06

What was I going to do with that man all hurt inside my room? My grandma was certainly sleeping like a rock after the medicine she took, and even if she hadn't I wouldn't have had the courage to go up to her and tell her that Julian was inside my room in the middle of the night. I needed to know what had happened to him.

"I'll get a cloth and a bowl of water. Wait here." I said softly and left the room. I went down to the kitchen and got a clean cloth and a small bucket of water.

I put the cloth inside the bucket and also took a glass of filtered water for him to drink. My hands were shaking. I went back up to the room, not without taking a look at grandma first. She was still in the same position and it looked like she wasn't going to wake up anytime soon. When I entered my room, I put the glass of water on top of my dresser and the bucket on the floor, locked the door and went to Julian who was sitting with only his hand on his head.

"Hey. What are you feeling?" I asked sitting down next to him.

"Anything." He replied.

"Like nothing? You're all bruised up! Doesn't it hurt?" I exclaimed trying to keep the tone whispery.

"I don't. I don't feel pain, the place where I lived for years made me fall asleep to the pain." He said and I felt a chill, there was pain in his voice.

"Place? What place?" I asked intrigued.

"I'm thirsty." I didn't believe it. He was blatantly changing the subject. But that's okay, we'd only known each other for a day, I felt that the subject was sensitive and very private.

I went to the dresser and grabbed the glass of water. "Here it is." I handed it to him, immediately he drank it as if he had been thirsty for days.

"What good water." he said and I couldn't help but smile.

"It's just water." I spoke. "Are you hungry? Want something to eat?"

"If you have it, I'll take it."

"Of course you do. I'll get you something." I said and left the room.

I went back to the kitchen, got a plate and put pasta with ground beef, warmed it up in the microwave. I made a point of taking some lettuce leaves and cutting them for him, seasoning them my way and taking them to his room.

When I entered the room, I was surprised, Julian had his eyes closed and leaning back on the sofa, he seemed to be sleeping. Did I take that long? I approached with the plate of food and left it on the dresser, locked the door again and went to where he was, facing him, I looked at him sleeping.

Even the injuries, they weren't serious, but even so it didn't diminish his beauty, he was so beautiful that I couldn't describe it, it still hadn't given me time to put my thoughts in place. I had lots and lots of questions to ask, but I knew it wasn't the right time, I didn't want to be inconvenient. Even knowing him for such a short time, I felt that I needed to be there for him.

Without thinking straight, I lifted one of my hands and ran it over his face, skin smooth but full of tension underneath. It deserved a photo, it would make a great photo. I reached for my cell phone in a hurry and took a picture. FLASH. Damn, I didn't turn down the noise and I didn't remove the flash.

"Are you enjoying it?" he asked in a mocking tone. I felt very embarrassed that he had caught me in that awkward moment.

"Sorry, but...you looked so cute sleeping." Oh no. I didn't say that, shit, I had a natural gift for getting into these tight skirts and complicating myself more and more.

"How can you find me beautiful like that? I'm ugly, Eloíse. I have marks on my face, how can you find someone that beautiful?" he asked and I swallowed hard. I needed to tell him.

"Don't ever say you're ugly again. Even with all those wounds, I think you're very handsome." I spoke and went in search of the plate on top of the dresser. "Here." I gave him the plate.

"Who are you, girl? Shouldn't you run away from me? Afraid that I'll come to your room like that in the middle of the night, suspicious and full of questions? If I believed in something, I'd say you're an angel and not a human being." His words warmed my heart, I felt happy to help someone, I confess that I never had malice or malice towards anyone, my heart was kind and I couldn't help it.

"I felt I should help you, I felt deep in my heart that I could trust you, from the moment you brought me home, and that you could do anything bad to me, you didn't." I said watching him eat. "And about questions, I have many, many. But I know how to wait for the right moment." I said and gave him a tender smile.

I sat on the bed while he ate. A few minutes passed and he handed me the plate, I put it on the floor next to the bed.

"The food was delicious." He said and ran his tongue over his lips, I bit my lower lip trying to contain the shiver that made me almost shiver.

"Can I clean your wounds?" I asked, I really wanted to take care of him. It was strange and I knew it, my attitude towards that stranger was not normal.

"Clear." He said.

"If it hurts, you tell me I'll stop." I noticed him smile when he heard my sentence. "What's funny?"

"Nothing. Doesn't want spoiling your innocence." He said smiling.

"I'm not that innocent, I told you." I replied sullenly and started cleaning his wounds.

"No!?" He frowned.

"Of course not. Don't be fooled by my angelic face." I winked at him derisively.

"What do you mean by that?" His tone was serious and he pushed my hand away.

"I was just kidding..." I said and he then softened his expression.

I continued cleaning the wounds, there were few, almost nothing. The bloodstains that were exaggerated and looked like there was something serious. There, now he was totally clean, except for his suit and shirt that had some stains. During a few times I yawned.

"Are you sleepy?" he asked me.

"A little, but I can handle being here with you." I replied. "If you want to use the bathroom, stay over there by the door." He said pointing to the bathroom door that was inside the room.

"I wanted to take a shower, is there a problem?"

"No, I'll get you a towel." I grabbed a towel and handed it over. He went into the bathroom and stayed there for about five minutes.

After that he left with the towel wrapped around his waist. I lay there looking at that view and I got hot, I moved in bed uncomfortable.

"Do you need something?" My voice came out broken, I tried to look away but I couldn't, he had a volume between my legs that left my breath panting. I sat on the bed trying to put my thighs together looking for relief from that feeling I only felt after I met Julian.

"Sorry I got it mixed up with my house which I always leave the bathroom and change in the bedroom." He spoke quickly and went into the bathroom. Two minutes later he left wearing only his pants and shirt. The vest and suit were in his hand.

"You can put it here in the corner." I showed him the corner and he put the clothes there.

"Thanks." He said and sat next to me on the bed. "I think I'd better go, I must be bothering you. In fact, I've already bothered you enough." He spoke and got up, it was stupid for me to feel that way for him, but I couldn't help it, it was automatic, I didn't want him to leave.

"You can stay the night if you want, but tomorrow morning you need to go, my grandmother will kill me if she finds out that a man has slept in my room."

"Okay, I'll stay if you insist." He said suppressing a smile, I slapped his arm. "If your intention was to tickle me, I'm not sorry."

"It wasn't tickle, it was slap." I explained rolling my eyes.

We burst out laughing together, I realized that my grandmother was sleeping in the next room and that she could wake up at any moment, so I held back the rest of my laughter and waved Julian to silence. He stopped smiling and looked at me with a twinkle in his eyes. Something inside me hurt, it was impossible to decipher what I was feeling, it was like a feeling, it was new, I wanted more from him and needed Julian's presence and attention, no matter how many hours I knew him.

"I think we better sleep, I have class tomorrow." I spoke.

"Okay. You can throw me a blanket so I can lie down on the couch."

"Don't you think this sofa is too small for you? It barely fits me, you can lie down with me on the bed, I don't bite." I spoke in a mocking tone.

"The problem isn't you biting me, it's me." He was so much better at teasing than I was, I blushed immediately. "Besides, I have trouble sleeping. I don't really sleep."

"I can sing you to sleep. There's a song my grandma always sang to me, she was infallible."

"Sing for me?" He looked afraid. What had happened to that man? Could it be that he had never had affection and affection from anyone?

"Yes. Come on, you'll fall asleep in no time." I got under the covers and patted the side for him to lie down, luckily it was a double bed.

He lay down beside me without protesting, lying face up on the bed we were. So I started.

"Sleep, master Julian, your friends are here, sleep, sleep Julian, your friends are here. I called the little dog, I also called the little lion, and the little alligator wanted to come too, sleep sleep little friend." I looked at him and in the moonlight reflecting off his face he wanted to smile but held back.

"It's working. I'm sleepy." He said smiling finally, I tried to hold back or feel offended that he laughed at my song, but I just laughed with him.

We stopped smiling and fell silent. Maybe a few minutes should have passed, I looked at the man beside me, so handsome... He was sleeping, I felt fulfilled with that simple gesture, having helped him to have a night's sleep, since according to him, he didn't sleep .

"Who are you Julian…" I whispered facing the many questions I had to ask, I would have the opportunity to ask them later.

I closed my eyes and the darkness of dreamless sleep enveloped me.