20 THE NIGHT
"You aren't mad at me for this, are you?"
"As long as she is okay with it, I don't mind." Alex got up as well. "Don't stay awake for too long. We have work tomorrow."
"I will see you at work. Good night!"
"Good night."
Sakura heard footsteps. She turned off the light and covered herself with the comforter.
She heard the door open. She held her breath.
Someone walked inside her room and came close to her.
Sakura sensed someone sitting on her bed. She almost cried out.
Soon, a hand touched the back of her cheek.
She was startled. Her back was facing the door. She didn't know who came in.
After some time, she heard, "Good night."
A sense of relief rushed over her body.
'Oh, thank goodness, it's Alex. Shall I bid him good night? Oh no, I'm pretending to sleep. I can't bid him good night and sleep at the same time. I'll definitely bid him good night tomorrow.'
She heard footsteps going away.
She concentrated on the sound of his footsteps and tried to memorize them.
Later, the room was dark. The clock was ticking. Somewhere in the street, a dog was barking.
Sakura recalled how a cute puppy was killed by the ghost.
She shuddered.
All of a sudden, she had a feeling that someone was behind her.
She abruptly turned around and turned on the light.
She scanned the whole room. There was no one in the room other than her.
She licked her dry lips. Her heartbeat escalated.
She started to feel scared just like when she was watching the movie.
She once again checked the room, under the bed.
When she found nothing, she finally covered herself to sleep.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
A few minutes later, she opened her eyes, scanned the whole room and again tried to sleep.
She repeated the same action every five minutes and soon she got tired of it.
The face of the ghost kept coming into her vision.
Whenever she closed her eyes, she was imagining it was here behind her or in the ceiling or under her bed.
'I can't take this anymore. At this rate, I can't play with Lin tomorrow.'
Feeling frustrated, she grabbed her pillow and went outside the room.
The whole place was dark. It gave her chills.
She trembled. She quickened her steps and went to another bedroom.
She knocked on the door and then turned the knob to open the door.
From the slightly ajar door, she peeked inside.
She found Alex sitting on the bed. The lamp beside the table was turned on. He was reading a book.
His chest was bare. He wasn't wearing anything. His broad chest was illuminated by the yellow light.
He looked up and saw a pair of curious and scared eyes staring at him.
He closed the book.
"Sakura, what are you doing here?"
His voice was as deep as an old well in the countryside. His voice echoed in her heart.
"I can't sleep," Sakura timidly answered. "Can I sleep with you?"
Alex looked at her. His forest green eyes scanned her.
She was wearing a pink nightgown. Her cleavage was showing. He could see a pair of eyes looking through her gown.
His throat was suddenly dry. "Come here," he called her.
Sakura beamed. She swiftly entered the room and closed the door.
The door was locked with a 'click' sound.
Alex wanted to tell her to keep the door open but she took quick steps to come to his bed.
He moved away to give her enough space to lie down.
As she did, he covered her body with his comforter.
Sakura wouldn't sleep so soon when she came to his room. It was her first time entering his room.
She peeked out of the comforter and stared at him with her big doe eyes.
Alex noticed her gaze. He gently stroked her hair and asked, "I'm here now. Why aren't you asleep?"
"Alex, is it wrong of me to come here?"
"Why do you think like that?"
"Because you never sleep with me."
"True. Only married people can sleep together."
"You mean the bride and groom can sleep together?"
"That's right."
"Then, are you getting married if we are sleeping together?"
"That's not how marriage works."
"Then how does it work?"
"It has a certain ceremony. Without it, no one can be married."
"But won't it be wrong of us to sleep together if we don't get married?"
"You don't have to worry about it now. Aren't you scared of sleeping alone? So, it doesn't matter. Go to sleep."
Sakura was stunned. "How do you know that I'm scared?"
"I can tell when you are lying." Alex pinched her nose.
Sakura was embarrassed. "Did others notice?"
"Who knows? You have to ask them." Alex shrugged. His eyes flickered playfully.
"But that ghost was scary looking. I cannot keep my eyes closed."
Alex hid his laughter. He said, "I'm here now. I'll make the ghosts go away. You can sleep now, Sakura."
"Alex…" Sakura softly called out. "Can I ask for something?"
Alex probed, "What is it?"
Sakura requested, "Can you call me Jean? I like the name 'Jean' as much as Sakura. But no one calls me that.
"Lin said that special people call each other by different names. I don't like the sound of daring or baby. So, call me 'Jean'."
"All right. I'll call you Jean." Alex agreed without hesitation.
"Thank you, Alex!" Sakura's eyes sparkled in the light.
After she fell asleep, Alex tried to get off the bed.
However, a soft arm circled around his waist.
Alex froze at the spot. He slowly turned his head toward her.
Sakura was still sleeping but her grip around his waist was tight.
Alex sensed his stomach was acting funny. The area her soft hands touched, it was getting warmer.
He gulped. 'I wish I could drink a glass of cold water,' he thought.
His eyes landed on the water bottle beside the table lamp. If he wanted the bottle, he would have to go over Sakura's sleeping form.
'I can't sleep if I can't drink water.'
He thought for a moment about how to take the water bottle without disturbing her slumber.
'Here goes nothing.'
He took a deep breath and reached out his hand over her body. He could feel her warm breath touching his bare chest.
Thump!
His heart skipped a beat.
Licking his lips, he reached out and grabbed the bottle.
That's when Sakura moved.
Her hands slid from his waist and went around his neck.
Afterward, feeling her arms too high, she pulled them along with his neck.
Alex's eyes widened in surprise.
