“How am Ifeeling?Did you hit your head somewhere, cheeseball?” He looked at me, blinking, trying to focus. Gesturing toward the entrance, he asked, “Would you want to… come in?”
Before I could think, my feet moved on their own, stepping inside. The cottage was beautiful. Ivory-colored walls, an earl grey sofa, large glass window panes that let in streams of natural light, and a wall-mounted TV in the spacious hall. The kitchen, though, was the real surprise—huge and impeccably organized.
Manav moved into the kitchen and poured two glasses of water, handing me one before sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter, sipping from his glass.
“Nice house?” I could not help but smile, seeing everything organized in every corner.
“All thanks to your brother,” he replied with a small nod.
“But you’re keeping it so tidy and clean.”
“Mmhmm…” He rubbed his forehead as if he was in pain.
“You don’t look well.”
He glanced at me, then took another sip of water before shaking his head lightly. “I’m fine. Just a bit of a headache.”
Because of me. He went into that freezing water because of me.
You are dangerous to mankind, Kiara!
I stepped toward his stool. He was sitting casually, with a sleepy face, wearing a white t-shirt and black sweatpants. His eyes were red and swollen, and his face was flushed. He watched me carefully as I moved closer. He almost winced when I placed the back of my hand on his forehead.
“What are you doing?”
“Shit… You're burning up!” I said, feeling the heat radiating from his skin.
“Am I?” he asked, his voice low as he watched my hand move to his throat, checking again.
“Yes… Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I’m fine.” He just blinked, glancing at his watch. “I have to leave for a meeting…” His gaze landed on me, and that persistent voice inside my head kept cursing my decision to push him into the freezing ocean at midnight.
“I am calling a doctor. Move another inch and I’m throwing you again into the ocean.” I walked towards the intercom by the fridge.
Before I could reach it, he gently grabbed my hand, his eyes locking onto mine. “Cheeseball, I don’t need a doctor. This meeting is important!”
“Really? With who? The potatoes and the capsicums?” I snapped, “Are you all going to write some sort of culinary constitution together?”
He tipped his head back, “Please, let me go… No doctor needed.” He looked at me with the cutest scowl ever invented.
“I’ll check on you again, mister, and don’t forget your medicine.”
I have no clue why I’m doing this. I’m taking care of a random guy—something I’ve never done before. I could be the next lab experiment! Dear scientists, sign me up. My body's gone rogue, and my brain's calling a code red.
As I turned to leave, his voice floated after me, “And next time, feel free to come in without the wait. The spare key’s in the hanging planter.”
____________
“I mean, he's my chef,” I clarified.
Myra paused, “Wait, yourchef? Like, the person who cooks for you?”
“Yeah, but it's not like that,” I hastily added. “It was just a game. Things got out of hand.”
“He swam in the ocean at 3 a.m. because of agame?” Myra sounded incredulous.
I sighed. “I shouldn’t have done it.”
