Chapter 36: Imagination

★SELENA★

"Selena! Selena!" I heard a familiar voice calling my name, and I jerked when I felt someone tapping my right hand which was resting on the table.

"Uh?... Yes?" I glanced around only to realize that I was still on my seat, and Brad was still sitting on his seat which was opposite me.

Then it dawned on me that the kiss was just the work of my imagination. I was only imagining kissing him. We didn't really kiss.

"You okay?" He asked, arching a brow at me.

"Yep. I'm perfectly okay." I nodded with a nervous smile across my face.

"There was a stain on your lips so I wiped it off. Hope I didn't cross my boundary?" He asked, and I shook my head immediately.

"No. You didn't cross any boundary by wiping a stain off my lips." I replied, then he averted his gaze to the food left on my plate.

"You still eating?" He asked, and I shook my head.

"No. I'm done."

He then signaled to the waitress who walked briskly to our table. Brad settled the bills, then we both rose up and walked out of the food joint which was also inside the mall.

"Thanks for everything you bought for me, Brad." I said, holding the shopping bag which contained the goodies and other stuffs he bought for me.

"It's nothing." He replied with a smile which revealed his cute dimples.

"And thanks for the meal." I added.

"No problem." He smiled. "Are you heading home?"

"No. I'm heading to Evergreen hospital to see my younger brother." I replied.

"Mind if I give you a ride?" He asked, and I quickly shook my head in disapproval.

"Thanks Brad, but it's okay." I declined, politely.

"Since we are now friends, let me give you a ride." He insisted.

"Thanks a lot, Brad, but I'll board a cab." I replied. "You've already done more than enough for me today so I'll just board a cab to the hospital. You don't have to stress yourself."

"Please, just lemme give you a ride." He begged with a cute look on his face.

I let out a dejected sigh. "Alright then, let's go."

He led me to the parking lot where his Bugatti Veyron was parked and he opened the door for me like a gentleman.

"Thanks." I smiled as I sat in the passenger's seat.

He shut the door and he got behind the wheels, then drove off to the hospital.

"If I may ask, Selena, why is your little brother at the hospital?" Brad asked as he drove to the hospital.

I started contemplating in my mind whether to tell him about my younger brother's health condition or not.

Spending some time with him made me know the type of guy he is. I knew Brad would want to pay for my brother's surgery if I told him about it, and the last thing I wanted was to feel indebted to him, so I decided not to tell him about my younger brother's condition.

"My little brother mistakenly cut himself with a knife last night so I brought him to the hospital to receive a proper treatment." I lied smoothly.

"Oh, I hope the cut wasn't deep." He said.

"No, it wasn't." I shook my head.

"Okay." He nodded.

None of us said a single word till we got to the hospital. Brad parked the car at the parking space and we alighted the vehicle.

"Should I come in with you?" He asked, and I quickly shook my head disapprovingly.

"No. You can just wait for me here. I'll be right back."

"Alright." He replied, and I proceeded into the hospital with the bag of goodies and candies Brad bought for me at the mall.

I was gonna give them to Jeffery, my younger. He'd be so happy because he was in love with chocolates and candies.

I went straight to reception to let the receptionist know that I was here to see Jeffrey.

Seconds later, I was allowed to go see him and as I got into the room, I noticed he was sleeping. I wasn’t expecting that because I wanted to talk to him and to know how he was feeling, but it looked like that would not be possible.

After a while, I dropped the goodies for him and left the ward.

I went to doctor Steve's office and we chatted for some minutes before I walked out of the hospital.

Brad was standing beside his car, waiting for me.

He gave out a small wave as I approached him.

"Thanks for waiting, Brad." I said as I finally got to him.

"No problem," he replied. "Hop in and let me give you a ride home."

"No, no, no, no." I vigorously shook my head in disagreement. "You've done so much for me today, Brad, and I'm really grateful for it. But I can't let you drive me home."

"Selena, are we friends?" He asked, and I remained quiet for a while, wondering why he asked that question.

"Answer me Selena." His soft voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Yes, we are friends." I replied.

"And do you know what friends do?" He questioned, and I raised a questioning brow at him.

"What?"

"Friends help each other every time, and as your friend, I wanna help you by driving you home so please don't say no." He replied, and I let out a soft sigh.

I didn't want him to drive me home because I felt like he had already done too much for me already and I didn't want to stress him, so I decided to look for an excuse that would make him change his mind about giving me a ride home.

"The place I live is quite far from here l, Brad, and I don't wanna stress you." I said.

"Stress me?" He chuckled softly. "Is driving the new meaning of stress? I'm driving you home and not trekking. And even if we are gonna trek to your place, I'd be glad to trek with a damsel like you." He said, and I found myself blushing.

"Alright. Let's go." I replied, and he immediately opened the door for me.

"After you, milady." He said as he opened the door for me and I smiled at his dramatic character.

"Thanks." I said before clambering inside the vehicle.

Brad shut the door and he came to sit beside me on the driver's seat.

He then started the ignition and drove off.

"Where do you live?" Brad asked, turning his neck sideways to look at me.

"Norway street." I replied.

"You live alone?" He inquired.

"No. I live with my best friend." I replied.

"What about you? Living with your parents?" I asked with my gaze fixed on his face.

Brad quietly nodded his head as a yes, bringing the car to a stop because of the traffic light that was in red.

“And how does it feel to be the son of a celebrity?" I asked with a smile.

"It's was sweet until yesterday afternoon." He replied, and I arched a questioning brow at him.

"Did something happen between you and your family yesterday afternoon?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah, and I wish I never came back home yesterday afternoon." He replied. "I wouldn't have witnessed what I witnessed yesterday if I didn't come back home."

"If I may ask, what did you witness?" I asked, and he let out a soft sigh.

"I--I caught my....." He hesitated. "Never mind." He returned his gaze back on the road, and he started driving again when the traffic light turned green.

He turned to the right intersection and drove along the spacious road.

"I'm sorry if I crossed my boundary with the question I asked earlier." I apologized, and he turned his neck to look at me.

"You crossed no boundary, Selena." He replied with a smile. "You're my friend and you have the right to ask me questions."

"Okay." I muttered, and he returned his gaze back on the road.

So I slowly turned to look out the window; inhaling deeply with the refreshing gust of wind blowing hard on my face as he drove.

The rest of the ride was quiet till we arrived at the front of the apartment I shared with Tatiana, then we both got down from the vehicle.

"Thanks a lot for today, Brad. I'm really really grateful." I said, and he smiled.

"You don't have to thank me. We are friends after all, and helping each other is what friends do." He replied, and a grave silence fell between us as we stood in front each other, staring directly at each other's faces without saying word.

Brad suddenly moved closer to me, covering the space between us and we kept on staring at each other.

I shifted my eyes to his cute pink lips, and I felt the urge to pull him closer and kiss the hell out of him.

For about three minutes, we remained silent, staring at each other as if we were engaged in some sort of staring competition.

A lump formed in my throat as Brad started leaning closer. I swallowed the lump and my heart started pounding fast in my chest as he kept leaning closer and closer.

"Is my imagination playing a trick on me again, or are we going to kiss for real this time?" I thought to myself as Brad kept bringing his lips closer to mine, then I closed my eyes and waited for his lips to touch mine.