Chương 10: Monotony

In no accounted-for time, the three days Jotham was to spend away from school came and went by faster than Histoire could comprehend. She was sincerely nonplussed when Jotham entered her room to inform her he would be leaving the house for a few hours to attend his classes. He was as reluctant to leave as she was to let him leave her sight. In those three days, she relied on him more than she ever did before.

It took some mental dexterity for them to ensure each other and themselves that they would be separated for only a few hours. Jotham's reluctance demonstrated his incertitude towards her physical potential to take care of herself in his absence. Histoire thought the opposite.

She experienced residual pain most of the time after the anesthesia wore off, but it was not enough to impede her progress. Jotham never allowed her to do so, but she was fairly confident she could walk again, at least with some support. The cast was to remain in tact for a few more days and with the help of the railings and walls, she had little perplexity with going to and from upstairs and downstairs.

At the current moment, she reached over for the doorframe of her bedroom door, where she pressed her body against its surface and paused for a short breath. Across the hallway was Jotham's bedroom. News of her injury made its way to Germany and many regards were sent her way along with concerns that were expressed, especially by Blaise.

A short part of the video conversation that aroused avid curiousity and supposition from Histoire was when Jotham abruptly stood up from her bed and left the room with his laptop in hand without explanation. A plausible reason would have been due to how she spoke to Blais with a certain affinity.

That was partially true, and another reason was that Histoire was purposely excluded from the conversation because Jotham wanted to discuss a subject she would not accede to had she been given the chance.

Histoire saw with half an eye Jotham's method acting and her intuitive conjecture was corroborated when he returned with his laptop in hand, a small smile meant to deceive her on his lips. The moment his shadow came into sight by the doorway, Histoire crossed her arms over her chest.

He found her watching the door then his figure when he came into view, her eyes narrowed as an expression he rendered as saying, 'There's no use in acting discreet, you fool. I know everything'. And sure enough, Histoire's glare forced him to crack under pressure. He sighed and approached the bed. Histoire was gifted with a brilliant acumen he never believed he could cozen. That and the fact that she was extremely paranoid. However, it was worth a try.

Jotham stopped beside the bed and was ready to make her retract the glare that sent a shiver down his back when he realised he had a perfect view of the top of her breast from where he stood. Histoire was unaware that the action of crossing her arms caused her night gown to loosen around her chest. Jotham immediately turned his head to hide his flustered expression and pointed with a shaking finger at her chest.

Now, because she had already stood half naked before him, and she did not see him in a sexual manner, she was not at all disturbed to see her gown having fallen loose. Instead, she adjusted it and continued to watch Jotham with a skeptical eye.

"You might as well confess, Jotham. You left the room to give yourself an unfair advantage to convince Blaise to let you permanently move in with me," she accused and Jotham sighed in defeat. Unlike her, he already anticipated Blaise asking him to do the deed instead of the other way around. He could not physically be there for Histoire but she had Jotham to take care of her.

It was evident that Histoire underestimated Jotham's fighting potential. He believed in pacifism, but that did not mean he could not defend himself or anyone else when it mattered the most. If there was anyone Histoire never had to worry over, it was Jotham. Just as with Deus' company, Jotham was scouted by many other companies willing to train and employ him as a Protector long before graduation. But his passion was with photography and artwork and he accepted the position that would expose his true potential in the field.

Jotham's confession actuated another sequence of previously repeated arguments that, surprisingly, resulted with Histoire finally giving him consent to stay with her. She could not deny her need for his assistance when she was injured, and, as she finally realised, Jotham was not one to be underestimated.

Recalling the events that occurred two nights ago, Histoire brought a smile to her face after she observed Jotham's door. She did not know how she would express her appreciation towards him, but Jotham was aware and did not need any words.

With Jotham absent for the next few hours, the progressive ennui compelled Histoire to elude the confinement of her room. Nothing in that room could stimulate her. She dared not set her eyes in the television screen without Jotham in sight, lest she loses her mind like with an incident that occurred years prior. Her eyes were not to be trusted. But because Jotham was around, it was alright for him to carry the TV from the basement up to her room.

She pressed her arms against the walls and kept a firm hold on them as though her hands were covered in adhesives. And slowly, she pressed the cast against the floor to avoid arousing any pain, moving an inch forward, repeating the same action until she reached the railing of the indoor balcony. With its support, she managed to make it to the last step on the first floor, and limped the remaining path to the dining table in the middle of the room.

The sky was dull and blanketed by a gray crowd that threatened rainfall. Histoire was clad in warm clothing. By evening, which was only a short three hours away, it would be raining. By then, she'd have completed what she came down for and Jotham would never know that she was there.

After she pulled out a chair, Histoire sat down with little to no trouble and moved her laptop closer to her being. She could not be put at fault for neglecting her school work because she still had a full week and a half to recover. But since she was capable of at least moving around when she felt she could, it would not harm her to spend an hour or so on productive work.

Histoire opted to completing a project that was due for submission in a few hours rather than to join an online video class. She was dubious of her strength being enough to carry her up and down the stairs again to gather her disguise after she initially forgot to bring them along. With the project completed due to her having enough time, she decided to go through her e-mails.

She was disappointed to discover no new important developments. At least none she expected. The rest were junk mail and insignificant advertisements. It had been a while since she submitted her application to the modeling agency. She knew her impatience was inordinate because success was never promised to her to begin with.

"How do you do it, Jotham?" She asked with a sigh. Jotham's prosperity was deserving of envy. Both him and Histoire were passionate about their career choices, yet Jotham had already progressed so far in life. She had the time to contemplate her future yet no indicative resultant was achieved.

Histoire was so caught up in her thoughts that she did not notice until later that the sun had set and Jotham had not returned yet. He did say he would stop by his apartment to pick up the rest of the necessary items he would need. Her eyes felt heavy and she decided she would take a nap. Hopefully, Jotham would have returned by the time she woke up.

Standing up proved to be more vexing than sitting down. Histoire experienced a little trouble with retaining her balance but she managed. She reached the stairs only to experience a sharp whip of cold air strike against the skin of her feet. The cold atmosphere caused by the rain must've seeped through the bottom of the front door.

However, she could hear no downpour nor the wail of any wind. This compelled her to turn to the door, and, much to her shock, she caught sight of a shadow from under the door. She was still cautious when it came to opening the door to arrivals she did not expect. But she felt she could let her guard down this time. She released the railing and began to limp to the door.

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