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“Marissa! Little Greene,” Rafael’s gentle voice reached her ears, “open your eyes.”
The darkness that was enveloping her slowly started dissipating.
Marissa kept crying and grinding her teeth but that soft familiar touch was on her cheeks now brushing away the tears.
“Come on, my brave girl. Try to wake up, she felt the familiar lips on her face kissing her tears With a hiccup, she opened her eyes and found him looking at her in concern.
“Marissa!”
“Raf… Rafael… where… were you?” she sobbed, her voice breaking.
“I was here. I was with you the whole time,” his fingers were gently wiping the wetness off her cheeks.
“N…No… you weren’t… wh…why…” she sobbed and felt him tightening his arms around her.
“Shh. Go to sleep. I’m right here with you,” She could feel his rough check against hers and closed her eyes.
“D…don’t go… don’t… 1… leave… m… me… Ra… Rafael…” she whispered to him.
“I won’t. I promise… his gentle voice made her eyes flutter closed, and she slipped back into a deep sleep. The dream was so raw and so real that it almost felt like it actually happened.
She scrunched her nose and scratched it with the back of her hand. After placing her hand down, she realized that the mattress wasn’t as soft as it was last night.
With her brows, knitted in confusion she raised her face only to find herself staring straight into those familiar green orbs.
She looked down and found herself all sprawled on his naked chest. She gulped her saliva and tried to smile, “I’m… I’m sorry…” Placing her palms on his body, she tried moving away. But his hands were quick to cover hers, pressing them against him.
There were dark circles around his eyes.
Didn’t he get enough sleep? The exhaustion was evident on his face.
His body under her and the quilt covering them had kept her well warm.
“Where are you going?” he asked her in a hoarse whisper when saw her shifting slightly on top
of him.
“I need to get up and… need to go to bathroom… if you know what I mean…” she raised her shoulder and turned away her head to hide her blush.
His eyes were scrutinizing her face. She bent her face shyly leaning her forehead against the hard contours of his chest.
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“Hungry?” she felt his fingers through her hair and nodded without looking up.
“Then let me fix you breakfast,” after she felt him kissing her hair, she left the bed but had to pause, holding her reeling head.
“Marissa!” he was immediately by her side, holding her body close to him.
“I don’t know why I feel this dizzy,” she said wiggling her face and tried to squeeze her cyes shut.
“Let me help you back to bed. No need to move so hastily.”
She laughed holding his arms, “But I need to go to the bathroom!”
“I’ll take you there,” snaking his arm around her waist, he let her lean her body into him, but she didn’t take another step.
“What do you mean by this? Are you planning to accompany me to the bathroom?” she tried to chuckle, but he couldn’t be serious.
“Yes. I would accompany you anywhere you want, he said while guiding her to the toilet seat. and that was when her face turned pale.
“Accompany me?” her complexion drained of color when she recalled last night’s dream, “B… but… you weren’t there with me”
“Marissa!” he could tell from her expression that her smile had vanished and now she was again behaving oddly.
“Rafael… leave me… please…” she started squirming to get out of his embrace.
“No! I can’t. You might fall, Marissa!”
“I won’t. Trust me. Please leave,” She snapped, and he didn’t seem to mind her sudden rudeness. What was he made of?
“Fine!” he at last gave up, “I’ll just be outside the door”
“No need. I don’t need you here, Rafael…” he didn’t let her finish and turned her to him.
“What is it, little Greene? Is it something about the last night’s….”
“Rafael… leave if you don’t want me to throw my pee on the floor!” he stepped back when her voice raised.
“Sure!” he left and closed the door behind him.
She started massaging her temples. What a scary dream it was!
Nina and Valerie were there in the MSin office. That too when Rafael took her for a date
there. All of it was odd.
“Marissa! You alright?” she heard Sophie’s voice outside the door and then she started talking to someone, “Don’t worry. I’ll stay here with her!
Oh. So, Rafael asked Sophie to check on her.
“Yeah. I’m good, Sophie!” Marissa called out and got done with her business.
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drawers.
“What did you eat, sweethearts?” she asked them after kissing their foreheads.
“I made them French toasts, Sophie said regarding her face, “with homemade maple syrup.”
Marissa went to the kitchen and switched on the coffee machine.
“Why is your face so puffy at this hour, Mar?” Sophie asked in a low whisper not to attract any attention from the kids, “Have you been crying?”
“Long story,” she muttered under her breath and tried to suppress her yawn. She had to act that no matter how scary the dream was, he was there to take care of her.
But but but… why didn’t he come to help me in my dream?
“He was so concerned about you,” Sophie gazed at the living room where Rafael was explaining something to Ariel from her picture book.
Instead of saying anything, Marissa shrugged trying to forget the faces of Nina and Valerie.
Sophie poured her the coffee and handed over the cup to her, “Do you want to talk about it?” the doctor in her kept examining her friend’s face.
“Later,” Marissa pressed the rim of the cup firmly to her lips.
The dream had boggled her mind. The presence of her enemies and then the strange behavior of Dean and Delinda. The way Rafael didn’t return after leaving her in that room, it almost felt like he had abandoned her again, “Should I order something for you?” Rafael came behind her and kissed her head.
She shook her head with a smile. The digestive juices in her belly were rising threatening to make their way up to her throat.
Thankfully he didn’t force her and was walking away after Ariel called him from the living room when Marissa quickly held his wrist, “Rafael!”
Instead of responding to her, he first raised his wrist to kiss her hand, “Hmm?”
“I’ve got a request.”
“Yeah. Shoot it, princess,” However, her unexpected request caught him off guard.
“I can’t go on that date with you, tonight,”
“W…What?” he stammered, clearly taken aback.
“I said I can’t go on that date. Sorry, her voice trembled slightly, “But your office has snakes, Rafael:
