ROSETTE


    I hadn’t wanted toe to this club. I just wanted to stay home like a widowed grandmother and do what I love-that is what Sofia calls it. But Sofia had insisted that I go out tonight. She didn’t take no for an answer. She even picked out my dress.


    So here I was in a ce that was noisy, smelly, and just packed with bodies, and I wanted to be anywhere but here. And then a guy came to me-I knew him from school, but never could remember his name and he was funny at first. Until he wasn’t.


    His touch made me ufortable-like every other boy-and he didn’t stop when I told him to. I was about to get up and leave when I saw a really tall, familiar figure charging towards us. Before my brain could even grasp what was going on, the guy was dragged from my side, and Axelnded a punch on his jaw. Despite the noise of the club, I still heard the sound of the guy’s bone breaking and the sound


    of his scream.


    “Axel!” I screamed as my brain finally started working again, jumping to my feet.


    Axel already raised his hand tond a second blow, but I caught it, gritting my teeth with the effort it took. His head snapped to me, and I wasn’t even sure he was seeing me. His eyes were red and had murder written all over them.


    “Axel, stop this!” We had drawn attention now. Music still yed, but nobody was dancing anymore. They all looked at us, whispering, while the guy held his broken jaw, blooding out of his mouth,


    whimpering.


    “You,” Axel growled, his voice unrecognizable as he dropped the guy, turning to me with that bloodshot look in his eyes.


    I wasn’t even concerned about what he was doing here or how he found me, all I was just concerned about was that murderous look in his eyes.


    “Axel, listen-”


    But Axel wasn’t even hearing anything. He grabbed my wrist, his grip painful as he dragged me, walking towards the exit.


    “Hey, dickhead, where do you think you’re taking my friend to?” Sofia shouted, marching after us, her phone already out to call the police.


    “Don’t do that,” I told her, shaking my head. Axel didn’t even stop walking. People cleared for him as


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    he passed, moving away from him. He looked human, but I knew they could feel his dark aura just as i


    was feeling it right now.


    Sofia frowned, still walking after me. “But-”


    “It’s okay, Sof. I… I know him. I’ll get this resolved soon. Trust me.”


    She stopped walking, biting her bottom lip in that nervous manner of hers.


    I looked back at Axel, trying to find the best way to get him to listen. We reached the exit and the bouncers tried to stop Axel.


    “No, no, it’s okay,” I said to them, managing a small smile. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”


    They let us through, and Axel hadn’t even slowed down one bit. This wasn’t good. This wasn’t good at


    all.


    “Axel, I don’t know what’s going on, but you have to snap out of it.”


    He didn’t act like he heard me.


    He reached his car, opening the passenger’s door for me, and just watched me, daring me to refuse. I stared at him, my heart beating against my chest and he stared back.


    I entered the car, releasing a breath, but I flinched when he mmed the door. He got in, put the car in drive, and raced away, his hands tight around the steering wheel like he wanted to crush it, his jaw clenched so tight, I feared he would break a tooth.


    “Okay,” I breathed, trying to get my hands to stop shaking. “Okay, Axel, I’m not going to ask how yo found me. I’m just going to let that go. But what I won’t let go of is what you did back there. How dare you? What made you think you had the right to do that bullshit?!”


    Now I was getting pissed, my shaking was already increasing.


    Axel’s jaw tightened even more. “You let him touch you,” he growled, and once again, I couldn’t recognize his voice. “You let that bastard put his hands on you!”


    “What do you even care?” I snapped, turning to face him fully and no longer caring that he was driving at a speed that could kill us. “It’s been a year, and I haven’t heard anything from you so why do you fucking care?”


    “And whose fault is that?” he shouted. “Whose fault is it that you didn’t hear a word from me for a year? Whose fault is it that we didn’t see for a year?”


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    12:56 Tue, 9 Sept


    “Mine! It’s my goddamn fault, but I don’t even care. It’s not a fault when I don’t regret any decision that I made! It’s not a fault when I’m living my best life! It’s not a fault, Axel, when I’ve built something for myself! And now you’vee and you’ve ruined it!”


    He said nothing, just drove like a madman, and barely eight minutester, he parked in front of my house. I didn’t even care how he knew where I lived, I just wanted him gone.


    I opened the door and stepped out, my gaze hard. “Great, you’ve dropped me off at home, now leave. I don’t ever want to see your face again, Axel.”


    “Open the door, Rosette,” he said as if I hadn’t just spoken.


    “Didn’t you hear a word I just said? Fucking leave!”


    He walked around the car and stood in front of me, leaning in to snarl, “Open that damn door, Rosette, or I swear, I will throw you on my shoulder and break it down.”


    He meant it. I knew he would do it.


    I stared at him, my chest heaving, my breathing harsh before I finally walked to the door. It took me a while to put the key in the lock because my stupid hands wouldn’t stop shaking, but I finally did it.


    I entered and Axel followed, closing the door. I threw my keys and bag on the floor, turning to him and ready to take out my frustration on him when he roughly grabbed the nape of my neck, drawing me to him and mming his lips on mine.