Chapter 22: Twenty

Raymond slumped against the driver seat of his car, exhausted. He craned his neck, groaning when it seemed like every bone in his body were screaming in protest from the hunched position they'd been in all day while he'd been buried in work.

Recalling he'd muted his phone at some point, he searched aimlessly in his suit jacket for it, hoping he'd not missed anything or anyone important.

A slight frown marred his face when he saw he indeed had three missed calls and all were from Oke from about two hours ago. Slightly worried, he dialed the boy's number and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as the phone rang.

"Hello sir," Oke greeted, picking up on the second ring.

"Oke. How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you sir," the boy replied in the polite manner Raymond had grown accustomed to.

"Good. I saw just now that you'd called, is everything alright?" He asked, cutting to the chase.

"Yes. I mean, not really. It's Hope."

Raymond sat straighter as his energy seemed to have been miraculously restored. "What about her?"

"What happened was, she got a call today sometime around noon and I don't know, it seemed really serious. She didn't seem herself the rest of the afternoon and . . . I don't know. It was just really alarming and I thought you'd want to know," the boy ended on a sigh.

Raymond jaw worked furiously as the worry reappeared, gnawing at his insides. "Thank you, Oke. I'm glad you told me."

"Alright, sir." Oke paused hesitantly before adding, "Please, make sure she's fine?"

Raymond nodded although the boy couldn't see him. "I will."

"Bye sir."

"Bye," Raymond replied as he ended the call. Immediately, he dialed Hope's number but it was switched off. He felt panic rising but managed to shut it down. There was no point worrying yet, there could be a million and one explanations as to why her phone was off.

Nodding at the logic of his thoughts, he decided to drive over to her house instead, dialing her number as he drove.

Getting to her house, his knock was a bit frantic as he waited for someone to answer. He tried the knob but the door seemed locked. What was going on?

"Raymond?"

Raymond turned around sharply to the sight of Val standing behind him. She seemed to have just gotten back from work as well and Raymond was a bit surprised he'd been so distracted he hadn't heard her walk over to him.

"Val, hi. Is Hope home?" He asked impatiently.

Val seemed taken aback by the urgency in his tone. Confusedly, she replied, "Uh . . . I don't know. I just got back as well."

She walked forward and Raymond shifted so she could try the door. She saw it was locked and brought out her key. She unlocked the door and turned to Raymond. "She's not home. We don't lock the door with a key from the inside."

Raymond had suspected that, but he'd still been hoping that wasn't the case. "Do you have any idea where she might be?"

Val shook her head, thoughtful. "I don't know. She might be running late with tutorials or maybe gone out with her friends. Have you tried calling her?"

"Her phone's switched off," Raymond replied, frustrated. "Do you maybe have any of her friends' numbers?"

Val shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't."

Raymond sighed, his mind reeling as he tried to think about where she might be. Oke had said she'd gotten a strange phone call. It was the second time that was happening, at least as far as he knew. He fought against the dread crawling up on his insides at the thought of what could have happened to her.

"Is everything alright?" Val asked, his worry rubbing off on her. "Did something happen with Hope?"

Raymond shook his head, trying to keep it as light as possible. It wasn't as if he could tell her he'd gotten a call from someone at her workplace. "Nothing. I- There's just something I'd like to discuss with her."

"Oh," was all Val could manage as she shuffled on her feet a bit awkwardly. She didn't look like she believed his excuse, but she couldn't think of anything else either. "Her battery probably died or something. I'll let you know when she gets home."

Raymond nodded, managing a weak smile. "Thank you."

"Or would you like to come in and wait for her?" She added hesitantly as an afterthought.

Raymond considered it then decided against it. There was no denying the slight awkwardness between the both of them and he didn't want to make it any worse than it already was. "No, there'll be no need for that. Just reach out to me when she's back."

Val averted her gaze, contemplating something. "Raymond . . . About the other night . . . The kiss . . . "

Raymond waited. He'd rather the issue died as it was, but a part of him knew it was better they talked it out sooner rather than later.

"I'm sorry I came onto you like that," she blurted out on a sigh, the words coming out in a rush. "You must have been surprised."

She was staring at him earnestly, somewhat hopefully, waiting for him to deny it. Raymond sighed. It seemed all he was capable of that afternoon. "Val . . . You asked me a question that night, do you remember?"

Her brows furrowed as she tried to recollect.

"You asked if I like you," Raymond supplied. Her eyes widened slightly before she nodded. Raymond had to look away briefly from the hope reflecting in her eyes. It made him feel guilty seeing as how he was about to crush that hope. "I'm sorry, but I don't like you. At least, not like that."

Her mouth formed a small 'o' but no words emerged. She hadn't been expecting that and it was too obvious she was disappointed.

"I'm sorry," Raymond repeated, feeling like the lowest of scums, but he knew it was better he ended it now rather than let it fester. He wanted to tell her how much of a great person he thought she was and all, but it was like he'd been rendered mute.

"I- It's fine," Val stammered. "Thanks for telling me now. I guess."

All Raymond could manage was a weak nod.

She flashed him a forced smile and waved slightly before she opened the door and went in, shutting the door behind her.

Feeling heavy and light at the same time, Raymond walked distractedly back to his car, left with no other options but home. His head was on the verge of explosion as different scenarios of what might have happened to Hope played around in it. As much as he tried to admonish himself that he was going overboard with his thoughts, the sound of the answering machine as he repeatedly dialed her number kept taunting him, threatening to drive him over the edge.

It was a miracle he managed to get home in one piece, but finally he was pulling up in front of his apartment. His eyes squinted as they almost immediately caught on the figure sitting on the steps to his apartment, hunched over.

His heart leapt into his throat as he practically flew out of the car and towards the figure.

Hope's face turned up as he stared down at her, relief, anger, worry coursing through him all at once.

"You . . . " He started, almost stuttering. "You're here?"

"Why do you have to always get home so late?!" Hope snapped, looking furious.

Raymond's mouth fell open in disbelief. Every coherent thought seemed to fly out of his head and he was left searching for what to say.

"Aren't you going to say something?" She demanded forcefully.

He seemed to recover as his mind registered her anger. "Are you seriously mad at me right now? You're the one who decided to go AWOL the last few hours. I even went to your house to look for you and you're here? What happened to your phone?"

"I switched it off," was her nonchalant reply.

"Wait, you switched it off? So that means the battery didn't die? you switched it off?"

Hope flinched at how his voice seemed to keep rising, her anger taking a bow next to his. "Uh . . ."

Raymond started pacing, trying to rein in the the storm that was currently brewing in him, a feeling he didn't have a name for, but knew could be destructive if he unleashed it.

"Uhm, Uncle Ray? Are you okay?" Hope asked tentatively, cowering.

Raymond heaved out a deep breath, coming to a stop in front of her. His eyes burned with emotions as he replied, "I was worried, Hope."

Hope blinked, lost for words. It wasn't as much his words as the vulnerability with which they'd been spoken. Slowly, she pulled herself up. "I'm sorry, but I didn't think anybody would be worried. I just had a lot on my mind that I needed to clear."

Raymond's mind drifted back to what Oke had told her and without realizing it, he closed the little distance between them so they were only a breath short of each other. His eyes found hers and held them deeply. "Are you okay?"

Hope gulped, overwhelmed with feelings she couldn't explain, but whatever they were had tears pulling in her eyes. She'd gotten another threatening call while at work, this time worse than the former. She'd worked like a zombie the rest of the day and for the very first time, she'd craved solace and the only person she had been able to think of was him. She'd soon found herself in front of his locked door but had not been able to gather the energy to switch her phone back on or leave. She'd just sat there by his door, drowning in her emotions while waiting for him to come home.

Hope wasn't sure what it was, but something in the way she was staring at him must have called for it because the next thing she knew, he was engulfing her into a comforting hug.

Hope let out a choked sob as she clung onto him, silent sobs streaking down her face.

They stayed like that for a while, neither of them conscious of how long. Her, crying silently while he wordlessly comforted her.

Finally, she was able to gather herself and she pushed gently away from him.

"Thank you," she whispered as he wiped the streak of tears off her face. The gesture made her heart thunder in ways she'd never experienced before.

"How long have you been here?" He asked softly, dropping his hands away from her face.

Hope shrugged, beyond flustered. Even if she'd known, she was beyond thinking at the moment and all she could reply with was, "I don't know. I came over straight from work."

"Hope!" He gently chided. "That was hours ago. It's almost seven."

Hope grinned, suddenly feeling giddy for some unexplainable reason. It was almost like he was some sort of soothing balm to her ailing spirit. "Well . . . Now that I think about it, I'm kind of hungry."

Raymond chuckled, shaking his head playfully. "I still wonder why you're not fat with all the food you eat."

"I ask myself the same thing everyday," Hope replied brightly.

Raymond rolled his eyes, relieved that she seemed to have gone back to her normal self, even if it was just for a little while. He never liked seeing her anything lesser than bubbly. "Let me guess. You want me to make noodles for you again."

Hope shook her head vigorously, earning raised brows from Raymond. "I want pounded yam and vegetable soup with assorted meat and fish."

"Pounded what?" Raymond snorted, moving past her to unlock his door. "You're not hungry."

"But I am!" Hope whined, following him in. "It's the least you could do after making me wait outside for hours."

Raymond turned around to face her, narrowing his eyes at her manipulative antics. "First, it's not my fault you were outside for hours. Second, how exactly do you expect me to prepare that for you? Should you even be eating heavy food like that at this time?"

Hope ignored most of his words and chose the easiest to reply to. "You don't have to prepare it. Shey you're rich, just order it. That's what people like you do, and it won't even take you that long. Please. I've had a really bad day and this is the only thing that could cheer me up!"

She batted her lashes unashamedly until he succumbed with a sigh. "Fine, I'll order it. Go sit somewhere or something. I need to shower and change."

Hope nodded eagerly, throwing her fists up for added effect. "You're the best!"

He rolled his eyes, but there was no hiding the small smile that tugged at his lips as he headed over to his room. Hope made herself comfortable on his couch as she busied herself with watching TV.

Less than fifteen minutes later, Raymond was settling down beside her. Her head spun as she inhaled the scent of the freshly showered Raymond. He obviously hadn't used anything but he still managed to smell really nice. That was one of the first things she'd noticed about Raymond. He always smelled nice.

"You smell nice," Hope blurted without thinking, cringing as the words made sense in her head.

He chuckled, amused. "Thank you. I get that a lot."

Hope snorted. "That wasn't egoistic at all."

He shrugged but didn't draw the conversation out further. "The food will arrive within the hour. Can you wait that long?"

Hope gave him a look of disbelief that he had even asked that. "I'll wait the whole night if I have to."

Raymond smiled and nodded. "We probably should let Val know you're here though. I might have gotten her a bit worried when I went over to your house."

Hope shrugged. She was a bit surprised he'd been that worried just because her phone had been switched off. At the same time, it had a warm feeling flowing through her. "Call her then."

Raymond winced. He wasn't sure he had the courage to speak to Val just yet after the way he'd shut her down less than an hour before. "You should call her yourself."

Hope frowned as she observed his mood shift. "I already told you my phone is off."

Raymond's brows raised. "You said you switched it off."

"Same thing," Hope insisted. "Anyway, I can't call her so you call her."

Raymond sighed, reaching for his phone. He fiddled with it, contemplating what to do.

Hope studied him, more than a little suspicious.  "Why is it so hard for you to call her?"

Raymond shook his head. "Nothing."

"Hm," Hope nodded, obviously not buying his 'nothing' excuse. "And this has nothing to do with that kiss you both shared?"

Raymond snatched his gaze away from the phone to stare at her. "She told you about that?'

Hope shrugged, feigning nonchalance. "Not until two days ago. She was worried she'd come off too strong."

Raymond turned back to his phone, deciding to compose a quick text to send to Val. He didn't mention that Hope was with him, just that he'd been able to reach her and she was fine. It wasn't really a lie anyway.

Hope turned back to the TV, trying to tune back in. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask what was really going on between him and Val, but she was afraid she would not be able to cope with the answer. To think there had been a time she'd been planning to get them together. Hope chuckled, mocking herself as she realized just how much the table had turned.

"What's so funny?" Raymond asked curiously.

Hope responded with a shake of her head.

Raymond watched her as she watched the TV. She was wearing a small smile, looking absolutely relaxed that it was hard to imagine she was the same person that had been crying less than an hour ago. Still, he couldn't shake the phone call with Oke from his mind. Now more so than ever, he wanted to find out what was silently eating away at her. He really wished she'd open up to him.

"Hope," he called tentatively.

"Hm?" She responded absentmindedly.

"You know you can tell me if anything is bothering you, right?" He asked, although it came out as more of a plea. "I'll be on your side, no matter what it is."

She turned back to face him, taking in his serious face. A smile broke on hers as she contemplated, just for a minute what it would be like pouring out everything to him. To share that burden that seemed so hellbent on weighing her down. She imagined it would bring loads of relief and she'd feel oh so light, a feeling that now seemed foreign to her. But even as she contemplated it, she knew she wouldn't. She couldn't. She could only allow herself to wish for a minute and revel in the knowledge that there was someone on her side she could lean on if she ever had to.

"I know," she whispered back.

They stayed like that, staring at each other, a million unspoken words floating between them. He was silently communicating to her that he was there whenever she needed him and she was in her way assuring him that if there ever came the time she needed help, he'd be the first she'll turn to.

Hope sighed softly, turning back to the TV. "It's times when you're being like this that explains why my cousin seems to be head over heels for you."

Raymond smiled, although a bit sad as he realized the spell was broken and the moment lost. He decided to humour her anyway, "Well. I am pretty great, aren't I?"

Hope snorted. "Don't get ahead of yourself. You're not all that."

"That's you contradicting yourself, Hope. Pick a side," he teased.

"You're not all that," Hope insisted.

"Hm," Raymond hummed, nodding. "Yet you used to have a crush on me."

Hope's eyes widened in horror as she gaped at Raymond who looked like he was on the verge of laughing. "I did not!"

Raymond chuckled. "Please. It was very obvious. Don't even bother denying it."

All Hope could do was stare at him like an idiot.

"You don't need to look like that," Raymond teased, looking rather smug. "Like you rightfully said, I'm quite the catch. I know."

Hope snorted, finally regaining her senses. "I honestly wasn't aware of this great egoistic side of you until now."

Raymond shrugged, relaxing on the couch with his head resting on his palms. "What can I say? I'm full of surprises."

"Indeed," Hope replied sarcastically. She turned back to the TV but could no longer concentrate. Her heart was hammering in her chest, whether from embarrassment or something else, she didn't know. She just couldn't get over the fact that he'd called her out like that.

"I really didn't like you all that much," Hope insisted.

Raymond's brows rose as he observed her amusedly. He seemed to be enjoying seeing her flustered. "Now you're admitting that you did have a crush on me."

Hope looked away from him, rubbing her palms together nervously. Why did she have to keep digging her grave even deeper? She was bound to die of embarrassment at the rate she was going.

Raymond noticed her discomfort and sat back up. He turned so he was facing her side profile, his feet tucked underneath him. "Hey, you don't have to look so uncomfortable. I was just messing with you."

Hope snorted. "Easy for you to say. You're not the one who just got called out on her feelings."

An unexpected smile took over his face as his mind fully processed her words. "So, does that mean you still have feelings for me then?"

Hope kept her mouth shut and her face planted on the TV. She would eventually get out of this as long as she kept her mouth shut.

Raymond shuffled even closer to her until his knees were slightly brushing against her side. Right there, right then, he was far gone beyond return. All his mind seemed capable of thinking about was Hope. She was right in front of him, and he didn't like that she was refusing to look him in the face.

"Hey," he called gently, tugging on her hand. "Look at me."

Hope sighed but obliged, finding it surprisingly hard to meet his gaze. When she finally gathered the courage to, she realized his gaze wasn't fixed on hers. His whole attention was now focused on her lips, and it suddenly seemed like someone had turned up the temperature in the room.

His hand reached up and snaked ever so lightly around her neck. His eyes that suddenly seemed riddled with a thousand emotions travelled up until they met hers, the intensity in them leaving her breathless with anticipation.

What was he doing?

The thought had Raymond jarring back, snatching his hand away as if burned. Suddenly feeling like he'd been sitting on hot coal, he jumped to his feet. Unable to look her in the eye for fear it'd be his undoing, he turned slightly away from her as he stuttered incoherently, "I-I'm feeling parched. I'll just go get some water."

Hope's eyes were opened abnormally wide as she watched him go, the realization of what had almost happened hitting her like a load of bricks. She'd eventually had to come to terms with her feelings for him, and had concluded that there was nothing she could or would do about it seeing as there was no chance of Raymond ever reciprocating her feelings.

But he'd almost kissed her. Did that mean he felt something for her as well?

Hope's whole body shook at the possibility as one question formed in her head. If he did, what was she going to do about it?

•     ~     •     ~     •

Knock knock.

Hello there!

So, an issue about Hope and Raymond's 'relationship' possibly not being normal was finally brought up last chapter. Hmm.

I was honestly starting to wonder why nobody seemed to be bothered by it.

However, let's keep in mind that they're not actually in a 'relationship' so they aren't really doing anything that could be considered morally wrong. Yet.

But! Most importantly,

Vote, comment and share, guys.

I love y'all😁.