Hope you enjoy this chapter! XD

╔══════════╗
Because we are stronger
When we face our fears...
MJ1
╚══════════╝

Annie POV

Still out of breath, I can't comprehend his reaction. Someone molested me back there. Soiled me, touched me, but in his twisted mind I was endangering him? Was the ego of that repulsive person l more important than my well being? Tom. That guy was a misogynist. Suddenly the car felt smaller and overcrowded. My ragged breathing remained, but for once it wasn't spiking up.

Placing my hand between my feet, I grab my purse and fight over its contents, trying to find my inhaler. As always, I never seem to find anything when I need it most. Frustration flusters my mind. I am sure that I had one in my purse. After agonizing minutes, I find it and finally inhale the medication.

Relief washes over me as I put my hand to my chest. My eyesight gets clearer, the sweating diminishes and my breathing returns to normal in a matter of minutes.

His hand grabs my face and his mesmerizing hazelnut eyes meet mine as if I had done something odd. An o escapes my mouth surprised by his audacity.

"What's that thing?" He asks me while sending a wince to my inhaler still in my hand.

I jerk to the side and slap his hand away, glaring at him.
"Keep your eyes on the road!" I blurted. "It's called an inhaler, genius. Those are medications." I finish, happily noticing that my voice has returned to normal.

Tom's eyebrows arch as if he is doubting my answer. His jaw clenches. Angered by the mockery of his attitude, I turn my face away, only to be surprised by the muffle sound of my stomach.

A sandwich lands on my knees, catching me off guard. Hum. This guy puzzles me! Nodding silently, I devour it without even looking back at him.

The car hums breaking the silence. There is nothing to say. What could I say?

The reality of the situation catches up with me. With a full belly, my head tends to roll into the next problem at hand. A fact was that I didn't know anything about this guy and we were about to be roommates for a few years. Worse, Mom could settle with Richard making him my...  suddenly the light on the road seemed to blind me giving me a headache.  Yea. Mother implied that it was a probable future. I close my eyes tight. She wanted far away to settle into a new life. Was she doing that because I spoke about dad every here and then? Was it my fault?

My heart grows heavy again. Those words are burned in my mind. She rid herself from me.

"I acted like an idiot earlier," Tom said, the twitch in the corner of his lips showed me how uncomfortably he was. "Can we start over?" He asked.

Seriously? I was expecting something more elaborate after acting like an idiot earlier. I cross my arms. At least one of us is trying to break the ice. It wears me off. I am not trying.

His hand found its way to the back of his head and scratched it. "Well, as I said, we got off to an inauspicious start. Since we are going to spend a considerable amount of time as roommates, we should at least know the basics." He looked in my direction and I nodded in response, eager to know more, well I try to show that I am. "My nickname is Tom, but my real name is Thomas, but I hate it because it means innocent and naive." He huffed as if the whole exchange was being too much for him. Was he also awkwardly social? Because I was and I don't even know how to hold my hands. "I am 20, I will be attending Grey-hill College and I hope to make great memories while we live there."

His words spin in my head: living together, roommates, making memories together... It was all planned for me, but I. What about what I wanted? Why did she come up with a college so far away from home. This car had literally being running for hours.  Unable to place a word, I told him nothing.

I looked at the signs on the road, trying to decipher our destination. After a long silence, it was my turn to break it.

"You said two hours earlier. We shouldn't be too far away now, should we?" I ask hesitantly.

"Oh, sorry, Annie. I forgot. We're not going straight to the apartment." He blurts.

"What do you mean?" My voice rising louder than expected makes him jump on his seat. "Sor...ry. Where are you taking me?" My pinky nail finds my mouth.

"Just wait, we're almost there."

Tom's reactions were hard to read, Until now, fields had surrounded us. After that, the view changed rather quickly. The lights of the city flooded the car.

"Look up there on the hill. That's our school." He nodded to the right of the windshield.

On a hill that borders the city, surrounded by woods, stands a large building. It looks like a scene out of a novel, worthy of a movie. Was this Grey Hill College? The name fits. I am glad he made this choice and showed me around.

"Where will we be staying?" I ask mesmerized by the view.

"It's a ten-minute ride from here, but before that, I'm going somewhere and you're coming with me." He finishes, emphasizing his last words.

I sigh in frustration as an answer, but say nothing. I always dreamed about living in student dorms. I wanted the full experience, this isn't what I wanted.

After a moment, the car stops and music fills my ears the moment he opens the door.

A club!

I remain seating, hoping that this is not what I think it is. I thought about many possibilities like groceries, a cold drink. This was something else. It was irresponsible.

"If you don't want to come, you can stay in the car, but it'll take a while." Tom's words have the effect of a cold shower on me. It was exactly what I feared.

Sweat was making my hands uncomfortable, I unconsciously pass them on my jeans. I am not a social person. A club was never part of my bucket list either. Whenever there was a crowd, my emotions were harder to control lately. I  waver my options. The idea of being surrounded by people was scary, but the alternative seemed worse after the encounter I had earlier. Tom. He was there, he would look out for me right.

Making up my mind, I follow him. I keep reminding myself to breathe, then it hits me. I'm a minor for a few months but a minor nevertheless... in a nightclub... without a fake ID... and with no acting skills.

The little determination I had evaporated making me seek for the exit, but Tom's reassuring hand grabbed my wrist making my heart rate decelerate.

"Yo, Tom! My man! Long time no see? Scored some brownie points?" A guy fighting against the movements of the crowd comes from the bar to us.

When he reached us, his cheerful look changed to a dubious quiet look that made me wonder what kind of guy Tom was. What kind of guy was Tom exactly?

"Ah! This is my step-of-the-moment," he said sending me a glare.

I glare back at him disgusted by the assumption. The new guy is shorter, has dark hair and a lot of jewelry on his neck, ear and hands. He looked like a wannabe, he is trying to look cool, but is failing dramatically. Obviously money was all he had for himself.

"What? Your dad has a new one? She must be old for this chick to be... ahem... She must be a BOMB for him not to go with his usual taste." He continued quickly forgetting my presence as he moved through the crowd, his arm over Tom's shoulders.

"I don't get it either! She has THREE! Can you imagine? Since when is the old man a family man?"

They keep shouting over the music as they walked, leaving me no choice but to eavesdrop against my will. Each word and assumption sent a mix of disgust and rage simmering inside and asking to lash out. Why was I even able to hear them? It baffled me, but it kept my nerves away.

The air was heavy with the smoke machine and the smells of perfume, alcohol and sweat was turning my stomach. Each step was becoming heavier to take. People's feet were crammed and often piled with one another, I was being pushed by the moving crowd while my eardrums were vibrating along with the boom box. The air in my lungs gets wired. Tom had to let go of me and as much as I tried to keep an eye on his unique shoes, his expensive jeans of his shiny watch, I eventually lost track of him.

The exit! Where is it? I ask myself. My eyes meet others, but no one makes eye contact with me. I hot, I am sweaty. I am out of breath.

I lift my eyes and search for directions but my five feet height is way below the average height in this crowd making me helpless. I  get squeezed by the dancing crowd once more making my head spin. I move as best as I can, following the crowd movement. I can see the exit sign and walk steadily to it. A gold and silver wristwatch comes my way giving me courage to inhale again. Tom. My anxiety diminish, my heart doesn't aches as much. Is this what they call relief?

I stall in my tracks. I am not use to rely on others. I was the one looking out for others. Being on the other end wasn't displeasing, my heart beat at a lower pace.

He pulls me closer, I  tipsily walk around him until I am finally walk in-front of him guided by his hands around my shoulders. He slides it open and waits for me to cross it on my own. I comply feeling the change in the mood. The music is the same, but the volume os lower. It's livable and there is space to walk without being crushed. The place is clean and there is a table a bench and a bucket with plenty of drinks. There is a bunch of people, 10 max, boys were goofing around while the girls were drinking their colourful drinks their knees crossed probably resting their sore feet. By the looks of those heels, confort wasn't their priority.

"All right, everybody! This is Annie. She's my step-sister right now." My face drops to the raw introduction. Some glare my way, some don't take notice. "Leave her alone. I don't want any attachments for when she's gone. Let's drink to that!" With that, he rejoin the goofiest group.

The girls give me a look, studying me from head to toe. The rids under their eyes tell me that I didn't passed the test. Whatever it was. Another bunch of people cross the curtains. They all handshake Tom who smiles knowingly to them. His smile though never reaches his eyes. Hum. Was he pretending to be ok? Was he hiding a beef with someone? Food makes it'y way into the table. It's mainly nachos and more bottles are taken in. A toast is made to welcome Tom back.

Everyone is mingling while I stay in a place close to a wall where I can see everyone and everything. No one has even tried to talk to me. Fantastic, I'm the daughter of the escort, or the daughter of the gold-digger who sunk her teeth and claws into the billionaire. What am I supposed to be called by his friends now? A sugar daughter. As it popped into my head, a smirk of disgust crossed my face. I have zero chances to have a good social start with his friends, he made sure of that with his statement.

We were about 20 people in the room now, still there was enough space. They were dancing and talking among them as if I wasn't there and I didn't care. The room was spacious yet a hand always seemed to accidentally brush Tom every now and then. Oddly enough, it was always the same girl. With each drink people were getting physically closer to each other, like magnets couples were becoming evident.

Closing my eyes to the sight, I allowed myself to enjoy the music. The musical vibrations were relaxing enough flowing through my body and relaxing my mind. This feeling, it seemed to remind me something. Like on the verge from reality and a dream my head feels light and my breathing slowed. There it was. The top of a mature forest with large branches. I didn't know those trees. Why were they in my head? The image get blurry. I relax again visualizing the trees hoping no to lose the image. The base kicked up in the room. Choosing to be so close was the best idea I came up with not to overheard conversation were I wasn't invited. My lids part. I was losing the forest, the mystery about it was too great. I close my eyes again hoping to get the full picture hiding in my subconscious. The forest, the beat. There was a beat there too. Finally, it is there, they were fireworks illuminating the sky and a red moon. But it wasn't the usual moon, not the moon I know.

My brain reminisced an odd dream I had a few weeks prior. I could vaguely remember pieces here and there. Now the puzzle was getting together and I was fully awake. The fireworks, a red moon, a large crowd at the edge of a forest and a celebration. People with braids, intricate hair styles, dresses and tuxedos danced to the sound of drums and a choir. I knew that place. Did I? Mesmerized I rejoice as of I was there. I am enjoying each moment.

Until someone pushed me.

My eyes flung open and met a bunch of girls whining like spoiled children trying to dry themselves. Confused, I look around to find the culprit. A bottle of champagne was smoking in its ice bucket.

Rolling my eyes for a second, I come across Tom's expression towards me. Those archer eyebrows were becoming his trademark towards me.

What is his problem? I glare at him and examine the place with more care. The scene was odd. Not only was the bottle broken and not gracefully opened, but the ones on the bar were also shattered. The staff was running to clean everything up, as the manager was pulling his hair trying to find the cause for the loss of money.

What made that happen? I open my eyes wide and my lips curl into an O-shape. My eyes then land on Tom, who is studying my every move without beating a lash.

The girls were nagging and asking for compensation, while the boys were just laughing it out and trying to make them get out. Which they obliged after being promised a redo the next night.

As we walk back to the car, I couldn't help but smile. The night that appeared to be insufferable had come to an end quicker than expected. Clearly the clubbing vibe wasn't my cup of tea.

Entering the car, I wonder how many drinks he had. Tom is sitting so stiffly behind the wheel, I swallow while closing the car door. But I don't dare to say a thing. One day I will get my license and I will stop him from driving and drinking.

He drives in silence, occasionally rubbing his hands through his hair and the throbbing vein in his neck, revealing his state of mind. But he says nothing. I close my eyes, not wanting to see any more.

The car has. I raise my head and look around.

The building has several floors. They are luxury apartments with lots of bay windows. A doorman opens the gate and Tom drives in. It all screams money. He hands the keys to a man and we take the same elevator to our floor, taking some boxes with us. The apartments here must be expensive with the door opening  right into the apartment.

The lights come on automatically as he enters decisively without looking back and disappears inside. Even though I was uninvited, I decide to go in. After all, we are supposed to be roommates.

I walk through the huge living room. It's so big they could build two bedrooms instead. Feeling out of place, I go to the window and open the curtain. The view is of the city lit up, surrounded by fields and the forest. The window actually replaced the entire wall of the living room. A sliding glass door gave access to the balcony, which was a separate piece. A round couch as big as a bed, a barbecue and a table with 4 chairs were ready for use.

"Come, I'll take you to your room."

I jumped a little in surprise; I gathered myself and followed him.

As I put my things down on the floor of my room, I can't help the amazement that fills my features. This room is like in the movies and it was mine now. There is a huge bed, the biggest I have ever seen. It tempts me to lie in it like an invitation. There is furniture with many drawers for the small amount of clothes I own, and a makeup table for which I have no use. To the left is a huge mirror with a wooden frame, followed by two doors I have yet to explore.

I turn to talk to him and find him standing there, looking at me as if he's waiting for something.

I freeze, forgetting what I wanted to say about the room.

He walks towards me and I walk backwards as if we were dancing in the room. I end up bumping into a wall behind me. He grabs my arm and pushes me against it.

Is that the famous Kabedon move? I look at him curiously.

He doesn't look happy. I feel trapped and his closeness makes me uncomfortable.

"What was that in the club? Are you crazy? That could've ended badly. You never know who might be watching." His furrowed brow and intense brown eyes tell me he's doing his best to stay in control.

My stomach sinks into my heels. My mind races to figure out what he said, but nothing happens. I am at a loss.

He is silent and continues to stare into my eyes. He scrutinizes me as if I'm hiding some truth I don't know. His voice becomes softer.

"You were lucky. Get some rest. We'll empty the car tomorrow."
And then he is gone.

I am left in the soot.

I'm confused, still trying to follow this interaction.

"What's his problem?" I groan as I put my hands in the air and turn toward the bed.

Then I throw myself onto the rather comfortable bed.

'*•.•ஜீ☼۞☼ஜீ•.•*'
Note
'*•.•ஜீ☼۞☼ஜீ•.•*'

Comment and vote! (っ ͡❛ ᴗ ͡❛)っ