Chapter 21: Twenty One

Chapter Twenty One

"Jennifer, are you okay?"

Jennifer almost laughed at his question. She held it by placing her mouth on the pillow she hugged tightly to her chest.

"Jennifer, I am being serious now. No joking. Just regular me."

Regular.

Jennifer huffed.

She heard him sigh and walk away.

She never expected him to care about how she felt.

He probably thought she was hurt by his earlier words. But she wasn't.

She just felt sad and burdened at that moment. The thought that someone would want to hurt her stabbed her, not to talk of her struggling memory that kept tugging and tugging.

Jennifer decided to go meet Mark who she trusted would pretend he never stood in front of her room and asked of her.

She opened the door to face Mark who had streaks of  blue paint on his face and bare chest and he had this look that made him look like he was spanked.

"Hey." She stood akimbo, thinking that she was seeing a lot of his chest.

She studied how his eyebrows rose in response.

"I was calling you, what were you doing?"

"I believe that is none of your business." She raised her head a little high.

"Listen, I have every right to ask what you are doing. Remember, my house, my rules."

"Yeah your rules that allows you to ask stupid, sassy questions." Jennifer was definitely going out of play zone.

Mark's blue eyes fell and for a moment he looked as though he was to apologise.

"That was just to get something out of you."

Jennifer felt her temper rise a bit but immediately tried to kill it.

"You are just so impossible." She rolled her eyeballs instead.

"Are you hungry?"

Jennifer tilted her head and studied the figure standing in front of her. The blue paint matched with his eyes colour, making him look like a cute little boy who just finished experimenting with his new water colour set. Although his whole being was still a mystery to her, she was fascinated by the fact that sometimes when he was so close to letting his guard down, he picks it up immediately.

"Are you hungry?" He asked again his face radiating worry.

"Did you cook?"

"Never answer a question with a question, didn't your mom teach you that?"

Jennifer felt stabbed once more, this time with a double intensity. But she did not want to show her hurt, so she just smiled and nodded slowly.

"I will eat now."

"Better. Never ask stupid questions again."

Jennifer gave him a mock smile and walked out.

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"Where are you going to today?" Jennifer asked Mark whose head was stuck in an old newspaper.

"Why?" Came the grumbled answer.

Jennifer shrugged.

"I don't know, I just get really bored these days, and I think I deserve some tour round this city. I am stuck here for the time being you know."

Jennifer heard his deep sigh behind the newspaper, causing her to scrunch her lips.

He put down the newspaper and stared at her for a while.

"Where I will be going is none of your business."

"You say 'none of your business' everytime. Are you doing some sort of illegal work? Something you don't want me to know about?"

"What?" He growled.

Jennifer ignored his killer look and continued.

"You came home past midnight the day before. That is quite late."

"Oh, sorry, I forgot to check my time, I was so sure it was still afternoon." He replied her, rolling his eyeballs which was still cute and he  adjusted on the couch.

"I don't understand, when did you start monitoring me?"

"That has been my job for the past few days ."

Mark huffed and sat back.

"I just think it is none of your business."

"You know, I don't understand why you are so inconsiderate. For the past two weeks, I have been doing nothing but sitting, eating , watching stupid movies, listening to you walk about like a ghost. Look at me, "

She motioned to her body.

"I look fatter. I never looked this way, well as far as I remember. You know what's worse, my brain gets dimmer day by day."

Mark narrowed his eyes at her .

"It is true. Okay imagine this. You suddenly don't get to do anything for about two weeks, no painting, drawing, going out and whatever else you do. The only things you do is, sleep, eat, watch TV and repeat. Trust me, you would hate it."

"You talk nonsense." Mark stood up and walked to a painting.

"Whatever you say, sir. But really, where are you going tonight? I want to follow you."

He looked at her and said, "I'd rather a chicken follow me."

Jennifer clutched her heart playfully and gasped.

"You hurt me so much. But anyway, I just want you to know that as from tomorrow, I will be giving myself solo-tours, rules or no rules."

Mark gave a chuckle and walked towards the kitchen door.

As he got to the door, he turned back, pointed a finger at her and said, "Don't try any shit."

Jennifer smiled, she knew what she was going to do.

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Jennifer watched through the keyhole of her door, as Mark bent, in his skinny jeans and black, a bit over sized shirt, to tie his shoe lace. She watched him as he adjusted his shirt and walked towards the door.

She grabbed the sneakers she found in the closet and adjusted the white shirt underneath the dungaree she had on.

She heard the sitting room door close. prompting her to move faster.

As she got to the sitting room, she moved to the curtain to see where Mark was.

She looked through the window and saw his shadow walk down the road that was the left of the house

She hurriedand quietly walked out of the house, locked it, making sure to dip the house key into her pockets.

'Mark might decide to play nasty when he discovers I have followed him.' She thought.

She was soon on the streets, she tiptoed, careful not to make a noise, and caught up with Mark. Maintaining a distance from him, she couldn't help but notice how he walked like a soldier.

She wondered how he would react if he knew she was behind him. The reaction will definitely have her laughing.

She saw him take a turn at a corner and swiftly went after him.

A few more distance, she came to face with a bungalow that had music radiating from it. She stood behind one of the pillars holding the gate and watched Mark from a distance.

He walked towards the entrance and tried to evade some half-dressed girls that had bright red lipsticks calling for attention.

She watched as one of the girls kissed Mark's cheek even though he tried to evade it. She wanted to see his reaction, but could not see his face.

She watched him go into the house and she hurriedly went in after him, getting glares, more like disgusting looks from the ladies by the door.

'Duhh!' Jennifer screamed in her head for no reason.

Louder music greeted her as she entered. Likewise the smell of cigarettes and alcohol .

She scanned the room for Mark amongst men and women glued together.

She saw him with a lady in a short red

gown. He put his index finger on the tip of his tongue and inserted it into her belly button.

Jennifer cringed and walked to the bar stand. She saw the bar stools standing so tall. Almost all of them were taller than her, well in estimation.

She stared at it in awe, wondering what to do.

"You need help to get on that."

She faced the speaker, who was a cute looking young man holding an empty bottle.

"Uh.... I kinda know. Can you help me?"

The man gave a short laugh.

"You must be new. You have to wait for the appropriate person to help you."

"This... Woah." She felt herself rising, her inners turning and in a flash she was the stool.

She looked to the side to see who had helped her. Expecting to see some heavily handsome dude, she saw a heavily muscled, tall, lady- man.

"Hey babe."

Jennifer gave an awkward smile.

It was going to be a long night.