Chapter Six
1839 Words
As soon as we got inside his coupe, I caught a whiff of his expensive cologne, which also smelled like the middle of spring and summer. If warm sunshine has a smell, I guessed that would probably be it.
Aziel turned on the heater and reached for something at the back. On the other hand, when the fog cleared up from the lenses of my glasses, I quickly took that opportunity to scan his car. The interior was matte black, accentuated by a red light which was the same color as the seats. At just one glance, it looked far more expensive than mine.
Well, why am I even surprised when his clan is—if not the richest—one of the wealthiest families in Fairbanks?
“How long have you been stranded before I came?” he asked, and I shifted my attention back to him. “Wear this under your coat.” He offered me his hoodie. “You need to keep yourself warm.”
A little hesitant, I just glanced at his hoodie and didn’t bother. I wasn’t sure if I should really take it even if he asked me to.
“Don’t worry. It doesn’t smell,” he said, like that was my problem. “I just wore it once.”
“Uhm, that’s not it…” I trailed off since I was lost for words to explain myself. But in the end, in order to avoid trouble, I just smiled and took his hoodie. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” His furrowed brows finally relaxed when I gave in. “I’ll just go outside so you can wear it comfortably.”
Aziel turned to the door and held the handle. But before he could go out, I unconsciously grabbed his arm to stop him.
Giving me his attention, he looked back and asked, “What is it?”
“It’s snowing outside…” I stated the obvious.
He swiftly took a peek outside to see what I was talking about, then put his eyes on me again. “It’s okay,” he assured me. “I don’t really mind the cold.”
My lips parted as it slipped my mind once more that he had great resistance to cold. “Oh…” I gradually let go of his arm and slumped back to the seat. “Okay.” I didn’t know what else to say.
He’s a werewolf, Chandra. Don’t forget about that.
“Okay. Just knock on the window once you’re done,” he simply said and went out like he originally planned to.
I watched him get out of the car. The freezing breeze from outside gave me chills when I felt it as he opened the door. But he immediately closed it tight and leaned on the door with his back turned on me.
I looked out the window for a brief moment. It was snowing hard. And so, even though I knew the temperature was nothing to him, I moved fast and wore his hoodie. I couldn’t deny that it got comfortably warmer when I added another layer to my clothing. I didn’t really want to use it as an analogy but to explain it in exact terms—it felt like he was holding me close to him again.
A rush of embarrassment went up to my cheeks, bringing more warmth. Although I planned to just be quick, I needed the time to control my emotions before knocking on the window just like what he instructed me to do.
Aziel got inside the coupe as soon as I did. His hair and his pullover were almost covered in snowflakes, but he didn’t seem to mind. He just roughly shrugged it off like dust. His hair also got slightly damp from the snow which melted on top of his head. He suddenly looked like he came straight from doing a quick workout. However, even with his hair disheveled, he still looked good without even trying, while I must be looking like a newly born chick wearing specs.
“Do you feel warmer now?” he asked once he settled on the driver’s seat.
“Yes…” I answered and put a smile on my lips. “Thank you.”
“No problem,” he promptly replied. “But you didn’t answer my question earlier.”
My forehead creased as I forgot what question he was referring to, and he seemed to notice that I couldn’t recall anything at all.
“I asked how long you were stranded earlier,” he reminded me, and that was the only time I remembered.
Great, Chandra. Now, even a simple question asked, not even ten minutes ago, is completely forgotten by you. How great is that?
“Not long,” I said.
Furrowing his brows, he didn’t seem to like the vagueness of my answer. “An hour?” He wanted to know exactly how long.
I shook my head. “Five?”
His red lips parted as he inhaled sharply and sat up straight. The worried expression clouded over his gorgeous face. “Five hours?!” He sounded so violent.
With my eyes wide open, I shook my head again. “No,” I said. “Five minutes?” I made it clear even though I wasn’t really sure if it had been that long since he arrived so fast.
A mixture of emotions crossed his face when he was finally enlightened. Despite still looking worried and concerned, he also seemed relieved and another emotion I couldn’t name.
“Anyway, I have to go home now,” I changed the topic to avoid having an awkward moment with him in silence. “My mother might be worried. I don’t think she’d be able to contact my cell because of the bad reception.”
He shifted to his seat and nodded. “I’ll drive you home.”
That caused me to panic. What will my mother say when she sees a man taking me home?
“No need!” I frantically shook my head. “I’m good.”
His eyes narrowed as he c****d his head on one side. “You’re good?” He then pointed outside the window, and my eyes quickly followed the direction of his finger where I saw my car parked. “In case you’ve forgotten, your car broke down,” he said. “Are you planning to walk home?”
I bit my lower lip hard in embarrassment. I slightly moved my face away from his sight, shut my eyes tightly, and mentally scolded myself.
“I’m taking you home,” he said with finality before I could even recover.
Aziel positioned himself properly on the driver’s seat and put his hand on the wheel, when I remembered something.
“My groceries!” I exclaimed in panic.
He put his hand down and twisted his body to face me again. “Groceries?”
I nodded. “I went out to buy groceries. It’s on the back seat,” I explained. “Can we get it first?”
He shook his head. I thought he didn’t want to trouble himself until he spoke. “I’ll get it,” he said. “You stay inside the car.” He didn’t give me a chance to object as he immediately went out. I tried following him, but I couldn’t open the door no matter how many times I tried. He must’ve locked it, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to stay still.
Feeling guilty, I had no choice but to watch him walk over to my car. He opened the door to the driver’s seat first and got the things I left inside before he went to the back seat. Since the groceries were put inside the ecobags, he was able to carry them all at once.
I was in awe while watching him casually carrying the groceries like he was just holding a pebble. I knew how heavy one bag was when I transferred it to my car from the cart. I was wondering if he worked out all the time to have that much strength when I remembered one of their characteristics I heard from my mother—werewolves are incredibly strong.
I used not to believe it when I was young, but seeing it right before my eyes, I couldn’t help but be amazed. The fear I had for them was slowly turning into fascination.
Right after putting the bags in the trunk, Aziel returned to the driver’s seat. He placed my phone and wallet on top of my lap except for the keys. “I’ll keep your keys,” he told me. “I’ll send someone to take your car to the auto-repair and see what’s the problem.”
“You don’t have to go that far,” I said. “I can contact them myself.”
“It’s nothing,” he casually said and stepped on the gas to maneuver the car. “Where’s your house, by the way?”
“Southern Ave,” I answered.
He glanced at me. “Aurora?”
“Yes.”
“Got that.”
Aziel stepped on the gas harder and the engine roared when the coupe raced on the road. His ride was pretty fast. We arrived at my house in no time.
“Well, that’s me…” I said and turned to him after he stopped the car. “Thank you. I can take it from here.”
“I’ll help you with the groceries,” he said and, once again, didn’t give me a chance to object.
He got out of the car, and I successfully did, too, since he didn’t lock the car that time around.
I followed him to the trunk with plans to help carry the groceries. But he took care of it all as he walked his way to our porch. And at the same time, my mother just strode out with a worried look on her face.
“Chandra!” She looked so relieved to see me. “What took you so long? I was worried—” It was like she bit her tongue when she saw who I was with. Her eyes gradually widened in surprise.
Now, this is what I’m most worried about...
I jogged near her. “I’m sorry, mom. The car suddenly stopped when I was on College Road. I tried calling but it wouldn’t go through,” I explained, but her eyes were fixed on Aziel. She didn’t seem to hear or understand what I said.
My eyes also shifted back to him. He was just staring back at my mother with an unreadable expression.
“Uhm, Aziel, this is my mom,” I introduced him, not to be rude.
The corners of his lips rose as he smiled politely. ‘Good evening, Mrs. Young.”
My mother gasped tightly when Aziel greeted her. She looked uncomfortable when she forced a very awkward smile. “Aziel Lewis?”
“Aziel Lewis,” he echoed.
- Writer
