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Chapter Twenty-Two

I groggily opened my eyes. My squinted eyes roamed around my surroundings. By the looks of it, the guys were still sleeping.

But I didn't see Bella in her sleeping bag. I pushed myself to sit up, and that's when it hit me. The smell of delicious bacon and sausages all mixed together.

I inhaled the lovely scent and wiggled out of my sleeping bag. With closed eyes, I entered the kitchen. It was a good thing that there were no walls separating the two rooms.

As I followed the scent, I ended up bumping into someone. My eyes flew open, as I stumbled back a couple of times.

"Vee, what are you doing?" Bella asked me, with a chuckle. My eyes were trained onto the plates filled with food.

I gulped. "Uh...nothing," I answered. "If you say so. Now, let's wake up the guys. It's time to eat." She got me at the word 'eat'.

"Great!" I exclaimed and turned around. I took the first step, and she instantly grabbed my arm. I turned my head to look at her.

"What?" I snapped. "Why don't we pour water on them?" She suggested, grinning mischievously. I gazed at her, as if she grew three bug heads.

"Are you crazy?! On whose floor?" I whisper-shouted. She rolled her eyes at me. "We'll force them to clean it. Come on, Vee. Don't spoil the fun," she begged.

I shook my head. "Na-ah. Not on my floor. If this was your apartment, I would have agreed. But it's mine. So, no," I disagreed and pulled my arm from her grip.

"You are so boring," she commented. I folded my arms over my chest and glared at her. "Yeah, and what makes you so exciting?" I retorted.

"Whatever," she muttered. I smirked in triumph as I walked towards the boys. I jumped on top of all of them. "Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey!" I shouted.

"What the hell are you doing?" Reese asked. I giggled. "Waking you guys up. What did you think?" They all groaned. "Future cousin-in-law, you know I love you, but get the fudge off of us," Danny emphasized.

I speedily got off of them and ran to Bella, hiding myself behind her. "H–he's going to kill me," I whispered. Bella snorted. "He isn't going to kill you. He wouldn't even harm a fly."

Just then, Danny stomped on something. "Die, cockroach! Die!" I gave Bella a pointed look. "How ironic," she said. I nodded. "I know."

I backed away from her. "Good morning, Princess," Nathan whispered huskily in my ear. I shuddered. "Morning, Blue Eyes," I said back.

He circled his arms around my waist, from behind me and pulled my body to his. "How did you sleep?" He asked me. What is he doing? I'm not used to this. I'm slightly uncomfortable.

He started nuzzling his nose on my neck. My breath hitched in my throat. I even forgot my friends were still here. He was too distracting.

"I asked you a question, Princess," he reminded me. I snapped out of my daze. "Um...yeah, yeah. I sleeped–no! I mean I slept eh...good. Uh...great," I stammered.

"Hmm," he hummed, as he pressed my body more into his. I stopped breathing, at that point. "Why don't we go and join our friends? Then, we could go for that movie," he suggested.

I suddenly remembered I was hungry. I tried to take a step away from him, but he only tightened his grip. "Yep. Sounds good," I agreed.

I was starting to get frustrated. Why is he so touchy-feely? His one hand unexpectedly dropped to my bare thigh. He started running it up and down, softly while kissing my neck.

Yeah, I was totally enjoying this, but I don't know; I started panicking. "Stop!" I didn't want it to go too far. If I don't stop now, I'm afraid I won't have any much self-restraint left.

"Stop! Stop!" I repeated and that's when he removed his hand, and I jumped millions of meters away from him.

My breaths were heavy, like I had just ran a marathon and I could still feel my skin tingling on where he touched me.

"Princess, I...I wasn't going to do anything," he defended himself. But he didn't need to. I know he wasn't going to go any further. I just...got scared.

"You don't have to explain yourself. I understand. I just..." I trailed off, not knowing how to explain. "You just have never been touched like that before," he finished for me, as he took a step closer.

I slowly nodded, confirming his guess. He stood in front of me and took my hand, wrapping his around it. "Baby, I–I'm not going to do anything you don't want me to do," he shared.

"No, no. I'm not saying I didn't want you to do it, you know. It was amazing and all...but, you just took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting it," I rambled.

"Okay. But still, always know I will never do anything you don't want to do. Okay, baby?" I nodded. He smiled down at me and squeezed my hand.

"Good. Now, let's go eat before we miss that movie."

+++++++++++

"Blue Eyes, will you hurry up?! We're going to miss it!" This guy sure takes his time in the bathroom. More than me!

And I totally deserve the 'Longest Bathroom User' award, but seemingly, he deserves it more than me. "We won't miss it, Princess! I'm almost done!" He shouted back.

I glared at the door as if he was standing there. "Nathan, Nate, Blue Eyes, Sweetheart Grove! You better come out of that bathroom now, or else I–"

"Or else what, Vanessa, Nessa, Baby, Princess Peerce?" Nathan, in all his glory, stepped out of the bathroom. He looked handsome as always, with a white T-shirt which was super tight. (I didn't like that)

Down to his black jeans, cut on the knees and finally his white high tops. Coincidentally, I was wearing the same.

I had a white T-shirt with Timone, Simba and Pumba imprinted on it. Black jeans, and white sandals. "Close that mouth of yours, Princess. You'll catch flies."

That pulled me out of my thoughts, and I brought my jaw back to its rightful place. "Whatever. Let's just go," I said to him.

He shrugged and took the two tickets from the bed. "When are we going to look through that album?" He inquired.

"I don't know...maybe when we come back?" I suggested. He nodded and agreed,"Yeah. Sounds good." I took my phone and walked out of my room.

In the living room, the others were busy watching a cartoon on the TV. Cartoons never get old, people. "Bye, guys. We're off," I told them.

"Enjoy, 'Bumblebee'!" Danny shouted. "Thanks," Nate said. We stepped out and closed the door. I hooked my arm with his, and off we went.

+++++++++++

We arrived at the cinema. Of course, there were some people who were scrutinizing us, but then again, we are used to it.

Others just didn't pay attention. Good for them.

We got the popcorn and the soda. We made sure to choose the seats right in the middle. Best sits in the house, I'm telling you. Make sure to choose them whenever you go to the cinema.

When everything was done, we walked through the corridors and finally reached the room. We took our designated seats and waited for the movie to start.

But it didn't start for another thirty minutes. "Stupid ads," I mumbled, angrily. "I know, right? We didn't pay to watch the ads. We want the movie," Nate agreed.

"But technically, we didn't pay," I reminded him, with a low laugh of my own. "Okay, let me rephrase my sentence. Danny didn't pay for us to watch the ads," he rephrased.

"Not bad," I commented. "Love you, baby," he told me. I smiled and asked,"Are you going to keep saying that at random times? And places?"

"Yes," he simply answered. I shook my head, but couldn't prevent the smile forming on my face. Finally, the movie started.

"Thank God," I heard him say, making me chuckle.

+++++++++++

I was crying. Yes, I was crying. The ending of 'Bumblebee' was just too emotional for me. Hailee Steinfield is a really good actor.

Whenever she cries, you can't help but cry too. I remember from other movies I've watched with her as the main character.

If she cries, I cry. I'm in one of those situations right now. We're in the car and busy arguing about the movie.

"That was such a lame movie. Bumblebee is a robot. Robots aren't supposed to have feelings!" Nathan commented.

I sniffled and rolled my eyes. "Think about it, Blue Eyes. If Bumblebee didn't feel attached to Hailee Steinfield and if he didn't care about her, the movie wasn't going to be as impactful as it is, now!" I argued.

"Really? Impactful as in making people cry?" He asked. I huffed,"It still was a great movie to me." He sighed and said, "Yes. Definitely to you."

I didn't say anything.

"So, want to go grab something to eat?" He questioned. Just then, my stomach grumbled and I couldn't help but laugh as I speak,"You got your answer."

He grinned. "Let's go, then. I'm thinking Spur would be perfect," he shared, as he started driving. "I agree there," I told him.

I plugged in the aux in the car and in my phone. I made sure I played C'mon C'mon by One Direction, first. That is a really nice song. For dancing.

I bobbed my head to the beat of the song. Soon enough, we arrived at Spur and I knew exactly what I was going to order, the minute I stepped inside.

We sat down on one of the booths and a waiter came. This one seemed decent. "Hello. My name is Ruth and I'll be your waitress for today. What do you want to order first? Drinks or food?"

"Food, please," I replied. "Well, what would you like to order? Or should I bring a menu?"

"Ye–" I interjected,"Nope. No need for a menu. Mind if I order for you, Blue Eyes?" I asked. He smirked and shook his head.

"Okay, so I will get a large, chicken and mushroom pizza and he will get a double rib burger," I ordered the food and she wrote it all down.

I've been here with my family countless times. I'm pretty sure I have memorized all the meals on the menu.

"Drinks?" Ruth inquired. "I'll get a chocolate milkshake," I told her. "Make that two," Nate added. "Okay, so two chocolate milkshakes. A chicken and mushroom pizza and a double rib burger?" She asked.

I nodded my head in response. She smiled at me and then left.

"So, question game again?" Nate questioned. I grinned. "Really? But I guess we haven't done it in a long time," I said.

"Yeah. So, let's continue. You start." I thought of a question to ask. "If you could pass on only one of your attributes to your children, what would it be?"

"My eyes." He didn't even skip a beat. I would totally want my kids to have those blue eyes, too. "And you?" He asked.

"It would be my hair," I replied. "Well, next question?" That's when I realized he asked mine back. So, I thought of another.

"How many kids do you want? And why?" He chuckled at my question. "Why are you asking questions about children? Are you already thinking of having kids with me, baby?"

I choked on my own spit. "Absolutely, not! I'm just curious. Gosh, Nate. It's too early to even think about that," I said.

"If you say so, then. Anyway, I want the number of kids my wife will be able to carry. I can't give you the exact number. Why is that? Because I'm just thinking about her. What if she won't be able to carry the five kids I wanted? You know?"

I nodded. That's so thoughtful of him. Now I wish I will be his wife in future.

"What is the saddest you've ever felt?" He asked me. "I think you know the answer to that question," I told him with a nervous laugh.

His face fell. "Oh. Your bestfriend, right?" I hummed in response. "And what about you?" I asked him. "When...I lost my twin sister and brother," he responded.

I froze. I didn't know he had other siblings. Other than Felicia, of course. Speaking of Felicia, I wonder where she is. She should come visit me.

Back to the matter at hand...

"I–I'm sorry," I apologized, as if it was going to solve everything. "Thanks. It still saddens me to this day. The fact that I'm the one that got them killed," he added.

My eyebrows rose. "You got them killed?!" I exclaimed. "Let's not talk about this here," he said. I frowned and agreed with him,"Well, okay."

We just had a normal conversation after that, until the waitress came with our food.

"Thank you," I thanked her as she placed our orders on the table. The smell of the pizza got my stomach grumbling.

"Do you need anything else?" She inquired. I shook my head with a smile. "Okay, then. Holler if you need me." And then she left.

Nathan and I need to talk about something we've been avoiding. And the fact that he doesn't know his mother tried to kill me...eats me up inside.

I took a bite of the pizza and then asked,"What are we going to do with our parents, Nate?" His gaze flickered to mine.

"I don't know. And let's just not talk about it right now," he suggested. I shook my head. "Nope! We have to talk about this now. We've been avoiding the topic for too long," I protested.

"Fine. You want to know what I think we should do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Because I don't think there's anything we can do." He's getting worked up about this.

"Do you realize that the only thing to do is to break u–" He cut me off,"Do not finish that sentence."

"Dude, I'm just exploring the options," I defended. "I am not your dude, I am your boyfriend," he corrected me. He's angry. He's definitely angry.

"You haven't even asked me!" I argued. "Well, fine. Will you be my girlfriend, Princess?" I shook my head. "Not when you're that angry. And also, when we've talked about this issue we have."

"Why do you want to talk about this so much?" He questioned. My eyebrows shot up. "Because our relationship is at stake, here. You and I both know our parents would do anything to break us apart."

"Then, let's not let them break us apart," he said. "How?" Because that is impossible! I almost got killed for crying out loud!

"Whatever they do, we stick together," he answered. I sighed, shaking my head. "That is going to be hard, you know," I told him. "How is it going to be hard, now?"

"I can't tell you," I whispered. Just the thought of Heather trying to kill me again, makes my skin crawl. I took a risk by continuing with this relationship.

And for what? A white boy who could get any girl he wants? Why am I not so sure anymore?

"What do you mean you can't tell me? I told you to share your troubles with me!" He exclaimed. I shook my head. "I just can't, okay? Now let's just continue with eating," I croaked.

"Are you okay, Princess?" He whispered. I shoved pizza in my mouth. "I'm fine, Blue Eyes." I'm not fine at all.

I'm actually on the verge of bawling my eyes out right there and then. Just the thought that I could be dead, right now.

My university years, all in vain. I would be leaving all my loved ones here. Starting from my mom, to my siblings. To Nate, and my beloved friends.

Just because of a relationship I'm not even sure will last? I think I'm losing my appetite.

We ate in silence, after that. Each of us consumed by our own thoughts. I'm betting he's thinking hard about why don't I want to tell him anything.

He wouldn't believe me, that's for sure. Otherwise, I would have told him a long time ago. I have to talk to Danny about this. I don't think I can keep it within me any longer.

We finished our delicious food and hollered for the waiter. I let Nate pay this time and then we left.

I was still wallowing in sadness as Nathan drove us back home. It's my home now. And definitely my siblings' to. I am not going back home, under any circumstance.

I would rather live in the streets or just go to Zanniah's house in Durby. Zanniah is the closest to me, to be honest. She's a very supportive sister. Better than all the others.

I still love them equally, though.

We arrived home and I couldn't get out of the car any faster. I was tired and needed some sleep.

We entered my apartment and I yawned. "What do you want to do?" Nathan asked me. "I don't know what you'll do. But I am going to sleep," I told him.

"Well, that's okay. I have to go back home, anyway. My mom called for me." I stilled. "You're not staying?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No. I'm not. I wish I could." I nodded and gave him a weak smile. "Okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

He engulfed me in a hug and I hugged him back, tightly. "I love you," he whispered. "I love you, too," I whispered back.

He kissed my cheek and pulled away. "Now, will you be my girlfriend?" I laughed. "Yes. I will be your girlfriend," I replied.

He pecked me on the lips. "Bye, baby. I promise to see you tomorrow," he said. I nodded as he turned around. "Okay. I'll be expecting you," I informed.

He walked out the door and closed it behind him. I sighed. I'm alone again. But, it doesn't matter, I'm going to sleep anyway.

I entered my bedroom and took off my clothes and wore a night dress. I crawled inside the blankets and wrapped them around me.

I closed my eyes, awaiting for darkness to arrive.

I stepped inside Heather's office. She called for me to get there, as soon as possible. Something tells me, it won't be good.

"Uh...you called for me?" I said as I stood next to her desk. "Yes. I want you to do something for me," she started.

I gulped. "And what is that?" She grinned. I hate that grin. "I want you...to take care of somebody for me," she answered.

"Oh! Take care of someone! Okay, that's doable." She narrowed her eyes. "Not that take care of someone. I meant, I want you to kill someone for me," she explained.

I froze on the spot. "But I've never done it before. I–I don't think I'll do it," I told her. She shook her head at me. "No, no. You are perfect for the job. Firstly, I want to know, does Nathan still hang out with that black girl?"

I nodded. "Yes. H–he does," I responded. "More the reason to kill her. She's disturbing our plans. I won't let a little black girl destroy everything we've worked for."

My eyes grew to the size of saucers. "Y-you want me to kill her?" I can't kill her. Never ever.

"Yes. If you don't do it, remember what I said years ago." I froze even more. "B–but I don't–"

"Here's the gun. Do it first thing, tomorrow morning. I'm counting on you. Don't disappoint," she told me.

I stiffly nodded and took the gun from the table. "Uh...yeah, yeah. I'll do it," I promised. "Good. Now leave my office. I have tons of work to do," she said, shooing me.

I turned around and walked out of that office like a robot. I can't believe I'm going to do this. But I have to...

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