Chapter 201
Zinnia bent down, thinking about how Jackson had helped Yannis earlier. She grabbed Yannis’s hand, draped it over her shoulder, and then fire gripped his wrist, getting ready to haul him up.
Being petite, it was no easy feat for Zinnia to help up Yannis, a man over six feet tall in his drunken state. “Yannis, can you try to stand? Let me help you back to your room, okay?” Zinnia coaxed, her voice gentle and pleading.
Fortunately, Yannis had snapped out of his earlier mood. His eyes rolled slightly as he processed her words with a drunken delay. Then, leaning on Zinnia for support, he slowly got to his feet.
Suddenly, Yannis muttered in a low, sulky voice, “Why do you treat Jackson so well? Why did you let Maisie kiss you before?”
His questions, which seemed to come out of nowhere, left Zinnia momentarily stunned. But considering that he was drunk, she still answered patiently, “Because Jackson is my family. And he has always been very kind to me.
“Maisie is my good friend, and she is also very kind to me. She kissed me because she likes me.”
Yannis replied, “I am your good friend, too. Don’t let her kiss you. I am better to you than they are. I want to be your family, too.”
Zinnia replied helplessly, “Of course, we are friends. And I treat you like my brother. So basically, you are my family, too.”
Yannis said, “I don’t want to be your brother. Jackson is your brother. I want to be more than that. You must treat me better than you do them.”
Zinnia was speechless for a moment. She thought, ‘Seriously? Is this even the Yannis I know? How come he becomes so unreasonable and stubborn when he’s drunk?
‘Didn’t Jackson say that we don’t need to mind him when he’s drunk, and that he’ll be fine after a good sleep? Does this level of fussiness look like someone who doesn’t need to be taken care of?‘
Yannis pressed further, “Promise you will treat me better. Promise you will never leave me.”
Zinnia thought, ‘Forget it, don’t take it seriously with him. He is drunk anyway. If he cooperates, I can help him get back to sleep. But if he stays there and doesn’t move, I can’t even drag him.‘
Realizing a compromise was her only option, she said, “Fine, I promise.”
“You are so sweet, Zinnia,” Yannis said and beamed right away. His face lit up like a child given his favorite candy.
Zinnia quickly helped him toward the room. But she couldn’t help but feel that Yannis was lighter than when Jackson and she had supported him together.
Yannis’s room was still lit. As soon as the door opened, the stark monochrome decor came into view. The bed was covered with a black comforter, one corner hastily thrown back.
Zinnia could tell that Yannis had bolted out himself. He was barefoot, not even stopping to put on his shoes.
Zinnia helped Yannis onto the bed and pulled the blanket over him. Standing by the bedside, she looked at Yannis, who stubbornly kept his eyes wide open, staring at her.
She said softly, “Come on, try to get some sleep. Can’t fall asleep? Do you want me to
Zinnia thought, ‘If even all that alcohol can’t help him sleep, his insomnia is
katy massage you?”
a
headache.‘
Simply massaging his head wouldn’t put Yannis to sleep. Zinnia was targeting specific pressure points to stimulate drowsiness, but she knew that prolonged use of this method could be harmful to his health.
Yannis blinked at her, his eyes full of anticipation. He said, “You forgot to say goodnight to me.”
Chapter 201
“Fine, goodnight,” Zinnia said. She thought, ‘He’s so particular about this!
Zinnia returned to her room, feeling utterly drained. She collapsed onto the bed, cocooned herself in the blanket, and sank into a deep sleep webon another thought.
After fussing around with Yannis for over half an hour, it was already past 3 a.m., way past the time anyone should be awake in the dead of night, with f that commotion, Zinnia could no longer fight the overwhelming drowsin
