waking

11.Chapter 11 Held Her All Night Long

Naomi studied Shawn’s face carefully to make sure he was really asleep. Then she brushed her finger over his eyelashes. When he was awake, his eyes were stunning, and the shape of his brows gave them an intense, captivating look. His eyelashes looked like dark feathers, giving him a refined look, even though he wasn’t much of a smiler, which made him seem serious. Shawn was undeniably handsome.

Naomi was held tightly in his arms. It didn’t take long before she started to feel trapped. She moved slightly, and in the next second, he snapped his eyes open. His gaze, sharp as a dagger, locked onto her. At that moment, Naomi felt a chill run down her spine because he looked at her as if he was staring at a dead woman.

“Don’t move,” Shawn said in a raspy but strong voice and continued, “Sleep.”

Then Naomi didn’t dare squirm again or even speak up.

Before long, Shawn was back asleep, his breathing regular and calm, but Naomi knew that any small movement would wake him up right away.

Giving up the attempt to escape his hold, Naomi eventually let herself relax and fell into a deep sleep.

Downstairs, Carla had been on the lookout all evening, listening for any noises from the third floor. Only at midnight, when she was sure Naomi wasn’t going to be sent away, did she go to update Barbara.

*****

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Rosalind had been moved to the VIP ward, all thanks to Zoey, the girl Freddy had paid a pretty penny to.

Zoey took a fat envelope from Freddy, grinned, and said, “Hey, handsome, call me again when you need blood, okay?”

Freddy nodded, “Thanks a lot, Ms. Allison.”

“No need to thank me. You paid me, after all.”

With an expressionless face, Zoey walked away, envelope in hand. Freddy lingered at the door for a while before heading into the ward.

Rosalind was born with a rare blood disease that demanded transfusions frequently. What was worse, she had this rare blood type, Rh negative (-), which made finding donors a real headache. Folks with money weren’t lining up to sell blood, let alone commit to being a regular supplier for Rosalind.

So, Javier Edwards and Victoria set their sights on abandoned kids from orphanages. And after scouring countless orphanages, they finally found a suitable donor.

That was when Naomi was brought to the Edwards manor.

Ten-year-old Naomi’s first day back with the Edwards family was spent at the hospital, donating blood. The doctors balked at taking blood from such a young kid, but her parents insisted, and so in the end, they drew just enough for Rosalind.

As Naomi grew, the blood donation sessions became more regular and the amounts increased. Javier and Victoria reinforced the notion that it was her responsibility to help her sister, leading her to believe that regularly donating blood to Rosalind was the right thing to do. Just like that, ten years passed.

Freddy always thought that Naomi would keep on giving to Rosalind without complaining. But no one had guessed that even the always sweet Naomi could say “no” one day.

“Hey, Freddy, why do you seem so distracted?” Rosalind’s face had gained some color after the transfusion, but she was still worried. “I can’t get into my writer’s account.”

Freddy was startled for a second, and then, feeling sorry for her, took her hand gently. “You need to rest right now.”

“No way. I need to check the writer’s page. The readers must have left messages pushing for an update. And most importantly, I need to see if Naomi changed the password.” Rosalind’s eyes filled with tears. “I’ve been trying to call Naomi, but she’s not answering. You think she’s mad at me?”

Her eyes turned slightly red. “I was just joking with her. I didn’t know Naomi would get upset. Freddy, can you bring her back, please?” She looked genuinely worried. “She’s all by herself with no money, and it’s really not safe for her out there.”

Hearing that, Freddy felt sorry for her. “Rosalind, you’re worried about her, but when you were in critical condition, she refused to donate blood. Naomi doesn’t deserve to be your sister.”

As Rosalind’s eyes turned even redder and her voice became tearful, she whispered, “It’s all my fault. I’ve been nothing but a burden to Naomi.”

The more Rosalind blamed herself, the more anger Freddy harbored towards Naomi. When he soothed Rosalind, he also inwardly cursed Naomi without restraint.

“Rosalind, don’t worry. Once I find Naomi, I’ll make sure she comes to see you,” Freddy promised, keeping his voice gentle yet firm. “You’re such a good sister, but if she doesn’t get how to value and care for you. Then we might be better off without her.”

“Freddy, you can’t talk about Naomi like that. It’s my fault. I knew she was your girlfriend, yet I still fell for you. But I can’t help it, we’ve known each other since we were kids, and I just can’t control my feelings for you,” Rosalind said, her eyes filling with tears. “Do you think I’m a bad woman?”

“No way, Rosalind. It’s not your fault. I’ve always had feelings for you,” Freddy sighed heavily, showing his own frustration. “I got close to Naomi just to help you and to make sure she’d donate her blood.” He stopped, looking puzzled. “I just can’t figure out why she’s acting this way now.” Then he continued, “Don’t worry. I’ll bring her back,” he declared with certainty. “We’ll get her to be just as helpful as before, the perfect donor.”

Rosalind’s eyes briefly flashed with a hint of cunning as she heard Freddy’s promise. This was exactly what she wanted.

Her condition was slowly getting better, but there was no room in Rosalind’s heart for letting go of Naomi. She wanted everything Naomi had, like her blood for transfusions, her design ideas, her comics, and even her boyfriend.

Freddy and Rosalind, cozy and close in the ward, started scheming on how to force Naomi to come back.

*****

The next day at the Spring Villa, Naomi woke up in Shawn’s arms as sunlight streamed into the black and white bedroom.

She opened her eyes slowly, not daring to move throughout the night as she was cradled in his embrace, her body feeling sore and stiff, yet she had gotten a surprisingly good night’s sleep.

Shawn’s eyes fluttered open, gazing in mild disbelief at the young woman in his arms. Last night, he didn’t take any sleeping pills, yet he’d fallen asleep quickly. Although he’d woken up a few times due to his vigilance, he’d managed to drift off again with ease.

Naomi flashed him a smile. “Good morning, Mr. Fischer.”

Shawn watched her with an intense gaze, and Naomi met his eyes with neither arrogance nor fear, gentle but steady. In those eyes, he saw a reflection of his own monstrous and ugly self, but she did not seem afraid.

He chuckled quietly, his mood much lighter. “Morning.”

Feeling refreshed after a rare good sleep, Shawn lifted the covers, got out of bed, and headed toward the bathroom.

“Go freshen up on the second floor and then Chandler will take you to Sanders Group to quit,” he said.

Considering she served as a pillow and helped him sleep, he decided he’d let Chandler help her deal with Freddy.

Naomi agreed, “Okay, thank you, Mr. Fischer.”

She got up and stretched, a smile coming effortlessly as the warm sunlight hit her face. She couldn’t help but smile, feeling happy to still be alive.