TWENTY TWO
James laid on his bed. The night wind was howling and the curtains flapped as they danced to the command of the harsh winds.
His hands curved in a manner above his head to form pillows, he rested his head gently as thoughts ran through his mind.
Nick called earlier to inform him that Suzanne had left for India to find a solution to her dad's strange ailment. This wasn't the first time he called and this also the 6 times he wasn't going to show concern.
He turned to the other side of the bed, disorganizing the bed sheets as he tried shielding himself from the cold. He looked at the temperature regulator - it had dropped to a lower degree but he didn't have the strength to set it.
"VIDA, keep the temperature lower," He ordered. Maybe the cold would help him sleep.
Merlin had been away for 3 days and he desperately needed her to warm his bed. He had slowly gone wild for sex and her absence wasn't helping.
Joy was at home too and she made sure he had his food - as always. Her loyalty triggered him and his trust for her blossomed. Once she tried talking to him about Suz but he ended up slapping her. He saw it as crossing her boundaries.
But it felt strange because his brain wasn't acting according to his heart. Every part of him wanted to do the exact opposite of what his heart felt and too there was this strange unexplainable feeling he felt inside of him. Like a different soul possessed his body.
He looked around as sleep wasn't coming. He remembered Suzanne and hoped she was doing well. She was a good person, someone he had always vowed to protect but then what happened....
He shook his head at the thought and cursed himself. "What on earth is wrong with me? Shouldn't I be worried about my wife? Instead of Suz?" This is strange.
She left without his knowledge and kept him in suspense....but strangely a part of him didn't care.
The cold intensified and he decided to take a hot shower. Flapping the blanket off his body, he lazily stood up from the bed. A quick shower would help.
He pulled off his dull coloured jacket and placed it inside his wardrobe, then with a towel around his neck, he entered the bathroom.
"VIDA, active shower water slightly above room temperature." he ordered pulling off his body hug shirt.
The water drained down his body and he wished it washed out his clouded thoughts. He raked his hair in frustration and tried watching his reflections from the double mirror inside the bathroom.
He still looked young and handsome but he felt he was old - his heart was old. Only people with weak hearts felt emotional trauma.
"Do I have double soul?" He queried his reflections from the mirrors. They looked at him, eyeball to eyeball - just the way he stared at them.
They spoke as he spoke too "This doesn't make sense. I mean this two women are making me literally insane....one part of me desires Merlin and the other Suzanne..how can I-"
He choked as water entered his buccal cavity. Then he silently continued his bath as he stared at his miserable self.
He dried himself by wrapping the towel around his waist. He left the bathroom with a different towel on his head.
He found his way to his wardrobe and ransacked the whole thing, impatiently looking for what to wear.
He found his pajamas and angrily wore them. Even a piece of his clothes was hard to find... maybe joy misplaced it or he was just too tired and stressed out. He didn't know.
Arranging his clothes, he noticed something unusual. Something he was sure he didn't mess with. Something that made him see everything when his eyes roamed around his room earlier. Something that was on before he left for the shower.
But then he didn't hear or give a command to VIDA. So what happened? Is VIDA faulty?
The light was gone. He just realized he was in the dark all these while.
And it felt strange that the room was warm now. Didn't I just leave my room in a cold temperature earlier? Did the wind stop?
"VIDA, turn on the lights." he ordered, trying hard to conceal the fear and uncertainty in his voice.
The room shone as bright lights appeared. The temperature regulator close to his wardrobe had returned to room temperature. Definitely someone was here.
He raised his head and freaked out at the gigantic shadow on the wall above his head. Cold shivers ran down his spine and his legs weakened. His warm body turned cold and his hands trembled in fear.
He turned slowly to face a naked figure on top of his bed.