Escort For The Witch - стр. 14
“Sorry for being late,” Sabrina said in a quiet, low voice; it trembled, betraying a slight nervousness. “Well, well,” I thought, “someone is worried about missing out on learning” So, she does have a sense of duty after all, just probably buried so deep inside her that she herself doesn’t even know it exists.
“No worries, Miss Venters, please come in,” Mrs. Preston replied.
Satisfied again that nothing major was happening, I closed my eyes and tried to go back to my self-reflection mode when I felt a slight movement next to me.
“Hey, I’m actually sleeping here,” I grumbled.
“Oh, please, never mind me, as always” Sabrina replied.
I gave her a fleeting glance. Yes, beautiful as always. But something was amiss.
Where had all her animosity gone? Not even trying to kick me, as usual?
“I can’t believe my eyes. You actually sat down next to me. Is this a new form of self-flagellation?” I asked sarcastically.
Sabrina didn’t respond but kept staring at the lecturer, pretending I didn’t exist. I looked at her pale face. It seemed like she had shrunk even more, dark circles under her eyes, her hands slightly trembling. Something was up with Sabrina. The only question was how to get her to respond to this “What?”
“Sabrina,” I called quietly.
No reaction.
“Sabrina,” silence.
Oh, how annoying she can sometimes be – by simply ignoring me! Suppressing the burning desire to strangle her, I took her hand. It was cold and it was shaking.
Slowly, she turned to me.
“I thought you were sleeping,” she whispered coldly.
“It's hard to sleep when you're around, dear,” I purred in response. “But…What's wrong? You look troubled.”
“Nothing. Just tired. Lots of work, and then there's Eric…”
Sabrina frowned and freed her hand.
“I have no choice but to… Jack, please talk to him! Please! He’s wrecking the house! Maybe I’m exaggerating, but… Anyway… I can’t handle him alone,” she blurted out in one breath, biting her lip, staring at me expectantly for a reaction.
For a fraction of a second, it seemed to me that I saw a wild spark in her eyes.
She was indeed trembling slightly, sweat appearing on her forehead. Noticing me scrutinizing her, Sabrina casually ran her hand through her hair and glanced at Mrs.
Preston. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t about Eric going wild.
“How are you feeling, Sabi?” I whispered.
“Probably caught a cold, the weather isn’t great, and I was out on the street all day yesterday,” she replied.
“Caught a cold?” I muttered suspiciously.
“Yeah, Jack, and I decided not to miss the opportunity to sit next to you and infect you to hell, ” she hissed angrily.
She’s snapping back. So, everything isn’t as bad as it had seemed. We spent the rest of the class in silence, occasionally glancing at each other, not exchanging another word. After an endlessly long hour, the long-awaited bell rang, signaling the end of my mental torment. I stood up, stretched, yawned, and… Sabrina was looking at me as if she wanted to ask something.
“What?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Nothing,” she hesitantly made her way to the exit. Rather hesitantly. What a day it’s been, huh? A real mess. I watched her miniature figure recede, trying to understand what was happening to her. Everything was different today. Sabrina was different. She was wearing baggy black sweatpants and a khaki hoodie. Old, worn-out sneakers adorned her feet. What’s wrong with her? She pulled the hood over her head, put on a leather jacket, and walked unsteadily down the corridor.