I didn't know when Matthew left. After setting up the meeting, I just felt this emptiness inside.
"Earth to you?" Howard knocked on the table in front of me. His expression was somewhat cold, with a hint of sarcasm on his face. "Are you unhappy that he knows our relationship?"
I was feeling really crappy and didn't have the energy to coddle him. "Why did you have to tell him that?"
Howard seemed to get angry, his face darkening as he grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up at him. "Why can't I say that? Are you still having crazy ideas about him?" His deep blue eyes were fixed on me, seething with rage.
Fear hit me like a ton of bricks, and the tears started falling uncontrollably, landing on Howard's hand like broken pearls. His anger faltered, clearly not expecting me to be this upset. Slowly, the cold mask on his face cracked, and his voice grew even colder. "Give it up. You and him? Never gonna happen."
I knew what he was about to say, but I didn't want to hear it. "You're really annoying, inexplicably intruding into my life. Even if I owed you, why do you have to torture me like this? I hate you!" After saying that, I turned and ran out of the infirmary without looking back.
I had no clue where I was headed, just needed a quiet spot to cry for a bit. Howard didn't follow me, which was a relief.
Calming down, I realized my behavior earlier was a bit over the top, but I was just too upset at the time. That emotional outburst made me lose all sense of reason. I was even hesitant to go home after school, worried Howard might come after me for payback.
Staying by my side, Amelia knew I was upset but didn't ask as she saw I remained silent.
"I don't want to go back. Can I stay in the dorm tonight?" The dorm felt like my safe haven back then. I couldn't face Howard alone, so I was just avoiding him for a day as long as I could.
Amelia looked at me for a while, hesitating before saying, "I don't know what happened between you, but running away after a fight will only make things worse."
I didn't dare tell her about my excessive behavior in the afternoon and lay weakly on the table. "Why do I have to go through this? Can't I even decide who I like?"
Picking up on my words, Amelia turned to look at me. "Were you this upset this afternoon because of your neighbor?"
I nodded, then shook my head.
Seeing this, she was confused.
"He seems to have a girlfriend now and invited Howard and me to meet at a café tomorrow to introduce us," I explained.
Amelia wasn't surprised that Matthew had a girlfriend but that he knew about my relationship with Howard. "When did they meet?"
"Yesterday," I replied.
"And he knows about you two..." Amelia said.
"He thinks we're a normal couple," I replied with a bitter smile. "And Matthew said he'd keep it a secret from my parents. Isn't he sweet?"
Amelia looked at me with some pity, patting my head to comfort me. "Honestly, if you think about it, you haven't spent that much time with Matthew. He went abroad, and didn't you say you were over him? He's always seen you as a sister, nothing more. You should've moved on earlier to save yourself the heartbreak."
Though she made sense, the more I listened, the sadder I felt. "I thought I had moved on when he went abroad, but then he came back."
"Your situation is too complicated. I don't have any experience with relationships, so I can't give you any advice." Amelia said.
I let out a long sigh, hugging my book as I stood up. "Forget it, I'll just take a cab home. Howard was already mad, and if I don't go back, he might get even angrier."
After the afternoon's events, I calmed down and knew I couldn't afford to provoke him.
"Howard isn't as scary as you say, right? Besides his background, he's been pretty good to you." Amelia's words made me pause.
Thinking back, it was true. Though he always threatened me, he never actually hurt me. Instead, he had helped and saved me many times.
Thinking about my escape earlier, I felt a bit guilty. Blaming Howard was also a form of avoidance; after all, Matthew having a girlfriend had nothing to do with him.
Blaming Howard was also a form of avoidance. Matthew having a girlfriend had nothing to do with him.
"Alright, I'm going back." I mustered the courage to go home, but standing at the door for a long time, I couldn't bring myself to open it.
'Howard must be inside. What's he doing now? Watching some trashy TV show?' I wondered as I paced at the door until my hands and feet were cold, finally giving in to the chill and opening the door.
Surprisingly, Howard wasn't in the living room.
'Could he be asleep already? If he was, it would avoid a confrontation.' With this thought, I sighed in relief, putting my book on the coffee table and starting looking for the lost necklace in the living room.
But after searching the entire house, I couldn't find the necklace.
As I was looking under the table, a cold voice came from behind me. "I thought a mouse had gotten in."
Howard's voice startled me, and I tried to get up, only to hit my head on the table, causing me to clutch my head in pain.
He immediately squatted down, pulling me out from under the table, and scolded, "Are you an idiot?"
I looked up at him, tears welling up from the pain.
He misunderstood, pausing as he held my hand. "Are you that upset?"
"Why don't you try bumping into it? It hurt like hell." I complained.
Seeing I wasn't upset about Matthew, his face softened a bit, then he showed a disdainful look. "Serves you right for being restless as soon as you got home."
"Did you come back to get it the necklace you threw out last night? I searched the whole living room and couldn't find it." I asked.
Howard helped me up from the floor. "I said you wouldn't find it. It's in someone else's hands now."
I was stunned. "What do you mean?"
"She asked you to help her find someone, right? So she must have found them now." Howard said.
"Who is it?" I even didn't know who the beautiful ghost was looking for after she disappeared without a word.
Howard didn't answer my question but said, "You've fulfilled her wish. Isn't that good enough? Why care who it is?"