Starting Off Wrong [𝐠𝐱𝐠]

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏: 𝐎𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞'𝐬 𝐎𝐟𝐟-𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐧

The rustling wakes me up. My eyes barely open, but once I see Aurelia, I immediately rise up. She's in the middle of setting her bed, her back faced towards me. I pull open the curtain a tiny bit and notice that it's still a bit dark outside, but the sun has managed to peak itself across the horizon.

"Aurelia."

Aurelia drops the pillow she's holding and spins around, frightened. "God, Odette," she snaps. "You nearly sent me into cardiogenic shock," she mumbles. I stare at her, having absolutely no idea what she's talking about. Then again, my brain has been dead for a few days now, so it's really nothing new.

"Where are you headed off to?" I ask, noticing that she is already dressed.

"I planned on heading to the library," she answers, continuing to tidy up her bed.

"Now, you may think I'm an idiot, Aurelia, but I am absolutely not. The library does not open this early." I slip out of my bed and as soon the bottom of my feet touch the cold floorboards, I sort of wish I had stayed in bed, but this might be the only chance I get to talk to Aurelia.

Aurelia turns around and prepares to say something, but when she sees me, she looks taken aback. "You look like you haven't slept in weeks," she says, slowly making her way towards me.

"Are you feeling okay?" "Oh, I'm alright," I quickly say in an attempt to dismiss her worry. Yes, I do feel like vomiting from getting no sleep these past few nights, but all is well. At least I hope so. I don't happen to know where the infirmary is anyhow.

"Okay," Aurelia says quietly. She turns around, facing her back towards me. She looks through her backpack which is placed on her chair. In fact, it doesn't look like she's looking through anything. She just looks like she's dawdling.

"So, where are you actually going?"

"I'm not sure, but you should focus more on getting some sleep." She swings her backpack over her shoulder and heads towards the door. She opens the door slightly, but stops when I ask, "Are you feeling okay?"

She looks at me and gives me a firm "yes," and with that, she's out the door. That was certainly an indefinite answer. I don't care how she's feeling right now. She keeps running away from me; ever since that Saturday outing. I'm not going to let her get away now.

I quickly grab a pair of socks lying atop my desk and put them on, watching the door, thinking she might come back. I finish putting my socks on and swallow the lump in my throat before leaving the room.

I look cautiously down the hall as I lock the door behind me. To my relief, I spot Aurelia waiting by the stairs.

I pick up my pace to reach her. This feels like a ticking time bomb.

Once I reach her, I take a few deep breaths, catching my breath. She looks at me in surprise and immediately, she starts racing down the steps. I suppose she didn't expect me to run after her.