Chapter 4: 

“Aurora!! Oh my goodness! Just look how much you’ve grown!” 

That was Mrs. Romanoff. 

Just like I thought, the adults wouldn’t shut up about me “growing up”. 

She swung her arms around me and put her chin on my shoulder, hugging me tightly. 

“Ha…nice to see you again too Mrs. Romanoff.” 

She giggled and unwrapped her arms from me. Finally.

“Oh it’s nice to see you too darling. It’s been a while since you came by. Somehow you’re never sick.” 

Mrs. Romanoff was actually a very sweet lady. Her name made her sound old despite being 36, and she spoke like an old lady too. This contrasted her youthful looks and stunning personality. 

The year of the divorce, she would always try and cheer dad up by covering for him at work and making her signature mashed potatoes. I tried it too. I don’t know what she puts in that thing, but it’s freaking addictive.  

“What are you guys doing here?” she asked, still holding both my hands. 

Dante and I were in a cardiac unit room, gathering up empty blood bags for the donation event. 

Yup. We’ll be taking blood today. I guess some people find pleasure in giving their juices to strangers.  

“We’re just getting ready for the donation event. We’ll stick around for the after party too. Right Dante?”

I turned around to look at him grabbing bags from the cabinet and throwing them into a box. “Yeah, yeah…” he said begrudgingly. 

I guess he was still upset that he was no longer the hot shot he once was. 

“Ok, well you two have fun ok? I’ll go check on Harold to see if he needs any help.” And with that, Mrs. Romanoff left the room. 

“She’s gone. Are you gonna stop frowning now Dante?” 

I looked back at Dante who was clearly still in a very depressive mood. 

“I am NOT frowning! Would you just come and help please?! You’ve been standing there forever!” he said angrily. 

I chuckled and did as he said. Yes, this was very amusing to me. 

After a long while the event was almost in commence. It was starting to get dark and more cars started to pull up, parking all over the hospital. 

Things like this are pretty big in town, since nothing ever really happens around here. Any little event, even like a blood donation charity drive, was worthy of over half our population coming. 

I bet some people just wanted to come for the after party. I mean who the heck actually cares about the donation? 

“Ok, you guys will be stationed right here. All you have to do is wait for the clients to come in and sit down ok?” Nurse McCalister was giving us directions ahead of time. 

“Ok.” 

Dante and I were now both in the blood room, awaiting the people who wanted to give out their blood to random strangers. We would only be doing little things like putting the bandaid on and checking to make sure they were on the right aisle for their blood type. 

People started trickling in little by little, until there were full blown lines stretching up to out the door. Laughter, chatter, and giggles were pouring out of the open windows now as people outside were socializing and gossiping as they always do. I honestly don’t know how adults do that, random conversations with random people out of nowhere…I might have too much social anxiety to do that. Anyhow, the actual party would take place behind the hospital when we were done with the blood drawings. 

Time kept passing and I don’t know why, but I kept waiting for him to show up somewhere. Bring himself out of thin air like he’s done twice already…

“Aurora! We need more bags! Could you go get us some?!” Nurse McCalister was shouting at me from across the room. 

“Of course!” I shouted back. Hopefully she could hear me. 

Now, I was squeezing through the thick crowded line to get through the door. Super tight.. 

Once I got through, the line was sparse, but there were still people sprinkled within the hospital just chatting, strangers. 

I swear I can feel a pair of eyes on me. Well but of course, besides from a few employee’s children, Me and Dante appear to be the only teenagers in this place…

I finally turned around when the feeling got stronger. 

I knew it! That has to be him!! 

I only saw a head, but I knew it was him. 

It had to be. 

I turned away my regular course now, and followed him through the halls. 

I wasn’t sure if it was just me, but he was walking really fast. 

There’s a lot of people here. I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t notice me following him, right? 

Wait, what am I doing?! Why am I following him?!! 

Really, I wanted to stop my outrageous behavior, but curiosity got the best of me when his phone started ringing.

I kept walking. 

He picked up the phone, and entered an unused surgical unit room. 

No, I can’t go in there… 

Obviously, it would make it even weirder if I went into the room with him, so I stayed a door away, in an abandoned psych room, where the walls were thin enough to hear anything close to it. 

This is the only time that knowing every inch and detail of this hospital came in handy. Urgh, but it’s a bit messy in here. 

And dark.

I pressed my ear into the wall. 

“Yes….I know.” 

That was all I could pick up so far, in English at least. He seemed to be speaking to the person on the phone in another language, Italian perhaps? 

Now, more than ever, I wished I had spent those 7 years learning Italian rather than Chinese…

“I can’t…… I will………..she won’t…….. regular girl…..” 

What? What is he even saying? Ugh! There’s definitely something odd about this guy, I know there is! 

Right…?

 Or maybe I'm too afraid to admit to myself that I'm just as obsessed with him as the other girls in school….

God, what is wrong with me…?

“Ciao.” 

Wait, what? He’s done speaking already??? What if he sees me here?!!!

I quickly flipped the lights on and grabbed a random book from the messy floor and began reading it. 

He’ll just pass me by…yeah. He won’t even think twice to look in here….yeah.

I thought my prayers were answered when the boy passed by the room, but I knew God wasn’t on my side when he turned back and peered into the glass of the door. 

*Creek*

I swear I could hear my own heart beating. 

“It’s upside down, Aurora.” 

No, once again, I cannot ignore him. 

I looked up to see him leaning on the door, with his hands in the pockets of his dark jeans. Like a freaking angel.

“Huh? Uh, what’s upside down?” I asked innocently. 

He chuckled and then his bare teeth showed, revealing a bright, blinding smile. 

“Your book. It’s not upright.” 

What…Oh! 

I slammed the book shut. What is this anyway? Extended Psychology Volume 3...?

"Well yeah! I was just practicing how to read upside down….a new thing I wanted to learn. So yeah…!" I said awkwardly.

He squinted his beautiful brown eyes and looked at me suspiciously. 

"That's very impressive actually. I thought you were here to get the blood bags."

There were boxes of blood bags behind me, but I only noticed them just now.

"Oh um…yeah. That too." 

I put the book down and picked up the first box, fitting them between my arms.

"So, are you going to help? With the blood drive…?" I asked him. 

Let's see his reaction...

He shook his head, frowning now.

"No, um. I don't do well with blood." He said slowly.

Odd…

"Ok! Well since you're here, you might as well help me carry the rest of the boxes." 

His stone-like face turned hesitant…but his shoulders sank and defeat to my request was obvious. 

"Alright then." 

The boy- Luciano and I walked through the hallways in silence with one box in my arms and somehow, three in his. 

By the time we made it back to the blood drive center, the lines were thin and the room was only half of what it was when I Ieft.

"So you really won't stay?" I asked when we put the boxes down at the corner.

He shook his head again. "No, being here already makes me feel sick."

"Oh." 

“Well, I’ll see you at the after party.” he said quickly. And then he walked away speedily, out of the room in three short seconds. 

“.....” 

I sighed. 

 Nurse Mccalister snapped her latex gloves on in front of me.

“Oh! Aurora! You still ended up getting the blood bags? I just remembered, we have enough! Funny, right?  And you went through all that trouble! You really shouldn’t have!”

…

Wait, seriously?