CHAPTER SEVEN
LOUIS POV
Lying here felt surreal on every level, as if amazing girl asleep in my arms is nothing but a figment of my imagination. Her chest rising falling softly in a dream-filled sleep and all I can do is watch her as she wriggles a little trying to escape my arms but giving up when I only tighten the grip. My mind drifts back to what had happened earlier when I nearly lost myself in Sam, nearly taking too much from her. The thought of hurting her like that only angers me so I shove it into the depths of my subconscious. Telling her that I loved her was beyond terrifying for both of us, I wasn't sure if she was ready to acknowledge something like that but it was out before I could stop it.
*flashback*
"I love you" my voice was soft but clear enough for her to hear me.
I feel her body tense against mine, her breath hitching and a slight gasp leaves her lips. Even if she denied me, I wouldn't take those words back. Never.
She shifts around and turns to face me, her hand reaching up to cup my cheek and I rest my face in her hand.
"Do you know what you just said?" She gazes into my eyes, searching.
"I would never have said it if I didn't mean it. I do, with every fibre of my being" I confess. What are you doing, Lou?
She says nothing, just continues to gaze into my eyes. Her long fingers comb through my hair attempting to give it some kind of uniform, our previous activities having left it in a complete mess. Making love to Sam is the best experience I've ever had, feeling her hands running through my hair while I pleasured her. Her skin is the softest I've ever touched, it reminded me of her innocence and of how naïve she is; that I had to be careful not to hurt her.
My eyes search hers for some sort of doubt, regret or even anger. Anything besides this thunderous silence.
"Sam?" I press my forehead to hers inhaling her sweet scent.
"Hmm?" She repeats the sound that would otherwise piss me off.
"Say something"
"I.......I love you too, Louis" she breaks out into a full-on grin from ear to ear and I pull her closer pressing a hard kiss to her lips followed by a soft one on her nose to which she giggles.
"I never took you for a giggler" I raise my eyebrow at her as if she's under scrutiny
"Neither did I" she sticks her tongue out at me.
*end of flashback*
Instead of sleeping I lay awake watching Sam sleep and I wonder what she dreams about. At around eight in the morning she starts to shuffle and eventually opens her beautiful brown eyes. She squints for a few seconds while her eyes adjust to the beams of light shining in through the shutters.
"Good morning, beautiful" I prop myself up on my elbow at look at her.
"Morning" her cheeks turn a light pink making her look like something sent from Heaven. Surely I don't deserve Sam, she's too pure for a dark soul like mine.
"Do you want to shower first or should I?" I ask
"Um.........I'll go first" she pulls the covers back accidentally revealing a lot of flesh on her thigh.
She quickly covers herself by pulling the t-shirt down and jumps off the bed muttering an incomprehensible word when she nearly goes down again. I laugh out loud attempting to stifle it by covering my face with the pillow she slept on.
"I can help you out in there, if you want" I comment
She doesn't respond and instead hurries into the bathroom slamming the door behind her.
*Sam's POV*
A shower is exactly what I needed, my body felt sore and kind-of clammy from the bar and last night. The memory of last night's happenings come back in a rush, giving me temporary headache. The warm water cascades down my shoulders, my back, my legs relaxing my muscles and heating my skin. My reverie is disrupted when Louis taps on the door.
"Sam?" He calls. The steam formed by the hot water prevents me from seeing whether the door is open or not.
"Hello?" I blurt to which Louis laughs.
"There's some clothes in the top drawer by the sink"
"O-ok, thanks"
I hear a click and suspect he had the door open while he was talking. I dry off and go hunting in the drawers to find the clothes Louis was talking about, I find a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and I had to put on the same under garments from yesterday.
My bare feet pad softly against carpeting as I make my way back into the bedroom where Louis is sitting covered up to his waist by the duvet.
"Hi" he greets when as I near the bed, I fold one leg beneath me as I sit down.
"Hey. I guess now you have questions for me" he pulls the covers up a little, wrapping my legs up to my waist but keeping his arm wrapped around it linking me to him.
I raise my eyebrow at him, "Questions?"
"I just thought you would have questions. You know because of last night"
My cheeks turn a bright red at the memory, no mirror needed. I feel the hand around my waist tighten and being pulled down so I'm lying on my side facing him.
"I don't have any questions. Do you?" I mumble making him laugh again,"Am I really that funny?"
"Yes, you are cute and hilarious", he brushes my nose with his,"and I do have a few questions so we can take turns"
"Okay" I grin
"Me first. What's your favourite colour?" His hand flattens on the small of my back pulling me closer.
"Black and white because they contradict each other yet they make each other better. Yours?" I answer simply
"Red because its well, bright I guess" he fumbles for a reason.
"Okay, good choice. My turn, does the um...sun burn you or make you sparkle?"
He laughs loudly before answering,"Because we are 'creatures of the night' its does not mean we sparkle or turn to ash when exposed to sunlight, it simply weakens us physically and we will remain that way until we rejuvenate. However, over time our scientists have discovered a way to keep that from happening, we have designated tattoos", my eyes wander up his arm and to his chest where a text is permanently inked.
"All of them?" I ask not moving my gaze
"No, we can choose the design and we only need one"
"So the rest are....."
"Just there" he places his finger on my chin and forces me to look at him. He presses his lips to mine for a nanosecond and letting go too early.
"You turn" I mumble against his lips
"Okay, do you have any other family besides Aggie?"
I sit up straight and cross my legs, he follows suit.
"My parents died in a car crash back in Africa, my aunt is in Australia and Nana demanded that I come live with her. I was supposed to have an older brother but he died when he was three weeks old"
"I'm sorry, Sam"
"Its fine, I never knew him. Nana told me about him"
"Your parents didn't?"
"Never spoke of him, I guess telling their daughter that her older brother who is more loved than her is dead wasn't their intention"
"You must be wrong, I'm sure they loved you and didn't want you to feel sorry for yourself"
"I wouldn't have, it would've been nice to be told though. It doesn't matter now, do you have any siblings?"
"Not that I know of"
"Is it true you can't enter people's homes without being invited?"
"Another myth, we can totally enter anyone's home but we choose not to. If one of us enters a home then no one else can, like marking your territory but not exactly"
"Interesting"
"And yes, we do have speed, agility, strength, good-looks-" I cut him off by punching his shoulder.
"I get it" I cough
"Oh! Did I mention strength?" He flexes his arm in an upwards motion so his biceps expands and contracts at his will.
"You did. Can you stop now?" I grab his arm and try to lower it but its firm and won't budge so I retract my arm, he lowers his arm with a proud grin on his face.
"Since you took my turn, I get to ask two questions now"
He surprises me when he pins he to the bed with him on top of me, he intertwines our fingers and keeps my hands on my sides. He lowers himself and buries his face in the crook of my neck, I feel his teeth nipping and his lips grazing my skin leaving kisses in their tracks. His lands release mine and he sets an arm on either side of me so he doesn't have to rest his weight on me.
"These aren't questions" I say teasingly
"Hmm" he mimics the sound I made.
"I'm serious"
"Hmm"
He says nothing and continues to attack my neck, I move my head to one side allowing him more room. Eventually he travels up my neck to my jawline in search of my lips. When he reaches his goal he kisses me passionately, capturing my bottom lip between his teeth and releasing it shortly after.
He groans when I reach up and run my hands through his hair, holding him to me. He breaks the kiss and lifts himself up to hover above me.
"I need to go out for a few minutes and when I get back I'm going to ask you those questions"
"Okay" I mumble.
He lowers himself to plant one more kiss on my lips then leaps off the bed, tugs a random shirt on and exits the bedroom but not before looking back and winking at me.
I don't move a muscle until I hear the front door close loudly. The covers are wrapped around my torso making me a human tortilla. My hands peel the covers off and I stand up, pulling my shirt down.
I'm sure exploring isn't forbidden so I go in search of anything exciting - as if I am expecting to find a coffin and a hidden passageway in Louis' apartment. My fingers trail across the walls as I wander through the hallway opening and closing doors. My tummy grumbles a little so I decide to make toast - toast is good.
I press the little tab on the side of the stainless steel toaster and stand patiently beside it waiting for the bread to turn golden and crispy. My eyes land on a black rectangular object on the kitchen counter, my phone. Being so wrapped up with Louis I completely forgot there was an outside world. My fingers swiftly unlock the gadget and scroll for any new messages only to find a text from Ella telling me that she's safe and sound at home and wanting to know where I am. Nana also sent a text informing me that she had to leave early for a few meetings and presentations across town and would only get back in time to see me off on Monday.
I text them both back telling them I was fine but leaving out the part about where I was. I'm about to call Nana when a muffled sound surprises me and my eyes scan the apartment for Louis but he isn't here. The sound is repeated, disturbing the peaceful air and it sounds like a person but it could be the apartment above us. I listen carefully and the third time it happens I'm sure its near me but I checked all the rooms so where is it?
Abandoning the toaster I make my way down the hall again trying to follow the brief sounds. It is repeated and sounds closer, near the staircase in front of me. My bare feet shuffle forward and I discover a pale door beneath the staircase barely visible because its hue is so close to that of the wall and the handle is no more than a notch in the wood.
My nails grip the wood and pull it open slowly, a pain arising in my back because of being hunched to open the door. It looks like nothing more than a black hole and anything could pop out and scare me but nothing does. The sound is repeated and is increasingly loud, definitely a person.
My hand fumbles around the frame of the door and against a wall when I feel a switch and flip it on. A wooden staircase is illuminated but isn't much help because it looks like walking down endless stairs with no end, just darkness. I bravely step inside and stand up straight, hearing the muffled sound again.
"Hello?" I call out into the darkness
Whatever it is that's down there is happy to hear me because their sounds turn into loud screeches and the clinking of a heavy chain. Oh my God, why does Louis have something down here?
"Okay, I'm coming. Hold on" I say to no one in particular and begin to descend the stairs.
When I reach the second step from the bottom I see another white light switch on the pillar beside me and flip it on. I gasp in horror at what I see.
The room - obviously some sort of basement - is tiled with white square tiles and stainless steel shelves surround the room along with at least two steel basins on the left side of the room. No weapons or torture instruments are in plain sight but the feel of this room chills me to the bone. What is this place and why does Louis have one?
I am on the verge of turning around running out screaming when another helpless cry comes from the corner of the room and my head turns in fear in that direction. My hand flies up to cover my mouth and stop the gasp of horror, a young girl is bound to the wall with duct-tape and ropes holding her feet. My left leg steps forward but the girl shakes her head vigorously warning me not to. My eyes fall to the ground and I see a fine wire running from one pillar to the other are the base of the steps.
I step carefully over it and run over the girl yanking the duct-tape from her mouth away.
"Thank you so much" her words are tired and strained
"Who are you?" I ask her while looking around the room for a sharp object. I see a single knife hanging from a stand next to me and I yank it down.
"I'm...........Sarah"
"Who brought you here? Why are you here?" I continue while cutting the bounds. First her legs then hands and waist. She collapses into my arms bringing us both down to the ground with her weight.
"H-He brought me here" she whispers while I sling her arm around my shoulders and hoist her up
"Who? Describe him"
"Hair........dark.......eyes.....green.....pale......Harry"
"Who's Harry, Sarah?"
"My b-brother. He took me away"
"Took you away from what?"
She looks skinnier than me but definitely weighs more than I do. I support majority of her body mass as we make our way to the steps when I hear footsteps above us. Slow and taunting like a predator coming for his prey.
"T-theres another door" her finger weakly points to a barely visible door in the opposite corner. The footsteps above us has stopped, is it Louis?
I drag her like a dead weight over to the door and shove it open, we crawl up the brick stairs and onto the lawn. We get to the edge of the street and I gesture for any passing car to stop, a taxi dutifully halts before us and I open the back door to let Sarah in. She slumps in the seat and I realise that my phone is still inside.
"I'll be right back" I say to the driver and run back into the building.
I slowly open the apartment door - I'm sure Louis would have locked it - and glance around the room. Coast is clear but the tiny door below the staircase is wide open. My phone is lying next to the toaster and the bread has popped up and probably gone cold now.
I stride stealthily up to the counter when I hear footsteps coming from the staircase. My fingers curl around the shape of my phone and I spin around to run out the door. On my way out I glance back and see a tall dark frame standing by the stairs - not Louis' - looking at me with a surprised expression, it almost makes me want to stop but I couldn't risk it.
***
I use the spare house key from under the pot-plant on the patio to open the door. I tow Sarah up the steps to one of the guest rooms and pull back the covers. She looks like a corpse when she lies down, chest heaving up and down with no other body part moving except her eyelids as they shut and open to reveal large hazel eyes. Her hair is blonde and has long limbs but is around 5'7.
"I'll be right back" I say again and leave with the door open.
I go to my room and slip on some secret socks before continuing down to the kitchen. I make the quickest meal I could think of - scrambled eggs and toast with orange juice - and took it up to Sarah who gobbled it up in record time.
"Thank you" she mumbled when she finished
"No problem. You should rest"
She nods and rests her head on the pillow, falling into a doze in five seconds. Something tells me not to open any windows so I just leave the door open and take the cutlery back down to the kitchen and dump it in the sink for later washing.
I jump up in a fright when a loud thumping comes from the door. Fear travels to every inch of my being as I slowly walk towards the door, not daring to look through the peephole. My fingers enclose around the door knob, twisting it.
"Who is it?" I ask stupidly
No response. I try again but still no response so I figured that they had left but the knocking ensues and I pull the door open.
The same tall person from inside Louis apartment now stands before me, staring wide-eyed - a reflection of what I look like - at me. He's at least a couple inches taller than I am with dark curls that are now set in a uniformed quiff. His eyes were a dark green with bushy eyebrows, I would have said he had an innocent face if we hadn't met the way we did.
"Where is she?" His voice is low but not angry
"What? Who?"
"Don't play dumb with me. Tell me where Sarah is"
"Why would I, Harry?"
"How did you know my name?"
"Lucky guess"
"She is my sister, my business, this doesn't concern you"
"That's not how a sister should be treated"
"Like I said, this doesn't concern you", he pronounces each word with an annoyed hiss,"I thought Louis was done with casuals" he sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose between his index finger and thumb.
"Casuals? As in prostitutes?"
He glances up at me like I'm some kind of idiot who just missed something obvious. I glare back at him, offended at his snide remark.
"I'm not a prostitute"
"Okay then escort, whatever you wanna call yourself is fine with me. I. Want. Sarah"
I knew that if he really wanted Sarah he would just come in and take her but then I remembered Louis telling me about how they respected each other's 'territories'. I decide to have some fun with this information and it just might get me killed.
"Why aren't you just barging in and taking her then?" I mock with a straight face.
"Because-" he cuts himself off and looks up at me. His expression softens as he takes a deep breath and appears to be studying me. In the heat of our little exchange, I hadn't even noticed that I had moved forward and now stood in front of Harry on the patio.
His lips form a huge grin as he bends down and scoops me up for a trachea-breaking bear hug. He spins me around and then sets me down, me still in a daze completely confused about what just happened.
"I thought he'd never let me meet you. You're Sam, right? I'm Harry, but I guess you already know that" his grin is unmistakably full of genuine happiness - making it all the more confusing for me. He stretches out his arm waiting for me to take it.
"Um, hi. Yes, I'm Sam" I shake his hand warily.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Louis friend, he's told me so much about you but I think he failed to mention me to you, right?"
"Yes, I'm sorry"
"Well, go figures. Anyway, you don't need to be afraid of me, I'm sorry I kinda scared you earlier"
"Its okay, I guess" I smile weakly at him.
"So can I come in now?"
"Yeah, sure"
"Yay, thanks"
Its as if between a matter of fifteen seconds, Harry managed to transform from a scary, mysterious tall guy into an over zealous and silly version. It made me smile to learn that Louis spoke about me to his friends, mainly because I wasn't too sure he had that many of them.
He steps around me into the house and leaps up the stairs two at a time, I hadn't told him where to go but when I got upstairs I found him lying on the bed beside Sarah talking to her. She looked a whole lot better from what she looked like before, her pale skin was now rosy at the cheeks and her blonde hair had more volume. Her sunken and skinny figure now looked more lively and able to walk on its own two feet. Who knew eggs and toast could do that?
"You gave her food?" Harry looks up at me
"Yup. Was I not supposed to?" I rack my brain for the right thing to say, its not everyday this happens where there would actually be some kind of social protocol.
"No, thank you for taking care of her"
"It was no problem, what happened?"
He gets up from the bed and kisses Sarah's forehead before walking towards me and motioning for me to come into the hallway. I follow him and shut the door.
"Does Louis trust you?" He looks straight faced at me
"I don't know what that means"
"Did he tell you about us?"
"Yes"
"Then he trusts you. Sarah met a man long ago, he convinced her that he was her mate and she fell for it but what he was really doing was draining her of her roots, roots are who you are, your birthplace and such. And while he was taking that from her, he began replacing it with the DNA of his kind causing a confusion in her system which nearly killed her. I found her and had to drain her of anything foreign in her system, I had nowhere to take her so I took her to Louis' place"
"Ah"
"Sounds unreal, I know"
"Nope. Just, how did you know you could trust me? I mean you asked if Louis told me about you, I could have easily lied"
"You asked me outside why I didn't just come in and take Sarah, it was obvious you knew something but was just fishing" he laughs
"Uh-huh. Are you going to take her away now?"
"Do you live here alone?"
"No, I live with my grandmother but she'll only be back on Monday and I leave for New York on Monday"
"Now how did you know you could trust me and just tell me all that?" He raises his eyebrow at me. It was a good question, how did I know that?
"I didn't"
"Well, I'm going to take Sarah away but later because she needs to rest now, if that's okay with you?"
"Of course"
"By the way, this is yours" he fishes in his jacket pocket and pulls out a small, thin rectangular object with tiny silver veins running on its skin, my phone battery. In the hurry to grab it and leave, I hadn't noticed that it was off.
"Why did you take my phone battery?" I grab it from him
"To track you. Don't ask"
"Fine"
Our conversation is disrupted by footsteps coming from downstairs but neither of us are surprised, Louis was bound to come here after I abandoned his apartment.
"I'm gonna go back in now", he points to the closed door behind us and turns around to open it,"nice meeting you"
"Same here" I respond and turn in the opposite direction towards the stairs.
I start to descend and Louis leaning casually against the railing at the base step. My bottom lip is prisoner to my upper and lower molars as I walk slowly down the steps and stop one step above him.
"Hi" I greet innocently
"Someone else is here, I can smell it. Who?" His expression is angry but soft - I bet my bottom dollar Louis is the only person capable of pulling that off.
"Yeah, your friend Harry and his sister Sarah are here"
His face hardens immediately as he looks behind me but no one is standing there.
"Where are they?"
"Upstairs. Am I in trouble?"
"No, not you"
"Harry shouldn't be in trouble either, it was my fault"
"How?"
"I was snooping and I came across something I shouldn't have, it was a mistake but I couldn't look away"
"What did you see?" He stands a step higher, towering over me
"The basement", I mumble ashamed of my curiosity. It is, after all, what killed the cat,"the one beneath the staircase. I'm so sorry"
He wraps his arms around my shoulders and hugs me close, aren't I in trouble? The amount of confusion I've been put through today should be officially recorded in the Guinness World Book of Records.
"You aren't in trouble, Sam. Its just that Harry knows he's not supposed to talk to you" he says after he pulls away
"Why? I like him"
His eyes darken and his jaw tightens, what did I say?
"You do?" He forces the words out
"Yeah, as a friend. What's wrong?" I reach out and push his hair out of his face.
I'm suddenly hoisted off the ground with my legs wrapped around Louis waist, his strong hands holding them up. He turns and presses my back up against the wall, our foreheads pressed together.
"Wha-" I'm cut off by Louis' fierce kiss. He begs for entrance but I deny it and he eventually breaks the kiss when we need to breathe.
"Nothing" he says simply
"Can you put me down now?"
He releases my thighs and I stand on my own two feet. He turns toward the staircase and begins to mount them.
"I think Sarah needs some rest and Harry's with her, don't disturb them"
"Okay, I'll talk to him later then"
"Come on. You want some eggs? I discovered today that they have some miraculous effect on sick and healing people" I offer innocently
He laughs a little before responding,"Sure"
We walk into the kitchen and I switch the stove on. Re-opening the cabinet below the stove, I retrieve the correct frying pan and drizzle oil onto its surface. I turn around and see Louis standing idly on the opposite side of the counter.
"Do you wanna help me?"
"Sure"
He removes his jacket and strides over to me.
"What can I do?"
"Scramble the eggs. Here" I hand him four fresh eggs and leave him to it while I work on the milkshakes - I make a mean shake.
The secret to my success is instead of using the regular powder that people mix into their milk, I make it a special syrup that Nana gets imported from back home and tiny poppy seeds that inflate with the moisture when you throw a few in.
"Can I put the eggs in now?" Louis asks me when he's done.
"Wait" I grab the milk carton from the fridge and drop a tablespoon into the whipped eggs.
"Why?" He asks simply
"It makes it more fluffy, I think. That's what I'm told" I shrug and turn around to put the milk away.
Louis dishes out the - fluffy - eggs into two separate plates and takes a seat at one of the stools, I join him bringing the two tall glasses with me.
"Milkshake? And eggs, really?" He raises an eyebrow at the plate before him.
"You don't want it?"
"No, no its perfect. I was just teasing"
"Oh"
Halfway through our meal I hear footsteps descending the stairs. I swirl around and see Harry's tall frame followed by a shorter Sarah as they approach us.
"Ooooh, eggs!" Harry makes a lazy attempt at snatching some of it from Louis' plate with his fork but Louis smacks his hands. Sarah and I both roll our eyes at them.
"Ouch!" Harry exclaims and hugs his palm as if it really was paining.
"Can we help you?" Louis asks
"Nope, Sarah and I are leaving now so she just came to thank you" he directs his statement to me and stands back.
Sarah walks up to me and wraps her arms around my shoulders - much like her brother did earlier - and squeezes me. My hands are trapped so there's no way to hug her back.
"Thank you for helping me, Sam. I mean even though it didn't turn out to be what........it should have been, I know that your intentions were good so thank you" she let's me go briefly but hugs me again before giving me a chance to speak.
I only open my mouth when I'm sure she's done hugging me.
"Don't mention it although I am sorry to both of you for getting involved where I shouldn't have"
"Nonsense, it means a lot to us that you helped Sarah and we owe you one now, Sammy" Harry speaks suddenly from beside me. How'd he get there?
"No debt is owed" I assure them both
Harry gives me a second hug before making another sneaky attempt at stealing food from Louis who smacks his hand away again, rebounding he takes the fork and steals from my plate instead.
"Tasty" he comments and walks away.
***
"So what do you want to watch?" Louis is channel surfing and I'm standing guard at the microwave while popcorn pops.
"Options?" I ask
"There are tons of game-shows on now: Who Wants To Be a Millionaire, The Chase. Oooh! The X Factor's on. There's Despicable Me 2 and a scary movie on, The Conjuring"
"Wow, you're breaking my heart. They're all awesome, you choose"
"Despicable Me"
"Cool"
The welcome 'ding' from the microwave informs me that the popcorn is done. I pull it out and pour the bag's contents into two separate bowls before walking into the living room with them. The bottoms of the bowls were beginning to warm up.
"This is for you" I hand him one of the bowls and I sit cross-legged next to him.
"I thought the dating rule was that you have to share from a single bowl"
"I don't like sharing my food"
"You shared with Harry"
"I didn't, he took it"
"Oh fine"
He gives his attention back to the TV as he searches for the appropriate channel. He eventually gives up and just leaves it on Who Wants to be a Millionaire where the contestant is on £32 000.
"What happened to Despicable Me?" I ask
"It ended"
"Meanie, you lied to me"
He throws popcorn at me and I'm more than happy to reciprocate, although I hate wasting food just as much as I hate sharing it so I stop.
The host on TV asks the contestant the £64 000 question. Its "Choose the correct spelling of the word used to describe snacks handed out at parties and events". The options were A - orderves, B - hors'derves, C - ordverbs or D - hors'deurves.
"D" I proclaim
"Final answer?" Louis asks
"Yup"
The contestant chose the same option and got it correct. I punch the air in victory and Louis throws his head back laughing.
"Okay, Napoleon. Calm down" he grabs hold of one of my hands and lowers it but instead of leaving it, he intertwines our fingers leaving our hands to rest between us on the couch.
My phone rings on the coffee table in front of us. I reach for it without breaking Louis' hold. Its a text from Nana telling me that she'll only see me on Monday and I respond - single handedly - that its fine.
"Where is Aggie?" Louis asks me
"You call her Aggie too?" I look up at him
"She intimidates me so I had no choice besides, it sounds sweet"
"Yeah, she can be really scary if she wants to be. She's across town for the weekend because of meetings, she'll be back on Monday"
Our popcorn bowls are empty so I pick them up and take them back to the kitchen. When I get back Louis is channel surfing again.
"So what are you gonna be doing for the weekend then?" Louis asks
"Well, today's Saturday which is nearly over and tomorrow Ella and I are going shopping"
"Oooh, shopping!" He fakes enthusiasm
"I hate shopping but I don't have a choice" I sulk
***
"You know, I never actually saw your room with the lights on" Louis comments when he lies down on my bed upsetting the covers.
"Stalker" I point at his shoes and gesture for him to take them off.
"Sorry" he apologises and slips them off his feet, setting them neatly side-by-side at the foot of my bed and lying back down on my pillow. I crawl onto the bed and sit cross-legged again at his side.
"So how many boyfriends have you had?" He asks out of the blue, staring up at the ceiling.
"None" I say simply
His interest piques and he props himself up on one elbow.
"I don't mean just in London" he clarifies
"I know"
"You're not lying, are you?"
"No, why would I be? I honestly have never had a boyfriend. How many girlfriends have you had?"
"Irrelevant but I still find it quite interesting that you've never had a boyfriend"
"What's interesting about it?"
"That you're innocent"- he snakes his arm around my waist and pulls me down to his level, its uncomfortable so I have to lie on my side as well -"Well, used to be"
He pins my arms above my head, his lips lingering above mine. I want to reach up and kiss it but restrain myself. His lips lower, pressing onto mine only for a few brief seconds before travelling down my jaw and to my neck. His teeth graze the soft skin and I gasp when he nips my soft spot - him being the only one who knows about that.
"Used to be?" My voice is shaky
"Mmmm" he mumbles against my skin.
My nails dig into his back as his teeth come down on my skin, definitely leaving a mark.
"Hey, where's Cheeky?" He asks unmoving and completely unexpectedly.
"What? He's here somewhere. Cheeky!"
The answering chirp is followed by a flutter of wings as Cheeky flies and lands graciously on his perch in my room.
"I didn't mean for you to call him" Louis scolds softly then pressing a soft kiss to my sore skin.
"Oh sorry"
Louis remains silent but sits up and I follow him, afraid that I may have...............what? Offended him?
"Louis?" My voice lowers an octave
"Yeah?"
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I guess. I'm fine"
"Are you sure?" My hand reaches up in an automatic comforting gesture and since Louis doesn't stop me, I allow my fingers to brush a few hair strands away from his eyes giving the full breathtaking view of his transfixing gaze.
"You can tell me anything, you know that" I assure him
He sighs and looks up at me, his gaze capturing and holding mine.
"I was thinking........you know, about us. You and me"
"And?"
"I don't know if I deserve you. I mean, we're so different yet all I can ever think about is you. You occupy my every thought, every motion yet I shouldn't because you're too good for me. You're innocent and still naïve and I feel like you should be with someone else, someone better"
"I don't want that, Louis. Look at me" I cup the side of his face with my palm and he let's out a soft breath I didn't know he was holding, taking comfort in my touch.
He tilts his head up again, his blue eyes leaving me speechless but I remember I had a point to make.
"I love you, only you and don't forget that", I continue.
His features remain still, emotionless and it gets on my nerves. To show him that I'm not kidding, I take his hand in mine and hold it up between us, my palm supporting his. I place his hand against the skin above my left breast, on my heart with his eyes never leave mine.
"This is yours, it will belong to you for all eternity if you'll have it" I feel a slight blush creeping onto my face but I ignore it.
"I have to show you something" is all he says before removing his shirt and standing up.
My lips part in a visible gasp when I notice the change. Long white gashes begin to appear on his sculpted back, like worms that were elongated. They marred his perfect skin and I hated it, hated whoever it was that did this to him. I crawl out of the bed and stand behind him, my fingers tracing the scars. One started at his shoulder and stopped at his hip.
"Who did this?" My voice is reduced to a whisper
"Someone from my past. They're ugly and I hate them but I had to show them to you"
"Why?"
"Because I want you to know everything about me, it may be a lot but it would be nice to be able to tell someone everything" he turns around wrapping his bare arms around my waist.
"How did you hide these from me before? You know when........"
"Made love?"
I do nothing but press my forehead against his chest because I'm sure the blush that's approaching will be a little too much to bare.
"Don't be shy. I love you" he forces me to look at him.
"You didn't answer my question"
"Oh, I have something called a Secret. I managed to hide that from you just like I hide the vamprical appearance from everyone everyday"
"Are you hiding anything else?"
"Nope, not from you I'm not and now"- I yelp when Louis bends down and picks me up but then dropping me onto my mattress -"to lighten the mood"
He crawls on top of me but stops at my waist where he tugs on the hem of my shirt.
"Woah, what are you doing?" I grab hold of the shirt holding it in place.
He doesn't answer me and just pries my fingers away leaving them at my sides. He continues his mission and gets the fabric up but doesn't go higher than my chest. He presses several kisses - butterfly included - to my abdomen. I'm silenced by his actions but laughter bursts through my lips when I feel him breathing very roughly against the skin making it tickle like when parents do that to their babies.
"Stop it!" I try to cover my stomach but his arms wrap like pythons around my body and continues his torture.
My laughter is loud and its pointless trying to stop him but eventually he pauses and pulls my shirt down. He makes his way up to eye-level and lies down on his side next to me. We remain silent for the rest of the night, with his arms wrapped protectively around me I fall asleep instantly but not before I feel him kiss my forehead.
***
"So what's next on the list? Sam? SAM!" Ella screams at me even though I'm right beside her.
"What? I'm here" I come out of my reverie and look blankly at her.
"What's the next thing on the list?" She repeats
"Oh um..........candy. Why is candy here?"
"Because its going to be a long flight and mamma's gonna need some sustenance"
"I doubt we're allowed to carry edibles on a flight"
"Don't sass your mamma and push that trolley. What were even dreaming about for the past hour?"
I shove the trolley forward with my body leaning limply against it as we stroll down various isles seeking out pointless groceries Ella is keen on sneaking onto the flight tomorrow. I've not been paying attention because all my mind seemed to focus on was Louis' scars on his back and I'm determined to find out who did that to him despite his hesitation. My tummy still tingled from Louis' treatment last night and I find myself absentmindedly pressing my palm against it. An elderly lady walks past and smiles warmly at my tummy then me, oh no.
"Nothing" I lie to Ella
"So which ones do you want?" She asks with her attention solely on the shelves stocked with candy.
"Lemme see" my eyes glance over each shelf memorising the wrappers rather than names. After Ella chooses about five bars for yourself - and she's as thin as they get - she hashes me to hurry up. In my haste I grab a Snickers bar and an Astros container.
"Next?" She asks
"Tampons" I whisper aware that kids as tall as my knee are all around us.
"Alright, let's go"
She tugs me and the trolley back across three isles to the toiletries section and I stand idly beside her as she browses. She grabs two boxes - one for each of us - and tosses it into the trolley.
"Anything else?"
"Um.......nope. That's it"
"Awesome"
We make our way around a few couples debating on which wine to buy and a fussy kid throwing a tantrum in the middle of an isle. We stand in a long queue behind the elderly woman who smiled at me earlier. When its her turn she picks everything up from her trolley and puts it onto the cashier's table. Her cart has very basic stuff - bread, milk, chicken, cereal - and I offer to assist her because her tiny figure appears fragile.
"Thank you, dear" she smiles at me again and pulls out her purse from an old battered handbag the size of an A5 page.
She hands the cashier everything in her purse but the cashier frowns at her. Glancing back at Ella I see her engrossed in something on her phone screen.
"I'm sorry mam, do you have £10 more?" A sympathetic look growing on her face and impatient looks growing on everyone else's faces in the line.
"Oh, let me check" she says very unconvincingly. By a simple glance at her purse I can see that the only things left in there are a pack of gum and a tissue.
"Oh maybe I'll take something out, I don't need all this anyway" she looks at all her items and grabs the chicken.
It breaks my heart to see this so I stop her. I grab a £10 from my purse and bend down to pretend she dropped it.
"Oh mam, you dropped this" I hand her the money and notice I gave her £20 rather than £10. Oh well, money well spent.
"Thank you, love. My eyesight is so poor" her grateful expression makes me feel so lighthearted and I just want to hug her. Where is her family? And how dare they leave her all alone like his.
"No problem"
***
Nana would be back tomorrow to see me off in the morning and a look at the clock tells me its 18:00. All my clothing and sneaky edibles - as Ella likes to call them - are packed and are ready-to-go in the morning. With one round around the house I check that all locks are bolted and windows are closed except the bathroom ones.
My excitement for tomorrow is bubbling and I can barely keep it contained. A psychiatrist would think I was insane - the freaky part was that I wouldn't care. Rom and Jul are fed and snoozing peacefully on the patio, Cheeky is sleeping on his perch in the living room. I creep softly up to the tiny bird and kiss his head - as usual, he doesn't stir.
"Goodnight, Cheeky"
My feet run up the steps and into my room. Its a cool evening but my balcony door still needs to be shut. I close the door, switch off the lights and prepare to go to bed when I hear knocking on my glass door. I pull back the curtain and I see tiny harmless pebbles on my balcony with one still heading for the door. After it falls to the ground I unlock the door and walk to the palisade looking down.
Louis is standing below with a few more pebbles still in his hold.
"What on earth are you doing? I have a front door" I whisper loud enough for him to hear
"Where's the fun in that. I'm coming up"
"Okay but close the door behind you"
I spin around heading back into my room and three seconds afterwards I hear my balcony door being softly latched. Louis smiles warmly at me when I look at him.
"Good evening" he greets and hugs me tightly cutting off my air circulation.
"Good evening"
"I have something to give you"
"Aw you don't have to get me anything, Lou"
"You calling me Lou now?"
"Maybe, I wanted to take it for a trial run"
"Turn around"
I obey and face my back to him, in front of me is my full length mirror Nana got me when I first got here. My ears pick up a soft click and then a sort of shutting sound, like a box. Louis brings a beautiful locket into view, putting it around my neck and clipping it in place with the tiny heart-shaped locket falling against my chest.
My fingers hold it up and run over it with my thumb picking up several intricate designs that I can't really make out in the lack of light.
"Its beautiful, Louis"
"It was my grandma's. She had it for........well, a long time before giving it to me so I'm giving it to you"
"Oh, I can't take this. It must have so much of value to your family"
I reach for my nape and attempt to unclip it but Louis seizes my hands and holds them at my sides. He kisses my neck where the chain link is.
"It does but I know you'll take care of it and will love it just as much as she did"
"I already love it but are you sure?"
"Of course, I wanted to give you something to remember me by"
"You're in my every thought, a reminder isn't necessary"
"But I gave it to you anyway" he keeps his grip on my hands but spins me around to face him. I'm given no time to think because he crashes his lips to mine still holding my hands at my back.
He pulls me over to my bed and sits down dragging me down onto his lap. He let's go of my wrists and grips my thighs instead hoisting them up and around him so that I'm straddling him. From this position I appear taller than him but he doesn't mind.
He moves from my lips to my jawline down to my neck where he dominates my soft-spot again making me moan in pain and pleasure. He takes advantage of my weakness but using this opportunity to pick me up and lay me down on my pillow. He dips down kissing my skin at every point at the chain touched my skin, including the locket that now rested in the valley between my breasts.
That night Louis made love to me for the second time in my life.
***
"Okay, bags?"
"They're downstairs. Sam, calm down" Louis has been trying to keep me sane the entire morning - and he's failing.
"Okay, bags, satchel..." I list everything I'm supposed to have with me as I run up and down the stairs making sure I didn't leave anything behind.
Upstairs I close all the doors and do the last check-up in my room. I run downstairs and notice the door's wide open.
"Was the door always open?" I ask Louis when I'm on the last step.
A pair of strong arms wrap around my waist halting me instantly. They turn me around so that I'm looking into the eyes of the most beautiful human being.
"Will you please calm down? Yes the door was open" Louis kisses my cheek briefly and I feel disappointed when he pulls away.
"Where is your shirt?" My palms are flat against his chest over the tattooed text that ran across it.
"Lost it" he drops his head onto my shoulder and buries his head in my damp hair. Everytime he speaks against my skin it tingles.
"You can borrow one of mine"
His laugh makes me tingle all over, not just my neck.
"No I'm good"
The clearing of a throat makes me jump and pull away but Louis keeps his hold on my waist. I crane my neck turning to see who it is that interrupted us. Nana stands innocently at the door with her embroidered purse in one hand. Her expression is blank but I see the sides of her mouth twitching.
"Hey, Nana", I struggle out of Louis' hold and stride up to Nana giving her a tight squeeze,"I missed you"
"Oh, I doubt that" she winks at me and the blush makes its appearance again.
"I'll take the bags out to the car" Louis announces unaffected by Nana walking in on us. He grabs all three cases and tows it out to the car.
"So, how are you, Nana?" I ask her hoping she won't poke
"That doesn't matter. Sam, I'm so happy for you" she hugs me again in my daze
"Sorry? What?"
"You are being safe though, right?"
"Nana!"
"Oh he can't hear us. I'm just happy that you actually like someone because I know you won't get freaky with just anyone"
"Get freaky? Nana, where did you go?"
"Anyway, we better get going. Your flight is in 30 minutes, right?"
"Uh-yeah"
***
"Sam?! We're leaving!" Zack calls to me from the boarding entrance.
My ticket is clutched tightly in my hand as I turn to face Nana and Louis. Louis looks uncomfortable, well he was uncomfortable for the entire ride here and that's when Nana didn't ask him anything so I feel sorry for him on the ride back.
"Well, I gotta go" I hug Nana first inhaling her sweet, elderly scent that I just love.
"Call everyday, baby girl. Have fun, I think" she says lost for words
"I promise" I say turning to Louis who scoops me up instantly for a tight hug.
"I love you, be safe and come back in one piece. Take care of my heart because you have it"
"I love you too and I'll try not to break anything"
He pulls away giving me a small peck on my lips before I turn around and head for the boarding gate. I hand my ticket to the attendant and turn around to wave at them.
Ella and I are sitting right at the back - this plane was assigned to the graduates going to New York - and I got the window. Zack and another student are sitting in front of us. I switch off all electronic devices at the order of the captain praying that the Jeffrey Archer novel Honour Amongst Thieves will be enough to keep me occupied during the nearly ten hour flight.