Chapter 5

There were lights. Lots of it. So much that it rendered Rosalia momentarily blind, but she welcomed the warmth. She snuggled further into her duvet which was warmer than usual. In a minute, the maids would be here to get her ready for breakfast and Nanny would try to smuggle berries for her. Oh! Her lovely berries.

Her duvet stirred and she buried herself deeply into it. This was the happiest she has ever felt waking up and wished she didn’t have to get up from her bed.

“You’re going to kill me if you don’t let go” A deep voice said from beside her making her eyes snap wide open. Her maids didn’t have such deep voice. She turned to see deep green eyes, who was he? She shrieked and jumped off the bed.

“What are you doing in my bed? Nanny!” She screamed, beginning to hit him with her pillow.

“This is why I never bring girls over” Sean said, cussing under his breathe. She kept hitting him despite his protest.

“Nanny! There’s a strange man in my room!”

Unable to take it anymore Sean held her hands together pushing her on the bed “Will you stop hitting me!”

Rosalia shook her head and tried to get away from his hold making him her hands over her head. Sean watched her chest heave in deep breathes before she calmed down.

“What are you doing here?” She finally asked.

“You’re in my room” He said. She looked around the room in confusion. It wasn’t her room, the realization sending her into another panic.

“What am I doing here?”

Sean looked away he didn’t want to tell her about what happened, but he had to. “Remember the ugly man at the bus?” She shook her head, she didn’t remember.

“He attacked you” He said, looking at her to make sure she was okay “Don’t worry nothing happened. I got there before he could hurt you” he added quickly when he saw tears gather in her tears.

“I want to go home” She said suddenly breaking into a sob. She didn’t remember what happened, but she had a nasty feeling growing inside her at the thought of someone trying to harm her. She just wanted to be in her own bed with Nanny singing her to sleep.

“Where do you live?” Sean asked finally releasing her hands and taking a step away from her. She thought about it for a while “I don’t know” She said. “I can check my diary it should be somewhere in there. Where’s my bag?”

“He ran away with it. Any valuable in there?”

“Not that I can think of. Just a few books, clothes, and money” She played with her fingers. “Why would anyone attack me?” She asked herself but Sean heard.

“You have to think hard. Surely you must remember where you live” Sean pressed. His alarm rang, he was already late for work. He walked to his wardrobe to get his clothes out, he had to use his other room.

“My family is very famous, you must’ve heard of me” Rosalia said, standing up to follow him. she didn’t want to be left alone.

Sean paused to look at her, failing to hold back the smile that broke out on his face. “Trust me if you were famous, I’d know you” He said before leaving the room with her hot on his heels.

“So, you don’t know me? Never heard of me?” She asked pointing to herself.

He looked back at her “No. I have to get ready for work if you don’t mind. We’ll figure out how to get you home when I’m back” he said.

Rosalia looked around only to notice they were standing in front of his bathroom “Sorry” She took a step back. He was about to say something when she turned running down the stairs and going back to the room, she had woken up in.

She walked to the bathroom that was on the other side of the room. A total mess was what she looked when she saw her image in the mirror. Nanny would have a heart attack if she could see her like this. She shivered at the thought and stripped out of her clothes.

She pushed the big red button when she entered the shower and screamed when ice cold water rained on her. She hit another button and it turned warm making her sigh in relief. She let it run for a while before she washed herself, starting from her hair which was a little difficult.

Minutes later she was padding into the room barefoot in search of something to wear. She entered the huge closet and pulled out the first shirt she laid her eyes on. It stopped close to her knees swallowing her small frame.

Cozy socks covering her feet, she left the room just to see Sean standing outside, his face almost red. “Are you okay?”

“Yes…” Sean answered trailing off when he saw what she was wearing. He cleared his throat “There’s food on the table for you. You can look around for whatever you need, we’ll find a way to get you home when I get back”

“You’re leaving me here alone?” Rosalia asked, eyes wide.

“Yes? You don’t want to be here? I’m actually doing you a favor” He said.

She shook her head frantically “No… That’s not what I meant” She looked down at her entwined fingers “I’ve just never been ever left in the house all by myself”

Sean looked at her for a while. He knew she wasn’t even supposed to be in his house but at this point he wasn’t even listening to his brain. He was doing what felt right. “You can’t come with me”

“Why not?” She asked with a pout.

“Because…It’s my workplace” He said “I won’t be long, don’t leave the house. I can’t protect you outside these walls” He looked at his now beeping wristwatch, he was behind his schedule.

“Okay” She turned and walked back into the house with her shoulders slouched. Sean was about to go after her when Anna’s call came in.

Rosalia watched him leave from the window of his big room. She sat on his bed cradling all the chocolates she had taken out of his fridge that she had just raided. The sugary goodness did nothing to make her feel better or quench the hunger that was slowly building up in her stomach, but she was grateful for it. It reminded her of someone.

The next hours were spent exploring Sean’s home. She decided to call it quits when she couldn’t find her way back to the kitchen when the hunger became unbearable. She was about to lay on the cold floor of the corridor she was stuck in when she heard a voice call out.

She sprang up and followed the voice as best as she could. After many turns and going down a long hallway she finally saw the kitchen and breath out in relief.

“Who are you?” A voice asked from the kitchen making her yelp in surprise. She walked quietly into the kitchen to see a tall lady dressed in a big white shirt she immediately recognized as Sean’s and nothing else underneath. Short blonde hair was framing her long thin face.

“How did you get in?” Rosalia asked instead.

The lady turned from the pot she was stirring to look at Rosalia, her eyes turning to slits when she noticed what she was wearing. “Don’t tell me you’re Sean’s new whore” She said folding her hands across her chest. Rosalia took a step back baffled at her choice of words.

“I don’t know who Sean is, but the owner of this house let me stay here. He didn’t tell me someone was going to visit him” Rosalia said, her brows creasing in confusion.

“Want some soup?” The lady suddenly asked making Rosalia’s stomach rumble “I’ll take that as a yes. Change into something presentable and come down”

Rosalia unable to stop herself bound up the stairs as fast as she could and wore the first pants, she could lay her hands on in Sean’s closet and ran back to the kitchen. There was a plate on the table for her.

“I’m not much of a cook but I hope you enjoy this” She pushed the food towards Rosalia as she sat down. With a spoon in hand Rosalia forgot her Nanny’s first rule. Never take food from strangers.