I sat beside my husband on the bus and stared at the sky. Birds flew in the blue sky as I laid lazily on the seat. My mind wasn’t interested in watching anything for the moment as my mind revolved around Vampire, and I just couldn’t get myself out of there!
I almost felt like I was trapped in a maze, and everywhere I would glance, that place would be filled with Vampire and his memories. I knew I still had feelings for that guy, and I couldn’t deny anymore that my emotions had taken the turn of love without even realizing.
Right now, I was so invested that I couldn’t think of anyone other than Vampire! I pursed my lips and suppressed the emotions flowing in my heart. It was no use thinking about the man who had cheated on me with a rich girl!
But was it called cheating? We had just been having sex, and hadn’t confirm our relationship yet!
I didn’t want to think about it anymore. So I closed my eyes with determination and tried to sleep. But no matter what I would do, I could only see Vampire’s face before my eyes. I frowned and started counting sheeps in my sleep, but even after that, Vampire would continue to show me his face.
I remembered one time I was sunbathing on the beach when a Vampire came over with sunscreen. His face showed an expression of worry as he looked at me. “Your skin will burn. Don’t stay out for too long.”
I smiled smugly and glanced at him. “Vampire, you won’t l-” I held back from saying the word ‘love’ because to be honest, I didn’t want to get serious at that time; I just wanted to enjoy the rare moment with him and feel loved. “-like me if I get overly tanned?”
The editor sighed and shook his head. Then he sat down beside me only to open the cream tube on his hand and poured it all on my stomach, shoulders, and legs.
My eyes widened, and I protested. “Hey!”
Vampire put his index finger on his lips and said, “Don’t say a word. This is a free service on my behalf.” And then, he continued to rub my body.
That day, he had rubbed me so thoroughly that I flushed and my face turned red. And after reaching the hotel, we both directly jumped on the bed.
Tears suddenly appeared in my eyes. I took sharp breaths to control my emotions as I turned my face toward the window to hide my crying face from my husband. Thankfully, he was also sleeping so he couldn’t see my expressions.
After a few minutes, I did manage to catch up on my sleep, but it was filled with nightmares, and every time the person leaving me was Vampire. There wasn’t a single moment when I saw Lewis in my dreams. It almost felt as if that person didn’t exist at all!
Just when I thought that my dreams were the real deal, someone shook me awake. I was startled to see Lewis’s face and suddenly realized that it had all been my dream.
A bitter smile formed on my lips. Even after getting hurt because of Vampire, I still couldn’t let that guy go. I swallowed my emotions and nodded.
My husband didn’t say anything and simply carried the bag on his back. He dragged me outside the bus.
What appeared before my eyes was a village. This place had a sea of people walking on the narrow road filled with rocks. There were trees on either side of the road. The bus stopped right outside in the open area where the cement road stopped. On my left and right, I could see trees and shrubs everywhere. I could even hear birds chirping in the sky and a mountain far away.
This place was beautiful, but even if it was, I didn’t feel an ounce of warmth in my heart. The world before my eyes was cold without the Vampire in the picture.
It had been so long since I felt loved again, and now when I had finally caught that feeling, it flew away without turning back through my fingers! And everything before my eyes reminded me of Vampire.
How good would it be if I was watching these things with him instead?
I pursed my lips and turned to my husband, whse eyes were on my face. I was stunned and said, “What is this place?”
For now, I wanted to hide my boiling emotions and play along with Lewis for now. At this time, I didn’t have anyone other than his shoulders to cry on, and who knows, perhaps I might end up loving him in the future.
He smiled and nodded. Then he dragged my hand toward the road filled with mud and rocks without saying a word.
After crossing the muddy road, I continued to walk behind my husband and went toward a bridge. Before approaching the bridge, we saw several stalls filled with local food items. I should have been happier after seeing that, but I wasn’t. On the contrary, I felt a lump rising up my throat that made me nearly choke.
Me and Vampire had also visited such a place on the beach filled with food stalls. I didn’t even see his face back then and quickly rushed to the stalls, directly picking up any random food. I hadn’t even read the price of that food, and started chewing. After finishing it up, I would go and devour the food placed on another stall.
Behind me, poor Vampire would just sigh and pay up the money and coax the furious shop owners. And I would continuously glance at him and wink.
My eyes moistened at the memory. These stalls were also similar. It was just that the person beside me changed as well. I suddenly realized that I didn’t want to stand here with Lewis at all! I pursed my lips and averted my eyes. “Let’s walk further.”
My husband was surprised. “Don’t you like street food?”
“Not anymore!” The words squeezed out through my teeth, and I walked ahead. I didn’t dare to look at my husband’s face right now. He would have realized that the reason I suddenly refused to eat that food was also because of Vampire.
So I simply added another sentence to divert Lewis’s attention away. “I want to walk.”
I didn’t know whether my distraction worked or not, but my husband didn’t say another word about the street food after that.
Then after that, we were both silent for the entire day. I barely ate food, and whenever I did, I remembered eating with Vampire outside in the cafe. In the evening, the villagers had arranged for a special theatre for the guests here but I was in no mood to watch it.
The story of that theatre itself started with romance between the people who were married to someone else. Wasn’t this similar to my condition? I really didn’t have the heart to continue watching this theatre after this.
Vampire’s image appeared before my eyes as I lowered my head and tried not to cry bitterly. After about an hour, my husband realized that my mood wasn’t getting any better. So he sighed and said, “I didn’t make it any worse, did I?”
But I didn’t say anything. I continued to pretend to like the ground beneath my feet. Then I heard Lewis sigh again. “Let’s go home.”