Helanie:
"She’s sleeping," I told Norman as I walked into the room with him. She was so tired—I gave her some medication and let her rest in the guesthouse.
"Why did you ask her those questions?" he asked, stopping me from heading to the restroom with a gentle tap on my arm after locking the bedroom door.
"Why did you lie?" I asked, placing my hands on my waist.
"Norman—" I cut myself off, showing him my palm and sighing. "I need to know something from you. Why are you doing this? You keep giving me signals, but that night—you confessed to being in love with her. You said you were angry, and yet you’ve kept acting differently with me since then. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I want honest answers."
I wasn’t smiling, and I wasn’t frowning. I was serious, and I just wanted the truth.
We had been playing hide and seek for too long. He looked embarrassed standing in front of me, his head lowered.
"Tell me—what is the truth?" I yelled, and finally, he whispered something.
"I love you."
It was so quiet I had to look at him with one raised eyebrow, almost demanding he say it again.
"What did you say?" I asked, watching him scratch the back of his neck.
"I said, it’s late. Let’s rest," he replied, but this time his voice was loud and clear.
I hated when he did that. I kept staring at his face while he avoided my eyes, his cheeks turning red.
"You called me a bitch," I said. The moment I accused him, he stopped looking around and met my gaze.
"What? No," he said, clearly offended. His whole body tensed up so fast.
"No, I heard it. You said, ’shut up, bitch,’" I continued, and he started shaking his head.
"I would be dead before saying something like that to you," he said, reaching for my arm. But I pulled away, narrowing my eyes at him.
"Don’t fucking touch me. How dare you—" I covered my mouth, hiding my face from him.
"That’s not what I said!" he raised his voice.
I lowered my hand from my face and glared at him. "Then what *did* you say?" I yelled back—and that’s when he walked right into the trap.
"I love you!"
No shying away, no stealing glances. He looked me straight in the eyes and confessed—louder this time.
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