n

n

nSoon enough, the merciless downpour finally let up.

nBoth thunder and lightning eventually took their leave, paving way for the coruscant glow of the moon to shine through. Its shimmering pool of light scatters all over a clear and cloudless night sky along with a sea of gleaming stars.

nWith that, the curtains of a beautiful and reposeful evening fall over at last, ending Cassidy's show of nightmarish fears.

n

"It's already been almost half an hour since the rain stopped, but...

" she grimaced in silence, mustering a straight face all the while.

n

"Bossman is still clinging onto me for some reason.

"

nIf only she could recover from all the shuddering and cowering she did as fast as she started to do so, she would've hastily scurried away from Adrian like a deer that had been caught in the headlights. She'd definitely react that way since he just saw her greatest weakness of all time.

nIt's mortifying to say the least as she had always been doing good in hiding it. She never wanted anyone to know about it, which was the reason why she decided to part ways from him earlier. Right now, though, she would have to think of a way to get around this situation.

n

"Ughhh... So much for escaping the rain either. He really didn't have to run after me, though...

" she thought with a pout.

nIn all actuality, Cassidy just realized how awkward and misleading their position was right after she fully recovered a minute ago. She was still trembling in fear when the rain finally piped down so she really didn't mind how he's practically caging her in his arms the whole time.

nCassidy also knew that Adrian had been murmuring something over and over again, but she couldn't recall what it was since she's too focused on the thunderous growling noises and flashes of lightning up until the very end. Her mind just happened to zero in that horrifying scenario - with his warmth serving as her remaining grip on reality.

n

"Oh, you're not shaking anymore...

" Adrian softly mumbled in relief out of nowhere, taking Cassidy aback.

nHe seems to be getting chummy with how he suddenly squeezes her tighter once more. As if his arms are not enough to engulf her, he even dips his head down and nuzzles his nose in the crook of her neck.

nNow that the fact that he keeps initiating these intimate gestures finally registers in her head, she can no longer stay stupefied and speechless.

n

"Hey, bossman-

"

n

"Cassidy...

" he then breathed out all of the sudden, flummoxing her even more.

nHim calling her first name already pulled the last straw for her.

nWith a flabbergasted look on her face, Cassidy bolted away in a manner so abrupt that she ended up scooting a few good inches far from Adrian. Caught off guard by how she unceremoniously broke physical contact, his once dreamy smile and starry stare dropped almost instantly.

nWith that, the two find themselves exchanging nonplussed gazes for the next seconds to come. While Adrian tries to ponder if he touched her somewhere he shouldn't have, Cassidy keeps wondering what kind of unreckonable entity is possessing her ever so indifferent husband this time.

nThat's all until he saw a few fresh cuts on her feet.

n

"Your feet... They're hurt...

" he brought up as he scooted nearer to take a closer look.

n

"Wait here, I'll go get your shoes back. Let's treat them as soon as we arrive at the resort.

"

n

"O-Oh, sure... But no need to get the shoes. I accidentally broke the heels after running all over the place to look for some shelter-

"

nThen, she paused.

nAs soon as Cassidy caught sight of Adrian's reaction to this, she came up with the impression that he's taking pity on her, which annoyed her to a certain degree. He's probably thinking that she's such a ditzy, scatterbrained klutz or something.

nIn reality, though, that's not what he's thinking at all.

nAdrian can't help but look at Cassidy worriedly. Everything just seemed to line up - she was so frightened by the thunder that she's thrown into panic like that and forgot about everything else. She even got herself a new injury after disregarding her safety.

nAt this point, he's nearly convinced that she might as well be collecting different kinds of injuries, especially with how they keep adding up everytime.

nBut even then, Adrian is going to play it cool. He won't scold Cassidy again like how he used to whenever this thing happened. Besides, she really didn't do this on purpose.

n

"Anyway, forget about what you saw and heard...

" Cassidy started again, eyeing him sharply.

n

"Or just pretend this never happened.

"

n

"Of course, I can't. This is quite a serious matter, you know. You were so weak and fragile,

" Adrian recalled out loud with a downcast gaze.

n

"And that's exactly why I told you to forget about it! I don't need your pity or anything! It's also really mortifying!

"

n

"Unless I lose my memories too, I will not be able to forget it. But if you're that adamant, I can offer to just keep it a secret.

"

n

"That doesn't solve any of what I said. You still see me as pitiful and-

"

n

"No, I don't. It's far from pitiful nor mortifying. I don't see it in any of that ways at all.

"

nOnce more, Cassidy paused.

nIt's just that Adrian said those words so sincerely that they sounded nothing but genuine. He also has this look on his face that tells her how serious he is.

n

"Really, what's up with him all of the sudden...?

" she quietly grimaced, raising a skeptical brow.

n

"Had his head been struck by lightning or something?

"

nWhile having this train of thoughts, Cassidy perked up after hearing a familiar noise from a distance. Adrian appears to have also heard it as he turns to its direction before she does.

nAs soon as they heard the sound of an approaching vehicle, the two of them jolted in flummox - it just happened that a bus was now coming their way.

n