♡ ₊˚.༄

❪ 𝚃𝚆⠀:⠀𝙶𝚁𝙰𝙿𝙷𝙸𝙲 𝚅𝙸𝙾𝙻𝙴𝙽𝙲𝙴 & 𝚂𝚃𝚁𝙰𝙽𝙶𝚄𝙻𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽. ❫

𝐇𝐄𝐑 ── ◦'𖥸'◦ ── ℋℰℛ
𝗄𝖾𝗂𝗅𝖺𝗁 𝗐𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗌⠀𝗑⠀𝗁. 𝗈𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋𝖿𝗂𝖾𝗅𝖽
𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟯𝟬 ╱ ╱ ☕🤍 ˚◞♡

───── ❛ 新年のソロ ❜ ─────

実生活 // 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞

     EVERYBODY TOLD HER THIS WAS A BAD IDEA. Admittedly, yes, it was. It was a super bad idea but did Keilah Winters care? No, not really. And so far, three days had gone by and nothing had happened.

     With no updates from the police and no strange activity occurring at her house or with her family, Keilah wanted to come home. Although staying at Dave's was nice and she loved spending time with Amandla and Rowan, she missed Zeus, her parents, and even her annoying stepbrothers. She missed having a life and sleeping in her own bed. She missed normalcy.

     So, she decided to ditch safety and head straight into the depths of potential danger.

     For three days, there were no issues or suspicious activity occurring. Everything was fine. Until it wasn't.

     Luca and Amalia had gone to work that morning while Jules went to school. Classes had just resumed from winter break. Angel had dropped Jules off before he went to work the early shift at one of his part-time jobs. Meanwhile, Keilah was at home, chilling on the couch and eating a bowl full of Fruit Loops. Zeus was in the backyard for a few minutes.

     It was only ten-forty-three in the morning when everything went downhill.

     With her eyes glued to the television, the blonde was lost in the plot of Blacklist. The sound of Raymond Reddington's voice brought her a beautiful sense of peace that she hadn't felt in a while. James Spader was a gift from God.

     It wasn't until Zeus started barking outside that Keilah glanced away from the TV. "Zeus, shut up!" she shouted, but the dog didn't stop. Instead, the barks turned into snarls and her ears perked. Zeus was a very laid-back dog. He didn't growl, snarl, or even bite people. So, what the hell was making him come across as so aggressive?

     Keilah placed her bowl of cereal on the black marble coffee table and stood up. The blanket that'd been wrapped around her shoulders fell to the ground. Before she walked to the backdoor, she grabbed Angel's old phone he'd given to her to use.

     Until Joshua had been found, she wasn't going to purchase a new phone just in case he somehow got the new number or tracked the device. Sure, that was highly unlikely, but she couldn't put anything past him. Joshua Rosene had proven how willing he was to go above and beyond to get to her.

     "Zeus, buddy, what's up?" Keilah called, traveling to the glass door. She flipped the lock and slid the door open, cringing at how loud and obnoxious her dog was being. "The attitude is so not necessary."

     When she stepped into the fenced-in backyard, she couldn't see anyone or anything nearby. Zeus stared directly at where the fence ended on the right side of the house, only a few feet away from the porch and Keilah. He was seemingly barking at nothing.

     A wave of confusion washed over Keilah and she jumped down the steps of the porch, approaching the fence. The lock on it was secured and there was nothing amiss.

     What the hell is going on?

     "Uh... What are we barking at?" Keilah asked Zeus, peering at the white Goldendoodle. He was whining lowly, now fixated on the backdoor. The YouTuber dragged her eyes over to see, again, nothing. Nobody was there. "I think somebody didn't get enough sleep last night. You good, dog?"

    Snorting, she shook her head and went back toward the house. "I'm going back inside. Go potty and I'll let you back in," she told him, gesturing to the grass surrounding them.

     Once she was back in the house, she let out a sigh. Maybe this was proof that old age was finally getting to Zeus's head. Maybe he was reaching his old-man era.

     A soft ding echoed and Keilah glanced at the borrowed phone's screen. Angel had just texted her. Hey, I'll be home in like 10 minutes. We're overstaffed at work today so I'm dipping rn lol. She began to type a reply right as Zeus resumed barking and slammed his paws against the door.

     The abrupt noise caused the blonde to jump and for her thumb to slip, hitting the call button before she dropped the phone. "Holy fuck! Zeus!" Keilah scolded, turning to glare at him. However, she caught a glimpse of a shadow moving behind her in the reflection of the glass door. Every hair on her body stood straight and chills raced down her spine. Joshua.

     Shit. Shit shit shit. Oh, fuck.

     "Yo, what's up?" Angel's voice reverberated from the phone, but since the call wasn't on speaker, no one heard him. "Keils?"

     "Hey, Kelly," Joshua Rosene's deep and husky voice rang throughout the empty house and he inched closer. Everything had been building up to this day. "Told you I'd see you soon."

     Panic flooded Keilah's nervous system and her body went into fight-flight-or-freeze mode. It chose fight. She reached for the door handle to escape, but it was too late.

     Right above her head, a hand was slammed against the door and another locked her in. Instinctually flinching at the sound, she ducked under his arm and sprinted out of the kitchen. She was running faster than she ever had before, fear fueling every move she made. All rational thinking was gone and all memory of the safety planning she'd done with her family and the cops was forgotten. Right now, all she was focused on was getting away from him. She wasn't going to stick around for a chat.

     "Where do you think you're going?! I want my welcome kiss home!"

     Zeus's barks got louder and more aggressive, and he kicked the door relentlessly. The dog knew his owner was in danger. He was introduced to Joshua when Keilah brought him home for the first time.

     "KEILAH!" Angel shouted, distress laced in his tone. On his end of the call, he could no longer hear anything but Zeus barking and perhaps that was for the better. "Goddammit. I'm calling the cops."

     Meanwhile, heavy footsteps pounded against the hardwood floors behind the blonde. She grabbed the vase of flowers on the table next to the wall beside the downstairs bathroom and pivoted. Grunting, she lifted it in the air and threw it at Joshua. "Get fucked and get out, asshole!" Then, she grabbed the candles as weapons of defense and took off again.

     The side of the vase hit him square in the face and he stumbled backward, shouting in pain. Water, glass, and the bundle of daises went everywhere. Shards from the vase cut his cheeks and he growled.

     "Kelly, you're starting to really piss me off!"

     "Welcome to the club! You've been pissing me off for over a year!"

     Swiftly making her way into the dining room, she pulled the chairs out from under the dining table and tossed them down. If he was going to pursue her, she was going to do everything possible to make it difficult. As she left the room, she pressed the emergency button on the house security system, which would send an alert to the police.

     "You bitch!" Joshua yelled, tripping over a chair.

     Instead of looking back at her dark-haired ex, she ran around the staircase and through the foyer. There was another table positioned against a wall and she grabbed the candles on it as weapons of defense. Then, she raced to the front door.

     Keilah reached the entrance and gasped for air while fumbling with the lock. There were too many candles in her hands and she peered over her shoulder to see Joshua rushing to catch up. Without a second thought, she chucked the candles at him. Only one managed to hit him while the others landed on the ground and shattered into a million pieces.

     Right as she finally unlocked and opened the door, Joshua's fingers wrapped around her neck and yanked her backward. An involuntary scream left the YouTuber's lips and she clawed at his grip, desperate to break free. Digging her nails into his skin, the hold he had tightened and she whimpered. Her heels dragged across the floor, but she continued to thrash about.

     "You shouldn't have gone to the fucking cops last year. That was your biggest mistake. Now, all of this is your fault."

     Suddenly, her body was slammed against a wall and she was lifted a few inches above the ground. Raspy sputters for air morphed into dry wheezes and Keilah kicked her feet, trying to get him to let go. Not a single word could pass through her lips and she could feel her movement growing sluggish.

     "You should have responded to my texts and worn the goddamn hoodie! Everything you had to do was so simple! Why is it so hard for you to listen?!"

     The back of her head smacked against the wall when he shoved her body against it for a second time. Black dots entered her vision. Her hands fell to her sides and she struggled to keep her eyes open.

     "You never fucking listened to me, but now you have to."

     For Keilah, everything went dark and still.

     For Joshua, he was getting to say all the things that'd been sitting on the tip of his tongue for months now. Even if the object of his fixation was unconscious and barely breathing, it didn't matter. He was getting to speak his truth.

     "God, you have no idea how long I've been dreaming of this moment—"

     "Me too," a familiar voice spoke, interrupting the beginning of Joshua's rehearsed monologue. It was then that he noticed the multiple flashing red and blue lights outside and tensed. "Let go of Ms. Archambault and put your hands in the air," Detective Van Cardhall ordered, aiming his firearm directly at the dark-haired man.

     When the police and detective had gotten Angel Archambault's frantic 9-1-1 call, they immediately responded. Joshua Rosene had an APB out for him since the breaking and entering incident. The force was well aware of his record and had been searching for him until this morning. Finally, he was caught and just in time, too.

     "I said let go of Ms. Archambault and put your hands in the air," Detective Van Cardhall repeated firmly, clicking off the safety in an attempt to spook the man.

     It was clear as day that he had two options here. The first was to surrender and the latter was to get shot. So, Joshua sucked in a deep breath and begrudgingly released the hold he had on Keilah. There was no way he was dying over this shit.

     Keilah collapsed on the hardwood, still unconscious. An officer ran over to her side and checked her pulse, shouting into their radio that paramedics were needed. Thankfully, the small blonde had a pulse.

     Van Cardhall holstered his gun and pulled out the handcuffs. "Joshua Rosene, you are under arrest for breaking and entering a motor vehicle, multiple protective order violations, harassment, and assault by strangulation. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have a right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you." He seized Joshua by the upper arm and hauled him toward the front door. "Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?"

     "Yes," Joshua grumbled, eyes burning into the side of the detective's head.

     "With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me?"

     "No."

     "Good."

╰┈ ⊰ 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒔 ❞ ⑊ ⎯⎯ : ⊱˒ ♡

⌇ 𝘯𝘰 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯⠀|⠀𝑛𝜊 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑠⠀꒱
˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙

     hey everyone!! i hope you all enjoyed the thirtieth chapter!

     van cardhall was so real for that last line.

     (due to work and being unmotivated, this chapter is being published much later than anticipated. it's also much shorter, but i wanted it to be over and done with. hopefully, it's still good <3)

     the joshua storyline is finally over, everyone! the asshole is going behind bars again!!

     i'm very happy that this storyline is closed and we're continuing forward with the rest of the story! next up: keilison and keilah's healing era!

     𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐋𝐘 𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑: thank you all for taking the time out of your days to comment on this story. it means a lot and helps the story be spread to a wider audience &&& gives me the opportunity to grow as an author. all i ask is that people vote on each chapter, please. as a creator, it takes time to write and develop stories. especially social media-based ones because there's so much to take into consideration and the amount of time i've dedicated to finding graphics, screenshotting everything siena mirabella (and other characters) posts, making graphics, etc., is ridiculous. so please, vote on every chapter. it means a lot more than i could ever express.

     don't forget to vote & comment!