Chapter 153 - Die Out Of Curiosity

From the second floor of the same hotel bar, another man was watching the scene unfolding below with a glass of whiskey in his hand. There was a hint of shock and amazement present in his eyes. Never ever even in his wildest dreams had he ever fathomed that one day he would see Villian stuck in this kind of situation. 

No, he had never thought even someone like Villain had days when he couldn't handle his shit. Santiago looked as if he had everything under his control. But it seemed like it was nothing but a farce to show people how controlled Santiago was when in reality he was losing his mind. 

And in all honesty, he could say that seeing Santiago rotting in the fiery pits of the hell he had created for himself, was bringing joy to his charring heart. The kind of joy he would never be able to describe in mere words. 

Nash had been pursuing his woman these days and ever since he had beaten James Simon, he was staying in this hotel. Because it was the restaurant of the previous hotel where the matter had taken place. And so, he couldn't stay there. 

He and Valencia had gone on a date today. Well, it wasn't a date to be exact but since she was not here, he could call their dinner together, a date. Right? 

Sigh, he couldn't even tell that woman he too was losing his mind over her just like Santiago. And suddenly, he didn't feel so happy seeing Santiago hurting like this. 

Earlier, he was having trouble sleeping and so he decided to come downstairs to have a drink in the bar. But who would have thought that he would come across Persephone Marino here of all Seven billion and more people in the world?

The earth sure was round, wasn't it? If it was not, how could he have come across two people he had thought that he would never see again? 

Santiago Vitello and Persephone Marino! 

Not even for a second, he forgot the last words that he had exchanged with Santiago fucking Vitello. 

What shocked Nash the most was that he met those two unexpected people here but the fact that Santiago was looking all intimate to Persephone Marino. For a minute, he had accepted the situation if he had only seen Persephone as she lived here in New York. But Santiago? 

Hugging this woman in the middle of a bar? 

It was so fucking unacceptable! 

Was this damned man asking for death? 

Does Persephone still remember him? 

Had Alessandro Fucking Marino any idea who this Villian was? 

So many questions and no one to answer. 

Nash was never the one to hold back his curiosity. Even if he didn't want to, for the peace of his precious heart he had to know what on this damn earth was happening with this ex-best friend of his? 

And why was he meeting and hugging Persephone Marino as if she was the ghost from Santiago's childhood who he was obsessed with? 

Nash felt like he would die out of curiosity if he didn't get answers soon. His curiosity and hunger for gossips always got the worst of him. And this time was no better either. 

Surely, he couldn't let this stupid curiosity kill him. He was already thinking of all the ways by which he could get answers to his unanswered questions. 

Perhaps, Nash didn't know how his curiosity was going to save the life of someone very precious to Santiago! 

However, it was still the talk of another time... 

... 

Later, Santiago was brought home by Persephone and Romeo with great difficulty. He was muttering nonsense under his breath as Romeo dragged the drunk Santiago home. 

Persephone swore in her heart that one day she would punish this stupid man for all the inconvenience that he had caused on her in his drunk state. 

More than physical exhaustion, he had emotionally drained her tonight. 

It seemed that this night was going to be a long one for her. 

"Miss Persephone, where should I take him?" Romeo asked hesitatingly. He knew that the relationship between both of them was not very cordial and so he inquired where he should put Santiago. 

Although he knew that the room where Persephone was staying belonged to Santiago, he still didn't have the courage and heart to put Santiago there without her permission. 

Obviously, Persephone had greater value in their heart than Villain. 

"In his room obviously," replied Persephone. She couldn't just take over his room and expect him to sleep in the guest room, right? 

She wasn't so heartless enough to do it. Perhaps, she was... 

Romeo without wasting a second put Santiago in his room which he was sharing with his wife. He also removed his shoes and laid his body on the bed and then covered him with the duvet. 

All the things, his wife must have done but were done by Romeo.

To Romeo, Persephone was still the same goddess he met a few months ago. He could still find the shadow of the woman that he knew by the name Juliet in her. But it was a pity that this woman had walls as high as a fortress around her heart. 

After making sure that Santiago was comfortable, he left the room to give space to both of them. 

Persephone sighed while looking at a particular drunk sleeping man.

She changed back into her nightgown and sat next to him. Unknowingly, she occupied the spot on the bed next to him without feeling any awkwardness. This action of hers was so natural that if she was noticing it, she would have found herself quite startled. 

"You are one troublesome man, Santiago Vitello," Persephone murmured before she extended her hand to caress the frown on his forehead. She wiped the hair falling on his forehead with her soft palm. 

"I wish we hadn't met the way we did," These were the words that Persephone said before leaving the room.

.... 

The next morning Santiago woke up with a splitting headache as if someone had run a train over his head. Well, maybe someone had. Or it would not have been hurting like this! 

Holding his aching head in his hands, he opened his eyes to find himself lying in his room. Well, the same room where he didn't sleep for weeks.

Wait...

What was he doing here?

Immediately, he turned his eyes to find someone else lying next to him. 

A pang of heartache ran through his system as he touched the cold sheets beside him. It was obvious that nobody had slept here. 

Maybe, it was for the better. 

He didn't trust himself with her. And he and Persephone had a habit of rolling in sheets when drunk. 

Now, he wondered how he had reached this room last night all by himself, especially when he had no information about it in his head. 

Did someone bring him home? 

What did he do last night? 

Did he and Red?

No...No…

He threw the sheets off his body and ran to the bathroom to freshen up.

Santiago was still in a dilemma and daze when he reached the living room. He halted in his footsteps when he heard the sound of laughter coming from the other side. Following the sound of feminine laughter, he found Persephone laughing so candidly and beautifully that without his notice a smile tugged on his lips too. 

"You can't expect me to be fully awake, Percy," Emmanuel, who was looking haggard and dishevelled, pouted his lips in the complaint. He pointed his finger towards Romeo who was coming with two plates of hot food their way in an accusing manner. "This man kept me awake all night. I demand justice." 

Persephone burst into another bout of unbridled laughter. She knew that Emmanuel was doing this to get the charge next time. She had heard Emmanuel flirting with a serious-looking Romeo many times when both of these lovebirds thought no one was paying attention to them. 

Sometimes, these two boys were just too cute to ignore. 

"Stop the drama already," Romeo said and shoved a plate of hot food in his boyfriend's direction. "Eat quietly." 

Emmanuel pursed his lips and started eating his breakfast but not before muttering, "Rogue." 

It was at this moment Santiago cleared his throat and found three faces turning in his direction. 

As they noticed Santiago coming their way, they stopped breathing for a moment and the hall went so silent that even the sound of a falling needle could be heard. 

"Good morning," Santiago murmured, trying to ease the tension in the atmosphere. He occupied a chair next to Persephone who was blinking continuously looking at him. 

All three of them replied to him robotically. 

"Would you like orange juice, Miss Persephone?" Romeo asked, cutting the tension. 

"She prefers coffee in the morning," Santiago found himself replying. 

Persephone forgot blinking for a few seconds as she heard him.