《Flashbacks》 Chapter 1: Prologue Chapter 1: Prologue I¡¯ve never believed in love. The concept seemed straight up stupid. Beingmitted to someone who¡¯s gonna break your heart one day just feels pointless. I¡¯d rather not waste my time and energy for that. I find it so surprising that there are people who really believe in such nonsense. Do they seriously think Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. they¡¯ll grow up to be Cindere who has that made-up fantasy world where everything ended perfectly? Newssh: Love isn¡¯t as amazing as they think. There are married men who sleep with me simply because it makes them feel dominant and powerful. They say it¡¯s only because they want to make me feel good but I know that¡¯s not the real reason. What blows my mind is the fact that they don¡¯t even feel guilty for sleeping with me, even though they¡¯re married to someone they swore they loved. It¡¯s pathetic and sad, but who am I to talk? I¡¯m the most pathetic person I know, but at least I know love is stupid. Love is a trap only foolish people fall for; and I¡¯m not a foolish person. Chapter 2: Trigger Chapter 2: Trigger The tension in the room was overwhelming. He was looking at me with his dark brown eyes like a predator about to attack his prey, eyeing me from top to bottom then back up again. He knew he had full control of the situation. My hands were tied behind my back, causing me to feel even more hopeless. Still, my eyes begged him to spare me. ¡°You like being a slut for daddy, don¡¯t you?¡± he asked, pping me harshly across my face. I didn¡¯t reply. I didn¡¯t like him calling me slut. My whole life, I thought he was a nice family friend. Not some sick twisted person. I wanted to call out for help, but who would I call? I didn¡¯t have anybody. He was the one person I thought I could trust, but he used my trust to get to me and force me to do the things he wanted. ¡°Answer me, slut,¡± he said, pping me harder this time. I winced and let out a gasp at how evil he sounded, but then I quickly bit my lip. I didn¡¯t want to make any noise for him. ¡°You¡¯re such a sick person,¡± I spit out. ¡°I¡¯ll fucking make sure people know who you really are.¡± He began booming withughter at my remark before he took out his leather rope. ¡°You think people are gonna believe you? You¡¯re a slut. You asked for this. Besides, you won¡¯t be able to tell anyone if I kill you,¡± he said bitterly,ughing at thest part. ¡°Since you wanted to be so bold, I¡¯m gonna punish you.¡± With that, he raised the hand with the rope then slowly brought it down to my face. At least it seemed time slowed down. And, as expected, the rope began to make contact with my skin. - I jolted out of my sleep, letting out a scream in vain. I immediately began looking around my room, afraid that he would be standing next to me. He wasn¡¯t, thankfully. But I didn¡¯t feel any better. I was practically drenched in sweat, my skin felt sticky. I began taking deep breaths. It was just a dream, I tried telling myself. But it wasn¡¯t just a dream. It was reality. Once I realized I wasn¡¯t exactly calming myself down, I scurried on out of bed and ran into my bathroom. I opened the water to the tub and filled it with cold water as I took out my razor from under the sink. I put it near the tub before I began undressing myself. Naked, I closed the water since the tub was full. I began getting in the tub, starting with my right foot. I Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. couldn¡¯t help but gasp when my skin made contact with the freezing cold water. When I managed to put my whole body in the tub, my heart was racing. I was freezing and my teeth were ever-so-lightly chattering. I picked up my razor from near the tub and began slitting my wrists. In total, I drew six lines with the razor. The cuts weren¡¯t deep enough to permanently harm me, but deep enough so I could feel the pain. It felt good. Too good. But that¡¯s how I learned to cope over the years. I probably had hundreds of cuts around my body by now. I ended up staying in the tub for a while, as I was lost in my thoughts. I didn¡¯t know how long I stayed there but I knew I stayed long enough for the blood on my arm to dry up. I stepped out of the tub and then drained out the dirty water before I went to the shower and took a quick shower. I scrubbed and scrubbed as hard as I could so I could feel clean again, but I still felt his dirty hands on me. My skin began burning from the scrubbing and I ended up bleeding but that didn¡¯t make me stop. After another 20 minutes of scrubbing, I got out the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist. I brushed my teeth before I went back inside my room and put on some sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Not once did I look at myself in the mirror. In my room, I took a box from under my bed. The box was well hidden so it took me a moment to find it. Once I found it, I counted the money in the box and noticed that I had almost 100,000. I still needed to sell myself a couple more times before I¡¯d be able to permanently leave. I put the money back in the box and locked it before I returned it to its spot. I walked over to my desk and saw the white card Dan had given me with his phone number. I disregarded it and instead opened myptop and started writing. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever give my characters a happy ending, since I don¡¯t believe in them. All the shows I watched and books I read when I was younger always had happy endings, but reality isn¡¯t all rainbows and sparkles. Life is a rollercoaster. You never know what you¡¯re gonna bump into, or if you¡¯re going to fall off before the ride is finished. After a couple minutes passed, I checked how many words I wrote on the doc and felt satisfied with the 1,203. I closed myptop then grabbed Dan¡¯s number off of my desk and went to the kitchen so I could make something to eat. I felt disappointed when I realized that I forgot to go grocery shopping so the fridge was empty. I then thought about inviting Dan to get breakfast with me. I didn¡¯t know him like that, but he wouldn¡¯t mind, would he? It¡¯d be nice to have somepany¡­ Making up my mind, I quickly grabbed my phone and called him before I could change my mind. It took him only three rings to answer, which surprised me because I half expected him to not answer and ghost me. ¡°Hello, Dan¡¯s speaking here. Who¡¯s this?¡± he asked from the other end of the call. ¡°Uh, this is Linda,¡± I quietly answered. He chuckled. ¡°Hey, Linda. Using the fake name, are we?¡± I nodded before I realized he couldn¡¯t see me nod. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± The line went quiet for a few seconds before Dan spoke up. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Do you want to grab breakfast with me?¡± I asked. ¡°If you¡¯re not busy, of course.¡± ¡°Yeah, of course. I¡¯m hungry since I haven¡¯t had lunch yet, so why not,¡± he replied, confusing me. Was it afternoon already? ¡°Oh, yeah, my bad. I meant lunch. I¡¯ll send you the address to the ce. Bye,¡± I quickly said as I hung up the phone. I sent him a text message with the address of the cafe. He replied fairly quickly, saying he would be there in five. I didn¡¯t know what to say so I sent him a smiling emoji instead. I didn¡¯t really feel like picking out a decent outfit to look nice, even though I was the one who asked him out, so I put on some ck leggings and an oversized hoodie. I grabbed my things before I left and made my way to Alivs Cafe, the cafe I sent Dan. Inside the cafe, I noticed that Dan was already seated at a table. ¡°Sorry I¡¯mte,¡± I apologized, sliding into the seat in front of him. He looked up from his phone and at me. ¡°You¡¯re good. I just came early.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but notice that he dressed nicely, despite the clothes being casual clothes. The jeans fit him perfectly and the shirt he wore showed off his muscles. ¡°You look¡­good,¡± Iplimented him. ¡°Thank you,¡± he replied with a smile. ¡°I dunno if I could say the same for you though,¡± he joked, but he wasn¡¯t wrong. I looked like a mess. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he asked. ¡°You look tired. And why are you wearing a hoodie when it¡¯s hot out?¡± ¡°Let me breath for a moment,¡± I cut him off, chuckling. ¡°Sorry,¡± he replied sheepishly. ¡°It¡¯s okay¡­What are you gonna order?¡± I asked. ¡°Hm, I think I want the double burger with a side of fries and a coke. Maybe also a burrito,¡± he answered. ¡°And you?¡± ¡°I want a chicken wrap¡­and a cheese burger, and fries, and a burrito, and soda,¡± I concluded. His mouth dropped open. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize you ate so much,¡± hemented, probably by ident. Immediately, I felt a bit self-conscious. Did he think I was fat? ¡°Wait - I didn¡¯t mean it like that! It¡¯s just, you look so small and skinny, I didn¡¯t realize you - goddamn it, nevermind. Sorry,¡± he rambled on. It was clear he was frustrated because he was tripping over his words, which was fairly cute. Not wanting him to feel bad, Iughed it off. ¡°I don¡¯t like starving myself. Besides, I run so that¡¯s probably why,¡± I told him. He nodded and we began talking for a bit before a waiter came to take our orders. We gave them our orders and then waited for the food toe. ¡°How¡¯re you holding up since yesterday?¡± asked Dan. I looked up from the table and at him. ¡°Anything to get me by, right?¡± I replied, averting my eyes away from his. ¡°Do you mind me asking why you started¡­doing what you¡¯re doing?¡± he asked. I was surprised by his question to say the least. ¡°Um¡­I started at the age of 17 because I was kicked out by my parents when I told them something that happened,¡± I replied slowly. Dan nodded his head. ¡°Sorry to hear that. What¡¯s the something that happened though?¡± he asked. I swallowed my spit. I knew he didn¡¯t mean any harm but how did he think it was okay to ask someone you just met about their personal life? Wasn¡¯t that a bit weird? ¡°Look, I hope I¡¯m not being rude or anything but I really don¡¯t want to talk about it. It brings up bad memories that I¡¯d rather not remember,¡± I told him. Dan¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Sorry,¡± he quickly apologized. I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s okay?¡± We sat in awkward silence for a few minutes until our food came. Once it came, I decided to talk to him to try to ease up the awkward silence. ¡°So¡­anything new happen?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, yeah. I¡¯ve actually been trying to contact my ex-girlfriend. There¡¯s a big mimunication between us and I love her, so I can¡¯t give up just yet. My boss and I also talked about why he¡¯s been so stressed. Turns out it¡¯s because he found out he had a kid - who is now all grown up,¡± Dan said. I made an ¡°ohhh¡± sound. ¡°You and your boss must be a little close. But he misses all of his child¡¯s life and he expects his kid to just let him in?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you understand¡­He just found out that he has a child a few days away. The mother popped in and told him. He was angry, obviously, because he wasn¡¯t able to meet his child or anything. All he got was a name,¡± Dan exined. I nodded my head understandingly. ¡°Is his child a female or male or?¡± ¡°Female, from what he told me.¡± ¡°What¡¯s her name then?¡± I asked. ¡°He didn¡¯t tell me,¡± answered Dan. I sighed. ¡°I hope everything goes well for your boss then,¡± I said with a small smile. Dan smiled back. ¡°Yeah, me, too.¡± We kept on talking while eating our food. We talked about our past life, but nothing too serious. We pretty much talked for a couple hours until we realized that we should leave and go back home. Dan offered to drive me home but I declined his offer because I lived in the poor part of the city and I didn¡¯t want him to judge me. As I walked home, I felt a little paranoid that someone was watching me, but I shrugged it off and thought that it was all in my head. Once I got to my ce, I began cleaning the rooms. I ended up falling asleep at around 4 in the morning because I ended up texting Dan for a bit and after we texted, I began thinking about him. Lunch was fun. I think I made a friend. Chapter 3: Trouble Chapter 3: Trouble Dan and I were sitting at the same table in the same coffee ce we went to the day I asked him to apany me. I liked to call it The Hideout. It was a ce where I was able to hide from my troubles and enjoy a coffee with Dan, who¡¯d be one of my good friends now. We began hanging out more and more when neither of us were busy. We also exchanged text messages and calls every now and then. Once, he even invited me to have lunch with him at his workce since he had work to do but still wanted to hang out with me. Maybe if he asks again I¡¯ll go. ¡°Linda, do you hear me?¡± asked Dan, raising a brow. ¡°Who¡¯s Linda?¡± I asked, forgetting that I never told him my actual name. ¡°Oh, wait, nevermind. I forgot that was my ¡®name,¡¯¡± I said, making air quotes as I said ¡°name.¡± ¡°Pfft,¡± Dan snorted a bit. ¡°You know, I¡¯ve been wondering why you still haven¡¯t told me your real name. Like, I know you don¡¯t like telling people but we¡¯ve gotten closer, right?¡± I shrugged, not knowing what to say. ¡°How about this¡­I try to guess your name. If I get it right, you have toe to my office in two weeks time. If I don¡¯t get it right, you tell me your name and that¡¯s that.¡± He has a smirk on his face but I smirk back because I¡¯m certain he wouldn¡¯t get it right. My name was unique and long, so I¡¯d be extremely impressed and surprised if he gets it right. ¡°Deal,¡± I said. ¡°But don¡¯t go home crying when you get it wrong.¡± Iugh. ¡°I get three tries,¡± he tells me. I nodded my head. ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°Dominique?¡± he guessed. I shook my head no. ¡°Avyanna?¡± he guessed again. Again, I shook my head no. Honestly though, the names he guessed were unique so he gets a point for that. ¡°How about¡­Eleonora?¡± he guessed for thest time. I froze in my seat. How the hell did he manage to guess my name? Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. ¡°I got it, didn¡¯t I?¡± he asked, excited. ¡°This is awesome!¡± he shouted, getting up from his seat. When he realized the attention he was getting from the other customers, his face turned red and he muttered an apology whilst sitting back down. I giggled. ¡°How did you guess my name though? I really didn¡¯t expect anyone to get it,¡± I admitted. Dan shrugged. ¡°I said the first unique names that came to mind,¡± he said. ¡°Well, then¡­the office, huh? Why do you want me to go there so bad?¡± I asked. Dan shrugged but also threw a wink in my direction. ¡°I just want you to see my workce and stuff, ya know?¡± ¡°What should I wear?¡± ¡°Just something casual but not too casual. No one will really care how you dress as long as you¡¯re covering certain areas.¡± I nodded my head acknowledgingly. ¡°Alright¡­Anything new happen over the weekend?¡± I asked since Dan seemed much more happy and carefree. Dan nodded, grinning. ¡°I got back together with my girlfriend, Vera. I sorta crashed her family dinner night but we talked things out. I even made sure to contact some therapists, even though I hate therapists. I just love her a lot and I¡¯ll do anything so we can both be together. I¡­I feel like she¡¯s the one.¡± He was blushing yet his smile kept growing. Clearly this Vera girl had him wrapped around her fingers. I was¡­shocked. I didn¡¯t realize another person could have the effect that Vera had on Dan. It seemed crazy, especially since love doesn¡¯t really exist. ¡°Wow, you really love her, huh?¡± I said. Dan looked at me weirdly for a second. ¡°Of course I love her. Otherwise I wouldn¡¯t have scheduled appointments with therapists or told her to take me back,¡± he exined. ¡°I hope your rtionship with her only gets stronger.¡± I smiled weakly at him. ¡°You¡¯re a really great guy. First you literally just paid me to talk to you. You didn¡¯t kiss me or want to sleep with me¡­And you cared about my feelings. I think. ¡°I don¡¯t really believe in love but that effect Vera has on you? That¡¯s not normal. That¡¯s all I know. So, I¡¯m happy she took you back. And I hope you guysst for a long, long time.¡± Dan seemed bewildered but in a good way. He seemed surprised and a little confused but¡­happy? I think. ¡°Eleonora, thank you,¡± he said. ¡°I know you might think that you did nothing but, truthfully, you were the one who helped me deal with the issue I had with Vera. If it weren¡¯t for you, I don¡¯t know where I¡¯d be right now. I know you¡¯re not in the best ce with the best source of ie or anything, but I hope you know you have such great potential. Despite not believing in love, for whatever reasons you have, I really do think you¡¯ll fall in love. It might not be a happy love story, but it¡¯ll be a love story nheless. ¡°I promise I¡¯ll protect you myself,¡± he concluded. My eyes stung with unshed tears and my chest felt hot. I felt good, in a way, so I didn¡¯t know why I was crying. Didn¡¯t people cry when they weren¡¯t feeling well? I quickly wiped my tears away when they fell down my cheeks. I didn¡¯t want Dan to see me cry but it was already toote. He was making his way to me then engulfed me in a hug. He kissed my forehead and began rubbing my back. He was like the brother I¡¯ve always wanted. Or rather, needed. ¡°You¡¯re like the little sister I¡¯ve always wanted,¡± he confessed. For some reason, it made me cry even more. I felt eyes on me, which was expected since we were out in public, afterall. Eventually, I wiped my face and quickly got up and left the store so I could go home. I had work. Dan ran right behind me. ¡°Whoa, Eleonora! Wait up! Did I do something wrong?¡± he asked. I shook my head violently before I ran to hug him once again. This time, I didn¡¯t want to let go. ¡°Let¡¯s go to my ce,¡± he said softly. ¡°I¡¯m worried about you.¡± I shook my head again. ¡°I have work tonight.¡± Dan grabbed my wrist. ¡°No. You can¡¯t go to work in this state, Eleonora. At leaste to my ce and calm down a bit.¡± I looked away from him. ¡°I have work,¡± I said firmly. Dan sighed. ¡°Okay, fine. But as soon as you get home, call me so I can know you¡¯re safe. If you don¡¯t call, I will go to your house and personally see if you¡¯re okay.¡± I giggled through my tears. ¡°You don¡¯t even know where I live.¡± ¡°Oh, but I will since I¡¯m gonna be taking you home. No way I¡¯m gonna let you walk home by yourself.¡± Rolling my eyes, I said, ¡°Whatever.¡± We pulled away from each other and walked to his fancy car. I think it was a Porsche. Sigh, rich people these days. As I was about to open the door to the car, Dan opened it for me and made sure I got seated in before he closed it. Whoever this Vera girl is¡ªshe¡¯s one lucky girl. And she better acknowledgethat. Once Dan also got seated, I decided to talk. ¡°Nice car¡­¡± I said, a bit awkwardly. Dan smiled at me. ¡°Thanks.¡± I gave him my address and he began driving me to my ce. While he drove, I listened to the music that was ying from the radio. We eventually made it to my ce and he walked me to the front door. I felt self-conscious since I didn¡¯t live in a nice and rich neighborhood. Dan, on the other hand, made good money and probably lived on the good side of town. ¡°Hey,¡± Dan said firmly. ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°I like your house. Stop acting weird,¡± he ordered. ¡°It¡¯s better than nothing. And, believe me, I¡¯ve seen much worse.¡± The words kind of helped but not really. I knew my ce wasn¡¯t really weing or fancy. ¡°Want toe in?¡± I asked once I opened the front door. ¡°Thought you¡¯d never ask,¡± Dan replied with a sly grin. I rolled my eyes. We both walked into my house and I couldn¡¯t help but notice how Dan¡¯s eyes were filled with awe. ¡°Now, this is what you call home,¡± he said whilst looking around the ce. I didn¡¯t know if it was a harmlessment or apliment. ¡°Um. Thank you¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah. Your house just looks sofortable and weing. I wouldn¡¯t mind living here with you,¡± he said. I chuckled. ¡°Thanks, Dan. But now that you¡¯ve seen the inside of my house, you can get out. I need to get ready for work,¡± I said. Dan pouted. ¡°Kicking me out already?¡± I red at him while he gave me this innocent look. ¡°Okay, okay! I¡¯ll get out,¡± he said, putting his hands up in surrender. ¡°If looks could kill,¡± he mumbled under his breath. I was almost not able to hear it. ¡°Wait!¡± I called out right as he was about to turn around. ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Y-you need a key,¡± I shyly told him. I didn¡¯t even know if I should give him a key. I mean, I trust him. A lot. And what if something bad happens? I want him to be able toe here without breaking in. I grabbed my spare key from my purse and gave it to him. ¡°Just in case,¡± I told him when I gave him the key. ¡°Don¡¯t forget to call me, Elle,¡± he said. ¡°I have a bad feeling about this.¡± Did he just nickname me Elle? No one had ever given me a nickname, much less, know my real name. For the second time that day, I wanted to cry but I don¡¯t know why. ¡°I won¡¯t, Danny,¡± I replied. ¡°Now leave so I can change. He walked up to me and gave me another kiss on my forehead. ¡°Stay safe,¡± he said as he walked out the house. Guess I really did make a friend, huh? . . . I finally finished pleasing my four clients, so I was making my way home more tired than ever. Unfortunately, all my clients were extra rough on me today. I think it¡¯s because they were mad at their wives or something. Or because just because they wanted to prove their dominance or something. I don¡¯t know. All I know is that they were pping me around, choking me, and even bitting my lips. I was definitely bruised. Suddenly, I felt naked walking in the dark streets. I felt like someone was watching me, but I couldn¡¯t see anyone. It was too dark for me to see. I tried to walk faster but I had no strength left in me. I was only able to barely walk faster when I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around so I could see who it was but they grabbed me by my arm and threw me against a concrete wall. Pain was all I felt. My back hurt and my arm stung from where the person grabbed me. I tried to open my mouth to scream but I couldn¡¯t. The person was hitting me by then and there was nothing I could do. I didn¡¯t even know who they were. All I knew was that it was a man, judging by his grunts and his body build. At first he was just pping me and pushing me on the wall, but then he began punching my stomach and pulling my hair. I was finally able to scream and try to fight back but it was useless. Was this what it felt like to die? The guy kept calling me a slut repeatedly. I tried to beg him to stop but he simply kept going. Eventually, I gave up. I let him beat me up. ¡°Hey!¡± a deep voice yelled from nearby. I think they noticed the guy beating me and wereing to save me. Maybe. The person who came up pulled away the guy that was beating me. That guy took the chance to run away when the other man was seeing if I was okay. ¡°Hey, hey,¡± the guy tried to say in a soft and gentle tone. His hand was cupping my cheeks and his eyes were roaming around my body, probably seeing where else I got hurt. ¡°Did he stab you or anything?¡± the guy asked, still looking around. When he saw me dozing off, he gently pped my cheeks as if trying to wake me up. ¡°Hey¡ªstay with me, here! Don¡¯t worry, I called an ambnce already and the cops. You¡¯ll be fine. Just¡ªstay with me.¡± Him yelling for the ambnce to hurry up was thest thing I heard before I fully lost conscious and fell into a deep slumber. Chapter 4: News Chapter 4: News I took my sweet precious time as I slowly slit my wrists. I loved the feeling of blood dripping right before my eyes. The sight was pretty. Gross, but pretty. I just liked it. For once in my life, I felt as if I was in control. I¡¯ve never had much control in my life since my birth-giver didn¡¯t care for me and my sperm donor didn¡¯t want me. Apparently he wanted my mom to have an abortion. At least that¡¯s what my mom and step-father always tell me. Do I believe them? Yes. Yes, I do. Because even I don¡¯t want myself. Sometimes I would think that they¡¯re lying since whenever I asked, they would always switch the conversation or yell at me. But now I just have to ept the fact that my father never wanted me. He didn¡¯t even want me before I was even born. I¡¯ve never seen him before either. I don¡¯t know how he looks, or the color of his skin, or anything. Gah, I hate myself. I got off of my bed and went inside my bathroom so I would wipe off all the blood that had dried on my skin. My bathroom isn¡¯t that big, obviously. I wasn¡¯t rich or anything. The walls were white, a dull and boring color. The sink was on the left side as well as the toilet. On the right was the shower. I grabbed some paper towels and wet them with lukewarm water. I used them to wipe the blood off my wrists. After wiping all the dried blood, I put a bandage on the cuts then walked back to my small bedroom. I was tired, so I decided to go to sleep. When Iyed down on my bed, I began to cry myself to sleep. I wish I had someone that actually loved me, but I knew I would never find that someone. I didn¡¯t even love myself so how could someone else love me? I was dozing off when I felt someone shaking me. ¡°Ugh,¡± I groaned, moving into a morefortable position. ¡°Wake up,¡± a voice said. I froze in fear. I remembered that voice. It was Angel¡¯s. But¡­how? ¡°Why are you so scared, Eleonora?¡± he asked. I looked up at him with wide eyes. He looked the same as thest time I saw him. He smirked. ¡°Are you ready to y?¡± he teasefully asked. ¡°No!¡± I yelled. ¡°Please, go away. I don¡¯t want to y¡­leave me alone.¡± He stepped back into the darkness of the room. Instead of staying in the dark, he charged towards me and began choking me. ¡°You just had to piss me off,¡± he growled, mming my head into the hard headboard of the bed which caused me to lose consciousness. I jolted straight up out of bed. Unlike thest time I woke up from a nightmare, I was in more pain. As I began looking around, I realized I wasn¡¯t in my room. I was in an all-white room that smelled like hand sanitizer and there was a beeping machine by my head. I was in the hospital. But how? How did I end up in a hospital? And¡­what if Angel was here? I needed to get out. There were many things attached to me. Like pins and whatever. The only things I can pinpoint is the IV bag and a heart monitor that was beeping like crazy. I hurriedly began removing everything that was attached to me. I couldn¡¯t afford going to the hospital or anything. No way. As soon as I stood up from the hospital bed (which wasn¡¯t veryfortable at all) I felt lightheaded. But I knew I couldn¡¯t stay here. Angel woulde and get me. Besides, I didn¡¯t have money. As I was starting to walk out of the room, a bunch of nurses ran into the room and began telling me to return to the bed. Everything around me was spinning. Their voices were all starting to blur, and my head began hurting. Still, I could only hear him. He wasing back for me. He was gonna finish what he started. My head began hurting more and more from all the noise in the room. ¡°Shut up¡­¡± my voice trembled. ¡°Please, just shut up.¡± I was already back on the hospital bed like how the nurses wanted. They were putting everything back in ce on my body. They also injected me with this shot that was starting to calm me down. The nurses began filing out of the room except for one and in came a male doctor who was holding a clipboard in one of his hands. He had white skin, intriguing brown eyes, and long brown hair. He also had a short beard and was extremely tall. Like over 6¡¯0¡± tall. Probably about 6¡¯5¡±, maybe. He looked to be in histe twenties. ¡°Hello,¡± he spoke up, ¡°I¡¯m Garrett, and I¡¯ll be your doctor for the next few days.¡± I gave him a confused look. ¡°Why am I here, Garrett? How did I get here? And you¡¯re not going to be my doctor for the next few days because there will be no next few days. I¡¯m leaving,¡± I announced. ¡°Now, please get these things off of me.¡± He gave me a sad smile. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ms. Eleonora, but you¡¯ll have to stay at the hospital for a few days. You¡¯re not in the right state of mind and therefore cannot take care of yourself. You¡¯re here because you were injured badly and a nice man named Noah called the ambnce. You fractured your left arm and got some bruises all over your body. The only reason you¡¯re not in immense pain is because you¡¯re on the heavy drugs my nurses gave you. ¡°Noah is in the waiting room, so I assume you know him. There¡¯s also two others in the waiting room, a guy named Dan and ady named Vera. They hope to visit you once everything is cleared up. Now, any other questions?¡± he asked. I sighed. I remembered a bit of what happened but some of it was blurry due to the drugs being injected into me. I feel like I know exactly who was at the dark alley¡­And if it wasn¡¯t for Noah (I think that¡¯s the guy who saved me?) could he have possibly hurt me even more? I felt uneasy by the two pairs of eyes that were on me. ¡°Um. Can I talk to Dan, please?¡± ¡°Yes. The nurse can go get him¡±¡ªthe nurse left the room¡ª¡°anything else?¡± ¡°And¡­maybe a cup of water?¡± The doctor, Garrett, got up and left the room. I assumed he went to go get me water or something. A few minutester, Dan appeared in the room with a cup of water which he carefully handed me. ¡°Fuck, Nora, you scared me. I told you not to go. Gah, this is all my fault. I should¡¯ve stopped you from going. Why am I so¡ª¡± ¡°Dan, stop. Don¡¯t me yourself. It was my fault. Not yours. Besides, I¡¯m okay. I don¡¯t even feel anything. See?¡± I asked, poking myself. ¡°Nora, don¡¯t you dare me yourself for an attack. It wasn¡¯t your fault. Are you okay, now? How do you feel?¡± ¡°Dan,¡± I sighed out, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Just a few bruises, that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Just a few bruises?¡± he almost yelled out. ¡°You fractured your left arm! You have bruises all over your body and your cheeks are swollen.¡± ¡°Yeah, as I said, just a few bruises.¡± Dan looked at me as if he was about to lose his mind. ¡°You¡¯re kidding, right?¡± I wasn¡¯t kidding but for the sake of it I said I was. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m just trying to cope with everything.¡± ¡°Oh. Okay. Good.¡± ¡°So¡­how long was I asleep?¡± I asked. ¡°Not that long, but you were screaming a lot. I think you were having a nightmare. Thankfully the doctors took care of everything. What were you dreaming about?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I easily lied. I could tell he knew I was lying, but he didn¡¯t push me to say anything else. ¡°I was really worried about you, Elle. I called your phone like 30 times. I sent you a bunch of texts asking where you were since you were taking so long. Once I realized you weren¡¯t going to reply, I went to your house with my girlfriend, Vera. You weren¡¯t there. I was so scared, I thought I lost you. But then I got a call from someone named Noah who told me you were at the hospital. So I rushed here to Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. make sure you¡¯re okay.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said. I didn¡¯t think anyone would care for me. ¡°Yeah¡­Anyway, do you know that Noah guy? He seems cool but a tad bit scary. Besides, he stayed and waited for you. I figured a stranger probably wouldn¡¯t wait for someone they don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t. I just met him yesterday when he saved me, I think,¡± I answered truthfully. ¡°Thank god he was able to call the ambnce and save you. Who knows what would¡¯ve happened if he wasn¡¯t here.¡± ¡°I was lucky¡±¡ªfor once in my life¡ª¡°I guess. You look tired, Dan. You should take your girlfriend home, she¡¯s probably confused. Sorry for making you worry.¡± Dan immediately shook his head no. ¡°No. I don¡¯t want to leave you here alone. Something might happen to you.¡± ¡°You have to go,¡± I said sternly. ¡°You need to talk to your girlfriend. You just got her back; and she¡¯s probably really confused right now.¡± ¡°Fine, Nora. Don¡¯t go anywhere without me though. And make sure to call or text me, okay? Your phone is on that table right there,¡± he said, pointing to a table that was near me. I nodded my head. ¡°Okay.¡± He sighed and left the room, leaving me alone. As soon as he left, I sighed in relief. I didn¡¯t want to exin what happened to anyone. I didn¡¯t even want to press charges. Interrupting my thoughts, a tall and handsome man walked into the room. He had dark skin but it was more on the lighter side. His eyes were dark and mysteriously hot. He was lean and pretty muscr. To be honest, I was a bit afraid. ¡°Do I¡­know you?¡± I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. ¡°Ignoring ourte encounter yesterday, No. No, you don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Oh. Then how¡¯d you get in here?¡± I asked coldly. I then felt bad for being a little rude because he did just save my life. ¡°Sorry. Um, thanks for saving me, by the way. I appreciate it¡±¡ªI think. ¡°Allow me to properly introduce myself. I¡¯m Noah, a private investigator for Mr. Lavins. I was ordered to look after you since you are his daughter.¡± I froze. ¡°What¡­? Daughter?¡± Chapter 5: No Way Chapter 5: No Way ¡°I don¡¯t have a father. What is this bullshit?¡± I asked, almost yelled, at Noah. His face remained showing no emotion. ¡°ording to Mr. Lavins, your father, you¡¯re his daughter.¡± ¡°Can you not call him my father? He¡¯s just a sperm donor. Someone who didn¡¯t want to take responsibility for his ¡®mistake.¡¯¡± I made air quotes when saying mistake. ¡°Ma¡¯am,¡± Noah said, ¡°that¡¯s not the full story. I believe there¡¯s more to that.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t call me ma¡¯am,¡± I told him. ¡°I know you know my name since my sperm donor hired you,¡± I emphasized the ¡°sperm donor¡± part. I¡¯ve been living for 23 and in none of those years has my actual father shown up. He missed too many things¡ªhe literally missed my whole life. He wasn¡¯t there when I needed him. He wasn¡¯t there at all. He wasn¡¯t there when we had the father and daughter dance at school, nor was he there when I got my first boyfriend. Yet he has the audacity to just walk right into my life? He¡¯s dead to me. I didn¡¯t notice tears were trailing down my face until I noticed Noah holding out tissues for me. I took the tissues and wiped my face, slightly embarrassed. ¡°Sorry.¡± ¡°No need to apologize. Although I¡¯m not in your position, I know this is hard andplicated. You¡¯re allowed to cry,¡± he said. I was silent for a few seconds. ¡°Thank you¡­Do you know the full story?¡± I decided to ask. ¡°Do you know why my father¡¯s not here, if he even is my father? Nothing¡¯s adding up to me. My mom and step- dad told me that he didn¡¯t want me and wanted my mom to get an abortion. And when she refused, he Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. just left and never looked back once. It¡¯s¡­painful knowing your father doesn¡¯t want you nor your mom.¡± I might¡¯ve overshared but I didn¡¯t care. He wasing to me telling me my father hired him to watch out for me. Why? I needed answers no matter what the cost was. ¡°Eleonora, your father was out of town yesterday when I called him to tell him about you being in the hospital. When he heard, he took the first flight he could find toe here so he could make sure you were okay. Right now he¡¯s not here, but he will be here in a moment. ¡°And, your father didn¡¯t even know you existed, mind you. He just found out when your mom went to his office a few weeks ago and told him that he had a daughter. I understand if you¡¯re confused right now, but I¡¯m sure you won¡¯t be confused once you talk to him.¡± ¡°Why did she just tell him that he had a daughter?¡± I asked. It didn¡¯t make sense. ¡°She wanted money.¡± Oh. I gritted my teeth. ¡°Of course she does. I mean, it¡¯s not like she even put foot on the table for me to eat. She just went out and spent it all on expensive clothes and useless stuff. And instead of buying me clothes to go to school with? She went out partying. I don¡¯t even know why I call her a mother,¡± I ranted, forgetting that he was in the room with me. ¡°To make things clear, Noah, I don¡¯t want to meet my dad, Mr. Lavins. I don¡¯t care if he didn¡¯t know about me until recently. I lived long enough without him and I don¡¯t want him toe into my life. So you and him can go fuck off,¡± I sternly said. Noah sighed. ¡°Listen, Eleonora, I understand you¡¯re going through a lot. However, your father will not let you go back to doing what you do for money. It¡¯s too dangerous, is what he said. I talked to the doctor and he said that once you¡¯re discharged you won¡¯t be able to take care of yourself properly. You need someone to support you. That¡¯s why you¡¯ll be living with your father.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± I yelled. ¡°Who the hell said you can make decisions for me? I¡¯m not going to fucking live with him. He has a family that I¡¯m not a part of, nor do I want to be a part of it. And what do you and him know about danger? I¡¯ve been doing this since I was 18. I can take care of myself,¡± I spit out. ¡°Are you happy that you¡¯ve been doing this since you were 18? The person who attacked you, whoever he is, knew what they were doing and if I wasn¡¯t hired by your fathe¡ªby Mr. Lavins to watch over you, you would¡¯ve gotten seriously injured and possibly died. Mr. Lavins is a good man and he truly cares for you. Even Dan, that guy you hang out with, can¡¯t take care of you. Mr. Lavins can.¡± ¡°What, do you think you¡¯re my fucking therapist or something? No, I don¡¯t enjoy sleeping with men. I¡¯d rather die. And, no matter what you or my father say, I¡¯m not going to live with him. I can take care of myself. So fuck you, Noah, and fuck everyone else. Now get out of this room. You¡¯re making my head hurt.¡± Noah sighed once again before walking out of the room. His footsteps were, surprisingly, not that loud. Once he left, I closed my eyes and tried to rx. I would rather die than live with my so-called father. It¡¯s toote for him to get his daughter back. Far toote. I would never be able to stand watching him with his own kids. Laughing, ying, having dinner. We were supposed to do that. But we didn¡¯t, and never will. I wish Noah was never hired. Maybe then I would¡¯ve died and not have to deal with this shitty life. Chapter 6: Not Enough Chapter 6: Not Enough Noah and Mr. Lavins were in my hospital room with me, talking to each other. I say each other because I was pretending to be sleeping. Basically, I was sleeping until Mr. Lavins came into the room and began holding my hand, squeezing it once in a while. I wanted to ignore the squeezing and go back to sleep however he began apologizing to me over and over again for not knowing I existed and for being absent in my life. He kept saying he would do anything to make it up to me. To be quite frank, I was extremely close to crying. My stomach was filled with butterflies that I didn¡¯t know how to calm down. When he began crying, I was about to pretend to wake up and speak with him but Noah entered the room, interrupting Mr. Lavins. They began talking about how Noah should be my personal bodyguard and how he should report to Mr. Lavins about anything that¡¯s even mildly concerning happening in my life. They then talked about how they opened an investigation to find out who attacked me. As soon as I heard the news, my heart dropped. I didn¡¯t understand why they would do that. Nor did I want to. I began panicking to the point where the heart monitor began beating rapidly and a nurse had toe in and check up on me. She told them everything was okay then left, allowing them to keep talking about what they wanted to do with me. Mr. Lavins told Noah that he didn¡¯t care if I consented to live with him or not and that I¡¯d have to live with him so he could protect me. But like I said before, I¡¯d rather die than go with them. Mr. Lavins and his family. I don¡¯t want to interrupt his life or be a burden on him. No matter how badly I wanted a family, I knew I wouldn¡¯t get one. At least not one with Mr. Lavins being my father. After talking about the whole living situation, Mr. Lavins spoke about how he didn¡¯t like the lifestyle I lived in. That was when I had enough of them talking behind my back. ¡°I honestly don¡¯t care if you like my lifestyle or not. It doesn¡¯t concern you at all,¡± I told him before adding, ¡°Besides, you¡¯re thest person whose opinion I want to hear.¡± Both the men looked startled. They turned to look at me. ¡°Sweetie, I didn¡¯t know you were awake.¡± He, Mr. Lavins, smiled sympathetically. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Likewise, he was wearing an expensive ck suit that fit him perfectly. His eyes were a luring dark brown, and he had short ck hair. He wasn¡¯t as tall as I assumed, standing at about 6¡¯0. His lips were thin yet full and his eyes were bushy but also a bit on the thinner side. He was pretty muscr, too. My eyes lingered on Mr. Lavins for longer than they did on Noah. After all, this was my first time seeing my sperm-donor. Noah, on the other hand, looked more rxed. He was wearing khaki pants and a tight white shirt. Unlike thest time I saw him, he had dark eye bags under his eyes. I immediately felt guilty. Was I the reason he wasn¡¯t getting sleep? ¡­It doesn¡¯t even matter. It¡¯s none of my concern. ¡°Don¡¯t call me sweetie,¡± I told him, rolling my eyes. I didn¡¯t even mean to say that, it just slipped past my lips. But can anyone even me me for not wanting a father anymore? Mr. Lavins shifted from one foot to the other. It was clear he was a bit ufortable. Meanwhile, Noah stared at me as if I was a puzzle ready to be solved. ¡°What do you want me to call you then?¡± Mr. Lavins asked. ¡°My name, which is Eleonora if you don¡¯t know since, after all, this is our first time meeting and talking to each other.¡± Maybe I was being too harsh on him, but at that moment, I didn¡¯t really care. Why should I? Mr. Lavins sighed. ¡°I understand where all this ising from, okay? But please act a little more mature. At least for now, since we have a few things to discuss. You¡¯re getting discharged from the hospital today and we have your room at my house ready, so you¡¯ll being over today. Now, I¡¯m going to go sign the papers to get you out of here.¡± Before I could argue with him, he left the room, leaving Noah and I alone. Together. I noticed Noah had a bag in his hand. He handed it to me. ¡°These are some clothes you could change into, unless you¡¯d prefer to stay in that hospital gown,¡± he joked. I sighed. I didn¡¯t really feel like being happy but I gave him a small smile anyways. ¡°It''s been a few days already?¡± I asked him. He nodded his head. ¡°Time¡¯s been going fast. It¡¯s been three days. The doctor said you¡¯re ready to go, we just have to keep close watch.¡± That¡¯s when I noticed I no longer had all those needles stuck into me. They were all taken out, probably while I was sleeping. I began trying to get off of the hospital bed but my legs felt numb since I haven¡¯t used them in a few days. I was about to fall off the bed but Noah¡¯s hands wrapped around me. ¡°Be careful,¡± he said. ¡°I don¡¯t think the doctor would like it if you stayed here any longer.¡± He chuckled. I couldn¡¯t help the smile that came across myself despite me trying to not be happy. Noah was just the type of person who made everyone smile by smiling. ¡°Thanks for saving me again,¡± I quietly whispered to him. He helped me get to the bathroom where I cleaned myself up and wore the clothes - which happened to be a sweatshirt and sweatpants, thankfully. God knows I wouldn¡¯t be able to wear jeans. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Before leaving the bathroom, I gave myself a small pep talk. I couldn¡¯t go back to my own ce, which sucks but it is what it is. I¡¯ll have to ask Dan to get me a few of my things so I couldn¡¯t go get them either¡­I hope he and his girlfriend are okay though. ¡°Whatever you do,¡± I told myself, ¡°don¡¯t get in the way of his family. You have no right to just pretend like they¡¯re your family, too.¡± I walked out of the bathroom with the bag that now had the hospital clothes. ¡°I¡¯m ready,¡± I announced. ¡°Before you go, wear this hat and scarf. Make sure to keep your head down and hide your face, okay? We don¡¯t want your identity to be revealed yet.¡± I looked at him, my eyes wide. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The press is outside the hospital. People found out Mr. Lavins came to visit someone in the hospital and now they want all the details,¡± he exined. ¡°What the hell is the press doing outside?¡± I asked. ¡°What? Your father is a big social media figure,¡± he said nonchntly. I slowly began panicking but Noah instantly calmed me down, telling me that I would be fine and he would be by my side. A part of me trusted him so we walked outside the hospital and to a ck car together. When we were outside, I kept my head down and scooted closer to Noah. The press were yelling all these questions and had their cameras pointed at Noah and I. Finally, we made it to the expensive looking car and Noah and I sat in the backseat of it. As soon as we sat down, the car began moving. I noticed Mr. Lavins wasn¡¯t in the car so I assumed he was going to go on a different car. Taking a deep breath, I began thinking about how me being seated in that car was going to forever change my life. Chapter 7: Privilege Chapter 7: Privilege The car ride was extremely long. I ended up falling asleep for half of it and for the other half I just looked out the window. Noah and I didn¡¯t make much conversation since we were both exhausted - or, well, drained, I guess, I felt bad because he was going to be my bodyguard, which I guess is a lot of work. I can probably move out soon though, in a couple weeks. That way I won¡¯t be a burden to anyone anymore and things can go back to how they normally are. Although this is a chance for me to get to know my father and half-siblings, I¡¯m a bit afraid. For one, I¡¯m jealous because my half-siblings actually grew up with a father. But also I don¡¯t want to intrude and burden my father, making him feel as though he has to help me out or else. Honestly, it¡¯s a privilege to grow up with both parents. But you can¡¯t keep wishing for something you can¡¯t - and won¡¯t - get. The car suddenly stopped and I looked out the window to see we had arrived at our destination, which happened to be a big, beautiful house. From the appearance of the outside of the house, I know my father and his family are living their luxurious lives, however, even though they have a lot of money, that doesn¡¯t mean they have the perfect family. Perhaps their family is also broken and¡­ Maybe not. Right as I was about to get out of the car, Noah grabbed my arm and said, ¡°Just to be clear, you are now my responsibility. Anything you need I will get, okay? And get used to living here. Don¡¯t do anything that¡¯ll get you and/or your father in trouble.¡± Before I could reply, he opened the car door and left, leaving me flushed and angry. I felt like a child. So humiliated, and for what? I didn¡¯t even want to live ore here. I can and will show them all that I don¡¯t need anybody. I got out of the car and followed Noah into the house. If I knew what was waiting for me behind the door, I would¡¯ve stayed in the hospital no matter what. The interior of the house was even prettier than the outside, shockingly. The house has a beautiful brown and white color theme to it. There was a big mirror on the wall as soon as you walked into the house. Everything just looked amazing and¡­ expensive. ¡°I see you are loving the view,¡± a female voice said. I turned around to see who I assumed to be my dad¡¯s wife. She was a petite woman with ck wavy hair and light but slightly tan skin. Her eyes were a in brown color and her face was littered with freckles. She was wearing a tight navy blue dress that looked more expensive than my rent. Her english was also a bit broken so I assumed she was forgein. To make things worse, she looked happy. She looked rxed, and so carefree. I was undeniably jealous of her. But instead of voicing my thoughts or anything, I simply smiled politely at her. ¡°You have a beautiful home,¡± I said. ¡°Thank you, sweetheart. Allow me to take you away from Noah and show you to your room.¡± She grabbed my hand and led me away. Quite frankly, I felt ufortable with her touching me, but I didn¡¯t want to tell her that and seem rude, so I allowed her to drag me away. She began giving me a tour of the house, showing me where everything was. She even showed me my siblings¡¯ rooms, which were amazing looking and it hurt. Even the hallways had family pictures and it all felt like a punch to the stomach. I was never privileged enough to be able to take a picture with my two parents. Sigh. I need to stop being negative and look on the bright side. I can leave soon, hopefully, then I won¡¯t have to worry about them or anything. ¡°Eleonora, are you still there?¡± the woman asked, pulling me out of my thoughts. ¡°We finished the house tour,¡± she announced. My cheeks reddened. I couldn¡¯t believe I spaced out in the middle of a conversation. ¡°Sorry,¡± I apologized, ¡°this is a lot to take in.¡± She smiled sympathetically. ¡°It¡¯s okay, darling. I will bring you some snacks and drinks in a minute, after I pick up the kids from their aunt¡¯s house. In the meantime, your father is waiting for you in the living room to discuss some things with you.¡± Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. I nodded my head so she knew I heard what she said before she began talking away. Honestly, I¡¯m a bit shocked she doesn¡¯t seem disgusted by me. It also seems like she doesn¡¯t mind having her kids by me, but maybe that was just an act. When I reached the living room, I saw my father talking to Noah. I cleared my throat to make my presence known, causing both men to look up. Noah got up and left while my father just stayed seated. ¡°Come sit down, my daughter. I have a lot of things I want to talk to you about.¡± Without a word, I sat down with him and stared him dead in the eyes with a nk face. ¡°And what could that possibly be?¡± I asked coldly. His semi-brave look faltered a bit. ¡°I want to know about your childhood. How everything came about. I want to know everything.,¡± he said nonchntly; and for some reason, something in me just snapped. I grew angry. He wasn¡¯t there for me, and now he wanted me to tell him about everything I had to go through because of him? ¡°Oh, so you want to know things that you would know if you did your job and, I don¡¯t know, acted like my father? Besides, what do you possibly want to know? I mean, I didn¡¯t grow up with a luxurious life, two parents, and get an amazing education. Do you maybe want to know about how I was sexually assaulted? Or how cutting myself is how I manage to cope with my emotions? Or perhaps how I got kicked out because I said I was raped? When I had to fuck men just so I could afford living an okay life because I couldn¡¯t hold a proper job because of my background? Maybe how I had my first boyfriend and my dad wasn¡¯t there to help me with my first heartbreak? ¡°Seriously, what the hell do you want to know? There¡¯s really not much that actually concerns you. How did you possibly think that my mom was not pregnant? Are you really delusional?¡± I didn¡¯t know I was ranting until I paused to take a deep breath in. Everything hurt. My chest had this growing pain that made me want to burst out crying even though there was no one there to hold me or tell me it would all be okay. I looked at him and noticed how he looked hurt, guilty, and also rejected. Part of me felt d he was feeling those emotions. He deserved to feel them. He deserved to feel all the pain I had to endure my whole life. But before he had a chance to say anything, his wife walked into the living room with his kids. They all ran to my father who weed them with open arms and hugged each and every one of them. I felt as though I was suffocating. I couldn¡¯t breath or think. All I knew was that I had to leave the room - no, the house. The wife was trying to say something to me but I just shook my head and ran out of the house. I knew it was going to hurt me. I knew seeing them all together, being a happy and close family, was going to hurt me. I should¡¯ve just ended my life when I had the chance. Chapter 8: Honesty Chapter 8: Honesty I don¡¯t know how long I stayed outside, but I stayed long enough for it to get dark out. I decided to go back into the house and be a grown and mature adult and talk to my father about everything instead of ming him for everything, so I slowly got up from the grass, making sure to dust myself off in case anything stuck to me. I then began making my way towards the house. When I reached the house, I counted to ten before knocking on the door. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10¡­ I knocked on the door. I didn¡¯t hear any noise from the inside of the house, so I assumed they gave up on me already. I was about to make my way off of the porch when the door opened. It was Noah. He gave me a slightly unpleasant look. ¡°Come in, Elle.¡± I slowly nodded my head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for -¡± I began saying. ¡°No, don¡¯t even apologize. You can¡¯t even be grateful that your father wants to be a part of your life. He cares about you, Elle. He¡¯s always worried for you and doesn¡¯t want anything to happen. He didn¡¯t even want me to go with him since he wanted to make things right with you, and this is how you treat him? His family? You are selfish,¡± he said, angerced into his voice. I just stood there silently, not knowing what to say. ¡°Oh.¡± I didn¡¯t have any other words to say. I guess I don¡¯t have a right to be mad at anyone. Everything¡¯s my fault. I looked at Noah and noticed that he had a weird emotion on his face, though he tried to hide it. What was it? Guilt? Regret? ¡°Mrs. Laverin is waiting for you in the dining room, right around the corner. Try not to make any noise, the kids are sleeping. I have to go call your dad.¡± He noticed I wasn¡¯t going to say anything and walked away, leaving me with a weird pit in my stomach. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. I wasn¡¯t going to break down. I simply couldn¡¯t. They would see me as weak. I walked to the dining room and sure enough, Mrs. Laverin was sitting at the table with a sad smile on her face. She knows, I instantly thought. I took a seat hesitantly. When she tried to hold my hand, I quickly put it on myp. ¡°He told me everything you told him,¡± she softly said. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. He feels like a horrible father for not being there for you when you needed him. He¡¯s currently looking for you, but Noah¡¯s going to call him and let him know you came back. Look,¡± she sighed out, ¡°I know this is really hard for you, but please give him a chance. I know he can¡¯t make up for all the years he missed but he wants to be there for you. I promise you won¡¯t regret giving him a second chance.¡± ¡°Yeah, uh, yeah. I¡¯ll give him a chance. I was just being selfish, so sorry for that. I¡¯m a bit tired though, and I want to go to sleep. Do you have a notebook and a pen I can use? And can you tell Mr. Laverin to ¡°Yes, of course! I¡¯ll also bring you some food. The kids wanted to see you, but then you ran out before they could even say hi.¡± She chuckled. I simply nodded. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ll be upstairs now.¡± I had a good memory, so I was able to remember where my room was located. I sort of wished I didn¡¯t have a good memory though. Sometimes I just want to forget things. As I was walking by, I heard whispersing out of Noah¡¯s room. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, sir, she¡¯s being difficult,¡± Noah said. I think he¡¯s talking to my dad on the phone. ¡°Yes, she came back. She¡¯s downstairs talking to your wife.¡± ¡°No, sir. She¡¯s fine from what I can see.¡± ¡°Do you want her to pack her things?¡± ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll see you when you get back.¡± I quickly and silently ran away from the door and went to my room, my heart pounding in my chest. I¡¯m difficult; they always say that. That''s what he told me when he was¡­touching me, but it¡¯s my fault. It¡¯s always my fault. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. ¡°May Ie in?¡± Mrs. Laverins asked. I rolled my eyes. She acts as though this isn¡¯t her house. ¡°Yeah.¡± She came into the room with a sandwich as well as a water bottle and a can of soda. ¡°I didn¡¯t know if you wanted water or soda, so I brought both,¡± she exined, handing me the food and drinks. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°He¡¯s going toe, by the way,¡± she said. ¡°He¡¯s just changing his clothes right now.¡± I nodded. ¡°Also, it¡¯s not your fault,¡± she suddenly began. ¡°Don¡¯t me yourself for something you had no control over.¡± Before I could reply with anything, she walked out of the room. And before I could eat the food she brought up, Mr. Laverin made his way into the room. His hair was messy, with a few gray strands here and there. There were small bags under his eyes, all caused by me. I made him tired. I made a lot of people tired and sick of me. ¡°Sorry,¡± I instantly said. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have med you for something that wasn¡¯t your fault. I¡¯m sorry for humiliating you in front of your family. I should¡¯ve never said that. I¡¯m sorry.¡± He walked close to me, and sat on the bed. ¡°I should be the one apologizing to you. A part of me knew your mother was pregnant, but I didn¡¯t want to ept the fact that she might¡¯ve been lying to me,¡± he said, looking me in the eyes with so many emotions. The main being sadness,passion, love. ¡°I did love your mother once, but she changedpletely. She became toxic and controlling. She thought I was going to leave her, how can you possibly leave someone you love? I¡¯m sorry,¡± he apologized. ¡°I still want you in this house for just a few more weeks. I me myself for you getting assaulted, raped, beaten, and just hurt. I¡¯m so ashamed of myself,¡± he said, sobbing into his hands. I stared at him for a while, shocked by his sudden outburst of emotions. I hesitantly put my hands around him as he cried on my shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s not your fault. Don¡¯t me yourself for something you had no control of,¡± I repeated the words Mrs. Laverin said to me. He lifts his hands to my face and begins rubbing my cheeks slightly. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry I missed out on your life and was never there for you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, dad,¡± I said truthfully, a tear slipping out of my eye. Chapter 9: Late night talk Chapter 9: Late night talk I couldn¡¯t get a single bit of sleepst night. I kept tossing and turning, afraid that if I closed my eyes, he would appear there. I was already in trouble. I didn¡¯t want to make the family regret their choice of taking me in even more by screaming every night. Ever since the incident, I haven¡¯t touched my phone. I wanted to check on Dan. I hope he doesn¡¯t think I intentionally ghosted him. And I hope his girlfriend doesn¡¯t think there¡¯s something going on between us. I¡¯ll ask for my things when everyone¡¯s awake. I checked the clock on the wall and saw that it was 5 in the morning. Everyone was definitely asleep at this time. I decided to make my way out of my room since I was a bit thirsty and I wanted to clear my mind. I opened the door slowly and tiptoed downstairs, not wanting to make any noise and wake anyone up. Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. Halfway to the kitchen, I heard someone talking and it was Noah. ¡°I still love you, but we can¡¯t be together anymore. You know that -¡± he said, but it seemed like he was cut off by someone. ¡°You know what you did, Charlotte. You can¡¯te back from it -¡± Again, he was cut off. ¡°You keep cutting me off! If you loved me, you wouldn¡¯t have done what you did!¡± After saying that, he hung up the phone and began rubbing his face. I felt a little awkward. I wasn¡¯t supposed to hear their conversation, but I was too thirsty to go back to my room. Therefore, I walked straight to the fridge and took out a bottle of water. ¡°How long have you been here?¡± Noah asked. ¡°I just came here for water,¡± I softly replied. ¡°Do you know where my phone is?¡± He looked at me, confused. I felt a little ufortable under his gaze. Shit, I realized, I¡¯m probably making things difficult for him right now. I don¡¯t think he knows where it is. ¡°Sorry, you probably don¡¯t know.¡± I immediately began walking away from him but then he called out my name, making me freeze. ¡°Eleonora?¡± ¡°Yes¡­?¡± I turned around to face him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what I said earlier. It was dumb of me. I was just going through something and I took my anger out on you. And, um, your phone is in one of the cars. I¡¯ll give it to you tomorrow, if you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± I attempted to smile. ¡°I was a difficult person. I should¡¯ve been more mature instead of acting like a child. I deserved you snapping at me, and thank you.¡± My hands began shaking a little. ¡°No,¡± he said, getting up anding closer to me. I grew more nervous, though I didn¡¯t know why. ¡°You don¡¯t deserve anything bad that has happened to you in the past few weeks - well, years actually. I was being an asshole. I am sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± We stared at each other, and it felt so weird and wrong, but at the same time so good and right. I was the one who broke eye contact. ¡°Can I sit down?¡± Heughed, his whole face lighting up. ¡°You can sit anywhere you want. I¡¯m not going to bite.¡± I wish you would, I thought, then scolded myself. I can¡¯t be thinking things like that right now. I walked to one of the stools and sat down. I didn¡¯t want to speak, I just wanted to feel something, if that even made any sense. I slowly took a sip of my water and closed my eyes. I began breathing in deeply, then out slowly. My heart began beating faster. Why couldn¡¯t I just get him out of my head? Why is it that every time I close my eyes, I see him? I knew he was the one in the alley that beat me up. I felt myself not being able to breathe properly. ¡°Are you okay?¡± I heard Noah ask. That¡¯s when I snapped out of everything unpleasant. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°You sure?¡± ¡°Yeah, I just - I don¡¯t know how to describe it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Um, have you heard any news about the unknown person who attacked me?¡± I daringly asked. Noah looked a little conflicted. His stare lingered on me for a bit until he spoke up. ¡°We found very little information. Nothing to really help your case, but there was footage of him. He was wearing a hoodie and his face was covered. We only got a glimpse of the side of his face, and that was when I got to you. I nodded my head as he spoke. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should carry this case out. I¡¯m sure it doesn¡¯t matter,¡± I said softly. ¡°I mean, why does it matter? What happened, happened. I¡¯m fine. Besides, it¡¯s just a few more weeks until I¡¯m out of everyone¡¯s hair.¡± Noah¡¯s eyes snapped wide open. ¡°What do you mean? You were in danger. Whoever that person was, they¡¯re a danger to society. They¡¯re a criminal. What happened to you was simply wrong and should not happen again. So, if you¡¯re asking for your father to drop the case, the answer is no. Are you sure you don¡¯t know this person, though?¡± I began panicking a bit. ¡°No, I don¡¯t. You know what, I¡¯m actually really tired. I¡¯m going back to my room.¡± Before he had the chance to say anything, I quickly walked away and back to my room. I closed the door and went to my bed, closing my eyes. No one can know he did it, I thought before falling into a dreamless sleep. Chapter 10: Roller Coaster Chapter 10: Roller Coaster Life is simr to a roller coaster. We all have our highs and lows, but we don¡¯t really know the path we¡¯re going to go through in life. We have to either wait to see what life has to offer, or go out to live life itself. I, myself, am waiting to see what life has to offer me. It¡¯s sad, really. I¡¯ve always waited to see what life had in store for me, except for a few known instances. Getting this opportunity to get to know my father and half-siblings is truly a blessing, one that both hurts but is also nice. I know I¡¯m going to do everything in my power to take advantage of this opportunity. I still haven¡¯t had a clear look at his children, besides seeing them on social media and in pictures. He has two children, by the way. I had a conversation with Noahst night. I still can¡¯t let anyone know that he did it. I was able to tell it was him by his voice, but I have to put it in the past. Plus, I¡¯ve been healing really well now. Just a few bruises were left; thankfully nothing was broken. I should probably get on with my day now. I closed the notebook Mrs. Lavrin, also known as Celeste, gave me. I should probably start calling her by her first name now, as calling her Mrs. Lavrin or ¡°the woman¡± is a bit weird. I¡¯ve been hoping to speak with Dan today, if only Noah remembers to give it to me. Just thinking of him - Noah - reminds me of the conversation we hadst night. I¡¯ll have to talk to my father and tell him to drop the case. As I got myself out of bed, I heard a knock on the door. I went to open it, revealing Celeste holding a bag of clothes in her hands. She looks extremely cheerful for it being morning. ¡°Good morning! I hope you had a good night¡¯s sleep. I bought some clothes for you to wear. I hope they fit and you like them! Breakfast is going to be ready in around 30 minutes, which gives you plenty of time to get yourself ready,¡± she quickly rushed out, not taking a deep breath to calm herself now. I took the bag of clothes from her with a small smile. ¡°Thank you, Celeste.¡± And then she smiled, hard. ¡°Oh, gosh, thank God! I thought you weren¡¯t going to stop calling me Mrs. Lavrin,¡± she said as she made a disgusted face. ¡°It makes me feel really old. Anyway, I¡¯ll see you down in 30 minutes.¡± She waved goodbye and walked away before giving me time to answer her. Whatever coffee she uses - I want it. I closed the door to my room andid out all of the clothes on the bed. Thankfully, half of them were oversized. Even the underwears and bras were my size, surprisingly. I picked out some clothes that consisted of some sweatpants and a sweatshirt as I wanted to befortable today, even if that meant I had to look like someone who didn¡¯t have a life. Then, I went to the bathroom and took a nice long shower with burning hot water. Putting a towel around my body, I left the bathroom. I put on the clothes then went back into the bathroom to brush my teeth. As for my hair, I just put it in a messy bun since I had no hair products with me. Before I left my room, I made sure I looked somewhat presentable, then began making my short journey to the kitchen. The closer I got to the kitchen, the more the scent of delicious foods reached me. I walked into the kitchen where I saw everyone seated peacefully: Noah, Celeste, my father, and Norma and Dominic - the kids. Admittedly, I felt a bit awkward since I felt like I was intruding on them. I was like the odd one out. I was about to leave the kitchen unnoticed when Arthur, my father, called out to me. ¡°Hey, sweetie,¡± he greeted. ¡°I see that you¡¯re joining us for breakfast. How was your sleep?¡± he asked. I forced out a smile. ¡°Hi, Arthur. I slept well, and you?¡± I asked back. Immediately, I noticed that his shoulders slumped when I called him Arthur instead of Dad. It¡¯s not entirely my fault though - sometimes I¡¯m calling him father, other times I¡¯m calling him by his name, but today I¡¯m calling him by his first name. ¡°I slept well, honey,¡± he sighed out. ¡°Come sit down. Your te is next to Norma.¡± I looked over at the young girl. She had short brte hair and dark brown eyes. Her skin was pale, just like her mothers. She was really pretty in her school uniform. Slowly, I made my way over to her and sat down in the seat next to hers. She smiled and waved at me, and I returned the gesture, causing her to blush and look away. I guess she¡¯s the shy one. I then looked over at Dominic, who was also wearing his school uniform. He had ck wavy hair that was somewhat long, but not really. He¡¯s 11, and Norma¡¯s 9. For some reason, I had a feeling that he was more outgoing than his sister, but probably also more protective. He didn¡¯t wave nor smile at me. I guess he was going to be a tough one. I decided to wear a small smile and participate in the light conversation they were all having, but only to make up for my bad attitude yesterday. At first, Dominic was very standoffish and didn¡¯t speak to me as much as everyone else at the table, but by the time he and his sister were about to go to school, he slightly warmed up to me. And I cannot, for the life of me, understand why it caused a warm feeling in my chest. ¡°So, Elle, what do you n on doing today?¡± Arthur asked after the dining table was cleared off. I was about to tell him the truth but I realized that he would probably invite me to go somewhere with him or make me do something, which is not what I want, so I decided to make up an agenda. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m just going to get some things from my apartment as well as make some phone calls.¡± A worried look appeared on his face. ¡°Well¡­alright, I suppose. Just be careful, alright? I¡¯ll have Noah Not wanting to inconvenience him, I vigorously shook my head. ¡°No, no, that¡¯s alright. It¡¯s only a few things - I can just call an Uber. It¡¯s not that of a deal, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± ¡°Nonsense,¡± he dismissed, waving a hand in the air; ¡°it¡¯s no trouble. The man who assaulted you could still be out there and I want you to be as safe as possible. Besides, I assigned Noah as your bodyguard and instructed him to stick to you like glue, and he¡¯s a diligent man. I doubt you could ever convince him to leave you alone.¡± Sighing, I nodded my head and prepared to leave, but then Noah materialized out of nowhere, scaring me enough to cause a squeal to escape my lips. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for scaring you,¡± he said whilst rubbing the side of his face. ¡°I have a habit of being really light on my feet.¡± I took a deep breath to calm myself down before telling him it was alright. ¡°Oh, I forgot to ask, but do you have my phone? I was going to ask you earlier but I didn¡¯t get a chance to.¡± His face lit up in realization and he dug into his pockets, pulling out my phone. ¡°Yeah, I have it. I got it when I was doing a checkup of the cars this morning.¡± N?velDrama.Org owns all ? content. I took the phone, thanking him, then headed out to the car, a bit nervous about how the day would go. THroughout the whole car ride, Noah and I didn¡¯t speak. We would catch each other staring at the other, but then we would quickly cast our eyes down. I opened my phone to see so many texts from Dan, which made me smile a bit. At least I know he cares. I quickly sent a little reply. I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t have my phone for the past few days, I just now received it. Can we hang outter today if you are not busy? His reply came quickly. Ofc, I don¡¯t have work today. We have a lot to catch up on. How about 5:30? That sounds about good. Where do you want to meet up? I responded. I can pick you up and we can go to the cafe? I furrowed my brows together. No, it¡¯s okay. I can just meet you at the cafe. I didn¡¯t want him toe and pick me up. That sounds good, he replied. See you then. We reached my apartment and it was the same as when I left it. Noah was right behind me as we walked to the door. I began feeling a bit self-conscious as I began opening the door to the apartment. Taking a few deep breaths in, I opened the door. A way offort hit me, because this, right here, is home, and I¡¯ve never felt more at peace with myself until now. My books were still on the shelf in the right order, the ce smelled like vani, one of my favorite scents. And, yeah, maybe this isn¡¯t the best neighborhood ever, but I¡¯d rather live somewhere where I¡¯m actuallyfortable. ¡°Do you want water or anything to drink?¡± I asked, turning to face him. ¡°No, thank you.¡± I nodded. ¡°Well, I¡¯m just gonna go grab a few things. It shouldn¡¯t take long.¡± He simply nodded as he continued to look around my house. I went into my room and grabbed a bag before filling it with clothes, notebooks, myptop, and the money I¡¯ve been saving for the past few months. I only grabbed 3,000 and left the rest in case I¡¯d need it at ater date. I grabbed everything I needed and walked out into the living room to see Noah typing something into his phone. ¡°I¡¯m done,¡± I announced, catching his attention. ¡°Do you need any help?¡± he asked whilst pointing to the things in my hands. ¡°No, thanks. I got it.¡± We walked out of the apartment before he closed and locked the door for me. I ended up thanking him multiple times - when he did that, and when he opened the door to the car for me. We, then again, sat in silence and I knew the car ride was going to be longer than when we first came since traffic was building up. I sighed and opened myptop, going to Google Docs where I was able to type without needing wifi. I¡¯ve been writing a book and it¡¯s been one of my favorites for a while now. Memories. That¡¯s what it¡¯s called. I can rte to it so much. All the pain, passion, regret, sorrow, love; the story is called Memories for multiple reasons. One day, when I get my life together, I want to publish it. And when I do, I hope I learn to love and ept myself. ¡°What are you doing over there?¡± I heard Noah ask. ¡°Working on something I¡¯ve been working on for a while,¡± I simply answer, shrugging my shoulders. ¡°What is it?¡± he asked. I lifted my head, wondering why he was trying to spark conversation with me. I answered his question anyway though. ¡°I love to write. I¡¯m not good at expressing myself to anyone - myself included - so I write instead. I have a few short stories already written, but I¡¯m working on this novel now. It¡¯s called Memories. I guess I just rte to it so much since I¡¯m putting all my emotion into it. I lovebining various emotions because in the end, you never know how the person turns out. Sometimes they¡¯re much better than how they were, sometimes they¡¯re not,¡± I say before realizing I had overshared and didn¡¯t really answer his question. Oops. I slowly looked over at him to see he was smiling. ¡°Sorry for babbling,¡± I apologized with red cheeks. ¡°No, no, don¡¯t apologize. It¡¯s cute when you talk about something you enjoy. Do you n on publishing that book? Maybe I can read it one day too, maybe even today when we get home. But only if you want me to.¡± My cheeks began heating up more. He just called me cute. And he called my father¡¯s house home! ¡°I n on publishing this book, hopefully, when I get my life together. And, sure. You can read the first few chapters if you want to.¡± Before I knew it, we had already reached the house. He looked at me and I immediately got lost in his brown eyes. ¡°It was nice talking to you. I look forward to reading your book.¡± And I smiled. Before he left the car, I blurted out: ¡°Hey, I forgot to tell you that I¡¯m meeting up with Dan and I was wondering if you could drop me off? It¡¯s already 5:15 and we were gonna meet at 5:30.¡± He nodded. ¡°Sure, I just need to go use the bathroom real quick. You should go put your stuff in your room.¡± I nodded. ¡°Will do. See ya.¡± ¡°See you.¡± Chapter 11: Its the least I can do Chapter 11: It''s the least I can do Vera and I wereughing hysterically as Dan kept muttering curses under his breath. At first, I thought it was just Dan and I who were going to hang out but he ended up bringing his (beautiful) girlfriend. It was a bit awkward and ufortable at first, but then we ended up warming up to each other quickly. I also felt the need to exin things to her - things about Dan and I¡¯s friendship and such. Obviously Dan already told her that we¡¯re only friends, but I still wanted to let her know that I wasn¡¯t interested in Dan like that and he wasn¡¯t into me like that either. She understood everything, thankfully. ¡°So, what do you do for a living?¡± I asked her once things became more calm. ¡°I¡¯m a veterinarian,¡± she answered, her eyes lighting up. ¡°I love animals and taking care of them. I can¡¯t wait to get a pet of my own, too! They¡¯ll be my first little baby.¡± I chuckled at her eagerness. ¡°When I was younger, I was terrified of animals. But now I ask myself what I was so scared of,¡± I joked. Sheughed. ¡°I promise you, they¡¯re harmless little things.¡± ¡°What kind of pet do you want?¡± I asked. ¡°She wants a chihuahua,¡± Dan cut in, ¡°but those dogs are evil.¡± Vera and Iughed at his serious tone. ¡°I¡¯m sure when you get one you won¡¯t think that anymore.¡± He shrugs his shoulders and we continue eating. It was rxing and peaceful. Not once did I feel like I didn¡¯t belong there. And, despite knowing my messed up past, Vera didn¡¯t look at me how someone else would. She treated me like I was normal. Admittedly, I felt as though I made a new friend. ¡°We should hang outter,¡± Vera said, ¡°just me and you.¡± I smiled. ¡°Sure, that¡¯d be fun. Give me your phone number so we can stay in contact?¡± I asked. We both exchanged phone numbers quickly whilst Dan was smiling at us. I also noticed the time and shot Noah a text, telling him to pick me up. He went somewhere nearby since 1) he didn¡¯t want to intrude and 2) he didn¡¯t want to go home without me. ¡°It was really nice hanging out with you guys but I have to go now,¡± I announced. Vera quickly gave me a hug. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to hang out again!¡± she whisper-squealed into my ear. I smiled. Dan also got up and gave me a quick hug. ¡°I¡¯m proud of you, Elle,¡± he said. I furrowed my brows together, confused. ¡°Why?¡± I asked awkwardly. ¡°For getting better.¡± I was speechless for a moment, but I found myself agreeing with him almost. I should also be proud of myself because this is a step forward. Atst, I¡¯m getting better. I gave each of them one more hug before I left the cafe, smiling to myself. I saw the car parked nearby so I went to see Noah waiting for me. I quickly got in, my smile not disappearing just yet. ¡°How was your lunch date with your friends?¡± he asked as he began driving us back home. ¡°It was fun. I think we¡¯re gonna hang out again soon.¡± The car quickly grew quiet, but thankfully it didn¡¯t take long for us to arrive home. We walked to the porch at a steady pace, not too fast but also not too slow. He then unlocked and opened the door for me and I was immediately greeted by Celeste and Arthur. ¡°Hi, sweetie! How was your day?¡± Celeste asked. ¡°My day went well,¡± I answered. ¡°How about you?¡± ¡°Everything went well.¡± ¡°How was your meeting with Dan?¡± Arthur asked. ¡°It was fun. They - he and his girlfriend - were really nice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s amazing, sweetie. My wife and I are going to go out today. We called for a babysitter, they should be arriving in about 30 minutes. Can you or Noah open the door for them?¡± he asked. ¡°If you want, I can watch Norma and Cominic while you guys are out,¡± I suggested. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. Norma and Cominic can be a bit much.¡± They must think I¡¯m not capable of taking care of my siblings. ¡°No, honestly, I can take care of them. It¡¯s the least I can do for, you know, staying here free of charge.¡± Property ? of N?velDrama.Org. ¡°Okay, then. But you don¡¯t have to! I¡¯ll call the babysitter and cancel. Their bedtime is at 10 since it¡¯s Friday today,¡± Celeste answered. ¡°Is there anything else I should be on the lookout for?¡± I asked. ¡°Don¡¯t give them candy,¡± Arthur cut in. ¡°They won¡¯t be able to sleep.¡± ¡°Got it!¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Arthur thanked me. ¡°I appreciate it. We¡¯ll see youter tonight if you¡¯re not sleeping,¡± he added. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°By the way, they¡¯re in the living room watching TV. We already kissed them goodbye,¡± Celeste said. I nodded before they both left, shutting the door behind them. Turning around, I walked to the living room to see both Dominic and Norma on the couch, watching something. ¡°What are you guys watching?¡± I asked, sitting on the couch in between them. ¡°Mn,¡± came Norma¡¯s reply. ¡°What is it about?¡± ¡°A girl who took her father¡¯s ce in a war. She pretends to be a boy, though,¡± Dominic chimed in. ¡°That¡¯s cool¡­¡± I decided to say. ¡°Your parents are out and I wanted to bond with you guys,¡± I then admitted. They both turned their heads towards me. ¡°Do you want to y a game with me?¡± Norma asked. I smiled happily. ¡°What game?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to y!¡± Dominic immediately groaned. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Her games are so boring.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that,¡± I lightly scolded. ¡°What game do you want to y?¡± I asked Norma before looking at a pissed off Dominic. He did look adorable though, and I ended up giggling despite trying my best to not ¡°We can ask each other questions!¡± Norma excitedly said. ¡°That sounds fun,¡± I responded. ¡°What do you think, Dominic?¡± He shrugged. ¡°I guess¡­¡± ¡°Alright, thene sit in a circle. I¡¯ll go get some snacks.¡± They both nodded as I walked into the kitchen and began my search for snacks. As I was looking through the cabs, Noah walked in with grey sweatpants and a in white tee shirt. He looked more at ease with himself. I quickly looked away from him to pick out a few more snacks. ¡°Did the babysitter tell you to get those?¡± he asked, raising a brow. ¡°No. She¡¯s noting - I¡¯m the one watching over them.¡± ¡°Sibling bonding time. I like the sound of that.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Me, too.¡± We both stared at each other for what seemed like forever but was actually just a few seconds. When I was beginning to feel a bit hot, I cleared my throat. ¡°Well, I¡¯m gonna go back now. Can¡¯t keel them waiting.¡± He blushed but nodded nheless, then I left him for the kids who were patiently waiting for me. I put the snacks in front of them and told them to dig in. ¡°Where¡¯s the candy?¡± Dominic asked. ¡°If I give it to you, you won¡¯t be able to sleep,¡± I answered, causing him to pout. ¡°But I can give you some tomorrow. How does that sound?¡± ¡°Promise?¡± Norma asked. ¡°I promise.¡± ¡°Who wants to go first?¡± the young girl asked, looking at Dominic and I excitedly. ¡°I will!¡± Dominic answered before turning to me. ¡°How old are you?¡± ¡°20,¡± I answered. ¡°Favorite color?¡± Norma asked. ¡°Definitely blue.¡± ¡°What do you want to be when you grow up?¡± The question caught me off guard but I didn¡¯t have to think to answer it. I already knew the answer. ¡°An author.¡± ¡°Like daddy? He loves to write. He has a writing business.¡± ¡°Yeah, like daddy. Sort of.¡± ¡°Are you, like, our cousin?¡± Dominic asked. I scratched the back of my neck. Do I tell them the truth or lie? ¡°No, Dominic. I¡¯m your sister.¡± Their eyes grew big and bigger. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°That¡¯s so cool! Now I can tell everyone I have a big sister!¡± Norma grinned. ¡°Don¡¯t tell them yet,¡± I said. ¡°Ask your parents for permission first.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°It¡¯splicated,¡± I answered. The rest of the evening was fun. Bonding with my siblings was something I cared about a lot. Even though I couldn¡¯t tell them everything, it felt nice getting to know them and vice versa. I set them off to bed 20 minutes before 10 because I wanted to continue writing for my story Memories. I was at it again. Desperately trying to hold onto something that¡¯s only going to cause me danger and hurt. I should¡¯ve ran while I still had the change, but now I have to attack. I made so much improvement only for it to be ruined. One silly action ruined everything. I should let go. I can¡¯t keep rereading the chapters hoping for a different ending. I have to let go. I finished typing in thest paragraph of the chapter before I was startled - once again - by Noah who magically appeared in front of me. ¡°What the fuck - you can¡¯t keep doing that,¡± I whispered, giving him a WTF look. ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to scare you. I called your name but you didn¡¯t hear me,¡± he answered with a light blush on his cheeks. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. My bad for that. I just get scared easily.¡± ¡°What are you writing?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I just finished writing a chapter of Memories.¡± ¡°Can I read?¡± ¡°Yeah, sure,¡± I replied as I handed him theptop. When he finished reading the chapter, he didn¡¯t say anything. Just looked at me with a weird look that I couldn¡¯t describe. ¡°Well?¡± I asked, slightly self-conscious. ¡°It¡¯s good - great even - but dark. Really dark. But I can see what you¡¯re going for here, making the littlest things be the biggest problems. Shit, Elle - this is amazing! You should show it to your dad.¡± ¡°No!¡± I squealed. ¡°We¡¯re not showing this to anyone. Not until, you know, but thanks.¡± The rest of the night was really nice. We didn¡¯t talk much, but instead sat in silence and watched TV together. It felt nice and rxing. Everything felt too good to be true. It¡¯s time for me to start living the life I want. Chapter 12: Im begging you Chapter 12: I''m begging you ¡°No one will believe you. We all know you asked for this. If you walk out with such slutty clothes, what do you think men will think? Such a shame they¡¯ll never get to touch you like how I do. You belong to me. Don¡¯t you ever forget that.¡± ¡°Elle?¡± I heard a voice say. My heart stops. It¡¯s him. He came to get me again. This time, I wouldn¡¯t be able to run. I couldn¡¯t move my legs. Why won¡¯t my legs move? I need help. Why isn¡¯t anyone helping me? I drop onto the floor and begin crawling away. I couldn¡¯t breathe. He grabbed me, though, and pulled Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org. me close to him. ¡°It¡¯s okay, it¡¯s okay. I¡¯m here now,¡± he softly whispered, touching my hair. ¡°Please,¡± I begged. ¡°Please don¡¯t hurt me. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t hurt you. You¡¯ll be okay,¡± he said. I couldn¡¯t look away from his eyes. He looked so different. He looked happy now that he finally found me - I can¡¯t do this. I have to get away. ¡°Calm down,¡± he said as I began moving a bit. ¡°You¡¯re safe here. I¡¯m not going to hurt you.¡± I didn¡¯t believe a word he said. When I finally built up the courage, I punched him straight in the face. He quickly held his nose as blood began leaking out. ¡°Noah, go after her,¡± he said. ¡°She¡¯s gonna get hurt.¡± My heart fell to the ground. This whole time, he was ying me. I thought he cared, but he didn¡¯t. He never did. He was just acting to try and get me close to him. I hate him. I hate everyone. But¡­things aren¡¯t adding up. What happened to my dad? Where is he? Dominic and Norma are out with their friends, so they should be safe. But what about Celeste? I have to call the police when I get somewhere safe. I can¡¯t do anything while I¡¯m in danger. I was so close to the door when I felt someone grab me. I screamed, yelled, and kicked. I fought with everything in my body but I couldn¡¯t overpower him. ¡°Noah, please. Let me go. Don¡¯t bring me back to him,¡± I pleaded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Elle. You¡¯re safe.¡± ¡°You work for him. You have no fucking idea how much pain he caused me. He raped me, Noah. Please,¡± I begged over and over again. At this point, I was crying hysterically. I couldn¡¯t breathe properly. ¡°I thought you were different. I told you -¡± I couldn¡¯t finish what I was saying as sobs overtook my words. He brought me upstairs to my room andid me on the bed. He looked conflicted. And he should be. He betrayed me. The door opened and my dad walked into the room. Is he working with him, too? This was the whole n, wasn¡¯t it? He didn¡¯t actually want to get to know his now 20-year-old daughter. I looked at Noah with pleading eyes. He held my gaze for a moment before looking. ¡°Dad, please let me go. You said you wanted us to have a father and daughter rtionship¡­How can you possibly work with him knowing what he did?¡± I asked, about to cry for what felt like the millionth time. ¡°Sweetie, what are you talking about? You¡¯re safe, don¡¯t worry.¡± I felt my heart stop again. I began screaming and begging them to let me go, but they didn¡¯t let me. They just stood there and wouldn¡¯t let me leave the room. Then, when my dad touched me, I passed out due to being too overwhelmed by emotion. I trusted them. I can¡¯t trust anyone anymore, though. I let my guard down and that was my mistake. I shouldn¡¯t have done that. Why did I believe them? Why did I think there were people who actually cared about me? They clearly don¡¯t. I¡¯ll escape this though. I¡¯ll find a way out. I¡¯ll go to the cops and tell them everything. I¡¯ll fight. I already lost everything - I didn¡¯t get to have a good childhood or anything because I lived in fear of everyone. But not anymore. Everyone who hurt me is going to get a taste of their own medicine. I¡¯ll show them who¡¯s boss, but I have to figure out a way to get out of this dark ce. Why¡¯s it so dark and cold? ¡°Miss me?¡± I know that voice. But I can¡¯t let him control me. Keep walking, I told myself. And I did. I kept walking in the darkness. ¡°Why so scared? I know you missed me.¡± ¡°No, no I don¡¯t. Leave me alone.¡± Keep walking, keep walking. ¡°Yes you do. I miss hearing your screams.¡± ¡°I will not let you control me anymore.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll always have control over you. You can¡¯t ever forget me.¡± ¡°Leave me alone!¡± I yelled. ¡°See you on the other side.¡± What? I couldn¡¯t breathe. I needed to keep walking. I could see the door, I just needed to keep going. But, for some reason, every step forward I take, I seem to be walking backwards and away from the door. I started running but I wasn¡¯t getting closer to the door. ¡°Let me leave, you bastard!¡± No response. ¡°Answer you little shit! I¡¯m done letting you control me and my life! Let me fucking live!¡± Again, no response. I began panicking. Why isn¡¯t he answering me? He has to be doing this to fuck with me. I tried to move my feet but found that I couldn¡¯t. This time, I don¡¯t even try to fight it. I justy there, alone and cold and in the dark. Because I¡¯m done fighting. I¡¯m over it. Chapter 13: I dont want space Chapter 13: I don''t want space It¡¯s been a few weeks since the whole thing happened. Turns out, I was imagining the whole thing. I thought my dad was him. It¡¯s a form of PTSD, I was told. I was prescribed medicine to help me with it. I also had a therapist I went to see every now and then. Ever since what happened, Noah¡¯s been distancing himself from me. I don¡¯t know why - I¡¯ve tried apologizing to him numerous times but he always shrugged it off and said it was fine, said I wasn¡¯t in the right state of mind. Still, I knew he was hurt. Every time he and I lock eyes with each other, I see pity. There¡¯s also a weird tension in the room with us. It¡¯s unbearable. I n to speak to him when I gain the confidence. ¡°Elle!¡± I heard Norma scream. ¡°Norma!¡± I screamed back as she ran into my arms, giving me a big hug. ¡°How was school today? And where¡¯s Dominic?¡± ¡°Today was fun! We went on a field trip. And Dominic¡¯s at school doing sports,¡± she answered, twirling her hair around. I lifted a brow up at her strange behavior. ¡°I can keep a secret¡­Did anything happen on this school trip?¡± Her cheeks turned bright red. ¡°You can¡¯t tell mommy,¡± she says whilst holding out her pinky. ¡°I promise.¡± I linked out pinky¡¯s together. ¡°My crush kissed me on the cheek today. We held hands, too,¡± she whispered out, grinning. I coed. ¡°Is he cute? Tell me everything!¡± ¡°He¡¯s really pretty. I got shy so I didn¡¯t want him to hold my hands.¡± ¡°Aww, that¡¯s adorable -¡± ¡°What are you guys whispering about here, huh?¡± Arthur asked. We both giggled. ¡°No,¡± we said in usion. He lifted up a brow. ¡°You guys up to something?¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± Norma answered whilst shrugging. ¡°Mhm, interesting.¡± He pretended to think before looking over at me. ¡°Norma, honey, I think you have a room to clean. I need to speak to Elle.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to clean my room,¡± sheined. ¡°Well, you have to. Go on now.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± She pouted then walked away. I chuckled. ¡°Children, am I right?¡± He grinned. ¡°Yeah. How have you been?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been good, Arthur. Again, I wanted to apologize to you for what happened - I can¡¯t believe I thought you were him then I thought you worked for him -¡± ¡°Stop ming yourself,¡± he cut me off. ¡°You weren¡¯t in control nor were you in the right state of mind. You shouldn¡¯t be apologizing to me, either. I¡¯m the one who should be apologizing.¡± I nodded. ¡°What does Celeste think about this? I mean, she did talk to me and she¡¯s been a real bi help these past few weeks, but how does she really feel about this?¡± I asked, using one hand to gesture towards myself. ¡°She loves you like her own daughter. She knows you¡¯re going through things, and although she doesn¡¯t fully understand, she knows you need time to adjust and things as such. She doesn¡¯t feel anything negative towards you if that¡¯s what you¡¯re asking,¡± he answered. I smiled. ¡°Thanks for being honest with me, then. I appreciate it.¡± We sat in silence for a bit. I realized then and there that he looked more tired. The eye bags under his eyes were bing more noticeable and he looked drained. ¡°You okay?¡± He looked at me, a bit shocked looking. ¡°I¡¯m well, just dealing with a lot of stress because of work. Word of advice, don¡¯t be the CEO of apany,¡± he jokingly said. ¡°I¡¯m sure everything¡¯ll be fine. You should rest though, you look exhausted. And don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t n on bing a CEO,¡± I said. ¡°I think we should have dinner. All of us - as a family. I can cook,¡± I nervously suggested. He grinned. ¡°That sounds like a great idea. I can go with you to buy the things we need, if you want me to.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. Noah can go with me. I need to speak to him anyway.¡± He took the hint and nodded. ¡°He¡¯s out in the car, I¡¯m pretty sure. Here, take my card.¡± He handed me a card from his wallet. ¡°I don¡¯t need your card. I have my own money.¡± N?velDrama.Org owns all ? content. ¡°Take it just in case.¡± I sighed. ¡°Okay.¡± I took the card then ran out of the house and to the car. I knocked on the window, causing Noah to roll it down. ¡°Yes?¡± he asked with a nk face. ¡°We¡¯re going shopping. I¡¯m cooking tonight.¡± ¡°You look happy.¡± ¡°Because I am! Now can you unlock the door?¡± ¡°Yeah, sorry. Hop in.¡± He started driving as soon as I closed the door, surprisingly. He really didn¡¯t want to waste time, huh? ¡°We need to talk,¡± I stated suddenly. ¡°About what, Elle?¡± ¡°About what happened two weeks ago. I apologized, but I know you¡¯re still hurt. I can¡¯t stand the way you look at me now. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not your fault. How many times do I have to tell you that? I just think we need space, that¡¯s all. It¡¯s better for you that way,¡± he stated. I didn¡¯t want space though. I wanted us to be closer. ¡°I don¡¯t want space,¡± I voice my thoughts. The car came to an immediate stop. ¡°What did you say?¡± he asked, looking at me. ¡°I said I don¡¯t want space¡­¡± ¡°Shit, Elle.¡± He ran a hand through his hair. ¡°I can¡¯t do this right now.¡± Then he resumed driving as if nothing happened at all. Well, this is awkward. When we reached the store, I quickly rushed out of the car and went inside the store. I began looking for all the things I needed as I thought about what happened in the car. I couldn¡¯t believe that I confessed and he told me he couldn¡¯t deal with it. I mean, I didn¡¯t even have feelings. I¡¯m sure of it. As I picked up steak from one of the fridges, someone bumped into me. I looked up, frightened. ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t -¡± He paused. ¡°Ellenora? Is that really you?¡± I start shifting ufortably. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t know you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s me, Angel. We went to the same school together. We rode on the bus everyday and sat next to each other each time, remember? We used to talk all the time. How can you not remember this beautiful face?¡± I chuckled as I finally realized why he looked familiar. ¡°You¡¯re not that hot, Angel.¡± I couldn¡¯t believe I forgot about him. He was the only person who made going to school bearable. Not once did I tell him about what was going on in my life, though. He looked so different now. He gained more muscle. Back then, he was pretty skinny. Now he was big and buff. He was around six feet tall and way hotter than thest time I saw him. His eyes were still that beautiful shade of hazel. ¡°I guess you like the view,¡± heughed. I looked away from him, blushing. ¡°No, keep looking. I enjoy it.¡± I smacked his arm. ¡°I hate you.¡± ¡°On a more serious note, I miss you, Elle. You literally fell out of the earth or something though. I tried contacting you but your phone didn¡¯t work anymore.¡± ¡°Honestly, a lot of things have happened so I had to change quite a bit of things. And I changed my number. And sort of forgot about you due to everything going on.¡± ¡°You¡¯re telling me you forgot someone as handsome as me?¡± He looked genuinely offended. ¡°What¡¯s stopping me from punching you right now?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but let¡¯s not do that mhm.¡± Iughed. ¡°Let¡¯s exchange numbers so we can keep in touch and hangout.¡± We exchanged numbers but kept talking as we shopped together. He even helped me bring the bags of groceries to the car. ¡°Thanks, Angel.¡± ¡°No problem. But who¡¯s that scary guy ring at me from inside the car?¡± I looked over at Noah and shrugged. His problems aren¡¯t mine. ¡°He¡¯s my bodyguard, sadly. I have to go now though. See you soon!¡± ¡°See you, Elle. Text me sometime!¡± He winked at me as he walked away and went to his own car. I got into the car and let out a sigh. ¡°Who was that?¡± ¡°A friend. But I don¡¯t know why that concerns you,¡± I said with a re. ¡°You¡¯re right, it doesn¡¯t.¡± The rest of the car ride was filled with tension. He confused me to no end. I never wanted to feel like this. When we reached the house, neither of us moved. We sat in the car in silence. ¡°I don¡¯t want us to have space either,¡± he said and I froze. I turned to see he was already staring back at me. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± We both stared at each other as we leaned closer and closer to each other. ¡°You¡¯re really beautiful, you know that?¡± he softly whispered whilst holding my cheek in his hand. ¡°Mm,¡± I responded, not knowing what to say. I felt his hot breath fanning against my face and I really wanted him to kiss me. Atst, his lips connected to mine. His lips felt so soft and weing, I felt a surge of emotions all at once. My heartbeat quickened and I was so sure he could hear it. We pulled away before things could get out of hand though. I was panting softly. He was a really good kisser. ¡°That just happened,¡± he said, chuckling a bit. ¡°Yeah, it did.¡± I let out a smallugh. ¡°Bring the groceries inside. I have to start cooking.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± He got out of the car and I stayed there thinking: Noah just kissed me. Shit is about to go down. The Novel will be updated first on this website. 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