The Prisoner of the Devils'

Flashbacks

The swift rain accompanied by strong winds made Starla move back to the corner of the stop when splashes of rainwater hit her work skirt. Already fifteen minutes ago, the girl waited after Arlan called and said that the man was likely to be late to pick her up after work. However, until now his brother still did not show the trunk of his nose. The girl could only snort violently when she saw her phone completely dead from running out of battery.

Starla breathed a heavy breath. I don't know how many times Arlan was like this. Actually, Starla already knew that her older brother was not right to pick her up, but she still insisted on waiting. Moments like this are very rarely passed with his brother. They rarely come face to face despite living on the same roof. The man was too busy.

Arlan works as an architect at a developer company. The man was always overwhelmed by the busyness of taking care of his building plans. He rarely shares time with Starla, making her feel lonely. Just like this time, taking a little time to pick up his sister also seemed to be very heavy. Even so, Starla knows very well that Arlan actually loves her very much. Only busyness limited the interaction of the two, but the man was still so attentive to her. And yes, Starla also loves her only family very much.

The feeling of disappointment was now evident on her tired face after Starla glanced at the watch. It's getting late in the afternoon. Arlan couldn't have let his sister wait this long—if there had been no sudden rush. The girl has to get up if she doesn't want to go home too late.

The streets were completely deserted, only a few vehicles were recklessly breaking through the small storm. He circulated the view, looking for any public transportation that could take him home to the apartment. If it's this night, even more so in a small storm, public transportation is rarely seen, it seems they prefer to coiled in their respective homes.

However, suddenly his gaze accidentally found the car of someone he knew very well. The girl blinked softly as the black-painted luxury stopped right in front of the stop where she was now standing, sheltering from the torrent of rain.

Starla bends over a bit as soon as the car's glass opens, she knows exactly who the man is and who he's looking for. "Gaby still—"

His speech was cut off when the heavy voice of the driver was heard.

"I knew. Come inside!"

Momentary silence. Starla looked stunned for a moment.

"My body is wet."

Starla slightly shouted as she said those words. The roar of rain completely drowned out her voice that was indeed soft and melodious.

"No problem" the driver replied, moving a little bit of his head, hinting that Starla would come in.

But the words that just sounded made Starla speechless. He noticed the state of his clothes that had gotten wet because they were exposed to rain for too long. Then with a little hesitation, he looked up again and asked.

"Is it really not a problem?"

With no answer, the driver opened the door from the inside. And at that very moment, Starla. His gaze was not at all sidetracked from Starla's face which seemed to be holding back the coldness that swirled all over her body.

There was no meaningful conversation between them. After enough small talk, asking things that are not really important, they are re-energized by silence. Starla who was sitting next to the driver felt awkward. The girl had never been this close to Skylar, Gabriella—'s best friend's sister. Moreover, there were only the two of them in the car like this. They rarely interact, although the two always meet if Starla visits Gabriella or Skylar who always picks up her sister when she comes home from work.

The silence was noticed by Skylar. He cleared his throat slowly before reopening his voice with his calm face with the look of his eyes that continued to lead to the street in front of him.

"It's still cold?" skylar asked, with his big hand outstretched to regulate the AC temperature so that it can warm Starla's body.

The girl nodded slowly. "That's enough," Starla replied awkwardly.

Again. The silence again scolded them. The journey to the actual apartment only takes forty-five minutes, now feels two hours. What happened was so awkward for Starla. The woman even had to gulp her saliva repeatedly violently.

For a moment, Skylar let the silence happen. He suddenly parked his car in front of a simple coffee shop that made Starla blink confused.

Starla smiled stiffly. "no need. I don't like coffee, Skylar."

Yep. Although she liked it, maybe the girl would not be able to enjoy the coffee, or whatever drink she liked, Starla could not possibly swallow it well if she was still beside the man. He just wanted to get to the apartment as soon as possible. Not because of the cold, but Starla already did not have enough guts to deal with this awkwardness.

"Warm brown?"

However, it turned out that the man beside her did not understand the meaning of the rejection expressed by Starla. Skylar again asked a question that inevitably Starla had to nod her head in agreement if she did not want to be with the man any longer.

The man then took out a warm sweater of his in the back seat. "It's good if we go down together. Wear this." Skylar then thrusts a sweater at Starla.

"No need. My clothes are still wet. I don't want that sweater—"

"Your eyes are transparent" said Skylar calmly who made Starla pause for a moment. The girl quickly ducked down, looking at her white shirt which ....

Oh my gosh!

"Since then," added Skylar when she saw Starla again looking with a red tinge on her face. Her blue eyes were still faithfully paying attention to the movement after movement Starla had made ever since the girl took the sweater from her hand, then wore it in a quick motion.

Then they came down and entered the coffee shop. Really, the man could not help his lips that carved an amused smile when he saw the figure of the girl walking stiffly with a large sweater that drowned the tiny body in front of her. The girl looks adorable to Skylar.

After ordering two cups of warm drinks that were in each hand, they resumed their journey. Fifteen minutes later, the luxury car finally came to a perfect stop in front of the apartment building owned by Starla and Arlan.

"Thank you" Starla said sincerely, but still looked nervous.

Skylar nodded lightly in response.

The girl stopped her movements as she just wanted to remove the seatbelt. "I'm going to drop it off with Gaby."

Skylar nodded back. "Yes. Give my regards to Arlan."

"Surely."

Starla came down and immediately ran while covering her head with her small palm, as if she could avoid the raindrops.

After that, Skylar again drove his car at a normal speed. Her thin lips covered a small smile.

The man did not accidentally see Starla who was standing at the stop. And foolishly, the girl stood up without realizing that her wet clothes were already very transparent. Even from a distance, Skylar could clearly see the color of her underwear. Fortunately at that time, the bus stop was idle, there was no one but Starla.

Skylar again chuckled amusedly as he recalled that.

If he hadn't picked up Gabriella who turned out to be overtime and asked her to come home, he probably wouldn't have found Starla in this situation. And I don't know what would have happened had Skylar not found it.