The Whispers of The Sprite (The Whispers series #1) by Joanna Mazurkiewicz Page A

forcing myself to say it. I know that he is using all his energy to calm me down.
     
    ‘Ania, let me explain,’ he says firmly. I feel as if I can't escape. His hands are firm and his skin is warm and soft. ‘I didn't expect you to see me. I don’t love her, but I have to be with her.’
     
    After hearing what he says I can't hold my tears any longer. His body is so close to mine that I hold my breath.
     
    ‘I am sorry, Gabriel, I am not sure what you want from me. I don't expect anything from you.’  
     
    It is the truth; I am not sure why I am upset. He is engaged to someone else and we only shared a kiss. His eyes darken and I can’t stop looking at him. I let him see me like this, vulnerable, emotionally   unready to let anyone into my heart.  
     
    ‘Let me explain everything later on,’ he says, gazing at me with his deep blue eyes. I feel exhausted and not able to fight any longer. I take a deep breath.
     
    ‘Please go and don’t come to see me anymore. I cannot cope with this right now.’ I try to sound firm to make sure that he understands what I mean and will leave me alone.
     
    ‘Ania, who are you talking to?’ says Amy, entering the kitchen with Richard. Gabriel moves and vanishes, leaving me to deal with my housemate and her boyfriend. I can't hide the fact that I have been crying. They both are looking at me with concerned expressions, waiting for an answer. I bite my lip and quickly wipe my wet eyes.
     
    ‘Sorry, I was just talking to myself,’ I answer, and start to clean the mess on the floor and hide my red eyes.
     
    ‘Is everything okay?’ asks Richard, and starts helping me with the mess. I avoid looking at him.
     
    ‘Yes, I am fine. I just dropped it,’ I answer.
     
    ‘Ania, have you been crying?’ asks Amy, but I still avoid looking at her.  
     
    ‘No, I have a cold. If you'll excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom,’ I say, and step out of the kitchen, leaving them both without saying anything else.
     
    In the toilet, I lock the door. Of course they noticed that I was crying, as the reflection in the mirror reveals swollen red eyes and a miserable face. I don't want to explain anything to Amy while Richard is there. I know that I will face more questions later on, but Amy will have to wait. I rinse my face with water and lock myself in my bedroom. Gabriel showed up so unexpectedly that I wasn't able to deal with my emotions. He admitted that he didn't love Rose. Why did he want me to know that? My phone rings. It’s George. I answer straight away.  
     
    ‘Hi, George.’
     
    ‘Ania, darling, I can hear in your voice that something is wrong,’ he starts.
     
    I bite my lip, wondering if what I am doing feels right; burying my emotions and using George to mask everything that I feel about Gabriel.
     
    ‘Can you come to see me tomorrow? I need to talk to you,’ I say, making sure that I emphasise the word 'tomorrow.' There is a moment of silence on the other side of the phone.  
     
    ‘Well, it’s a bit short notice. Aren’t you going back to London next week?’
     
    ‘Yes, not sure yet what day.’
     
    He is trying to make me feel bad for ignoring his phone calls.
     
    ‘Okay, I will come to see you tomorrow. I haven’t got any more lectures anyway,’ he replies, hanging up.
     
    I smile and begin to wonder if this is exactly what I wanted. Gabriel risked seeing me in daylight; he came and explained that he had to be with Rose. I can't lie to myself; I can’t physically be with him and the only reasonable solution is to let him know that I am not interested. George seems to have changed. I can have a future with him. Gabriel is a different story. He is forbidden to even talk to me in the daylight and is engaged to another woman. It is clear that there is a strong, unexplained connection between us. These new emotions are slowly ripping my heart apart. I can’t think straight.
     
    My subconscious is telling me that I have to wipe the memory of