"That's... sudden. Besides, you don't know me that well."
"I plan to."
She fell quiet. George quietly watched her as she had fallen in thought. He walked over and leaned forward, but leaving a healthy gap between their faces as he untucked the piece of the sheet keeping her restrained. "Take your time to think about this and let me know."
Nora watched him leave and reminded unmoving, still baffled. "What the fuck am I supposed to do with this?"
George set up their plates at the counter in the kitchen. He sat, looking at his phone, going through messages and important emails. He had left Amy a message that he would be visiting Joanne and she had responded agreeing to a phone call.
A very punctual George was growing impatient when Nora finally came out and joined him. She sat down opposite him and he put his phone away before they started filling their plates. He could feel her eyes on him, watching his every move.
"This is not some tactic to get the upper hand in this, is it?" She narrowed her eyes at him.
"Me asking for a relationship means you have the upper hand. My happiness will depend on your decision", he answered, still focusing on his meal.
"You think you'll be happy? With me of all people?"
He looked up from his meal and locked on her doubtful gaze. "You frustrate me, but there's something about you that keeps me intrigued."
She leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms against her chest and clearly not believing him. "Is this a prank? Did my mom put you up to this? It's not funny!"
"You turned this into a competition that's why you're having a hard time trusting me", he pointed out.
"The whole point of this was us sleeping together."
"Since you're stuck on the sleeping together part, when I impress you with a good fuck, will you give this a shot?" He raised his brows at her.
"'When you impress me', a bit cocky, don't you think?"
"It's called confidence", he shrugged. "So?"
She felt her face turn red. Was she that irresistible to him? When did he develop all these feelings? Why was he suddenly doing this? It was confusing her!
Nora didn't give him an answer and George respected that. He could see that her thoughts were scrambled. It was a new development and one that was sudden.
He was put in a good mood with their conversation, still she was yet to decide whether to give them a go or not? The thought was a little nerve wracking for him. He always preferred to always be in the know.
Snapping him out of his thoughts, was the view of the supermarket. He found a parking spot and went in. There were a few things he wanted to get for Joanne especially food stuffs.
Lately, her appetite had dwindled and she was refusing chewy foods. So he bought a lot of ingredients to make different soups and porridges for her.
He sighed at the thought of seeing her health ebb away every day. He felt his heart break at this thought. He checked out the goods and went on his way.
When the orphanage came into view, he suppressed the negative feelings. The gates were opened for him and he drove in. He followed a path that led to her private quarters that was an extension of the library.
"Oh, George", the older woman greeted in a weak hoarse voice. Her speech had become slower and weaker but George showed no signs of minding that change. She was sitting on her bed with pillows stacked behind her.
"Morning Joanne", he smiled and went to put away the groceries before coming back to her. "How are you today?"
"Hm", she willed a smile. "So, come to get your ass beat, again?"
"Such vulgar words coming from such a sweet soul."
"There's nothing vulgar about the word ass. Do you know how many cuss words I can cook up on the spot only for me to filter them?" she said making him chuckle. "Kids do that to you."
"Was Amy like that?" He asked curiously.
"No, she's always been the quiet kind. Books and computers were her friends. That's why she was my favorite", she smiled at the fond memory. "I think she's the reason why the library became my favorite place. It was always the two of us in this huge space."
"Well, she hasn't changed, the being quiet part. Before I forget, I told her I would call. So how about, while I make something for our chess rematch, you guys get talking."
"Sounds good, but you're really okay with losing again?" She mocked.
"I won't go easy on you today", he said while dialing Amy's number and handing the device over to the woman. "That's a promise."
"Uh-huh." She pressed the phone to her ear in time with Amy answering the phone. "Jennifer."
George disappeared into the kitchen to get cooking. Although the orphanage provided her with meals, he knew there was little she ate which is why he took the initiative to take extra care of her. Joanne appreciated this but Sister Alice Moon still felt differently about it, especially George's presence.
Instead of making something for the morning only, he made some for the afternoon and evening so they only needed to heat them up.
By the time he was done, it was when he realized that the place had grown quiet. He found Joanne comfortably sleeping on her bed and his phone placed on the nightstand. He took it and took a seat in the room.
As he started to look through his phone, he heard footsteps approaching. The door opened and George looked up to find Alice standing there. She let out a tired and annoyed sigh before turning to leave. Feeling irritated, he followed her out.
"When will you stop?" She suddenly turned around when they were both outside the library.
He stopped a few feet away from her. "What is your problem?"
"You, are my problem!" She pointed at him. "Leave us alone."
"Why?" He asked, brows furrowed and hands stuffed in his pockets. He was growing annoyed by the minute. "Joanne is happy with my visits and help."
"That's Sister Harper to you. And what will people think when they see a man constantly visiting a woman's home and spendin-"
George broke into an unamused laugh. He could not believe her rant and she looked so serious too. Alice only grew offended by his reaction.
"This is my last warning. Leave."
With that said, she left taking long strides and her face unable to hide her displeasure. George watched her retreating figure. He suddenly felt the hairs on the back of his neck come to a stand still when a fresh breeze blew through his hair. As he stared at the direction Alice went in, a lot was brewing in his mind and when this happened, there was one person to call.
"George", Zach answered.
"I think they're up to something", he said quietly.
"You don't need to tell me twice", Zach answered.
George's lips lifted. How was Zach always in the know and staying ahead of these things? Through and through, George was impressed with the man.
"Are you safe?"
"I've got everything under control here", George said whilst looking around the area.
The two men talked for a bit more before they ended their conversation. George remained where he stood, casually looking around whilst enjoying the afternoon breeze before he went back in.
Hearing the door open, Joanne woke up from her sleep. "How long was I out?"
"Long enough for me to finish cooking everything", he smiled at her and the clasped his hand in excitement. "Are you up for our rematch?"
"You must really have a thing for losing", she shook her head. "It's toxic."
He moved to help her sit up so she was comfortable. "You can mock me now. But we'll see who'll have the last laugh."
Despite his proclamation, he still was unable to beat the older woman no matter how many times he tried. The game took them late into the night till she had to chase him away so she could rest.
He left the place in good spirits humming to songs playing in his car radio. But when he arrived home and saw the lights on, his heart started to do summersaults knowing what awaited him: Nora's answer.
His nerves only got worse when he walked in on her standing in the living room, all her playfulness gone and nothing but seriousness on her face. She had not changed out of her earlier clothes.
"Hi, did you just get home?" He asked while closing the door behind him.
"No", she answered. "We need to talk."
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