It was almost noon when Adrian woke up with a headache, a bottle of wine by his side as he was lying on the floor and tightly clasping the ring on his other hand. He stares at the ceiling as he tries to remember why he was sleeping on the floor instead of his cozy bed.
"What the-" Even through the splitting pain on his head and body, he frantically got up and search for the one thing he's not holding: the white pill. "Oh, shit. Where the fuck did I put that thing?" He jumps up and down, search every pocket of his short, even down to every part of his body, hoping that the pill just got stuck on his skin and he did not swallow another Veridion compound again. He began to panic at the thought of consuming it again; he doesn't know what'll happen to a person consuming that pill twice.
It was not until he saw the pill under the rattan chair did he breathed out a sigh of relief. He immediately put the pill on a small plastic and tuck it on the innermost part of his luggage. Having realized how he can still live on and travel all over the world, he really wished that the one he had swallowed was a dud as he still hasn't experienced any symptoms yet. Fingers crossed.
His thoughts were disturbed by a knock on his door and Isla's voice.
"Sir? Are you there? I have brought some lunch for you." He opened the door with a slight grunt as he was blinded by the light of the sun and the heat, making his head throb again. Isla was wincing when his sight finally adjusted.
"Are you drunk? You smell awful." She grimaced as she steps back from him. He was surprised at her reaction and started to smell himself. He's smelling wine only, nothing else.
"You're being dramatic. I am not a drunkard. I just drank wine." He defended himself as Isla scans inside his house and seeing an empty bottle on the ground.
"The whole bottle? Wow. You're something." She awkwardly laughed as she straightens her posture. "Here. I think it's really meant to be for you. My neighbor asked me to give you this soup. It works well with hangover."
Adrian opened up the door wide and let her in as he walks back to grab the empty bottle and places it on the kitchen counter. Isla places the container on his table. There was the sour soup with shrimp, rice, and a piece of chicken drumstick. Adrian came back with two plates and two pairs of utensils which made Isla tilt her head in confusion.
"Join me. I will surely not finish that." He gestures to her. Isla just smirks at him.
"I doubt. You'll surely finish all of this instantly." She pulls out a chair facing him as one of her eyebrows raises in confidence. He can't help but smile back at her as he takes his seat and starts eating. Since arriving here, it is the first thing he had adjusted to: eating rice once or twice a day for him. It's not that he doesn't eat rice back in the US, but it was not this frequent, and especially how everything from egg, to viands, to something like steak was to be paired with rice. He's realizing now how he's been gaining more weight each week.
He took a sip of the sour soup. And it woke him up. The sourness and how the soup was pack with flavors and vegetables and how everything goes well together, it was perfect. His eyes grew wide at every sip and he can't help but pair it with rice. The shrimps were tender in perfection and makes him want more. And when he took a bit of the chicken, the sweetness and crispiness of it makes it a contrast to the soup, yet it blends well with it. And as Isla had said, he really did finish the whole meal.
After leaning back sloppily on the chair and sighing in content, did he realize how hungry he's been. He did not eat anything yesterday - just wine. When he opened his eyes, he saw Isla staring at him and grinning.
"See? I told you you'll finish it yourself. It's delicious, right?" He blushes and stood up to clean up as he doesn't want to show her any more of his embarrassing and sloppy side.
"Yes, it's really delicious. Give my compliment to the chef." He said as he washes the dishes he had just used.
"Okay. By the way, are you free today? I can tour you to the house by the cliff, if you want." Isla said as she waits for Adrian to finish washing the containers. He thinks for a few minutes before answering.
"Alright. Let me wash up first. And I'll meet you there later." He replied as he doesn't have anything to do aside from proofreading his work before submitting it to Max the next day.
Isla nods as she grabs the containers and makes her way out. "I'll see you about an hour from now. Bye."
It was not the easiest track he had been from all the tour they had done for a month. It was the roughest, and most inclined pathway they are going through that even Isla had to look back at him a few times to make sure he's doing alright. But passing over all the hurdles, they had come across the highest and most secluded cliff on that island.
The cliff stood there, like some rock protecting the island from something unknown. And the old rugged brick house there was softened by the golden glow of the sun that was about to set. Walking towards the house, they were welcomed with the salty cold breeze from the sea, the whispering sound of the waves that hits the rocks below, the bubbles looked amazing as they form below and disappearing in an instant – a fleeting beauty that can be only appreciated in a short moment of respite. There were tall grass surrounding the house as it has been abandoned for a long time now but it made the sight of it even more nostalgic like telling a long sad story. As the wind continues to blow, the grass creates a soft hushing melody and Adrian can't help but close his eyes and feel every thing around them.
Standing there, listening to nature's symphony, make his feel that he's the only one there. And for a moment, he felt that everything he had experienced – the pain, the suffering, the pressures, they vanished and was blown away by they wind. It was not until Isla calls out to him that he opens his eyes and saw her there, standing near the house, her hair tied in a ponytail dance with the wind, her loose shirt and long hiking shorts, together with the golden hue of the setting sun and blue skies on her back made the scene more breath taking. She looks quite relaxed and happy in life as she smiles at him. Adrian feels like the time moves more slowly as she waves her hands at him and calls out to him to come near and inside the house. Only when Isla snaps her hand in front of his face did he realized that she was in front of his face to get his attention. He felt heat rushing from his neck up to his temple as he feels like an idiot to be caught wool-gathering at that moment. He silently cursed at himself and wished that the ground just swallow him whole right at that moment.