CHIARA
He looked at me. "What are you talking about? Come with me, I need to show you something." He uttered and started to head to the door. With eyebrows drawn together, I followed behind him. The house was so huge. The ceiling was too far away for you'd question how the chandeliers were able to get there. And of course, it was all in black and gold. We reached the end of the corridor, he pushed open the door that was facing us and held the knob as though he was contemplating something first.
He turned back to me and his eyes found mine, "Behind this door is my heart. I'm about to shed my heart naked for you, Chiara. I'd never done this before." He said, his eyes so serious that a slight chill crept into my heart. What the hell was behind the door?
He sighed and pushed it open. He held the door open for me to enter. With a heavy heart, I walked inside. My feet halted along with my heart and breathing. My wide eyes looked around the room. I felt like my eyes weren't enough. What the hell was going on? Why was I all over the walls?
I turned back to him, "What the hell is all of this?" I asked, turning around, not able to believe my eyes. My pictures were all over the room! "What is all this?" He just rubbed his nape, looking at me. Then something hit me "Wait a damn minute…that was you? You're my stalker? You?" I gestured at him, unable to let it sit right in my head. I moved closer to the walls, taking in the pictures.
It was as though I was watching my life story unfold on the walls. Every single event, everywhere I went, everything I did. It was all there. I covered my mouth when I saw my pictures from five years ago. My heart was beating fast, so fast that I feared it was going to leap from my chest. I didn't know how to feel about all of this, so I just turned to him and a nervous laugh escaped my lips, "Oh my God."
"How? Why?" I asked. He walked to me, but I moved back, causing him to pause and raise his hands up. "I won't touch you. I promise." He said and walked past me. I turned to him. His hands grazed the pictures with so much care. But it was the emotions that were displayed on his face that shocked me further. What was that?
"I know and I understand that you are shocked to see this." I scoffed, "Shocked? I don't even fucking know what to think of you and this." I gestured around the room. "You have a room full of my pictures, Carmelo!" I snapped. "Calm down first and—" I interrupted him "Don't you fucking tell me to calm down."
He sighed and turned to the pictures. "You mean so much more to me than you think." He started and then faced me again. His eyes held so much depth in them that I was scared to find out what he was about to say next. "I've been wanting you for so long, longer than you can imagine. And now that I can finally have you, I'll never let you go, ever." He said, "What the fuck?" I said. What was he talking about? He slowly made his way to me and stood right before me, there was only an inch between us.
"I'll end whoever comes after you if it means you'll stay with me. Not even death can keep me from being near you, sweetheart." He said, and I could see the promise through the darkness that surfaced in his eyes. He meant it. At least that was what I could comprehend at that moment. "You are here to remain, with me, forever." He added. "I—" I raised my hand, "Stop! Stop talking! Stop all this madness!" I snapped panting as though I was running. "Call it whatever you want, I meant every word I said, Chiara." I shook my head, tears falling. Why the fuck was I crying for? I couldn't breathe. I rushed out of the room, kicked the door, and ran across the corridor. I climbed down the stairs with such speed that I almost tripped. "Careful, love!" his warning shout came behind me.
"Leave me alone! Don't follow me!" I shouted back and continued sprinting around, "Where is the bloody door?" I could feel the temperature rising. And just then it opened, and a woman stood by it. I rushed past her, almost crushing her, and got out of the house. I ran and ran, to the green ground and dropped down when I was as far from the house as possible.
I heaved and lay down facing the blue sky. Tears trickled at the corner. I was not this shocked when I learned how to kill. I was not this shocked when I lost the most valuable things in my life. This—this was too much to handle. Carmelo was my stalker? I laughed, wiping my face. "What the fuck," I uttered and kept laughing at myself.
I did the same. I was stalking him on the internet. But why did this feel too much? Maybe because he has a room full of your pictures like the weirdos in the crime movies. A voice inside me taunted. I was stalking my stalker this whole fucking time! Ah, there was a level of diabolical, and this was the evil of them all. Those words that he said back there, I didn't even know how to process them. The look in his eyes as he did. Everything was just too much for my messed-up mind and broken heart. "Unbelievable," I rasped. I didn't know if I should be happy about this or sad. The bright sun hit my face, making me squint and shut my eyes. And when I opened them, he was there. Hovering with an umbrella, covering me from the sun.
My heart skipped a beat. And it's been doing a lot of those since this man came into my life. And I hated it! Why was my stone heart reacting at the littlest things that he did. "Please come with me inside, love. And I'll tell you everything you want to know. Just—" he looked troubled with two deep lines on his forehead. "It's too sunny and hot out here. I don't want you getting sun burns." I just scoffed and looked up at him speechlessly. "Please, love," he added, pleading with his eyes. This man—ah! I was still not accustomed to the fact that he switched from calling me my name to 'love' all of a sudden. I screamed in my mind and shut my eyes again. God, what kind of life test was this?
"If you don't get up, I'm going to have to carry you." He said, not as a command, but the clearness in his speech told me he meant exactly what he just said. So, I stood up and started to walk back. He was closely behind me with an umbrella still covering me.