I found it difficult to concentrate on sketching and when I looked down at my hand that was holding the pencil, I saw that it was shaking slightly. I closed my eyes and sighed. I can’t get my mind off him, and I couldn’t concentrate at all. I looked down at the couple of rough sketches that I managed to pull off and wasn’t impressed at the progress that I had made today.


    "Lisa, are you ok?" my grandmother asked, she was worried and had probably sensed that something was off.


    "Oh, I’m fine," I said, trying to sound calm.


    "Really? You’ve been frowning a lot today," she said, observantly.


    "I’m just finding it a little difficult to concentrate. I think that’s enough for today, I’ll be back to take another crack at it tomorrow, ok?" I said as I put down the pencil in my hand.


    No point pushing myself today. I still have enough time and so there was no need to rush. Now that the subject of the painting had been decided, I just had toplete the painting just like always.


    I said goodbye to my grandmother and rode in the car back to the penthouse with my bodyguards. As usual, the ride was peaceful and quiet. The men in ck did not talk to me unless it was necessary, and I didn’t mind it at all.


    My mind was still a mess and having some quiet time to rest as I just watched the scenery outside past me by as the car went pass was just the thing that I needed to help clear my mind.


    …


    It waste in the night, and I couldn’t go to sleep. Since moving in with Hayden, I haven’t been sleeping well at all. I looked at the clock on the wall which showed that it was already past midnight. It’s sote and Hayden isn’t back yet. I didn’t hear hime back at all which meant that he was still out.


    My eyes grew wide with shock as I realized that I was thinking and perhaps worrying about Hayden. Hayden is a grown man, and he can take care of himself. It’s not exactly any of my business what time he came home. Even so…


    Why am I so worried about him?


    Just as that thought was running through my mind, I heard the front door m open with a loud bang. Talk about a grand and super loud entrance. Hayden is home…finally.


    Surprisingly, I found out that I wasn’t the only one waiting for Hayden to return. It waste but unlike other days, Auntie was still waiting for Hayden in the living room.


    "Master Hayden. Why are you back sote?" I heard Auntie’s voice cry out as she tried to get Hayden’s attention.


    "Stop…nagging, Auntie…" Hayden said, his voice slurred.


    That man is drunk again…


    "You went drinking again, didn’t you? You reek of alcohol!" Auntie yelled loudly. She really does sound as if she was his mother.


    "Go to sleep. It’ste…Auntie…" Hayden said.


    "Master Hayden! You should shower first…Hayden!" Auntie shouted but to no avail.


    I heard the sound of the door next to my room opening and then closing with a loud thud. Hayden must have opened and then mmed the door of his bedroom shut. Poor Auntie, I wonder how long she’s had to deal with the likes of him.


    I couldn’t go to sleep and decided to sit up in bed and review some of the sketches that I did earlier today. Perhaps if I took another crack at it now, I would be able to concentrate on it better than earlier in the day? It’s worth a try…


    After a while, everything was peaceful and quiet, and I was able to concentrate on the work at hand. However, that peaceful period didn’tst too long. Suddenly, I heard a loud crashing sound from next door. Next door to my room was…Hayden’s room? Was everything ok in there? The sound I heard just now was super loud like somethingrge had fallen over.


    Should I go and ask if he’s ok?


    Wait, no. He told me not to talk to him…but does that include cases of emergency?


    Maybe I’m just overreacting. It’s all quiet now as if nothing had happened. I wasn’t sure ifplete silence after such as loud crash was a good thing. What if something fell over and he got stuck underneath?


    No…that can’t be. This is not some random movie…


    Wait, but if he’s really stuck or something big did fall over in his room, was he hurt? He was so drunk before and if he’s as drunk as he had been when I first met him in the church, would he even be conscious enough to realize what was going on?


    I should leave him be…oh, but what if there was really an ident. What if he’s badly hurt? What if he’s dying…or dead?


    Arghhhhhh! I can’t believe this!


    I pulled on my hair like a crazy person as I wrecked my brain on what I should do next. The small angel sitting on right shoulder debated non-stop with the small red little devil sitting on my left shoulder. They were driving me insane!


    Right…Auntie! I’ll just find Auntie and let her know about it and then she can check on him.


    I flew out of my room so fast before I had time to think more about what I should do. I had to find Auntie and fast. It was when I had stepped out of my room and was standing cluelessly in front of my bedroom door that I realized that I had no idea how to find or contact Auntie.


    Did she even sleep here with us? Probably not. Even if she did, I don’t know where her room is. She showed me around but never mentioned where her room was. Maybe that was because she didn’t have a room and it’s just Hayden and me here.


    …it’s just Hayden…and me…here?!


    The next thing I knew, I was standing in front of the door to Hayden’s bedroom. Now what? I stared at therge door in front of me and hesitated. Do I knock?


    --To be continued…