E L E V E N
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Newt was tensing his whole body from anger once we came back. Minho tried his best to hide all the bags, because somehow he managed to know that I was ashamed of how poor I was. He walked straight past Newt's yells, stuffed the things in my suitcase, then turned to the blonde.

"We were going on a hike today!" Newt spat out. Overreacting? Nah, not at all...

"It's ten a.m, man. Don't worry, there's a lot of time left to do your hiking." Minho folded his arms again. "Yeah? So let's go."

"Where even were you two?!"

"I just told you on the phone. Stavanger." He was acting way too cool compared to Newt, who seemed to want everything perfectly planned.

"Alright. We'll just go get rid of some steam, Newt..." Thomas took the raging boy by his shirt, dragging him out of the door.

"Yeah, go shuck your—."

"Shut. Up!" Newt yelled before the door got slammed closed by Thomas.

An awkward silence fell, until Sonya giggled and dropped herself on her bed. She appeared to find Newt's reaction funny, which it honestly was, a little.

"Alright." Frypan chuckled too. "But next time you better not just leave without telling us." He added. "Pack your stuff. We're climbing a mountain."

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I walked with the girls this time, quite desperate for something else than bickering boys. We stayed a few feet behind them, gossiping until Harriet brought up a certain thing.

"What were you two doing in that city?" She wondered. The question was meant for me.

"Oh, uh, we went to get clothes." I frowned as I talked, not sure what to say.

"Are you two a thing?" Sonya blurted out without any shame. She never seemed ashamed.

"What?" My cheeks heated up, no matter how badly I tried to stop it. "No. We're not a thing."

She lifted an eyebrow. "Do you like him?"

"Yeah, I like him." I peeped. "As a friend."

"If you like him as a friend then Thomas is suddenly as smart as Einstein." Harriet shook her head, laughing. "It's obvious!"

"I've only met him for a few days. I don't like him like that, really."

It was the truth, though I did know my... relationship with Minho felt a little different than with the others.

"He likes you. One hundred procent sure." Teresa stated. She had a big smile on her face. "Did he pay for the clothes?"

My cheeks got even redder. "Yes. He, uh- he did. But I'm quite poor and didn't bring much clothes so that's why he bought me some new ones since he's kind of... rich."

Well, at least that was out.

"Hmm." Sonya furrowed her eyebrows. "Nah. He wouldn't do that for everyone. Something is special."

"Let's just talk about something else, yeah?" I suggested fast, honestly not knowing what to think myself. "What do we think about Newt and Thomas together?"

"Hey! I heard that!"

"Shut up, Newt! Mind your business!" Sonya shouted at him before rolling her eyes. "Being on holidays with my brother isn't always the nicest. But yes, I like Newt and Thomas together. Definitely."

"Agreed." Teresa clapped in her hands.

"Because you like Arisss." Harriet teased, tapping on Teresa's shoulders.

"No I don't." She blushed. "He's just a friend."

"Blah blah blah. That's what everyone says." Sonya wrapped an arm around Harriet. "We all ship you. And you like him, he likes you."

She shrugged. "I don't know."

"Hey, hey, hey!" Frypan warned from a distance. At first, we thought he was talking to us, but apparently Minho and Thomas stood face-to-face now, having an argument about nonsense, most likely.

"I'm gonna push you off the damn berg!" Thomas threatened. But he didn't look much stronger than Minho. Their heights were about the same, though.

"I'll pull you with me!" Minho told the brunette.

Harriet snorted, Sonya and I giggled, and Teresa let out a laugh. It wasn't exactly an... imitating fight.

"Hey." Newt was now the calmer one. He broke the two apart by standing in the middle, mostly glancing at Thomas. "Tommy, what's going on?"

"He's discriminating me!" He had to get pushed away from Minho again.

"You stole my money to go on this trip!" Minho also had to be pushed away. "Thief!"

"You're bickering like chickens. Stop it." Newt sighed deeply. "Thomas, you're gonna pay Minho back. Minho, you're not gonna be too dramatic. I don't know how much money you spent this morning, but I'm sure—."

"Leave that out of this." He narrowed his eyes. "Stealing is way different than spending money voluntary!"

"Oh, so you'd rather buy clothes for Quinn, but won't let your friend join your trip?" Thomas dramatically said, rolling his eyes.

"Leave her out of this, you motherf—."

They rolled off the berg.

It went so fast I couldn't tell whose fault it was, but they were definitely rolling.

"I swear to god, Minho!"

"You're ruining my damn hair!"

"I don't give a shuck about your hair!"

Eventually, they came to a stop. I felt embarrassed by how both Minho and Thomas mentioned me, then decided to just focus on the present.

They had to run all the way back to us. For them, it was an easy job. For me, it would've been like running a marathon.

"Okay, seriously. You two? Stop it." Newt commanded. He held his arms up again. "Take some distance or something."

"Ah, long distance relationship. Ain't that lovely, hm?" Minho muttered, stomping toward Frypan madly.

Thomas crossed his arms, pouting as he walked next to us. "I hate him."

"No, you don't."

"I will for the rest of this day." He confirmed. "Can we go back? I don't like this anymore."

"Not so depressed." I patted him on the shoulder, laughing.

"Depressed but well dressed." He mumbled.

I laughed even louder. "Indeed, Thomas. Good mindset you have there."

He moved his bottom lip forward even more. "I'm cold. Can we go back? I wanna sit on the couch with hot chocolate and watch a movie."

I smiled. "Turning in a big baby?"

He put his hands on his hips and looked at me.
"What about Barbie?"

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"Finally!" Thomas let himself fall on the couch when we arrived back in the hotel. He was right, though, it was very cold outside.

Newt was rushing to get hot chocolate somewhere as we made ourself comfortable, me squeezed between Thomas and Frypan.

"I brought a CD." Thomas announced.

"Barbie?"

He held the thing in the air. "Barbie, Princess Charm School."

"That's the best one!" Fry whooped a cheer and turned on the TV. I kept on laughing, not bothering that the rest was just staring at our trio like we were crazy.

"Barbie? Seriously?" They protested. "Come and do something else."

"Like what?" Thomas gave them an offended glare. "I'm not playing spin the bottle, if that's what you think."

"Me neither." I added.

Minho got up from his place. "I'm gonna go to the lobby."

"And do what? You can't just leave." Newt immediately sprung in.

"Tell me I can't and that's why I will."
Then the door closed behind him.

Thomas took a sip of his drink with a loud noise, shameless. "Oh, well. Let him do whatever work he needs to do now."

I scoffed. "So you can steal more money?"

"I'll consider it."

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I couldn't sleep that night. Thomas' soft snores sounded above me. Fry's, too. Their steady breaths. But it didn't help.

My mind was spinning.

I was afraid, suddenly. Afraid Aiden would show up. That he would tell Minho and the others about everything that happened in the past. He would tell them how weak I was just like he had told me everyday.

He would hurt me again. Either physically or mentally. Maybe both. Probably.

I wondered if he always carried weapons with him, because the last time I saw him, he suddenly took a knife out of his pocket and swung it so many times until I got hit.

He could ruin my life if he wanted to. He easily could, even now. I was always in danger. He remembered my phone number. He knew Minho. He knew where I lived. He knew who I cared about.

He knew everything.

A tear leaked from my eye. I wanted to stand up for myself. Fight back, but couldn't. He was too strong and once it came to it, I froze from the fear he had been delivering for three years straight.

I was sixteen when it started. I never knew his age. He couldn't have been much older, but he never told anything about himself. Was it his plan all along? To threaten me like this while I couldn't do anything to defend myself?

I hadn't spoke to him after I gave the money, because I blocked the number he called with. But I knew for sure he would always find a way to find me again.

Not having enough storage wasn't the only reason I didn't have Instagram, or any apps like that.

One thing I so far was grateful about, was that I didn't get flashbacks unless I was sleeping. I didn't look at a place and suddenly remembered something that happened here. I never had that. No panic attacks, luckily.

But I did unlock a fear.

The fear of loving someone like I loved him.

Because I had loved him, especially in the beginning. It made me oblivious. Lose friends.

Having a new lover would be scary. I assumed it would be close to what Aiden was like, because that was how it was supposed to be, right? 

But I didn't want to let my outfits get checked every day.

I didn't want to not be allowed to hang out with certain people. Not have any privacy. Not go do something on my own. I didn't want someone to take my phone every night and morning to check if I had done anything he didn't want me to do.

I didn't want to wake up just to find myself surrounded in spats of blood with my underwear gone.

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It was two a.m. and the door to our room opened. Bright light from the hallway shined in, followed by the flashlight of someone's phone. It was Minho.

I sensed him sneaking onto the couch in silence, until his phone went off.

I flinched, and he did too. Cursing under his breath, he picked the phone up.

"Dad, it's two a.m. Everyone is asleep." He whisper-yelled. And suddenly, he didn't sound as tough and confident anymore. Just a nineteen-year-old, desperate boy.

"Yes, I did that." He sighed.

"Did that too."

"Please don't worry."

"No, I've got it under control. Business is going fine."

"Dad?"

"Dad...?"

"But can we— okay."

A few seconds of silence was the only thing between his whispers. And by the second, he only sounded sadder.

"Dad, can we go to that restaurant again? When I get back?"

"No, I'm in Norway. I told you that."

"Oh, okay."

"But can we— never mind. Of course you're busy." He muttered to himself.

A long silence except for Minho's dad talking on the phone, but it was too quiet for me to understand.

"I'm busy, too, actually." Minho then said. "Too busy taking care of that fucking business of yours while I just want to sleep. Night, Dad."

There was a beep, and he hung up.

I let go of the quiet breath I had been holding, feeling my heart shatter in its case. Poor, poor Minho.

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A/n: I think my mom's chopping onions.

x Vera