Ciara breathed in slowly as she tapped gently on the door for a couple of seconds but got no response. This time, she banged herfist louder on the door."Dwayne..."She called out in a high-pitched voice. "Are you up already?"
Still no response.
Ciara was alarmed. "It's better you get up now and open this door before I break it down." She said as she banged on the door. "I'm not joking, Dwayne!"
She placed her hand on the door knob and attempted to open the door but was beaten to it. The door was open from inside, which made Ciara tripped and staggered inside, Dwayne was quick to catch her by wrist, preventing from falling.
"Ciara!" Dwayne exclaimed, holding on to her. He looked worried, his brows drawn together. Ciara regained her feet as she jerked off his grip from her wrist, giving him a stern look.
"Are you okay? I'm sorry I didn't hear you knocking, I was...I was still in bed." He trailed off, his cheeks turning pink. "I didn't mean to startle you, I'm truly sorry."
Ciara's cheeks flushed as she noticed his cheeks were red. "Hey! Are you blushing?" She asked him, a playful smile tugging at her lips.
"B -blushing...？ Ah!" He stuttered with a nervous laugh, unconsciously touching his cheeks. "I'm not. Why would I be, eh?"
"Of course, you are, Dwayne!" She countered with a taunting smile on her face. "If you aren't, why are you touching your face, then?"
Dwayne sputtered in protest. "I^ I'm not...I mean, I wasn't...It's just..."He trailed off, struggling to find the words. "I wasn't trying to...I mean, it's not like that." He sighed, his shoulders sagging.
"Look, you're stuttering!" She enounced.
Dwayne realized he's been caught and decided to apologize instead. "I'm just sorry for startling you, I didn't mean to." He met her gaze, his eyes earnest. "I hope you can forgive me."
Ciara's smile softened. "I know you didn't mean to." She said, hertone gentle.
Dwayne's shoulders relaxed at her reply. "Why are you here this early?" He asked her, changing the topic. "You did not have a proper sleep in your house?"
"What did you mean?" She snapped, her brows raised in questioning. "Wake up, dude! You are in my house, okay?"
Dwayne wiped his eyes lightly with the back of his left palm as he stares around the room. "I must have been mistaken." He chided, his facial expression was farfrom friendly. "This tell why you intend on breaking the door down."
"I made a huge mistake, Dwayne, it's my fault!" She blurted out, earning a question look from him. "If I had woken you up with a pail of water instead, I bet you won't the nerve to say this to my face."
Dwayne laughed hard at the fact that she appeared serious. "You wouldn't dare do it to your brother, will you?" He mused.
"Doing that will be more forgivable than letting you miss your flight." She told him. "Is this how you sleep like a dry log in your home? Tsk, unbelievable!"
Dwayne's eyes widened in surprise, the flight completely slipped his mind and he totally forgot about the conference meeting he was to attend.
"Oh no!" Dwayne exclaimed alarmed, his expression suddenly panicked. "You're right, I completely forgot about my flight!"
Ciara watched as he began to frantically pace around the room, running his hands through his hair, clearly confused about what to do. "How could I be so careless? This is a disaster!" He was on the verge of panicking.
Ciara placed a hand on his arm, stilling his movements, having enough of his teenage fear. "Breathe in, dear brother." She said, her voice firm but reassuring. "It's still an hour away from the flight taking off. Stop being a lad, dude!"
"Oh, boy!" He breathed out in relief, facepalming himself. "I was just freaking out for nothing, gracious me!"
"Quickly wash yourface and mouth, breakfast is ready." She enounced. "That was why I'm here, I was surprised to see you are still in bed. Tsk!"
"I had to wake up late because someone prepared my room quite late, which prevented me from going to bed early." He countered, glaring at her.
"Haha! So funny!" She blurted out before heading towards the door. "Hurry, and come down for breakfast."
Dwayne let out a long sigh, the panic from earlier having dissipated. He headed towards the bathroom, running a hand through his hair.
"Right, need to wash my face first. Then, I'll join you downstairs." He said, his voice carrying a note of gratefulness. "Thanks for not letting me miss my flight."
Ciara turned around to face him with a wide grin. "It's not like I would let you sleep through it all, I'm not your enemy, brother." She said, her voice teasing. With that, she headed out, closing the door behind her.
**********
Dwayne went inside the bathroom and was preparing his warm bath, then it struck him. He shook his head sideways, facepalming himself.
"How did I forget about this too?" He muttered under his breath, rubbing his temples slowly. He sighed at how much he had to forget that morning. "I'm such a mess!"
He went back into the room to get his phone, but did not find it -then he hit on him that he had left it on the dinning table when he was having breakfast with his sister.
He rushed out of his room, racing through the stairs, and bumped into Aunt Elsie. "Good gracious!" He exclaimed, wearing an irritated look on his face. "I almost forgot you existed and now you have to show me your horrible face this morning?"
Aunt Elsie's lips curled up in a smirk. "Then I would say it's a win-win for the both of us, Dwayne!" She snickered, her tone wasn't ear pleasing. "I never knew I will get to see such a disaster as you this morning either."
She's already aware of the amount of hatred Dwayne had for her, since she's been eavesdropping on most ofthe sibling's conversations, and couldn't deny how much he's been trying to avoid her presence.
Dwayne chuckled dangerously, a sly smile tugging on his lips. "I never knew you were this funny, Elsie -or you should, I say 'aunt' as you will have desired?" He blurted out.
Aunt Elsie wore a mocking smile, touching her face dramatically. "Awwn, Dwayne!" She uttered with the same vibe as Dwayne. "I never knew such an ass like you will be this sweet. Did you think your petty talks about me with Ciara would change her mindset towards me?"
Dwayne was taken aback, it was clear he did not expect her to know he's been having a discussion about her with Ciara. "What...？" He blurted out, his brows creased drawn together.
"You think I don't know about it, right?" She questioned. "The fact that you think I don't know about it only makes you a naive. I know as far as being aware that it was Ciara that murdered Kent, Dwayne!"
Dwayne's mouth hung opened, his eyes widened in horror. "What did you mean?" He asked, feigning pretence.
"Don't act dumb with me, boy!" She warned him. "You think after having my husband murdered, I'll sit back and watch? I never approached you from the start because I know you are a man and choose Ciara instead as prey -men aren't easily swayed like women."
"It's a good thing you know men aren't easily swayed, Elsie!" He said in a sharp yet blunt tone. "You are just a step away from your doom, woman! I'll make sure I expose every of your hidden plans to Ciara and the public, included when I'm back from my trip! The world will know how awful you and your husband are!"
Elsie only smirked devilishly as she walked past Dwayne, bumping her shoulder into his. "I'll love to see you try, boy ...!" She laughed sarcastically. It wasn't just a random reply -Dwayne knew it was a threat, and she will go by her words...