A Night's Mistake

Part 24: A Familiar Scent

Keira hurriedly drove towards the nearest hospital so Patrick could get treated but the young man stopped her before she got out of the car and get some help.

He grabbed her arm and pleaded,

"Just take me home.. I don't want to be hospitalized.."

"But I can't let you go home with all those wound. You have to get treated." Reiterated Keira.

Patrick pleaded her to not make the situation worse for him and keeps convincing her that he is fine.

"I'm okay. This is nothing. Trust me." He pleaded.

Seeing the look on the man's eyes, Keira took a deep breath and calmed herself down.

She started the car engine and drove to Patrick's house. 

As they reached the parking area, Keira hurriedly went out the car to help Patrick walk. She placed his hands around her shoulders and she placed her arms around his torso as a support.

Even with the weight of the man, Keira did not waver and keeping him up, and walked him to his unit.

"Passcode?" Asked Keira.

"3 zeroes then 1". Answered Patrick.

"Seriously?" Keira annoyedly asked as she thinks that this is such an easy passcode to decode.

She keyed in the passcode and door unlocked it self.

As she carried Patrick in, she's immediately taken aback by a certain smell that's lingering in the room.

It wasn't cigarette, nor was it alcohol. As she tries to drag the man to his couch, her head started flashing scenes of an unidentified person who seemed to be carrying her for an unknown reason.

She tried to get her focus back and dropped Patrick on to the couch, breathing heavily with her mind still on a haze. 

She's getting real confuses with these flashbacks on her mind that doesn't seem to be hers.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She stood up and searched for the first aid that could have been placed somewhere in his house.

As she finds the kit inside the bathroom, she gets a clean towel and prepared hot water to wash and disinfect the wounds.

She was in the midst of appplying medication, Patrick's phone rang.

"Kath"

Keira reaches for the guy's phone and showed it to him. Patrick grabbed the phone and turned it off.

"Why didn't you answer it?" Asked Keira.

"You don't have to know." Patrick breifly answered.

He was awake but wasn't speaking. He looked really tired but didn't want to close his eyes.

"I'm almost done, so you should rest. I'll leave the medication here so you dont forget to apply them tomorrow." Keira said as she finished cleaning up.

Keira looks at him before she got up and as she stepped away, Patrick grabbed her wrist.

"You don't have to risk yourself like that next time... that's dangerous... " he muttered.

Keira looks back at him,

"You've done that so many times for me.. I was just returning the favor.." she replied.

"But you don't have to risk your life like that.." Patrick said in a more clear voice, his hands gripping on  the woman's wrist.
"Something teribble could've happened again to you..." he mumbled.

Keira stares at him with confusion,
"Again?'

Patrick sighed. He forced himself to stand up even with his whole body aching and dragged Keira out the door.

"You should go. It's late. It's not safe and appropriate for a woman like you to stay at a man's house alone at this hour. Go." He insisted.

Keira took a deep breath and left as Patrick watched her walked away until he could no longer see her silhouette.

He went back to his dark room, dropped his body on the couch and covered his face with his hands in disappointment.

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Keira gets home and went straight to her room. She finally realizes that her legs has become numb and can no longer feel anything due to the exhaustion she went throught the day. She droppes her tired body on her bed and the next thing she knew, it was already morning.

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"Go away from me! Let me go!"
Keira cries but no body seems to listen to her. No body seems to hear her. She tried her best to use her arms to swerve and get away from these these unknown men but they just won't move no matter how much she tried.

These men were laughing wickedly. They were obviously about to take advantage of her and Keira could not even move to ask for help. She was screaming her lungs out, crying of desparation but no one seems to hear her pleas.

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Keira gasps for air as she opened her eyes. The sun light flashing on her face, blinding her eyes, made her realize that she was having a dream. A very bad dream.

She gets up and grabbed her phone. It was 8:45 AM. She immediately goes to the bathroom to clean herself as she was still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, with that familiar scent lingering on the fabric.

She was getting more and more confused with all these pictures flashing in her head. Are they for real? Were they things she only imagined?

Her head is becoming more and more disoriented. She's afraid she's getting out of her mind.  She needs to get these things off. But how?