Daxon took the chance and indulged in the comfort of that single armchair.
Nic took in the words that Daxon said until he realized what he meant. His eyes instantly narrowed at him. "You did not…" He said.
Daxon rested his head on the back of the chair and closed his eyes. But he smirked when he said, "I did," He was purposely annoying his cousin.
Nic stood up from the other single armchair where he was seated and propped his hands on his waist. "I cannot believe you went there. It was like a sanctuary for Mom and Dad," He said in an annoyed tone. He could not believe that Daxon invaded the place that his parents called their sanctuary. He doesn't want to imagine what kind of mess he made in that place.
Not too far from the vacation house that Nic's family owned at Hellebore, there was a meadow that was surrounded by towering trees, and a cliff that was overlooking the lake. It was a property that is also owned by Nic's family so it was very private and secluded.
It was also probably the darkest place in Hellebore simply because no light could be seen in that area or no light could ever reach that area aside from the light coming from the moon and stars. So it was perfect for stargazing.
They had all been there and Nic's mother said that they could always come there if they needed a place to just stop and unwind. If it was peace they wanted or a place to clear their heads, that was the perfect place.
And Daxon must have probably realized that. He opened his eyes to look at Nic and said, "Just exactly what I needed," He needed inspiration so that he could finish that song that he was writing but he just cannot seem to find it.
Usually, when writing songs, Daxon would just lock himself up in his apartment, but when he runs out of inspiration, he would go out. Sometimes, he would just drive to nowhere until inspiration strikes in. But if it didn't work, he would climb a mountain, or go to the beach. He realized that he could easily get inspiration if he was closer to nature.
So, he went to that part of Hellebore for a couple of days. That clearing was under the stars. It was dark. It was serene. It was like a different world. Just exactly the kind of place that Daxon needed to find inspiration.
But it looks like Nic doesn't appreciate him using that place to find inspiration because he looked at Daxon as if he wanted to murder him. Nic doesn't have a problem with Daxon coming there but only if he wanted to stargaze for a couple of hours then he should leave.
But he doesn't like the fact that Daxon stayed there for days. Daxon was a huge mess. His apartment was like a garbage pit. He tends to leave his mess and garbage anywhere and wherever he goes and Nic can't imagine what mountain of trash he left at his parents' sanctuary.
"Don't look at me like that. It's not as if I brought a girl there. I am not like Mason," Daxon rolled his eyes.
When his name was brought up, Mason instantly protested and threw him a pillow. "Hey! I never brought a girl there!" He cried because he never really did. He would take his women to a hotel or to their places but not his place even more so, his friends and family's place.
Nic glared at Mason and said, "And don't you even dare!" He pointed a finger at Mason. But the latter just ignored him because he didn't have any plans and he didn't even think of them.
Mason's attention went back to Daxon and asked, "Wait! Did you mean…you camped there?"
"Yeah," Daxon nodded his head and rested his head back on the chair.
"Are you fucking kidding me? That place is so cold," Mason said because he had tried to camp at that clearing once only to end up coming back to the house by the lake because he could not take the cold.
But Daxon just shrugs his shoulders and said, "It's not that cold," Nic, Mason, and Matthew looked at him as if he was mad. But then again, Daxon has always been odd, so it was not unusual.
After a while, Nic asked, "Are you going to go nomad again in the following days? Tell me so at once so that we could make arrangements,"
"Nah…I need a break. Maybe next month. And also…I'm looking for a maid," Daxon replied and again, they looked at him as if he had become even madder.
Even Timothy who was pretending that they do not exist and continued to work on his computer could not help but turn his head in Daxon's direction as if checking if he was really the one who spoke.
Daxon is not just a messy person but he also hates it when someone is trying to clean up his mess. That is why he never hires a maid to clean his apartment. He hates them. He doesn't want anyone touching his things so why would he hire a maid? He wanted to know where his things were and didn't want other people to go around his apartment messing up the way he wanted his apartment to be organized.
After a while of staring at Daxon as if waiting for him to say that he was just kidding, Mason finally cried, "Fucking finally! Looks like we could hang out now at Daxon's apartment since we'll be seeing it clean,"
Daxon glared at Mason and said, "My apartment is clean,"
"Yeah, right. Tell that to your Mom," Nic chuckled. It was rare to see Daxon's apartment clean, and that is when he finally decided to clean his apartment. That would be once every two months or three months. Not even Lily could do anything about it because Daxon doesn't want anyone touching his things, not even his mother saying that she will only misplace his things and then he will have trouble finding it.
"I don't need a maid. I could clean my apartment myself," Daxon said as if he was trying to convince himself.
"Then why are you searching for a maid?" Mason asked.
"Mom," Daxon simply replied. He was not exempted from those who feared their mother.
While they were busy castigating Daxon's eccentricity, Matthew remained silent. He was waiting for them to finish interrogating Daxon so that he could go on and inform them of the kind of trouble that his lovely girlfriend was about to cause them all.
And Nic noticed his silence so he pointed it out. "Hey, Matt. Are you okay?" Nic asked, which also caught the attention of Mason and Daxon. They were all looking at him.
Matthew straightened his back and leaned forward. He rested both his elbows on his thigh. "Yeah. It's just that…There is something I need to tell you about Liv," He said as he was rubbing his palms together.
"Liv?" Nic raised a brow.
"Did she get herself into trouble?" Mason asked, knowing that with Olivia's job, it is highly likely for her to get into trouble.
Matthew looked at each of them and nodded his head. "Yeah, something like that. She…" He wasn't able to finish his sentence because again, the door to Timothy's apartment suddenly burst open.
When they looked in the direction of the door, they saw Megan angrily walking toward them. Her eyes scanned the room until they landed on Matthew. Then she raised a finger and pointed it at him. "You asshole!" She cried angrily.
This time, Timothy had already stopped working and turned his chair to look at them. He has a scowl on his face obviously because it seems that his uninvited visitors did something to anger his woman. He doesn't like it. He was already preparing to throw them out but he waited to know why Megan was angry.
"What?" Matthew asked dumbfounded. At first, he was annoyed by the interruption but now, he was more perplexed because it seems like Megan was accusing him of something he wasn't aware of.