CHAPTER LXXIV
~~~Content © NôvelDrama.Org 2024.
SOPHIA SQUINTED HER eyes at whatever was on the laptop as she tried to understand it.
She flinched away from the laptop on her reading table when she heard a knock on her room door, followed by the sound of the door opening.
Before she could turn to look at the person, the person called out. “Soph,”
Sophia froze, unable to move. Blood rushed to her ears, and her breathing accelerated. Her mind clogged up with a particular flashback, and sweat trickled down her face. Her hands began to shake and they involuntarily went to her neck where she had been choked.
She gulped down, feeling her fingers shaking against her neck as she remembered the terrifying moment of almost dying in Saige’s hand.
The person called from behind her again. “Are you okay?”
Sophia flinched and stood up, turning to stare at Saige, who was smiling at her as if she hadn’t tried to kill her twice or thrown hateful words at her on her birthday. “S -,” Her voice shook. “Saige,”
Saige’s smile slipped off on noticing Sophia’s reaction. “Are you alright?” She dropped her clutch on Sophia’s bed along with the small box she had in her hands and rushed to Sophia. She placed her hands on her shoulders, staring at her face moisturized with sweat but Sophia shoved her hands away and took a step back. “What’s the matter? Is everything okay?”
Sophia shook her head, clawing at her throat. “N – no,”
Saige walked to the bedside table and fetched water for Sophia from the jug there into a glass cup, then walked back to her. She pressed the glass to Sophia’s lips. “Here have-,”
Sophia cut her off by shoving the glass away harshly, making it slip from Saige’s hand and shattering into pieces on the floor. Her eyes for a second didn’t leave Saige’s face, searching for any sign of hate towards her.
Saige snapped. “Are you out of your mind?!”
Sophia flinched again, this time tears flowing down her cheeks. She could see Saige’s expression changing into an angry one, and she feared that she would try to kill her again because of her jealousy towards her.
Saige took deep breaths to calm herself down. After days of mulling over it, she had decided to finally visit the Romano compound so she would apologies for how she behaved towards Sophia. She didn’t feel bad about it. At first, she felt bad and guilty about it, but after Chase’s attitude towards her the day he went to her dad’s place, every atom of friendliness and fond towards Sophia vanished. She realized that she should never feel bad for behaving that way towards the obstacle in her happiness. She just knew that apologizing to Sophia would earn her Lucas’ mercy, seeing the way he had punched her that day, along with everyone else’s mercy as well.
She let out an exhale. “Look, Soph, I-,” She then stepped forward to hold her hands in hers’ but Sophia took another step backwards, halting Saige’s hands mid-air and leaving her angry once again “Stop behaving like a child now. I came to -”
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
They both looked towards the door to find Lucas standing there and staring down at Saige with a glare that was enough to send her six feet beneath the ground if possible.
It was Saige’s turn to stutter. “L – Lucas,”
Lucas ignored her and stalked towards Sophia, ignoring the shards of glass and water on the ground. He ran his worried gaze over her face. “Are you okay? Did she do anything to you?”
Sophia refused to meet his eyes. She was staring at Saige, who had her eyes downcast in fear. “She -” She stared back at Lucas. “She did nothing. I was just scared after what happened the last time, and that’s why I threw away the glass of water she gave me to calm me down. She did nothing, Lucas,”
Saige breathed out in relief and went closer. “She’s right, Lucas. Actually, I came over to apologies for what I did the last time. I also came to give her a late birthday gift,” She turned to the bed and picked up the box she had arrived with, then passed it to Sophia. “I’m sorry. Have it,”
Lucas snatched the gift box from Saige and harshly dropped it on the reading table. “She doesn’t need your gift. We are all here to give her what she wants,”
“I didn’t do what I did the other day intentionally,” Saige almost snapped at him frustrated. “I wasn’t in my right senses the other day, and I was hurt. That’s why I behaved like that towards her,”
“What guarantee do I have now that you’re in your senses, Saige?” Lucas turned to her. “You may still be affected mentally by the assault for all I know. Go home and have some rest,”
Saige closed her eyes and let out a breath before opening them back again. “I’ve been seeing a therapist, Lucas,” Lies. She wasn’t seeing any therapist. She had turned to anti-depressants, lying to her father that she was seeing a therapist. She was lying to everyone. She was only truthful to herself. “Since that night, I’ve been seeing a therapist, and I believe I’m getting better now,”
Lucas leaned in and sneered at her face, maintaining eye contact with her. “I don’t care if you’re seeing a therapist or not, Saige. All I know is that you are out of your mind. You aren’t mentally okay and I don’t want you anywhere close to Soph,”
“Why?” She breathed out. “Why do you suddenly care for her?”
“Why I care for Sophia is none of your fucking business, Saige. Stay in your lane and don’t ever think of talking to me or Sophia. Also, stay away from Val. You’re not good for her. Now take your gift from here and leave this place,” He bit out.
Saige gritted her teeth, fisting her hands into a ball so tight her nails were digging into her palms. “You don’t have the right to chase me away from here, Lucas. I’m going to be your Donna,”
He scoffed. “It doesn’t change the fact that you’re mentally unstable,”
He was right. Saige dropped her eyes to her feet, hoping Lucas hadn’t seen the truth in her eyes. “Fine,” She took a step backwards and looked up at him, ignoring the amused smirk dancing on his lips. “I’ll leave, but I’m not taking the gift with me. Only Sophia has the right to refuse it,”
Lucas snorted back a laugh, the amused look on his face not faltering a bit. “Okay then. Let’s do you a favour, and spare the remaining sanity you’re trying to hold onto by accepting your gift, mm?”
Saige stared at Sophia, who was staring right back at her. “You’d have still accepted it either way, right?”
“I-,” Sophia clamped down on her lower lip. “I don’t know, but thanks. I appreciate the gift a lot,”
Saige’s face flushed in embarrassment. She clenched and unclenched her fists, then clenched them back. In her head, she could already see herself hurling towards Sophia, gripping her hair and leaving scratch marks with her nails all over her pretty face. It was so bad her imaginations would remain in her head.
Lucas wouldn’t even let her step a foot near Sophia.
“I’ll leave,” She grabbed her clutch from the bed and stormed off.
Lucas heard Sophia breathing out in relief behind him, followed by her voice. “Thanks for coming,”
A small smile appeared on his lips, and he turned to face her. “It’s no problem,” He nodded. “I’ll leave,” He turned to leave.
“Lucas,”
He stopped and lifted one of his brows at her. “Hmmm,”
“Can – can I ask you a question?” She took a step towards him.
He slid his hands in his pockets and turned to her, his smile not wavering for once. He already knew what she was going to ask. “Ask away,”
Sophia was hesitant at first. Lucas was nice to her, and she was scared that if she asked him, he would go back to being the mean person he used to be to her. “Why – why are you being so nice to me?”