Chapter

Rosette's POV:

Lying down in bed after noon was indeed a luxury. My body still felt sore in many weird places. It sure was troublesome but not more than my mind. The stupid thing kept replaying yesterday night like a broken TV.

I could barely look at him without sinking my eyes on his lips and the fact that he was content on making most of his Sunday by staying home didn't help much either.

He was sitting on the sofa across the bed reading a book and sipping on black coffee.

For quite some time now I was pretending to be asleep.

The thought of talking to him like everyday was foreign. The morning had been a daze of water and warmth. But since I had not cleared the line of the mistake.. it had all become awkward. What exactly would I have said even if I could. I couldn't lie about the sex, or fake memory loss when every eye contact resulted with me becoming a tomato.

Without even realizing, I groaned at my insolence.

His eyes snapped away from the book to me.

"You're up?" he asked.

"Yes." I replied, sitting up slowly. I was changed into a cotton nightgown, and though it still hurt a little here and there, the pain wasn't brutal. I had to thank Jasmine and her cooling ointments for the last part.

"Good" he said. Before returning back to his book.

This was awkward. He had seemed fine in the morning. Was something wrong now?

I slowly slipped out of the bed, testing my legs if they could walk before making way towards the my purse that hung on the wall.

"So... you are going to come back to your room." I asked in attempt of making small talk while rummaging through my purse for my phone.

"Yes if you're fine by that." he replied barely looking up.

What? I let out an awkward chuckle.

"why wont I be fine... after all it was your room sir." I replied finally grabbing my phone from the back zip.

He slapped the hard cover book shut loudly. I almost dropped my phone and jumped out of my skin

"Cant you just call me by my name, or are you still terrified of me?" he asked with the same calm and cold aura that drove me nuts.

"Your name.. Cal.." I could not say his name. the memories of his name leaving my lips like juicy moans, stripped my senses.

I squeezed my lips shut and blinked twice to sweep that picture away from my head.

The devil of a man knew exactly what I was reminiscing because he leaned back in his seat, with that cunning smile forming on his face.

"What's wrong?" his smirk grew wider, "Do you perhaps prefer calling me something like, honey, babe, darling-,"

"Caelum." I gulped the memories down as I pronounced the inauspicious name.

"Good." He said, a smile of triumph on his face.

I sighed lightly before pressing the start button of my phone. It was out of battery.

I plugged it near the dressing table. My mouth still tasted bitter due to that hangover juice.

I usually kept the water on the little tea table in front of the sofa. I dared not keep it at the nightstand. Last time I did so, I toppled it over in my sleep.

I stalked gingerly to the table and poured myself a glass. I chugged it down and huffed.

"Have a seat. I want to talk to you about something?" he asked out of nowhere. His face was serious. It must have been the water that I drank in a hurry or the mere words, but something made my stomach tighten.

How many times had 'talking' turned into nightmares for me?

"About what?" I replied with a question. I gulped. I was not sure what was coming at me, but judging by his expression it wasn't going to be pretty.

I sat on the single seater sofa at his left.

"About your.." he hesitated, "body."

I blinked, what was wrong with my body?

"What about my body?" I crossed my arms over my shoulders protectively.

"Your scars." He said. His voice had traces of so many emotions that it was difficult to stick to one.

My mind hollowed out, so he did think I was ugly.

He must have noticed my expression because he did not wait for my answer, "I do not know the extent of pain you experienced in that house.. neither can I erase those memories for you....." he clenched his fists, "But if you wish to erase the scars they gave you, I can help with that."

What was I supposed to interpret from his words? Pity? Disgust? Or Care?

"Do you .." my voice broke, "do you want me to get rid of them?" I asked. Blood throbbed in my head and my knees felt weak. All parts of me begging him to say a 'no' , just a 'no'.

"It's not for me to decide." He said. His eyes holding mine which were stinging with tears. "You are not ugly, Rose." He said slowly, as if he wanted me to listen and remember, as if he knew what I was thinking.

He sat there and let me stare into those great galaxies. I was dumb founded. He did not move a finger.

"Now, do you want them gone?" he asked.

"No." I whispered.

He clenched his jaw, "why?" he asked. His voice still calm.

"because.." I smiled lightly, "I want to heal.." I brushed a tear from my cheek, "Healing is slow. It requires patience. It is being honest about my pain that makes me invincible."

His eyes became soft. But his eyebrows pinched together. It was my truth that I told him, something I had held on. I wanted the scars to disappear just as politely as my horrors.

I wiped my eyes with the back of my hands and lifted the glass up to pour myself some more water. This confession had taken away such a heavy stone from my chest that I almost felt empty.

'RING VRR RING' my phone rang just then. Very few people contacted me, but when they did, it was mostly something urgent.

I kept the glass back on the table as I went to pick my phone. It was Libelle.

I picked it up, "Hey, kiddo."

"Hello, sister.." she replied, her voice weak.

"Something happened?" I was concerned, this girl's voice had the brightest ray of sunshine infused in it, but today she seemed drenched.

"I.. um.. might've gotten into trouble."

"What trouble? Are you okay. You didn't go home right?" The terrible things that happened in that house to me, Belle didn't go home right?

"I umm.. went biking yesterday.. and got into a little accident." She mumbled.

"Accident!" I almost yelled out.

"Oh please don't be mad. I just broke a leg." She pleaded.

"Broke a WHAT?" This girl.

"A leg." She replied.

"You haven't got a scolding in a while so you're going fooling around?! Who the hell allowed you to go biking?!!" My blood boiled, "How old are you? Should kids go around doing such dangerous things?! You feel great by making me worry!!?" I must have been really loud because Caelum came and stood behind me.

"I'm sorry." she cried sniffling, "I am in Aspen Valley Hospital. Come visit me."

"Okay okay, stop crying. I will come visit you within an hour. Take it easy." I sighed. It was hard to be mad at her when she started crying.

"*hic* *hic* I'm sorry." She said hiccupping from her tears.

"Don't cry my little peach. Its alright, its fine to make trouble once in a while. I'm not mad." I could only console her.

"Okay, but please come visit.." she sniffled again.

"I'll be there. Now rest. Bye bye."

"Bye. See you."

I cut the call and sighed.

Biking! Seriously! Out of all the fun activities young people enjoy now a days, she chose something as dangerous as biking! Does she want to be a gang member or something?

I turned on my heel, to find Caelum standing right behind me.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Libelle got into an accident," I said pressing my temples, "Just what am I supposed to do with that ignorant kid?" I sighed again.

Caelum smiled and tilted his head.

"What?" I asked, suddenly aware of his gaze.

"Nothing, You just looked like a mother." He said.

A mother? He mustn't have realized what he said because after saying that his eyes widened at realization as he turned around quickly and said,

"Well.. mothers do nag like that, don't they?" he was awkward about it, I could see his ears reddening.

That's when it hit me! "You didn't use protection last night, right?" I asked.

He turned around, his face looked bowled over, "No.." he replied.

Why does he look so helpless? Does he never want a baby?

"Don't worry, I'll buy some birth control in the hospital." I mustered up all my strength to say it. It broke my heart for some reason.

"Don't do that." he said. His voice had a weird nervousness to it.

"What?" confusion was a genuine feeling at that moment.

"Birth controls.. can be harmful in the long run." he ran a hand through his hair and turned away again, "Moreover, it's not so easy to get pregnant either".

Pregnancy. There was a time when I would have loved to have a baby. From the beginning of my life I had been dreaming about being a mother, to be able to nurture a little one with my love. To be able to hold my baby to my hearts content. To be called mom. To be relied on. To love and to be loved unconditionally.

But after getting married here those thoughts had slipped away like sand.

"It's better to be sure." I replied.

It would be better if I did not take any risks. A baby was no joke, and at that moment, I had another kid to meet.

He nodded without turning back.

"Okay then, I'll get going."

........................