Chapter 72 - Pitiful Villain

"How long are you gonna pull this long face?" Persephone asked Santiago while munching on the apple. It was affecting her appetite seeing him mad at her. 

[This man is childish and petty, I tell you.] 

Santiago, who was not able to fall asleep, pretended to be asleep in order to show his rebellion. Wasn't she gonna meet that boy? Tell her to go ahead. Who is stopping her now? 

[Damn, why am I behaving like an unreasonable wife now?]

It seemed like roles reversed again. 

"Aiyoo, husband, why are you angry with your beautiful and cute wife …." Persephone acted coy and coquettish while running her fingers tenderly on his chest. Who would have thought one day she would be acting like a romance drama heroine just to coax a grown-up man? But you, see the things we do for survival. 

"I will not meet Romeo if that's what you want."

Growing more comfortable with her role, she continued, "So what if I have to give up my Romeo for you?" 

"Isn't the world has always been against Romeo and Juliet since the beginning?" 

"History has shown us how two great lovers were separated… the world has always been jealous of them." 

"They weren't separated because of anyone but of their own stupidity," Santiago said as he slowly opened his eyes to find Persephone staring down at him, continuously blinking her eyes. His lips unconsciously arched. Tracing the bridge of her nose, he murmured, "Like what you see?"

Unconsciously, she nodded. 

A laugh generated from the core of his heart making his chest vibrate in the process. 

Persephone wished to dig a hole and hide herself there when she realized what she just did.

But she has to admit he looked otherworldly when he laugh like that! 

She didn't need a hypnotist to hypnotize her. He was enough. 

As she was about to create distance between them, she felt his strong and extremely sexy arms encircled around her waist leaving no chance for her to achieve her objective of maintaining distance between the two of them. 

Oh God, she could feel her heart loudly beating against her ribcage. If it continued like this, it wouldn't be long before Villain learned about the effect he had on her. 

His icy blue eyes were staring at her, unblinking and intense. Even if she wanted to turn her head to stop herself from falling into those blue abyss, she just couldn't. Perhaps, at this moment, she realized how much she needed to dive right into those burning blues. 

She had always heard blue like ice soothes one's burning, but right now, all she felt was fire… 

The temperature of the room was increasing with each passing moment… her skin was flushed as a blush consciously crept up all the way from her neck up to her face. 

"Did I tell you that you look absolutely tempting while blushing? It can even tempt the preacher to sin," Villain murmured as his finger wandered all the way her freckles were scattered on her face. 

Persephone hitched in her breath as she heard him murmuring against her skin. Thoughtlessly, she leaned over and a whiff of her scent entered his nostrils. 

"You are not allowed to sit this close to that boy," Villain seriously said to her. 

Snap. The energy enveloping them at this moment snapped as she heard his words and came out of the stupor. 

Gently, pushing his chest she came out of his hold. 

Why was she so dumb? 

He was seducing her intentionally. 

He clearly knew that she was weak when it comes to his heavenly looks yet he used this trick on her again! 

He just made his point! 

How could his manly ego let her stay close to any other man? 

"Hey! What happened?" Santiago tried asking her as her mood took a sudden turn. Her rosy cheeks disappeared and her green eyes turned cold and emotionless. 

It was truly magic if one would ask him. How could those eyes which display everything going on in her heart suddenly turned unemotional? 

Whatever it was...but it wasn't a good feeling. 

Persephone quietly switched off the lights and laid on the corner of the bed. It was not because she didn't want to touch him or anything like that, it was merely because she was afraid that she would end up hurting his wounds. 

Maybe, a lot part of her wanted him to coax her. 

Call it stupid, but she just want to feel his gentleness once. 

After all, who knows anything about tomorrow? 

Santiago attempted to start the conversation but failed as she didn't reply to him. She just closed her eyes and refused to acknowledge him. 

With a sigh, he too closed his eyes and started counting sheep, waiting for sleep to come and take him to the dreamland. 

But all he could concentrate on was what made her cold to him? 

Was it his comment about that boy? 

Did he really cross his line?

…

It was only around midnight when Persephone was awakened by strange noises, she found Santiago groaning and grunting in his sleep. Seeing him sweating profusely, she touched his forehead only to find him burning with fever. 

Her heart stilled as she realized how selfish she was earlier by acting mean with a sick man. 

She had to remind her again and again that she was not like him, apathetic and cold-blooded. 

Silently, getting up from the bed, she fumbled through the drawer which contained his medicines. Next, she helped him swallow the fever medicine (of course not by mouth to mouth). Doctor OMG had told him that he could occasionally suffer from fever and she need not worry about it as long as she took good care of him.

"You callous Villain… I can't even wish you death seeing you so pitiful, " Persephone murmured as she gently wiped the sweat off his forehead. 

She couldn't make out what he was incoherently mumbling. But she could see that he was in pain. 

Removing the blanket off his body, she touched him to check his wounds. Yeah, his wound was bleeding and maybe, it was infected too. 

Exactly how Doctor OMG had taught her today in his clinic, she changed the dressing and disinfected the wound on his abdomen. Then, she also checked the on his arm. 

She could imagine how painful it must be for him. No wonder he had a fever tonight. 

Still, she couldn't understand why his being in pain was hurting her? 

Shouldn't she celebrate that the man who ruined her life is exactly in the same pain as she is? 

She had gone crazy. Literally and figuratively. 

Sitting beside him, she waited for the medicine to take effect on him. Even after an hour when his fever was not going down, she started getting anxious. 

What if it was something serious? 

Should she call the doctor? 

Taking a deep breath, she decided to follow the home remedy or something of that sort to bring his fever down. She remembered how Carina would place a wet cloth on her head when she used to have a fever. 

Where would she get cold water at this hour? 

Obviously the kitchen...

Ah, she would weave an awesome story if Maria or any of her workers asked her what she was doing at this hour in the kitchen. Right now, she needed to save her 'husband'. 

Walking towards the kitchen, she found something that she hadn't expected. Emanuel was anxiously walking back and forth outside the kitchen door. He was surely murmuring something… 

Emanuel jolted when he felt someone touching his shoulder. His quick reflexes made the other person fall on her butt on the floor. 

"Ouch!" Persephone groaned. Why was she so unlucky?! 

Emanuel was horrified to find Persephone knocked down on the ground. 

"Miss Persephone!" Emanuel shouted." Are you alright?"

Quickly giving her his hand, he helped her to stand on her own. "I'm so sorry. I thought…"

"I get it." She tried to smile but a wince escaped her mouth as she realized the pain in her lower body. She really wanted to have a good cry now… 

As if someone else could hear their loud conversations too, the door to the kitchen opened and Romeo emerged shocked. 

"What's happening here?" Romeo asked, horrified. His gaze shifted from Persephone and then rested on Emanuel. One could see hurt and a pang of betrayal in his eyes. 

"Nothing…"Persephone tried to avoid the embarrassment of telling lovely Romeo how she fell on her ass but failed when an anxious Emanuel started talking nonsense. 

"It's not what you think. I don't even know her," Emanuel blurted. "You have to trust me this once, Romeo. She startled me-- "

Before Emanuel could say something else he felt Persephone shutting his sprinting mouth with her palm and dragged him inside the kitchen, leaving a miserable Romeo outside. 

"What were you doing?" Persephone whisper-shouted at him? "Were you going to tell him how I embarrassed myself by falling on the floor? Let me tell you, little Emanuel, if my crush ran away from me because of you, I will ask Villain to kick your ass." 

Obviously, it was a lie. Villain would join hands with Emanuel to make sure the beautiful boy stays away from Persephone. And she wasn't gonna let this happen! 

He was her Romeo and that's it! 

"Miss Persephone, do you know that he is younger than you?" Emanuel tried to make her see his point of view. "And how is he your Romeo? What about Mr. Villain? Aren't you his wife?"

Persephone tsked him while crossing her arms. Proudly lifting her chin, she said, "So, what he is younger than me? Isn't it a trend these days to have a younger man as your lover? I am just flowing with the trend. Moreover, Villain can't control my life." 

She talked as if she could control Villain just by snapping her fingers. 

[Hihihi. It was a great feeling imagining controlling Villain. ]

Maybe she didn't realize how creepily she was giggling to herself. 

"Villain," Emanuel loudly blurted.

Persephone jumped in fear hiding behind Emanuel's tall frame. "No. No. No. Emanuel is lying. I didn't flirt with any younger man. Don't you know that I am your one and only wife? I lust after you to the moon and the back. How could I feel anything for another man who is not you?"

She tried to take a peek when no one said anything. When she peaked, she realized that it wasn't Villain who was standing there but Romeo. 

"Oh, shoot!" Persephone exclaimed as soon as she recalled something. 

"What happened?" Emanuel couldn't help but ask. 

"Give me cold water and a clean towel. I will return it to you later," Persephone said to Romeo.. Glaring at Emanuel, she continued, "I would have become a widow, Jerk."