Chapter 3

AWAKENING ARC

Seen

Leon’s POV

I didn’t know where to begin at first. I had no idea how it all started. I had no recollection of any traumatic pasts that could have been the source of what was happening to me.

Everything that had happened to me up to now seemed a mystery to me; like a puzzle that had no clue for me to solve it.

“Does something bother you, Leon?” Sheldon inquired. The worry on his face was more worrisome than my own dilemma. It made me feel more guilty.

I agreed by nodding. “This may sound strange, but I had this vivid dream that kept repeating,” I began. “At first, I thought it was because of stress. I mean, we’re currently filming a movie, and I’ve barely gotten any decent sleep, so I assumed…” After that, I exhaled.

“Yeah, I know,” Sheldon said softly, implying that he understood what I was saying. “What exactly is this dream you’re talking about? Is it really that unusual?” he inquired again.

“Voice…” I almost said it in hushed tones.

“Voice?” Sheldon arched his brow.

“There was a voice… It was a man’s voice. He was calling out for someone, but I’m not sure who,” I explained. “If you put it this way, he seemed to be talking to me when he said those words. His words… and extreme emotions felt like they were directed at me,” I added.

“What did the voice say in your dreams?” Sheldon inquired once more.

“Something like…” I paused before continuing, “Words like: ‘Don’t leave me behind.’ ‘Why are you abandoning me?’ ‘Stay with me…’ And then he’d say someone’s name, but I’m not sure about the name part. After that, everything becomes hazy,” I explained, clenching my fists to hold back my irritation because I couldn’t do anything to stop it.

Sheldon became intrigued after hearing my story. He attempted to analyze it before making his observations.

“Did you have any previous relationships that didn’t work out before meeting me, Leon?” he suddenly brought up.

“Huh? No,” I quickly denied. “I mean, I dated a couple of girls in high school, but they all cheated on me, Sheldon. And do you know why they did it? ‘You look like a model. I wouldn’t be surprised if you dated five girls at once,’ is what they told me before ditching me,” I defended.

“That’s pretty harsh,” Sheldon observed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“I couldn’t agree with you more,” I said before sighing.

“Leon, when did you start having bad dreams?” he inquired abruptly.

I wasn’t expecting him to ask that, so I was surprised and frantic. “Huh? Um…” I tried to recall when it all started, but couldn’t come up with a single date.

In retrospect, I had never felt such strange emotions before. When I was younger, I had a few nightmares. But, after all, it’s only natural, right? We’ve all had that dream that really freaked us out. That was it, though. Nothing was trivial about it; it was all a dream. That concludes the story.

So, what’s the big deal about this one? I thought helplessly as I was exhausted by both work and personal conflicts.

When did it all begin? I couldn’t recall the first time I dreamed about it. What I only remembered was that whenever I awoke from it, my chest tightened and my head felt light. It was the same feeling and uneasiness every time.

“Don’t push yourself, Leon,” Sheldon said. “We can talk about this another time. Alynna said you almost passed out during the shoot. You should rest,” he said, gently caressing my back.

“You’re right,” I agreed, letting out a huge sigh. “I’m sorry, Sheldon, but I think I need some sleep.”

I could no longer hide the exhaustion printed all over my face. I wanted to talk to him more, ask how his day was, and even flirt with him. I badly wanted to feel his warmth to calm myself down.

After all, being with Sheldon felt the safest.

Sheldon gave a nod. We stared at each other for a few seconds before he kissed my lips lightly. “I love you, Leon,” he said softly, sending shivers down my spine.

“I love you, too,” I replied, wrapping my arms around his neck. Sheldon had no choice but to carry me to his room like a princess.

He carefully placed me on his bed. The next thing he did was remove my shoes. Then he took the blanket.

I casted a seductive glance at him as he was about to cover my waist with it. Sheldon pretended not to notice, but I caught a smirk on his face.

“What is it, Leon?” Sheldon finally spoke after I stared at him for a long time.

“Nothing,” I replied. “I haven’t had the opportunity to spend time with you recently. I really miss you,” I told him.

“But you still come here now and then. That’s enough for me,” Sheldon said, looking so satisfied with his reason.

“Yeah, and then what? All I do is sleep and go to work the next day,” I contended.

“We have sex,” he blurted.

“About an hour? Please don’t tell me you’re happy with that. To be honest, I’m not,” I declared, dumbfounded.

Sheldon laughed at what I said, and I smacked him on the arm for it. “It can’t be avoided,” he admitted. Then he grabbed my hand and squeezed it. “I won’t ask for anything else as long as I get to see you, Leon.”

It was really sweet of him to say that. It was the kind of love declaration that always caught me off guard, but gave me reassurance as well.

I was really glad that I let Sheldon in my life. If it weren’t for him, I would have been a goner by now.

I slept well that night with Sheldon by my side the entire night.

***

“Leon!” I flinched as Director Kim appeared in front of me. “Didn’t I tell you to send me a message after you left?” he remembered, pouting.

“Oh…” I suddenly remembered what he said the day before. “I apologize, director. I completely forgot,” I explained.

Kim, the director, pouted even more. “Hmph! You saw my message, liar, but you didn’t even respond. You know how worried I was?” He said that and then left.

I did? Confounded, I thought.

I immediately began searching my bag for my phone. I didn’t check for messages from yesterday when I woke up this morning. It quickly became a habit of mine. Alynna and Derrick were aware of this, so they preferred to ask me in person rather than via chats and phone calls.

I quickly grabbed my phone and opened my messenger app. The name of Director Kim was among the most recent messages. When I opened our conversation, my eyes couldn’t believe it.

Director Kim: Leon, how are you? Did you get home safe?

-seen-

What the hell happened…? Shivers ran up and down my spine.

“Who took my phone?” I asked myself, horrified. “Sheldon?” I assumed, rocking my head. “Idiot! Sheldon is not that type of person! We are considerate of one another’s privacy. He will not use my phone without my permission, and I will do the same,” I told myself. If anyone saw me, they would think I was insane. I was talking to myself, after all.

Because everything was hazy last night, I paid little attention to almost everything that happened around me. My conversation with my boyfriend was also a mystery to me. I’d like to put this aside for the time being, but I couldn’t help but wonder.

“Excuse me, Mr. Leon,” a female staff member said. When I turned my gaze to her, she was shy around me, saying, “Director Kim is calling for you.” I gave her permission, and she walked away.

I went straight to Director Kim, and we talked briefly before continuing the shoot. Natasha and I then reenacted the unfinished scene from yesterday.

So far, everything has gone swimmingly. I had forgotten about the message that Director Kim had mentioned for a few hours.

***

“Lunch time, everyone! We’ll be back at 1:30 PM,” said one male staff assistant, and immediately rushed to somewhere else to finish some matters.

“Finally,” Natasha sighed, stretching her arms out.

I walked right into my dressing room. If I stayed any longer, Natasha would probably start a conversation with me and it would likely take some time.

I slammed the door shut and dragged the plastic chair out, frantically sitting on it.

I focused my attention on my black sling bag, which I had left here this morning. I placed it on top of my dressing table, next to my makeup kits.

Should I inquire with Sheldon about it? I debated whether I should suspect or not suspect my boyfriend.

“Just to be certain…” I said quietly. “I’m just going to ask. Isn’t that fine?” I questioned myself. I returned my gaze to my back for a few seconds before whipping out my phone. It didn’t take me long, but I started panting for no apparent reason. “Shit,” I hissed. “Why am I so tense?” I was perplexed.

Someone knocked on the door just as I was about to enter my password to unlock my phone, almost sending my soul flying away. “Leon?” It was Derrick. “Are you here, man?” he inquired from the opposite side of the door.

That frightened me! I screamed in my head while clutching my phone.

“Y-yeah,” I hesitantly replied.

“Geez, Alynna’s been looking everywhere for you, Leon,” Derrick said, and I heard him sigh in disappointment.

“Sorry. For the time being, I’ll eat here. I need to practice,” I lied.

“Are you sure? I bought some snacks for us,” Derrick asked, his voice a little depressed.

“Yeah. I’m sorry,” I said, apologizing. I could then hear his footsteps as he walked away.

Why am I so worried? I’m just going to ask Sheldon. Is it preferable to call him? I pondered.

I unlocked my phone and stared at it for maybe a minute before I actually opened the messenger application and searched for our conversation.

Truth be told, Sheldon and I rarely exchanged messages. One reason was that I partly disliked chatting too much. I would rather tell him everything in person whenever we had the chance to see each other. I hated miscommunication the most, and Sheldon knew that.

“Here goes nothing,” I half whispered before I started typing. Thank goodness Sheldon was online.

Leon: You there?

-sent-

I waited for a while before Sheldon noticed my message.

Sheldon: What’s up? Done with the shooting?

Leon: Yep. I missed you.

Sheldon: Me, too. Are you in a good mood?

Leon: Why?

Sheldon: Because you suddenly messaged me.

Leon: I actually wanted to ask something.

Sheldon: What is it?

Leon: Did you… I mean, did you notice if I checked my phone last night before going to sleep?

Sheldon: Yeah, you did. You don’t remember?

Leon: Oh ha-ha. Totally forgot. I’ll call you later.

Sheldon: Okay. Take care…

-seen-

“Why can’t I remember a thing?” I asked myself in total disbelief.

Nothing was making sense. I remembered talking to him before I slept, but I couldn’t remember a damn thing that I checked on my phone last night. I was too tired to even make love with him.

Later that day, I told Sheldon that I wouldn’t be able to come to his house. I didn’t want to lie about it, but I made my work schedule as my excuse.

He didn’t argue any further because he already knew that it was going to be like this, eventually. We did not know when the media paparazzi would start following me around. If they leaked at least one rumor about me while our movie was still filming, it could end my career in a flash.

***

When I got home, I threw myself on my bed right away. And to free myself from any stress, I checked my phone if there were unanswered messages. When I saw none, I messaged Sheldon beforehand.

Leon: Going to sleep. Will turn off my phone. Love you

-sent-

I no longer waited for my boyfriend’s reply and immediately pushed the off button before putting my phone down just beside me. I quickly went to sleep in a matter of seconds. I was exhausted.

While I was already in a slumber, I did not know that I didn’t really turn off my phone, which I thought I did. It was in silent mode, and it viewed my conversation with Alynna.

Alynna: Leon? 

Are you okay?

Why didn’t you eat with us earlier?

Derrick told me you weren’t in your dressing room.

Leon? Asleep?

Message me when you see this, please?

-seen-

Later that night, I had that nightmare again.