Riley pushed open the door and went straight to bed.
'Just why did I agree to spend a month with them. These people are beasts.' Riley screamed in his mind.
'I wanted to join the Tae Kwon Do class, but what was it she and that grumpy old man said? That I would just be a back bencher, I am too weak, that I can't even land a proper blow.
Fine, then I agreed to Natasha's crazy suggestion, cause I was fed up of being so weak. But the strain she and Adrian are putting me through might actually kill me. I now only get four hours of sleep, even when I wake up, I have to do some exercise till I'm almost late for school. I do not even get enough time to prepare for school, and ever since my stay here, I've never once gotten to school early. I'm always late, almost missing the first period.
Damn it. It's been two weeks now, why is Donovan not back yet? I thought he left town because he had something urgent to attend to? If it was something urgent, shouldn't he be done with it by now? Or maybe he is done with it and is even back in town but just doesn't want to return home. Is he also enjoying watching me suffer? No, no way. Donovan is nice. Maybe Natasha was the one who asked him not to return home; Maybe he went to stay with that huge boyfriend of his; Maybe, just maybe he doesn't like me.'
He heard some footsteps. He sat up and watched Natasha walk into his room. He collapsed back on the bed in an exhausted manner.
"Dinner is ready." Natasha said as she sat beside him on the bed.
He sat up and scoffed.
"Dinner? It's already midnight."
"You wanna skip it then?"
"What!"
The annoying smile he saw on her face pissed him off. She and Adrian pushed him to his limit, time and over again. He was very tired, his whole body was aching him, yet all they gave him was some painkillers and four hours sleep per day. Now, they were also gonna deprive him of good food. Just what was his crime that he could not eat his meals on time?
'Are they trying to push me to my limits by starving me? I'm sure I'm gonna die before then.' he thought to himself.
"You're gonna get up or what? I'm too hungry to sit here with you"
"Then why didn't you make dinner earlier? If you had known that you couldn't, you could have given me a heads-up, I would have persuaded Adrian to let me go prepare dinner or place an order."
"Make dinner earlier? How on earth was I supposed to do that? I was also practicing with you dumbass. And you've seen it yourself; Adrian wouldn't let one go unless he is satisfied."
She got up ready to leave, but then something came back to her memory.
"Hold on a minute. Did you say I should have let you know beforehand so that you could have prepared dinner?"
"Yes, and I meant it."
"Haha! My goodness. Last I remember, you nearly burnt up the kitchen when I let you do the cooking. You had better drag your lazy ass down to the dining if you know you are still hungry."
She walked away as she was not planning to sit with someone who was not planning to get up and have a late meal, she was too hungry for that.
"What about Donovan?"
"Huh!"
That took her by surprise. Why ask of Donovan when you know exactly where he is?
"When will he be returning?"
She saw him get up, and there was this look screaming 'I need to rest' on his furrowed face.
"Hah. I get it. You think he's gonna play your knight in shining armor?"
"What!"
"See, I hate to disappoint you, but you should be glad Donovan's not here. If he was, you will be at a hospital, with an air-tube passed through your nostrils, since you would be so breath-taken by the training he would put you through. Adrian's training might seem too much to a weakling like you, but trust me, Donovan's training will have you on death's bed."
Her words frightened Riley. Was Donovan that cruel in his trainings?
"Now, come along, let's go eat dinner." she said as she smiled a wicked smile at him.
*****
Bram sat up on the bed. He had not slept a wink all night long. His Uncle's words troubled him.
"I really do like Riley." he spoke out loud to himself.
"I do, to the point that I feel like I might die if I do not claim him as mine. And when I do, those stupid mates of mine would have to take their filthy eyes off what's mine. If they as much as look at him in a lewd way, I will have them know that nobody walks out a free man after messing with anyone associated with me."
The fire burning in his eyes could prove he was ready for whatever it would cost him to date Riley.
"But I do not think I can. Not after what happened with brother."