WILDly (15 page)

“Valerie,
please not now. I’ll tell you later, promise.” His voice sounded
droopy already.

I didn’t feel
like arguing any more. A lot had happened in a relatively short
time. I felt overloaded, physically, emotionally and mentally. But
I was safe. Benjamin turned up the radio and I recognised Natasha
Beddingfield’s
Take me away
.

I fell asleep
shortly after and didn’t wake up until late the following
morning.

***

Chapter 13 –
Paparazzi

The smell of
fried onions filled the air and I was compelled to obey when my
empty stomach ordered me out of bed. With a frown, I wondered how I
had gotten into bed? The last thing that I could recall was the
safety belt clasp of the backseat in Alex’s car pressing into my
back as I fell asleep.

I was still in
the same clothes, I smelled like a dead rat and I knew that I
probably looked like a hobo. Whoever had helped me into bed must
have smelled me. It was bad enough that Alex and Benjamin saw me
like this, never mind carrying me with this stench around. Oh, the
shame!

The small
mirror on the dressing table confirmed that it was as bad as I had
thought. I moved closer to examine my face. There was no evidence
at all of Duncan’s slap or punch. With a shaky hand, I stroked over
my jaw line, my nose and my cheeks. It didn’t even hurt a little. I
pressed harder, to make sure, but there was no pain at all.

My healed face
was nothing more than a miracle. Under normal circumstances, the
swelling would have stayed for another day or so, not to mention
the visible bruises. And now it was completely healed. The only
evidence of the events of the past few days was my glow, which was
white instead of the normal blue. I felt thankful again, for how
lucky I was.

Then I
shivered. It was a scary thought, being a part of all of this...
this weirdness. And I couldn’t deny it, not even to lull myself.
No, the proof was staring me right in the face. And the knee, I
suddenly remembered. I bent over to analyse my leg. The thin pink
scar that I had seen yesterday was now almost white.

This was me
now, the girl with the superhero secret. I had to start accepting
it.

With the stench
under my nose fast becoming unbearable, I suppressed my enormous
hunger and picked up the folded towel and heap of clothes, a pair
of jeans and a flowery blouse, from the dressing table. It was
girly clothing, but it was about my size, and the tags were still
on, so I assumed that it was meant for me.

The bathroom
was right across the passage, with a big shower and a heap of
little bottles with soaps and shampoo and stuff. It was heaven to
feel the water running over my skin and the soap washing away the
past few days. But I couldn’t dwell on things, the hunger rushed me
out of the shower.

Before I left
the bathroom, I looked in the full-length mirror. The image was a
million times better than before: for one I was clean, and the
clothing fitted like my own, not my taste but not bad either.

My stomach
growled. I put the dirty pile of clothes on the bed and turned,
letting my shoes follow my nose from the small bedroom to the
kitchen, to find Benjamin in front of the stove, busy making
brunch.

The owner had a
minimalistic hand to both the furnishing and decorating of the
small cottage. The bedroom had no more than one single bed and a
dressing table. The kitchen had, apart from the fridge and sink, a
big table in the middle and one tall cupboard. But it was a safe
house, after all, and maybe this was the norm for safe houses.

“Oh, it smells
soooo good! What are you making?”

Benjamin looked
over his shoulder from the stove, grinning from ear to ear.

“You’ll see. Go
sit there, at the table. It’ll be another half an hour or so before
we can eat.”

I wanted to
help, but also didn’t want to spoil his fun. So I did as he said,
although a small taste would have helped with my growling
tummy.

“You’re looking
and...” he walked closer and smelled my hair, ”dare I say it,
smelling better,” he said and winked at me. “And your face doesn’t
look like a dandelion any more.”

I couldn’t hold
back the blush, even though he was only teasing. He noticed my
discomfort immediately and walked back to the stove.

“Seriously, are
you feeling any better?” he asked, suggesting I inspect myself
properly.

I stretched my
arms forward and then my legs, to test again for any pains, but
felt nothing. Physically, I was as good as new.

“Yes, thanks
for asking, and thank you for the clothes. I am feeling a lot
better. I’ve slept enough for a few ages.”

“I’m glad to
hear that. I guessed your size, and the store lady helped me with
the choice of clothes. And with the shampoo and soaps.”

“You bought all
this?”

“Yep.”

“Thank you very
much, it was very considerate of you.” He had been to an awful lot
of trouble for someone who almost had him killed. I felt
humbled.

“Anything,
Valerie.” His stare was intense for a short moment. “Can I get you
something to drink? I’m having coffee but there’s juice in the
fridge if you prefer it,” he offered.

“That will be
wonderful, thanks. Or no, I’ll get it myself. Just point me in the
right direction for a glass.”

Under
Benjamin’s instruction I poured myself a glass of orange juice and
then sat down again.

“And how are
you feeling? After the accident, I mean? I saw you crashing into
us.” I remembered the whole scene, and why it had happened as well.
“Oh, Benjamin, I have to say it again. I am very, very sorry for
betraying you. You were almost killed because of me.”

He stopped what
he was doing at the stove, walked to me and pulled out a chair for
himself. Leaning forward, he took my hand in his.

“Valerie, look
at me. We are not going to talk about it. I don’t want to hear one
word about it ever again. It’s in the past.” He bent over and
hugged me. “Forgive yourself, get over it and put it out of your
mind.”

Then he got up
and continued with the food. It was silent for a while. His
kindness brought the tears to my eyes again.

“Could you pass
me the milk in the fridge, please?” he asked. I was glad for the
minute chore, it gave me a moment to hide my tears. The fridge was
practically empty, but he let me search for it until I was
ready.

“You’re a great
guy, you know?” I said as I handed him the milk ages later.

“Yes, I know.
The FHM girls tell me that too,” he joked.

I sipped my
juice while he poured some milk into the food. He stirred the pot
once more before he sat down at the table opposite me, deep in
thought.

There was a
good vibe between us, and I took the chance.

“Benjamin, can
I ask you a question?”

“Sure,
anything.”

“Why am I
glowing all the time and you guys only glow sometimes?” A possible
explanation that I had thought of was that they were stars. But
then I would have seen Lisa’s glow; she was a planet as well.

“We can control
it, except during transfers of energy or when our emotions run
high, either good or bad. You will be able to control yours as well
once you’ve practised a little.”

“Okay, but tell
me something else as well. Why am I glowing white now, and
different shades of blue other times?”

“That’s just
because of Alex. He is a regular yellow star, which is an
incredibly powerful star. If he transfers energy, it causes
close-by ambassadors and most objects to glow white. And I have to
add that he was very mad at seeing you so beat up. Me too, you
know. Really upset,” he said bitterly, staring deep into the cup of
coffee in front of him.

“Oh,” I
answered a little perplexed. Alex cared for me in some way, and
clearly Benjamin did as well.

“Yes, his power
is really intimidating, even to me, and I’ve known him for a very
long time,” he said, his jaw stiff.

I didn’t want
to think about the episode with Duncan any more, and deliberately
focused on everything around me instead.

“Where are we?
It’s test week this week and the first one is tomorrow. I hope we
aren’t too far away from campus; I still need to study.”

The first test
on the roster was Astronomy, if memory served me right. It was now
my favourite subject in the entire universe. I couldn’t wait to get
my hands on my text book, and I didn’t even care what Jennifer
would think.

“It’s no more
than an hour’s drive. And we can leave directly after brunch... if
you want?”

“That’ll be
good. There’s a heap of studying waiting for me.”

“In that case,
you can maybe wake Alex. The meal is basically ready.” And with
that, Benjamin jumped up to check on the food again.

I really didn’t
want to wake Alex, so I stayed put.

“He’s sleeping
in the last bedroom down the passage,” Benjamin said pointedly, so
I got up. But the easiness about the atmosphere had suddenly
vanished and I couldn’t figure out why.

I tiptoed down
the passage to the last door. It was closed and I opened it as
slowly and softly as I could. Alex was on his side, with his back
to me. I hesitated. It felt as if I was intruding. A feeling of
uneasiness overwhelmed me and I turned to go. But I stopped in my
tracks in the passage, arguing with myself.

It wasn’t such
a big deal, waking someone. Maybe it only felt so wrong because I
had placed him on a pedestal in my mind, which wasn’t necessarily a
good thing.

Determined, I
turned back into the room to wake him.

“Alex!” I
called, in a semi-soft voice.

He didn’t move.
I walked a little closer.

“Alex. Alex!” I
tried again, but he still didn’t move.

I stretched out
my hand and touched his shoulder.

He was in a
very deep sleep, because my touch startled the poor guy. He jerked
awake with a quick intake of breath and almost jumped off the bed.
The combination of my awkwardness and his reaction was too much and
a giggle slipped out of me.

“Hey, Valerie,”
Alex grinned, embarrassed.

The giggle
stopped in my throat. He didn’t have a shirt on and the sight of
his naked chest made me even more uncomfortable.

“Uh... hi,
Alex,” I answered unnerved. “S-sorry,” I stuttered, feeling
intimidated.

“It’s okay.
We’re even now.”

Even? My mind
was a big white blank.

“The day in the
parking lot? Remember?” he asked.

He had that
effect on me again. I couldn’t do much but nod.

He climbed out
of bed and stretched out, his full length and unbelievable physique
centimetres away. I stood completely frozen, his body close to me,
the body of nothing less than a Greek god.

Then he looked
down at me. “Something the matter?” he asked, smiling again.

It struck me
that I had just woken him but I couldn’t remember why.
Focus,
Valerie
! I scolded myself. He was Lisa’s, and I chanted her
name over and over in my head.

“No,” I
answered and turned to leave. Then I remembered about the food.
“Benjamin said to wake you, he made brunch and it’s almost
ready.”

“Thanks,
Valerie.”

I disappeared
immediately.

In the kitchen,
Benjamin was busy with a small fruit salad. He was going all out.
My hands were shaking and I plunked down on the closest chair I
could find. I didn’t want Benjamin to see how unnerved I was and
blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

“Do you like
playing chef?” Most men I knew, which were basically only my dad,
preferred to stay out of the kitchen.

“I do,
sometimes. When I feel like treating someone,” he replied with a
secretive smile.

Okay, the
message was becoming clear now. Benjamin was really trying hard
here. For a moment, I considered that he was trying to impress me,
but then decided that he was only being friendly. He’d admitted
that he was sorry for me over the terrible ordeal with Duncan. No,
he was definitely only being friendly. Besides, he was doing this
for Alex as well. Oh, I could be so selfish, thinking the entire
universe revolved around me. Just because I had romance on my mind
didn’t mean the rest of the world did as well.

“Can I set the
table for us in the meantime?” I wanted to help, keep busy. It
wasn’t good to think so much. I only came to the wrong
conclusions.

“You can if you
want to, everything is in the cupboard.”

The cupboard
proved to be sufficiently stocked. I found everything in there from
an orange and maroon checked table cloth to cutlery, crockery and
serviettes.

Alex walked in,
smelling like a bar of soap, just as I finished putting out the
last plate.

“Well, thanks,
Bennie. It smells real good. You shouldn’t have.” Alex gave
Benjamin a light slap on the back and peeked over his shoulder into
the pots. He lifted the lids one by one and commented with a ‘hmmm’
every time.

“We always beg
him to cook for us, but he’s always so busy with all of his wild
hobbies,” Alex told me. “It’s high time!”

“Yes, my
friend, I have to admit that it’s been a while. But we have been
busy, you know?”

“Yeah, we
have,” Alex said, a little toned down.

“Wild hobbies?”
I asked curiously.

“Benjamin is an
adrenaline addict. He loves anything extreme. From bungee jumping
to skydiving to who knows what.”

I just shook my
head. It wasn’t my idea of fun. I was too milk-livered.

“Hey, don’t
make me out as the crazy one. You got me into it!”

“Guess so,”
Alex admitted.

“You guys seem
like good friends.”

“We are, in
spite of the hierarchy,” Benjamin answered.

“But enough
with the waiting now, let’s eat! I’m hungry as an ox,” Alex changed
the subject.