31: A Lady's Moan

Lilian's POV.

“I thought you said he was asleep!” I whisper-yelled, dread running through my spine at the thought of him catching us in here.

After wearing my clothes, I pressed a trembling hand against my lips, wondering my next line of movement.

“Leon! I know you're awake! Open the door!” Cole's voice came again.

I felt a rush of adrenaline as I ran back and forth, unsure of what to do. Leon's gaze moved between the door and me, repeatedly.

“Fuck, what are we going to do?” I asked, my voice trembling.

“Under the bed, right now!” Leon ordered, his voice barely above a whisper.

I dropped down to the floor, laying on my chest as I slid myself in there. I had fear of darkness but at this point, I'd rather stay under here than allow Cole see what we were doing.

“Leon! This is important! Don't make me open this door on my own!” Cole threatened.

“Hold on already! I'm getting it,” Leon finally replied.

I couldn't see his full body from here but I could see Leon running from his study table to the couch, almost like he was trying to clean up the traces.

Then the air in the room became tainted with perfume as Leon sorayed a good enough amount. After that, he rushed to get the door.

“Man, can I know why you're requesting to see me in the middle of the night?” Leon immediately asked as Cole walked in.

Seeing Cole's leg from under made fear slither down my spine so much that I couldn't even blink. I breathed so carefully that you'd think he was going to catch me from the mere sound of breathing.

“You're the one who's more familiar with how to respond to formal texts. Remember the scholarship letter contest for Harvard that you helped me write? Well, I passed the first stage. The second stage requires me to talk about my other dreams outside schooling at the university. So I was hoping you could help me with that,” Cole declared, dropping his weight against the bed.

His legs were literally dangling in the air, in front of me. My eyes widened as fear shot through me, making my entire body stiff.

Oh God, for how long was he going to be here? And for how long was I going to have to stay in here?

“Can't we do that tomorrow? I mean, I'm free tomorrow,” Leon suggested.

“No Leon. I'd received the mail five days ago. I didn't see it until now, and it's due tomorrow. So we have to write it tonight,” Cole explained.

My heart was still racing as I laid stiffly under there. Maybe, just maybe Leon could be really fast with this and I'd be out of this place.

Holding that thought, I crosssed my hands over each other on the cold floor, placing my head on it. I took steady breaths, trying to calm myself down.

“Shit. Alright, let's get to it,” Leon declared and I felt Cole rise from the bed.

That sent a small wave of relief through me.

However, when they got to the study table, I heard Cole's voice again.

“Why does it smell weird in here? Almost like–”

“Oh my God,” Leon cut him off, sliding a hand down his face.

“What? I'm just saying,” Cole said.

“It doesn't smell weird. It's just a mixture of perfumes in here. I really don't want to explain anything so can we please get on to the letter?” Leon asked, already sounding tired before starting.

“Sure. So what do you want to know as you write?” Cole asked, pulling a seat towards the study table.

Leon pulled his laptop from his drawer, the sounds of keys being touched echoing through the room.

Cole on the other hand, was drumming his fingers onbthe study table. If only he knew what had just happened there, he'd probably not be touching it so much.

Over the next few minutes, both guys exchange words on what to write and what not to write. It wasn't like Cole didn't know what to write, he was just lazy.

If he wasn't smart enough in high school, his grades wouldn't be considered at Harvard. He was trying this scholarship for fun, hence the triviality.

The atmosphere grew thin with tension but I was still feeling scared. I wasn't sure how long these guys have spent in here but my eyelids were beginning to grow heavy. I wanted to sleep but it had never been my thing to sleep in darkness, except someone was with me.

As I turned my head from side to side, my intrusive thoughts kicked in.

What if there was something dangerous under this bed? Or worse cockroaches and insects?

What if the floor cracks and I fall?

A lot of crazy thoughts started running through my mind. My heart began palpating with fear, my body trembling slightly to the thought.

“Yeah, the last part should be about sports. I think you should add swimming and football. After that, we can send it in,” Cole declared and a wave of relief washed through me.

Just few more minutes, few more minutes and this would be over. I didn't stop looking around me, checking if I wasn't being attacked by anything.

As seconds dragged into minutes, Cole and Leon rounded up the letter and he was finally about to leave. That was when I felt something slither up my legs. My heart stopped for a second and the next thing I did was scream.

Cole halted in his tracks, particularly because of the sound.

Fuck.

Fuck.

I pressed a hand over my lips, my heart literally hurting itself against my chest as regret washed over me.

What the hell did I just do?

“What was that?” Cole asked, my eyes watching how his feet rotated, in search of the noise.

“What noise are you talking about? I didn't hear anything,” Leon denied.

“No, I swear I heard it. It was a lady's scream. But it disappeared really fast, but I swear I heard it,” Cole insisted, still turning around.