22

LUCAS' POV.

"Wait… You need to breathe. You need to calm down." I said, dropping my notepad, on which I had been jotting down new tech ideas.

She plastered a hand against the window with wide eyes, trying to breathe.

"No… no, please take me off. I can't stay here, I'm going to start screaming. I'm going to. I can't… I can't breathe." She said, looking around frantically.

I went to her immediately, and pulled off her jacket, which was heavy, and could contribute to her feelings of suffocation.

"Wait a sec. Wait…"

She tapped my shoulders, trying to get to her feet, but I stopped her.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she couldn't even speak. She kept on trying hard to breathe, and it seemed to be getting harder, and more intense.

Her mouth stayed open, in an attempt to let air in, and I got really scared. We were high in the sky, and I had no idea on how to calm her down because I knew people didn't get down from Ferris wheels on ropes.

"Breathe, please, breathe…" I said, getting more anxious. What if she died? I could solve countless mathematical problems, financial problems, business problems, but I was completely clueless on what to do about a panic attack.

She continued to gasp for breath, and I began to search for things to do in such a situation on the internet. In all the information I gathered, I could see I was meant to distract her; however, there was nothing I did that managed to successfully distract her.

I asked her to count a hundred people she could see, but she couldn't even concentrate.

I tried other ways I could see on the net, but her condition didn't improve.

Her cheeks were red, and a trembling hand clutched her chest.

And before I could go crazy about having been presented with the first case I couldn't handle properly, I kissed her.

After all, she needed a distraction. I wanted her mind to wonder why I was kissing her, if I was really kissing her, and what she was meant to do. That was taking her mind off the panic attack instead of dwelling on it, and feeling scared.

Thankfully, I succeeded. Stephanie was confused, and her breathing slowed, as she was thrown into shock.

Why was the guy who had just rejected her kissing her?

Immediately I noticed she had calmed down, I withdrew from her, and tried hard to fight the urge to wipe my lips furiously.

Stephanie stared at me speechlessly, and I went back to sitting. She still kept on staring at me with that same awed look, and I gave a glare.

"Stop staring." I said, feeling too uncomfortable. Her cheeks heated red, and she blinked hard, looking down at her fingers.

"Thank… thank you." She said, but I didn't feel the need to reply.

When we got down from the Ferris Wheel, we made our way back to Mrs. Mayer, and she looked at our faces, wondering what had happened.

"Stephanie had a panic attack on the Ferris Wheel." I said immediately, and Mrs. Mayer turned to Stephanie abruptly.

"Why did you go then if you knew you couldn't handle it?" She asked, hitting Stephanie's shoulder, seemingly lighter than she'd have liked to. "Are you okay?"

"Lucas helped me." She said, and I couldn't stop my brow from shooting upwards. Since when did we arrive at a first-name basis?

"Oh, thank you so much, Lucas." Mrs. Mayer said, looking at me with gratitude, and I returned it with a little smile.

Thereafter, I drove with directions to the waterside, where beautiful rocks stuck out on the sides.

The waves crashed softly against the shore, and the sounds were so refreshing I could actually sleep.

Mrs. Mayer and I began to talk, while Stephanie watched me intently from behind.

"You should like me." She said all of a sudden, and I looked at her, wondering why she decided to be so vocal in front of her granny when she knew I would still reject her.

"Why should I?" I asked.

"Because I'm probably the only woman who loves you truly—not for your money." She replied, and I almost scoffed.

"You're not the only one." I said frankly.

"Stephanie, stop it. A lady doesn't force herself on a man." Mrs. Mayer said solemnly, and I raised a brow because it was similar to what I had told her on the Ferris wheel.

Stephanie kept quiet, but didn't look like she was willing to give up yet.

Mrs. Mayer and I talked more about various tech products we could possibly think of. I for one, couldn't think much of what those people could possibly need in their lives.

Mrs. Mayer had to leave first because of a business meeting, and the only reason I didn't leave immediately after, was the beautiful sight of the water. It had a calming effect, and I didn't know when I gave constant sighs.

Stephanie didn't say anything. She only sat there staring at me, and I wondered if she didn't know it was bad to stare. It was rude.

Due to her staring, I was forced to leave.

And when we were about to get out of the car, she suddenly stopped me.

"Why did you kiss me?' she asked, and I scoffed.

"You didn't read meaning into that, did you?" I asked, tucking my hands into my pockets.

"Is that how you kiss girls who are in love with you?"

"You're not in love with me. You're obsessed. There's still room for you to retrace your steps." I said, and she folded her arms.

"Why did you kiss me if you don't like me? Why did you take advantage of me having a panic attack so you could kiss me?" She asked, and I was forced to laugh.

"What? Is that how you interpreted it? Wow. You're really something else." I said, and she came closer to me.

"Yes, because that's undoubtedly what you did." She said,

"No, the kiss meant nothing. I kissed you to distract you because distraction is highly needed in the case of someone having a panic attack, so stand back." I said, and poked her shoulder backwards, a little annoyed that she had the audacity to move so close to me, and stare up at me defiantly.

And as I poked her, her eyes suddenly rolled upwards, and she fell to the ground, unmoving.

Did she… did she lose consciousness because I poked her, or….?