Chapter 18

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Daryl said as he held my shoulders tightly while scanning my body to see if I was hurt somewhere. I shook my head and said, "I'm fine. Nothing happened to me."

Daryl arrived a few minutes ago and when he saw what I just witnessed earlier, he immediately called the police.

There was probably a break in. A police officer is here in the unit because he inspected the condo. He walked towards us as he shook his head. "Nothing else was in a mess except for Sir Justin's room. It seems like someone was rummaging through his things. Only 'his' things," the police officer said, emphasizing the word 'his'.

I felt a chill down my spine. Why...?

"Could it be a stalker?" Daryl said as his hands were trembling as he held my arm. "Well, there is a possibility that it was a stalker. It would make sense, since the rest of the unit was left untouched," the police officer said. I clenched my jaw and tried to calm myself. I should at least show Daryl that I'm not scared so he would be reassured.

"Sir Justin, have you seen someone following you around? Or were there any weird occurences lately?" The officer asked with a serious face.

I don't remember anything out of the ordinary. Everything was... "Ah! Th-There was one. One night, I left to buy some beer at the convenience store down the road since the convenience store here at the condo did not have the beer that I wanted. I ran across my ex boyfriend and he said that someone was following me," I said, realizing that something did happen before.

I was dumb not to report that incident to the police. Haaa...

After we discussed some things, the officer left the unit. We were told that an officer would be patrolling the area tomorrow to see if the same thing would happen.

"We should leave. Let's move somewhere else, okay?" Daryl said as he held my arm tightly.

I was debating in my mind whether I should agree with him or not. After all, not only my safety is at risk, but also his.

"I... I don't have money with me right now," I said in a small voice, embarrassed. All of this happened because of me, yet he's also suffering the consequences.

"No, no, it's alright. We can move to my house. My parents aren't staying there anyway. They live in another house so it's fine. Only my cousins live there for now since their new house is still under construction. We should move there," Daryl insisted with pleading eyes.

He must be really scared. I am scared too, but I have to have a strong mentality if I want to survive in this cruel world.

"Alright," I said and smiled. "That's great! We're leaving right now. That bastard might come back here at midnight when we have already let our guards down, so it's better if we leave right now. It will be safer that way," Daryl said as he walked back and forth in the living room.

"You should go get some of your things. Only the important ones. I'll ask someone to pack our things and deliver it to the house tomorrow," he said and headed to his room.

I went to mine and took some clothes that are on top of my bed and put in inside my backpack. Those were the ones that I washed yesterday. I was just too busy to put them in my closet. The things I need for school is already inside my backpack too, so I'm good to go.

I left my room and saw that Daryl was also ready. The things he brought with him were the stuff for school. Makes sense. We're going to his home, so he already has a lot of stuff there.

"Let's go?" Daryl said as he smiled a little. We headed out and went to the parking space. When we got into his car he immediately drove to his house.

*****

My mouth fell open as I looked at his 'house'. This isn't a house at all. It's an effin' mansion! The air around us smells like a rich person's house too.

"Are you sure it's okay if I stay here?" I said in a small voice, suddenly feeling shy. I kind of feel small right now. Maybe because I finally realized the gap between us, or maybe because I feel unworthy becoming his friend. It's like... I'm leeching off him.

"It's okay, really! Let's go in," Daryl said as he gave me a reassuring smile and held my hand. He opened the door and a maid was standing before us. "Welcome back, young master Daryl," she said and bowed. "I'm home," Daryl said and smiled a little. "Nana, this is Justin. He will be staying here for the meantime so please treat him well," Daryl said as he looked at me. "Of course, young master," Nana said and smiled. "We have already prepared your room and your guest's room. Please follow me," she said and started walking.

"By the way Nana, where are my cousins?" Daryl asked as we walked. "The young masters are still not home. They went somewhere earlier but they did not tell me where," she said with a straight face.

As they were conversing, I kept quiet. I'm suddenly shy, what the hell.

"This is your room, Sir," she said as she looked at me. She opened the door and I could only look at it in amazement. It looks beautiful. "Thank you," I said and smiled shyly. "Nana, I can head to my room by myself. Please take a rest," Daryl said. "Before I leave, I want to inform you that your meals have also been prepared. It's in the dining area, so please help yourselves. I'll take my leave then," Nana said and bowed again. "Thank you," Daryl said before Nana left.

"Come in," Daryl said as he held my wrist and pulled me inside. "You look so tense, Jus," he said and looked at me with worried eyes. "You should feel at home. You will be staying here for the meantime, so it's best if you start adjusting in this evironment. I mean, um... I may be asking too much, but please do," he said and smiled awkwardly. "I don't even know why our house is this big," he said and chuckled.

"O-Okay, I will," I said and smiled shyly. "Come on, why are suddenly acting so shy?" He said teasingly. "Shut up," I said as I avoided his eyes when I felt my face heating up.

He clasped my hands and looked at me with a gentle look in his eyes. "Anyway, don't worry. We're safe here," he said and gave me a reassuring smile.

My chest suddenly felt tight. "Thank you, Dar. I don't know what to do without you..." I said as I felt my eyes moistened. He smiled as he took a step closer and wrapped his arms around me. "If you're in trouble, you can always count on me. I'll be there for you, so don't hesitate, okay?" He whispered.

Just because of the words he said, I finally broke down and sobbed.

His words were so reassuring that I felt a little better. To be honest, I was really... I was really scared earlier but I thought I had to be strong so he could have someone to rely on. It turns out that I was the one forgetting that he's also someone I could rely om whenever I need him.

This is a bad day, but at least I have Daryl with me.