I was speechless. I was paralyzed. The only thing I could do was to stare back into her eyes as different emotions flashed in them; shock, fear, sadness, and I didn't fucking like any of them in those mesmerizing ocean blue eyes.

She was right. I was wrong. I was so fucking wrong. All this time she was working hard to make the ends meet for herself and her family and all I had done was torment her. I hated someone who deserved a fucking medal for being such a strong person. For God's sake, she had been working two shifts at weekends when all I would do, was go to the useless teenage parties.

I had made her life a living hell. I caused her to lose a job that was so important for her. And I had dared to call her whore when I was the one who had caused her to accept a job that was not suitable for her.

"Sorry, miss." said Jax, but none of us broke the staring contest. "I apologize for any discomfort that has happened to you. My brother had recently had an accident. He isn't feeling good."

"How much did you hear?" asked Eleanor with a voice barely audible. But I heard it clearly.

"Most of it." I answered quietly and watched her close her eyes tightly and take a deep shaky breath. Jax was only looking between us confused, surely shocked by my weird behavior.

The next time she opened her eyes, they were full of sadness and anxiety. "Please, Harrington." she said quietly. "Just forget about what you heard, okay? Please don't talk about what you saw at school or to anyone. Please."

"I won't." I responded quickly, totally hurt by how low she was thinking of me. Although she had every right to think low of me. I hadn't helped her think otherwise ever. Yet still, for some reason, it hurt like bitch.

"Thank you." she mumbled and then walked past me, leaving me with my horrible thoughts.

How could she thank me now? God, I wanted to vomit from how much I was feeling bad, from how much I hated myself. I had destroyed her life and she was thanking me for not ruining her more. I was truly a monster.

"Chris?" asked Jax while looking at me worriedly. "Are you fine, man? You look pale and your eyes are wide. Who was she?"

"I want to go home." I mumbled and turned on my heels and walked down the corridor just like Eleanor. I just needed to go home, so maybe this terrible feeling would go away.

Thankfully Jax didn't bother me. I just stared out of the window as Jax drove to the house. All I could see were Eleanor's eyes. Only now do I know how much I hated to see them full of fear and sadness when she would look at me.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as Jax stopped the car in front of the house. The front door burst open and I saw my mother rushing outside with a worried face. Behind her, I saw dad standing in the doorway. His face too was full of worry. I glared at Jax.

"Hey," he said with a deep frown. "You were acting weirdly. I was worried. You didn't even notice when I called them while walking out of the hospital and I was beside you."

"Chris!" said my mother as she yanked the door of the car open and cupped my face in the car. "Oh, dear. how are you? Do you feel pain anywhere? Why didn't you call me right away?"

"Mom, don't panic, I'm fine." I said trying to reassure her as stepped out of the car and tried not to wince in pain. "I just want to be alone."

"You look pale and somehow lost." spoke Dad who had appeared behind mom with a deep frown on his face. "I think It's better to take you to a private hospital to be checked again."

"I said I'm fine." I murmured as they followed me up the front stairs and into the house. "please, I want to be alone."

"Okay, honey," said my mother as I gently shrugged off their hands at the bottom of the stairs that were leading to the second floor and climbed up. "I will come up to check up on you in a few minutes. Just try to rest."

I didn't hear the rest of her words. All my mind was on Eleanor. I couldn't continue like that. I should have done something or I would have gone insane. I should have helped her before I could lose my sanity.

I walked into my bathroom, peeled off my clothes, and stepped under warm water, ruining the bandage on my arm ignoring the sting as the water seeped inside and touched my wound. I leaned my head on the shower wall and closed my eye. The coldness of the tiles under my forehead and my palms that were flat on the wall beside my head was helping me think better.

I couldn't let Eleanor work in that filthy club anymore. I should have met her and asked for her forgiveness. I should have done something to help her. Yeah, that was what I should do, even if I would die of embarrassment. I would beg her to accept my help.

With a new determination, I quickly washed the dirt off my body, wrapped my arm with a new bandage, and walked out of the bathroom. I quickly threw on a white t-shirt and a black hoodie with jeans and walked outside.

I grabbed my car keys, a jacket, and my phone before walking to the door. just as I yanked the door open, I saw my mother who was standing behind it jumping slightly. She had a tray with a bowl of soup in it and looked startled.

"Where are you going? Did you take a shower with your new stitches?" she asked worriedly. "You shouldn't have made them wet. I brought you soup. You need to rest. Please go back to bed and let me check your bandage."

"I should go mom." I said and grabbed the bowl of soup and gulped down the warm delicious food. "I need to do something before I go nuts." I said after cleaning my lips with the back of my hand and putting the bowl back in the tray.

"What are you talking about?" asked my mother panicked as she followed me downstairs. "Chris, honey, you should rest. Edmond, stop him."

"Where are you going?" asked my father as he blocked my way and kept me from my shoulders. "Listen to your mother. You can always go out with your friends."

"I don't want to go out with my friends." I answered and pried his hands off my shoulders. "I will come back soon. Don't worry."

Before they can protest anymore I walked out of the front door and closed it behind me. Soon I get into my car and drove toward the Red Rose club. I didn't know where Eleanor's house was so the club was the only place I could meet her there.

It was 4 in the afternoon when I walked inside the club. It was not crowded at that time of day. I quickly walked to the bar and grabbed the attention of one of the girls who was there. "I need to see Eleanor, Eleanor James." I said hurriedly, my hands clutching the edge of the bar's counter.

The girl leaned on the counter and neared her arms together, trying to show more cleavage. I tried to not cringe when she bit her bottom lip trying to look seductive. "She is not here, handsome." she answered. "But if you want I can keep you company."

"When will she come?" I asked impatiently, not in the mood for her sluty act.

"You are really into her, aren't you?" she asked with a roll of her eyes while pushing herself away from the counter. "She will be here around 5 and will leave at 11."

"Thank you." I mumbled before slowly walking out of the club.

There was still one hour left, so instead of waiting inside where the loud music was giving me a headache, I walked to my car and sat in, waiting. Sighing loudly, I fished out my phone and saw a lot of missed calls and messages from my friends, well, mostly Chase and Lara.

Chase was obviously worried for me and Lara was demanding to know where I was and threatening me to not cheat on her.

Dumbass girl

Ignoring Lara, I quickly texted Chase, knowing he must have called Jax by now. I told him that I was fine and would call him as soon as I could and would explain everything. Then I put my phone on silent and leaned my head back on the headrest and closed my eyes.

I was an athlete. My body was pure muscles and I was proud of it. I was a strong boy. But I had a fucking accident that morning and my body was aching like a bitch. So when I made myself comfortable on the seat, I didn't know when I fell asleep.

The next time I opened my eyes, everywhere was dark. My eyes went wide and I glanced at my wristwatch, shocked to see it was 8 P.M. I hurriedly jumped out of the car and almost ran inside of the now crowded club.

I looked around franticly and sighed a bit relieved when I saw Eleanor standing behind the bar, drying glasses. Her dull eyes were down and her sad face seemed deep in thought. I walked toward the bar, feeling more nervous with each step I was taking.

Once at the counter, I just stood there, staring at her with guilty eyes. The girl who I had seen earlier saw me and scoffed.

"Look who's back." she snorted and then tapped Eleanor's shoulder. "Hey, girlie. Your lover boy that was searching for you is here."

I watched Eleanor drop her head for a moment and then turned toward me. There was no surprise in her eyes as if she already knew I would be there. Instead, they were full of nervousness as she walked toward me and stood in front of me on the other side of the counter.

"What do you want, Harrington?" she asked trying to sound firm, but her voice was a bit shaky. I hated the fact that she would become nervous and anxious whenever I was around her.

"We need to talk." I said and wet my suddenly dried lips.

"There is nothing we need to talk about." she answered before looking away and taking a few dirty glasses that were placed on the counter.

"Eleanor, I'm serious." I said and clenched my fists.

She stopped dead in her tracks at hearing her name coming out of my mouth for the first time. I was shocked myself, but I should admit I loved how her name tasted on my tongue.

"Please, leave, Harrington." she said without turning to me. "You are making me uncomfortable."

Cursing under my breath, I walked around the counter and toward Eleanor. Her eyes widened when she saw me beside her. But I didn't give her a chance to react. I grabbed her arm and began to drag her again toward the back door, ignoring her protests.

"What are you doing?" she seethed quietly while trying to pry herself from my iron grip. "Please, You will make me lose my job again. Harrington!"

I didn't of course let go of her. Although I was beaten, still her strength was nowhere near mine. Only when we were out in the back alley was when I let go of her arm. We were standing a few inches away from each other. She looked up and for the first time, I saw anger swirling in her teary eyes. And that was when she snapped.

"What the hell, Harrington!" she yelled as tears streamed down her face. "What do you want of me, huh? Was it not enough for you that I lost my last job? Do you want me to lose this one as well? What is wrong with you? Why do you hate me this much?"

At the end of her yelling, she was a sobbing mess, rubbing her bare arms trying to keep herself warm. It was cold outside and she was only in short shorts and a tank top. Her makeup was once again running down her face with her tears.

"Fuck!" I cursed under my breath and quickly took off my jacket, hissing in pain that erupted in my injured arm. I quickly wrapped my jacket around her shoulders. Then I grabbed her shoulders, ignoring her shocked teary face, and stared into her eyes.

"Look, Eleanor." I began. "I'm so fucking sorry. I never knew you needed your job that bad or I never ever would have done what I did. I swear I'm not that heartless or that much of a monster you think I am. I'm sorry."

"Okay, you said you're sorry." she said firmly and tried to wiggle out of the jacket that I had held tightly around her. "Now, leave please. I need to go back inside."

"No!" I said, keeping her firmly in place, watching her look up into my eyes incredulously. I gulped and stared into her eyes pleadingly before continuing. "Please don't go back inside. You don't belong here. You can't work here."

"Are you sure you heard my conversation with my mother?" she asked and looked at me as if she was talking with the dumbest person ever. "I need money to keep my family intact. I need money for my mother's surgery. I need money for my younger siblings. You were right. In fact, I'm desperate for money."

Her last words were like a hard slap to my face. I took a step back and ran a hand through my hair while groaning. "I'm sorry for what I told you last night." I grunted before looking back at her. "But you can't go inside. We will find a way for you to get the money you want."

"Are you dumb or something?" she asked incredulously. "What am I going to do if I don't work? Rob a bank? News flash, Harrington. Not all of us have money handed to us on a silver platter out of nowhere. I need to work to gain money."

She stopped and bit her lip when she saw me looking at her frustrated. She looked at me with sad eyes before sighing heavily. That fucking deep sadness in her eyes was killing me slowly and painfully.

"Not all of us have an easy life like you." she said this time with a calm yet stern voice. "Do you know how much it hurts when you can't buy a pack of color pencils that your little sister wants for long? Do you know how much it's hard to watch your little brother stare at football balls in the shop windows but you are unable to buy him one? Do you know how much it's hard to see your mother perishing on the hospital bed but you are unable to pay for her surgery, living in fear of losing her any second?"

And I was calling my own fucking life hard

I looked away, unable to look into her eyes. God, those eyes will kill me one day. Was it even possible for someone to feel that much sadness and despair and walk and work at the same time?

I felt her standing close to me and placing my jacket in my hand. "Thank you for your concern." she said softly. "Go home. Your brother said you had an accident today. Your mother should be worried."

I clenched my jacket in my fist and stared down at it with a clenched jaw. "You are right I don't know." I said and turned toward her, watching her halting, standing there with her back to me.

"I never had any financial problems." I said with a clear voice. "I also never had felt any regret before. Never in my life, I had felt guilty about what I have done. Because never I have caused such damage. Or at least I think and hope so."

I watched as she slowly turned to me again. Her brows were furrowed and she seemed conflicted. I took a step closer to her.

"But now, the guilt of what I have done to you is killing me, Eleanor." I said softly. "Believe me, I'm not that bad or heartless. You don't belong in this club. I can't let you work here between all of those fucking bastards who don't give a fuck about whom they take and how they take them. You are so innocent. Please let me make amends. Let me help you."

"How?" she said and sniffled, rubbing her arms as tears ran on her face again. She looked scared and defeated. "I searched so much. Even now Ethan and I are searching for another job. But there is none. I need to work and I can't accept money from anyone. My family and I are not charity cases."

"We will find a way." I pleaded as I once again grabbed her shoulders gently staring at her bloodshot eyes pleadingly. "Just don't go back inside. Please."

"I can't." she said and sobs once again shook her body. "I hate it here, but I should do this for my family."

Not able to see that desperate look in her eyes, I groaned frustrated, and pulled her to my chest and wrapped my arms tightly around her slim body. Only God knew how much it felt right to have her in my arms. She buried her face into my chest and cried loudly.

There was an odd feeling inside of my heart. It was like a dragon was roaring there, clawing at it at the sound of her crying. I was ready to burn cities down to ashes just for her to stop crying. never in my life, I had felt that helpless. She was making me feel many things for the first time to the extreme in a matter of a week.

I looked around desperately, raking my mind for a solution. Suddenly an idea popped into my mind. I quickly pulled away from her and wiped her cheeks with my thumbs gently.

"I have a solution. I know a better job. Safe environment and good payment." I said firmly. An odd satisfaction swelled in my chest as I watched a twinge of hope shine in her teary eyes.

"We need to go and see the manager now." I explained quickly. "Do you think you can take the rest of the night off?"

"How can I trust you?" she asked with a hoarse voice from crying while looking up at me worriedly. "How can I be sure that it's not one another plan of yours to torment me?"

What I did next not only shocked Eleanor but shocked me as well. I knelt in front of her and grabbed both of her small cold hands in mine. I looked up at her with determination and sincerity.

"I swear to everything that is precious to me that it's not a prank." I stated. "I swear on my mother's life that my intention is pure. Eleanor, I swear I just want to help you, to help myself. To make things right. Please trust me."

She stared down into my eyes for a few moments, biting her lips nervously. I could see the battle that was going on in her mind to whether to accept my offer or not, weighing her options. My own heart was jumping out of my chest from anticipation. I had begun absentmindedly drawing circles on the back of her hands, not knowing to comfort myself or her.

"I should change and talk to my manager first." She finally answered and I sighed in relief. "Can you wait here for some minutes?"

"Yes! Yes, of course." I said hurriedly and stood on my feet again, looking down at her happily. "Take as much as time you want. I will stay right here."

She nodded and I saw her cheeks tinted pink under the faint light that the lamp on top of the door was casting on her. "Can you let go of my hands, please?" she spoke quietly.

I quickly let go of her hands and felt heat rushing up to my neck. "Sorry." I mumbled and scratched the back of my neck, watching her turn on her heels and disappear inside.

I sighed once the door was closed. I walked and leaned on the wall, closing my eyes. I was too relieved and too happy for her trust in me. For some unknown reason, it was like someone had given me the world and I felt proud of myself.

All of these feelings were new to me. This extreme feeling of guilt, sadness, anger, frustration, pride, happiness, relief, and ... all because of one girl. There was only one thought in my mind as I waited for her.

What the fuck are you doing with me, Eleanor James?

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A/N: Hello, dears. Please vote and leave a comment if you liked the chapter. Your votes will give me the motivation to write more.

Thank you so much for your support

Ela:))