I CAN'T STAY AWAY 2

Moon, who caught sight of the action felt her heart skip a beat, and she immediately looked away from him, "You should try it. I bet you would fall in love with it." She suggested while backing him as she tried to put the milk in the fridge

"No, thanks," he dropped the Snickers back in the bag before turning to the bags full of foodstuff he bought. He brought out everything inside the bag and placed them where they were supposed to be

Seeing this, Moon's brows furrowed, "You should at least take some back to your apartment."

"We won't be needing it," he smiled at her as he placed the remaining foodstuff in the cupboards, leaving only what he would cook for dinner on the kitchen counter.

"How can I help you? Should I chop the onion, or do you want me to cut the meat?"

"You can help me by removing that eye patch so I can see those beautiful honey-brown eyes of yours," She blinked at him several times, clearly dumbfounded. Seeing her not move, he walked towards her and carefully removed the eye patch while brushing a few strands of her hair with his fingers. I wonder how your blood would taste, he thought to himself while smiling at her innocently.

"Mr neighbour, you haven't answered my question. What can I do to help you in the kitchen?" she asked again,

"All you have to do is sit and keep me company."

"I can't just sit here and watch you do everything. I can be doing anything while keeping you company."

"Fine, you can help me with this..." He pointed at the tomatoes, "While I season the meat."

"Oh, okay, that is better" She eagerly took the chopping board and the knife to get to work. She peeled the onion and washed it with the tomatoes in the kitchen basin before taking it back to the kitchen counter. After she was done, Ocean took the meat to the sink and washed it before joining her on the kitchen counter to dice.

They both worked in silence until he decided to start a conversation. "What is your favourite colour?"

"Sky blue and white." She answered with a small smile.

"Why?"

"Probably because it gives me a sense of peace." He waited for her to ask him something, but she didn't look like someone about to open her mouth anytime soon. He continued

"Well, I like black because it represents darkness, and darkness gives a sense of peace as well as fear. It all depends on what you want it to be" She stared at him while trying to register his words.

Ocean chuckled, "I was just joking. I like honey brown, just like your eyes." He let out another chuckle as she squinted her eyes at him

"Are you trying to hit on me, Mr neighbour?"

"I am just admiring what I like,"

"Mr neighbour..." she called in a warning tone, making him laugh.

"Fine, but know I like expressing myself in actions and words."

"Point taken." He took some of the already-cut onion to sprinkle on the meat.

"What do you believe in, rabbit-teeth neighbour?" He continued the conversation while seasoning the meat to his taste after which he put it on fire to cook.

"I believe in God the creator," she replied without giving it much thought.

"I see. What are your hobbies?"

"Reading, writing, singing-"

"Singing? Tell me you are joking. You might want to remove that from the list because the last time I heard you sing, you nearly set my ears on fire" He teased and watched her mouth set in a thin line

"Whatever."

"What other hobbies do you have?"

"Dancing." He eyed her mockingly and chuckled while trying to imagine her dancing. The images in his head were just too funny that he couldn't stop laughing.

"To be honest with you, out of all the hobbies you mentioned, I can only imagine you doing two, which are writing and reading. The rest? I am not. What type of dance can you do?"

"Ballet and ballroom dance."

"Interesting. I would like to see you dance."

"Let's pray that you can save your head till that day."

"I am strong enough, see..."

Her laughter resonated in the apartment when she looked up and saw him flexing his muscles. "Show it off to Rex when he comes for you."

"You didn't have to ruin my moment," He faked a frown, causing she rolled her eyes.

He continued, "So you ran away from your family?"

The smile on her face was immediately replaced by a deep frown, "Where did you hear that from?"

"I figured that out myself yesterday when you were talking with Rex."

"How did you even hear what we were saying? I am very sure our voices were low. And again, I was told this house has a soundproof."

"And you believed them?— it doesn't matter. Are you trying to dodge my question?" He crossed his hands over his broad chest while raising one of his eyebrows at her.

"Let us get something straight here. Mr neighbour, I don't owe you any explanation. The fact that I am trying to be cool with you doesn't mean we are friends. You are still a stranger to me."

"Yet you are allowing me to cook for you."

"Now that is the problem, just because I let you into my kitchen, allowed you to wear my apron and allowed you to move around like my boyfriend doesn't mean you have to cross the boundaries here."

"I still don't get where all this is coming from and where it is going. I never knew it was now a crime to know about someone's family."

"It is not a crime, Mr neighbour, but you can only know if the person wants you to know, and in my case, I don't want you to know."

"Why don't you want me to know?"

She glared at him, "That is the problem! You are too pushy, which is very irritating!"

"I am not being too pushy. You are just being over-sensitive. If you want, I can tell you about my family and-"

She shook her head in annoyance, "I don't want to know you. You are my neighbour across, and that is all."

"I don't get it. What is it about your family you don't want to share? Are they poor, rich, murderers, or criminals? Just mention the damn thing."

"You really know how to get on my nerves, and if you keep it up, I will have to ask you to leave at once."

"Okay, fine, I rest my case... For now."

"Good." She exhaled and continued dicing the tomatoes.

"Okay... What genre of books do you like to read?"

"I don't want to talk to you."

What a child, he thought to himself.

"I will talk to myself then. Is it romance you like to read?"

"..."

"Horror? Historical books? Detective and mystery?"

"..."

"Adventurous books?

"..."

"Comics? Fantasy?"

"..."

"let me guess, with your personality, you will like mystery books, am I right?"

"..."

"Or is it romance that will get you smiling like a fish?" Fishes don't smile, right? Moon, who has been ignoring Ocean thought to herself, but he heard it and smiled.

"They do smile, but you can only see it if you watch closely." He openly replied to her thought and still got no response.

"You talk too much. I am done with the tomatoes..." She pushed the chopping board full of diced tomatoes to his side and went to wash her hands under the running faucet. "You can have the kitchen to yourself and go when you are done. I am going to my room."

"Okay, princess." he gave a tiny bow to emphasize the princess part, and this action made her roll her eyes back dramatically. His eyes followed her movements till she was no longer in sight. He made a mental note of dragging her out of that room after cooking so that they would have dinner together, or if she doesn't comply, he would make sure to dine with her in the room. One way or the other, he would make her eat with him.

20-minutes into his cooking, the doorbell rang vigorously, and if that wasn't enough, the person decided to also knock in a non-polite manner. His brows furrowed as he reduced the cooker's heat to check who was at the door. The thought of Rex returning to hurt Moon made him furious as he hastened his footsteps. As if on cue, Moon rushed out of her room with a frantic look.

"Are you expecting anybody?" He asked calmly, pretending not to notice the change in her demeanour.

After a few seconds of thinking, she said, "No."

He heard the way her heart kept beating fast as if anticipating danger, making his frown deepen. Knowing the person wasn't there for good, he decided to open the door first.