"A dummy, that's what I am," Lena murmured as she dug her nails into her messy hair.
She thought of the pill box she had picked from the drawer two days ago. Rushing into the bathroom to check the box she took, it turned out to be a panadol box. Why would she pick a panadol box for fucks sake? She groaned, knowing well that Darian didn't swallow just panadol every morning. She didn't look properly, she just picked the one her hand could reach.
She looked at him as he arranged his things into his duffel bag, he turned to her, and she looked away a little late because he caught her eyeballing him.
"Do you just like to stare at my cool face?" A smug smile materialized on his face.
"Cool face?" Lena scoffed, "I wasn't staring at you." She denied, looking into her phone to scroll through the newest notifications.
"I see you weren't staring. I will be at the gym." He said and left the room.
"Yeah, bye, bye, bye." She waved her hands, squealing as she thought of the pills. She would finally get her chance now. When she was sure he was steps away from the room, she rolled out of bed and made for the bedside, dragging the drawer, it was stiff, and only then did she realize it had been locked. "Shit!" She cussed, burying her head in between her palms.
She lazily got out of bed to search the second drawer that was attached to the bed. She reached for the handle and pulled it open, his new pistol sat innocently on the pad.
Lena flinched. She was tempted to pick it up, she had never held a gun in her life. With shaky hands, she reached for the pistol, and it was heavier than she thought it would be.
"Wow," she rubbed her hand on it and cracked the gun. "I can't do this," she kept it back and closed the drawer. "I think I should join him at the gym." She ambled into the bathroom, washed her face, and brushed her teeth. She got back into the room and donned her leggings and a sweatshirt before scampering out of the room.
She got to the gym and roamed around. Jay was there with Darian, he greeted Lena, and she returned his greeting with a smile.
"You don't like coming here," Jay said to her.
"I do, you just don't know." She winked at him. Walking over to where Darian was lifting the barbells, she halted her steps and admired him, his abs and strength. "What's the weight of this?" She asked, referring to the one he was presently lifting, but he didn't respond to her.
He bent his back, lifted the barbell into the air, and pulled it down. He repeated the exercise fifty more times and then ran on the treadmill.
"Why don't you answer my questions? Do you feel I am a burden to you?" She looked at him.
"Huh," was all he muttered as he switched from the treadmill to the exercise bike.
"Huh?" Lena followed him again, she bent to tie her sneakers. "Is that your response?" A frown deformed her face.
"What do you want? Are you here to exercise or ask me questions that don't have answers?" Darian glared at her.
"Both!" She raised her voice and turned to Jay who had a smug grin on his face. Lena sighed, she noticed Jay always seemed to enjoy the banters between her and Darian. "Why not go join the other bodyguards, I want to have some alone time with my husband." She grinned at him, furrowing her brows, and hoping that he wouldn't object to her order.
"You know I always stay here with the Don, he needs me around." Jay bowed his head respectfully.
Lena shot Jay a death glare. He would deter her from carrying out her plans if he was there with them, she didn't want anyone to stop her from lifting the barbells.
Darian obviously wouldn't stop her because he seemed not to care about her but Jay would, he cared about her and she wasn't comfortable with that.
"He will be fine, I am here with him." She tried to cajole Jay with her signature smile.
After giving it a thought and receiving a go-ahead order from Darian, he left them.
"He cares too much about you," she went over to the side where the barbells were placed, and she bent to check the weight. "This is fifty kilograms?" She wowed, squinting her eyes as she glared at Darian. "And they were so easy for you to lift. You must be fit." She smiled, spreading her legs apart.
"What do you want to do?" Darian's deep voice rang in her ears.
"What does it seem like to you?" She scoffed, "I am trying to lift this." She replied, bending down to lift the fifty kilograms barbell.
"You can't lift that!" He yelled before she lifted it. "That's too heavy for you. You will break your arms."
"Says who?" She left where she was standing and walked to where he was. "Do you think I'm a pansy? I guess you've underrated me too much. Do you think that barbell was built for only you?"
"Do whatever pleases you," he started moving on the bike, keeping his eyes away from her.
"You shouldn't have interfered in the first place." She jerked her middle finger at him but he didn't see her.
Walking back to where the barbell was placed, she bent down and heaved it, her arms hurt but with all the strength in her, she lifted it to prove to Darian that she could.
Her eyes turned red as she tried to hoist it in the air, but she did and at that moment, she stood stuck and couldn't move any part of her body.
Darian narrowed his eyes at her, noticing that she was stuck. He said nothing, and continued with his exercise but didn't shift his gaze away from her.
"Fuck," Lena muttered silently. "How do I bring this down?" She tried to lift her hand but couldn't. The barbell was too heavy for her. "Why did I do this to myself? I think this is going to be the death of me." She cried out and gently turned to Darian with her bent spine, her eyes were bloodshot, and she looked like she was going to pass out if someone didn't relieve her of the weight above her head. She couldn't even smash it on the floor.
"You good?" Darian asked, a smug smile tugging his lips.
"I am," she nodded her head, she didn't need his help, she thought. The pain in her arms became excruciating, she knew she would break her arms if she didn't ask for his help, she had to swallow her pride and seek help before she passed out. She shut her eyes and yelled. "My arms are burning, I can't put this down."
"I warned you," he increased the pace of the bike, not caring if she was in pain.
"Please, help me," she dropped her guard. "My arms are killing me." She said, shutting her eyes in pain. Her shoulders were beginning to tremble and she couldn't bear the pain anymore. "Please, Darian! I will die if you don't help me." She yelled out.
"You should help yourself, I warned you." He got off the bike, picked up his towel, and dabbed his sweaty forehead. "I will be in the bedroom." He winked at her.
"No, you won't leave me here." She yelled at him, making a move but the weight didn't let her move further. "Please, help me." She cried out when he moved towards the exit of the gym. "I am going to smash this on the damn floor and break the tiles, I swear." She threatened, the pain in her arms and shoulders killing her so hard.
Darian was a step toward the exit when he heard her loud voice again.
He looked at her, the look in her eyes was terrifying—a mixture of pains, pleas, and perils.
Chuckling, he dropped his duffel bag and advanced towards her.
"Next time, you will listen to me when I tell you not to do something." He gently reached for her arms and hoisted the barbell from her. Placing it on the floor, Lena fell on him, breathing heavily, she sniffed and stared into his eyes. "What, are you okay?" He demanded.
She punched his chest and hit him hard, "Why did it take too long to help me? Didn't you know I was hurting?" She burst into tears, hitting his chest with her weak arms.
He barely felt anything hit him, "I didn't ask you to lift the barbell, you did." He said confusingly.
He wondered why she was crying when she willingly lifted the barbell.
"I see you just don't care about me and wouldn't even care if something bad happened to me." She accused, still crying and hitting him.
Darian closed his eyes frustratedly, "Why are you blaming this on me? You did what you wanted to do." He held her small hands and looked at her.
"My arms hurt," she blinked her eyes.
"You wouldn't hit me if they hurt so bad," he let go of her and walked back to pick up his duffel bag. "I won't be here to save you if you lift the barbell again." He reminded her as he walked out of the gym.
Darian chuckled as he thought of what just happened. Lena was a puzzle he would never get to solve but he found her intriguing.
She had a way of making him smile even when he didn't want to.
"Wait for me!" She yelled as she ran after him. "I can't move my arms."
Darian chuckled again, increasing his strides before she could meet up with him.