"Where are you going?"
R chased after Stela as she hurried away from Sanas's car. He grabbed Stela's hands and held them both in his grip. The girl glared at R, clearly annoyed.
"Where are you going? I already told you I'd wait for you."
"I already told you, this is none of your business, R," Stela snapped.
Stela tried to pull free of R's grip. Damn, he was strong. Stela decided to stomp on his foot. Damn it, again—the boy easily moved his foot out of the way without letting go of her hands.
"I'm not falling for that twice," R said.
"So what do you want now?"
"I'm taking you home."
"I can go by myself," Stela explained.
"It wasn't an offer. No refusing."
R pulled Stela toward his motorcycle. This time, Stela was willing to cooperate. She didn't resist like she had before. Her first refusal had just been a formality, because Stela knew R would stick to his offer anyway. Protecting her pride with a refusal was necessary, even if she was saying yes in her heart. If she was lucky, the refusal would only be seasoning for the conversation. It would all happen anyway.
R gave Stela his helmet and jacket. She accepted them without asking a single question. She climbed on right away so R could take her home.
The night wind blew hard enough. R seemed to enjoy it. Just look at him—the motorcycle was only going forty to sixty kilometers per hour. For a guy like him, that was practically unheard of.
Every now and then, R shivered from the cold. It was funny, really. He had given his protection to Stela, who was sitting behind him. The girl seemed to understand what was happening. She quickly patted R's shoulder, signaling him to pull over.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Here, wear this. My head hurts."
Stela handed the helmet to R. Of course, the headache was an excuse to get him to take it back. It worked—R simply nodded without asking any questions.
"This too, I—"
"You said your head hurts. Don't take it off."
Before Stela could finish making excuses, R interrupted her. He even pulled the jacket's zipper all the way up to her neck. He also put the hood over her head to protect her.
Now the girl looked ridiculous. Her hoodie and cap were piled beneath the jacket's hood. In an instant, Stela looked twice her size.
R chuckled softly. He had been doing everything he could not to laugh this whole time. He cursed his own stupidity. Why did everything about Stela look attractive to him? R had been completely fooled by his own feelings. Once things had reached this point, he wouldn't care about any of Stela's flaws.
"What's so funny?" Stela asked.
"Nothing. Come on, get back on. It'll be midnight soon," R replied awkwardly.
R dropped Stela off right in front of her house. The girl immediately got off and took off R's jacket. He accepted it with a smile. Stela, however, did not take that well.
"How did you know?"
"Huh?"
"How did you know where my house was?"
Damn it, R had forgotten that Stela hadn't said anything about the way home. It was obviously strange that he suddenly knew where she lived. He cursed himself inwardly for getting carried away by the time he had spent with Stela. The girl, meanwhile, stood silently without interrupting him.
Actually, Stela was scared. She wondered how R knew her address. Had he been here before? But why? And who had told him all of this?
"Sorry. I've been here with Loen and Dean before."
R was honest. He didn't want to hide anything. Besides, Stela would get angry if he stayed quiet.
"How did you find out? I didn't ask who you came here with, R."
"Loen and Dean looked into it. I just got the results."
"Can you ask them? How did they find out my address?" Stela asked.
"Why?" R asked, confused.
"Why? You really have to ask why? R, I've worked my ass off to keep this place hidden. I won't hesitate to move if this becomes dangerous again."
R felt guilty. He hadn't known that looking into Stela's whereabouts would burden her yet again. He immediately contacted his friends and asked them what Stela wanted to know.
"Sorry, Stel. I didn't mean to. I'll find a safer place for you if necessary."
Stela saw how serious R looked. Still, her annoyance was obvious. She left R and intended to go inside her house.
R followed her. He wouldn't feel at ease until he heard Stela say that she was okay with all of this. Besides, he still hadn't been able to fulfill her request. Dean and Loen were united in ignoring his messages.
Stela ignored R's presence. She unlocked the door and went inside just like that. Before R could follow her in, Stela slammed the door shut. R was startled and immediately knocked on it so Stela would know he wanted to come inside.
"Stel, don't be like this. I'm sorry."
"Go home, R!" Stela shouted from inside.
"I'm not going home until Dean and Loen reply. I'm staying here to protect you," R insisted.
"You don't have to. Go home!"
R shook his head, as if Stela could somehow see him. He decided to wait on the chair on Stela's porch. He spread his jacket over himself to keep warm.
R cursed repeatedly. Dozens of calls and messages had gone unanswered. Where had those two guys gone? R figured they were probably hanging out at a club.
R shifted restlessly from side to side. The cold was his greatest enemy. The old needle mark on his right hand throbbed painfully. This was bad—he was already feeling discomfort in his chest and head. Damn it, in a situation like this, R wanted to go home and get help immediately. But the ego in his heart wouldn't let him back down. It whispered to R that Stela would welcome him warmly the next morning.
Stela lazily brushed her hair. She took two hair ties and tied her hair on the left and right sides. She also applied the thinnest possible layer of lip tint so she would look fresh.
The girl grabbed her bag and shoes and carried them outside. She refused to wear footwear inside the house. She was stunned to see R still fast asleep in the chair. Stela huffed in annoyance because the guy had actually stuck to what he said the night before.
"Hey, R!" Stela called.
There was no answer, so the girl approached him. The boy had covered his face with the jacket. Stela quickly pulled it away and patted R's cheek to wake him up. Once again, she was shocked. His skin was burning hot. She also noticed for the first time that R's lips were pale and slightly blue.
"R! Wake up. Come on, don't mess around."
Stela shook R's arm. She had been standing, but when he didn't respond, she immediately dropped to her knees. Stela began to panic.
"Hey! Don't scare me like this. Please, wake up!"
Stela kept shaking R's body. Damn it, the boy only groaned without opening his eyes. She quickly searched the pockets of his clothes for his phone.
There were tons of messages from Dean and Loen. Stela was shocked by how many messages and calls R had made the night before. Dean and Loen sounded panicked in their messages too, since R hadn't gone home or replied to them. It wasn't just his friends—an account named Mama also filled the notifications. Stela felt even guiltier.
Stela immediately tapped the call button for Loen's contact. Luckily, Loen was at the top of the call history. She was relieved when he answered.
"Hello, R! Where are you? Why didn't you come home? Are you mad at us? Aunt Maria's freaking out looking for you. You just got back from the hospital and were supposed to rest, but instead you're wandering around."
Stela was slightly startled when she heard Loen mention the hospital. She looked at R's face, which appeared to be struggling to breathe. She felt like she had to do something immediately.
"Hello, Loen! R's at my house. Get over here, quick."
"Who is this?"
"It's Stela. R passed out."