Chapter 46 - Returning Favour

Music Recommendation: Love me like that- Sam Kim

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"You mentioned in the letter that you would give it to me if I came here to meet you," Julie watched him turn so that both his legs hung on the branch.

Roman jumped on the ground with ease without falling, and he stood up like the black cat he was. He walked towards her and came to stand in front of her, "Why do you tear my letters, Winters?" 

"So that nobody can read it later?" asked Julie, not sure what answer he was looking for. 

"Right. Don't you think I would have done the same?" bringing his hand up, his cheeks turned slightly hollow when he took a drag from the cigarette. He turned his head in the other direction so that the smoke wouldn't fall on her face. "Knowing the troublemaker you are, there is no telling when one of the letters was going to end up in the wrong hands."

Knitting her eyebrows, Julie opened her mouth and said, "If you would have returned my letter you wouldn't have-"

"Probably I should let Mr. Borrell know that you collected your report letter from your uncle's house, which was sent by the university for him to read," stated Roman, his entire demeanour calm. The way he looked right now was less of a dead archaeologist and more of a demon who was enjoying torturing a person. 

The three categories that the students had made up here, Roman Moltenore, definitely belonged to the evil category. 

"You cannot do that," said Julie, holding her ground, and Roman watched her without breaking his gaze away from her. Somewhere, she was worried that he was going to wink.

"And why not?" questioned Roman. 

Whatever he had been high on seemed to have lowered as he wasn't smirking mischievously anymore. Julie now understood. He had been enjoying her plight on the dance floor by seeing her dressed in these bandages. 

"Because I gave you my bandages," blurted Julie, feeling his intense gaze. 

Roman's eyes narrowed at her, and he said, "I wouldn't have needed them if you wouldn't have got your mummified self in trouble. You keep revolving around it." 

Her mind was still reeling from knowing the truth that she had been writing her letters to none other than Roman. Turning her head for a moment, she closed her eyes while scolding herself. Did she badmouth him? She tried to remember what she had written in the letters. 

To his words, Julie replied, "I wouldn't have been in trouble if you hadn't told me to meet you at the sixteenth posting. The sixteenth posting had fallen." 

"I heard it from someone and decided to come here to only find you already swimming in the pool of trouble," responded Roman, clicking his tongue. "Don't think I have forgotten the way you used my letter to clean your window. Who even comes up with that? And then you go to mention the cemetery, when I clearly told you not to bring up what you saw or heard that night," he glared at her for her carelessness and placed his finger on her forehead. . 

The next second, Roman had lightly flicked her forehead, which wasn't painful but a light snap. 

When he walked past her, Julie, who had squinted her eyes, opened them. Her hand reached to touch her forehead, as she had been worried that her brains would blow out from the back when he was about to flick her forehead. For some reason, Roman appeared stronger than the most, and she wondered if it was because he was always in fights. 

Noticing him walking, Julie quickly followed him so that she wouldn't be left behind. 

On their way, neither Roman nor Julie spoke to each other. He walked two steps ahead of her, and Julie had chosen to walk behind. Biting her bottom lip, she looked at his side profile. The cigarette he had been using had turned small, and she saw him suck on the tug before blowing the air. Though Julie wasn't fond of the smell of smoke, there was something very alluring the way Roman did it. 

What did she think and what had happened today?

Because of Roman's distant behaviour and the way he kept glaring at people, including her, she had never doubted it to be him.

Stepping out of the restricted area of the forest, Julie saw there were more couples than the time when she was heading towards the postings. Curious, she asked Roman, "Where did the girl go, whom you were earlier with?" 

"Probably went to sleep," replied Roman, looking around at the people. 

There were still students who were celebrating Hallow as there was still nearly an hour left. 

"How was your Hallow? It seemed like you had some egyptian moves there," commented Roman, sparing her one look before looking ahead of him. 

"I could tell the same to you," murmured Julie, and the corner of Roman's lips subtly pulled up. 

"Liked anything out of it?" 

"Nothing," she quickly replied to him, while her eyes slightly turned unfocussed on remembering him sucking the cat woman's neck. 

"Mhm," hummed Roman, not divulging further into the subject. 

"How has your Hallow been?" Julie returned the question to him. She had barely seen him yesterday and today. 

Roman slowed down his footsteps so that she could catch up and then turned to look at her. He brought his finger to his lips, "It is a secret you wouldn't want to know."

What did that mean? 

Julie wondered perhaps if he was making out with that cat girl or another person. It made her question Roman's sexual drive. Realizing what she was thinking, she started to cough. Her mind was all over the place to be thinking about such things.

When they stepped out of the forest, Roman didn't utter a word and instead continued to walk as if they were heading towards her Dormitorium. Reaching in front of her Dormitorium, he turned to look at her. 

He jerked his head towards the entrance and said, "Get inside before trouble comes sniffing you."

Julie took four steps forward before pausing and turning to face him. She tried to read his expression, which had gone back to his usually unreadable face as if he wasn't bothered with anything. But he had come to see her off until here when he could have gone back to his friends or the Dormitorium. 

She said, "Wait here."

His eyes held questions at her words, and he saw her get inside the building. A minute later, Julie returned holding something in her hand, and she stretched her hand forward. She said, "Your knuckles might burn later. This will help to ease it." 

Julie offered him the antiseptic gel, something she had got used to keeping with her after the number of injuries she had sustained during her time in the previous school. Roman was slightly surprised by her gesture. 

He took it from her without uttering a word of thanks. 

Thankfully, there weren't a lot of people around, and the ones who were out were either stoned or were drunk. Before her costume would pool at her feet as she could feel it was turning loose, she turned around and started to climb the four stairs to get back inside the Dormitorium. 

When she turned around, Roman had left the spot where he had been standing. 

She locked the door of her dorm, and her head went to rest on the surface of the door. She took a deep breath before letting it go. In a place where there were hundreds of students, the one person in whose hands the letter had ended was Roman. The walk she had from the restricted forest area until the Dormitorium had given her the time to soak in the newfound information.

Now that they had met, Julie wondered what would happen next as the mystery person had finally been revealed. She wondered if it was the end of the season of letters. 

Changing herself into her nightdress, Julie bit the inside of her cheek while staring at the space next to the window. Roman, the letter thief, had not written back to her but had taken her reply with him. 'Ready?' he had asked her, and she had replied, 'Ready.' Not knowing what would happen after they would come to meet face to face. 

It had been a long day, and Julie got into her bed, pulling her covers while yawning. 

Though Julie closed her eyes, she didn't fall asleep. After a while, she sat up and turned to her table, reaching for her notebook and tearing half a page. 

She wrote in there— 'Roman?'

When the following day arrived, Julie woke up and quickly picked up the note next to the window and saw it was still her note.