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8. New Suspicions
Last Updated:
2023-01-17 18:02:13Related chapters
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 9. What a Party
Kate Crawford comes at me with everything that she has. Her hands grip both sides of my head, taking a bunch of my curls in them, and her nails scrape my face as she let out a guttural scream. I stagger back at the surprise attack, almost losing my balance. "Kate! What the hell?!" I protest. "How dare you! I had nothing to do with those letters. Why would you tell Brandon Oh that I sent them?!" Kate yells at me, practically frothing at the mouth. "What the hell are you talking about?!" I ask her, still trying to defend myself from her attacks. What the hell is going on? Finding my chance, I wrap my hands around her wrists, stalling her move to slap me. Damn it. This is why Olive tried to stop me from going into the bathroom. "Okay, Kate, just...calm down. I swear, I have no idea what you're talking about. What did Brad do?" I ask Kate. She hiccups and suddenly, Kate becomes limp and starts to cry. I just stand there, still holding her wrists, not knowing what to do. "I know y
Last Updated : 2023-01-29Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 10. Just for a Moment
I stir and rub myself deeper into the comforter that surrounds me. Gosh, this bed is so warm. I can stay here forever. Wait... a bed? Without warning, I sit up, almost pulling a tendon on my shoulder at the sudden motion. I whip my head around, looking at my surroundings, and lightning shoots up inside my brain so I had to close my eyes again. I saw enough, though. I am in a room that I don't recognize. Where the hell am I? What happened? "Calm down. You're safe here with me." I scream at the voice and movement beside me. Seb. He's in the bed with me, shirtless. Panicked, I scoot farther from him on the bed, checking my own decency. Seb rolls his eyes, bringing an arm to cover his head as his head falls back down on the bed. The muscles in his arm flexed as he moved and I try not to stare at them, and especially not at his smooth chest. "Stop being so dramatic, A. It's not like we haven't slept together on the same bed before," he said, closing his eyes, his lashes impossibly lon
Last Updated : 2023-02-02Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 11. Targets
"How is he?" I ask Lucien as I see him exit Seb's room. Lucien silently closes Seb's door before turning to answer me. He has his stethoscope around his neck, probably one of the rare times that he has it on at home. "He's doing better, Ari. He'll be back in school tomorrow. You should get going or you'll be late." I nod but remain standing before Lucien, "Look, I just want you to know I'm sorry that Seb wasn't more present at your party. It was my fault." Lucien raises his eyebrows incredulously, "Why would it be your fault?" "He was mad at me and didn't want to see me." Lucien sighs, "No, I'm sure it wasn't you, Ari. I know for a fact how elated he is that you're back. I bet if he can have you glued to his side, he would do so. He was hiding from the party because of an argument we had the night before." I'm sure Lucien is the one who's wrong. Seb told me himself that he wasn't at the party because of me. But I am more curious about their argument so I dare to ask, "What
Last Updated : 2023-02-04Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 12. Plans
"Seb, please tell me you're feeling better and can go to school today. Kier's out of his wits, he's definit---" I stop, covering my eyes in horror. "Oh my God! I did not just see that!" I hear a crash beside me, presumably Seb scrambling to get dressed. "Why the hell are you naked?" I yell, heart pounding in my throat. Dear God. Why does this thing keep happening to us? It's really time for us to have a "Please Knock" sign plastered in front of both our bedroom doors. "What are you talking about?! This is my room. I was changing!" Seb shouted back, but I can hear laughter in his voice. "Shut up," I murmur, aware of the blush that took over my cheeks. He's right. I am the one who came into his room without an announcement. "Are you fully dressed now?" I ask him, never taking my hands off my eyes. His smooth, tanned skin burned behind my eyelids, and I would die of embarrassment if I saw it again. "Yes, I'm dressed," Seb replies, amused. "Right." I straighten up, still avoiding
Last Updated : 2023-02-14Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 13. Broken
Back when we were kids, Kier had told me about his first love. His first kiss. It was a cute little story. It was at a mall during one of his vacations in South Korea, a girl was crying because she lost an earring. Kier had found it and kissed the girl to make her feel better. And just like every little thing in my life, I wrote about it in my diary. For anyone, this bit of information getting revealed would be harmless. Not for Kier. That's because his first love, Nikki, is his fiancee's sister and they were just very recently seen leaving a restaurant together. Not only that, Kier's fiancee is famous. She is THE Ella Kingsley, and with Kier being the heir to Livingston Hotel, their marriage is highly anticipated and publicized in the news every single day. Sure, Kier had wanted out of the engagement for a long time, but I doubt he would appreciate this, considering he's still in love with Nikki. "Kier..." I can only utter his name as I stare at him sitting on his bed, with his he
Last Updated : 2023-03-07Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 14. Rooftops
I am in and out. Like the sun that rises above to be seen but is sometimes hindered by the clouds around it. "Ari, Ari? You're okay, right? Please tell me you're okay." I open my eyes just enough to see Cal hovering over me, our friends behind him. But then everything gets blurry and I had to close my eyes again. The next time I wake up, it was only Seb and Lucien by my bedside now, arguing again. They're always arguing these days. "This is the second time this happened to her. She should be seeing a psychiatrist." Lucien is telling Seb. "And you think she'll willingly go? You know her. It's a feat to convince her to talk to us, her own friends, about her problems. You think she'd just go see a therapist?" Seb replies. "So, you don't think she needs one?" Lucien asks. "No, I definitely think she needs one. I'm just saying..." I open my mouth to get them to stop, but the world dissolves again. The next time I open my eyes, everything is looking a bit clearer and I know I
Last Updated : 2023-03-09Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 15. Turning point
His head hits the tile pretty hard, bounces, and I grasp it with my hand, fearing that it might hit the floor again. I feel a pull in my IV and I think my hand bleeds but I don't register the pain. "Seb! Seb, you idiot." I ask him, "Are you okay?! Seb!" "I'm...okay. I'm okay." Seb says, wincing in pain as he sits up. "Are you sure?" I ask again worriedly. "Yes...ow!" Seb grunts. "What? What is it?" I reach up to push his hair back, inspecting his head for bruises, while he looks at me amused. "Stop that," I tell him, pulling my hands back to myself. "Stop what?" "Looking at me like that. It's annoying." I say. "How do I look at you? I don't know what you're talking about." Seb says, then his face softens. "A..." He starts to lean in, and I get a good view of his eyes. Starview Magazine, one of the leading gossip papers in the country right now, has listed him as one of the hottest young heirs of our generation. A panel had talked lengthily about his eyes and I remember
Last Updated : 2023-03-11Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 16. Suspicious
"Are you ready?" I turn to Lucien, standing by the balcony of my hospital room, his phone in his hand. It is my last day at the hospital, finally deemed fit for discharge. Although from the conversations that I overheard, they never really settled on a diagnosis for me since all of my tests were normal. The only thing they haven't ruled out is a psychological disorder. And so far, Lucien hasn't brought up the subject with me yet, no doubt finding the right moment for it. So for now, I am good to go. "Leave your bags. I'll have some porters carry them to the car." Lucien says, his fatherly smile on. But it doesn't fool me. Inside, I know his brain is working full-time in trying to gauge the right time to ask me to go to a psychiatrist. I mentally send him a message of defiance. "Thanks." I return his smile tightly, then ask, "Where's Seb?" "Oh, didn't they tell you? He's at our country club with Kier and the others. Apparently, they planned some sort of tournament for the weekend. S
Last Updated : 2023-04-10
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Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 35. Stronger Together
"Marrying someone he doesn't love? Didn't he learn anything from me? Please tell me you're not going to let him." Kier says as he angrily plays with his food. I don't blame him. Nobody likes the hospital cafeteria's food. It's Day 3 of Lucien's ICU stay and all of us had been taking turns in watching him, and Seb, as he refuses to go home at the moment. I sigh, feeling a twinge in my heart at Seb's words to me last night. I open my mouth to reply respond to Kier, ready to defend Seb's decision eventhough it broke me. But a voice over me interrupts. "That's exactly what I told him," I try not to show my surprise. It's Sara. Brad told me that she visited Lucien yesterday, but he didn't say anything about Sara visiting again today. Kier's eyebrows rise up as Sara seats herself at our table without invitation, continuing her speech, "His brain is supposed to be genius-level but can he seriously not get out of this one without compromising his future?" Sara huffs, taking a fry from
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 34. A Father's Wish
Lucien is in critical condition, and I am at a loss on how I can console Seb at the moment. He wouldn't leave his Dad's side, so I am left taking care of things at the house. To put my mind away from what's happening, I decided to clean Lucien's office before I'm set to leave for the again hospital myself. Dave has offered to drive me and he says he's now pulling in the driveway.I'm halfway into emptying the last drawer when I found a letter. Well, not quite a letter but a well-drafted contract by Seb about how Lucien shouldn't adopt me. It's dated around the time that I came back here from California. There, Seb also explained how he wished for me to be his wife. I begin to tear up. He even said he would be a doctor just so he could marry me. The contract was signed.But now, the company's in trouble and Lucien is suffering. This promise that Seb is willing to put out to be with me, how is he ever going to fulfill this? How can I ask for him to go through
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 33. Make up
Making love after a fight is the best. The way Seb is moving right now is enough to melt me. I was wrong, he was actually meeting Dave and the others when I ambushed him in front of his bedroom door. But after we made up, he immediately changed his plans."Ow," he winces as I accidentally scratch his backside."Sorry," I whisper against his mouth, pushing him further into me.He smiles and continues thrusting into my core, and I moan, feeling the heat builds up inside me."I'm close," I murmur on his neck, biting just beneath his Adam's apple."Yes, give it to me, baby," he coaxes and it isn't long until I'm helpless in his arms. A few seconds after I stop shuddering at the sensation he gave me, his movements become even faster as he seeks his own release.I nip at his ear, encouraging him with my words.Seb then grunts, pushing inside of me one last
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 32. Courage
I get off the phone with my lawyer in California. My flight to Cali is tomorrow and I can't be more nervous. I wonder how Olive is doing now. I haven't talked to her since our ugly confrontation at the cemetery. I guess she should be at least doing fine, as Brit is there with her. "Ari, can I talk to you?" an unfamiliar voice takes my attention. I whip around to see Sara beside me, gesturing for me to follow her to an empty classroom on our right. I frown. I've been trying to get thoughts of Seb away from my mind, which is hard enough with the two of us living in the same house. And seeing her seems to be equivalent to seeing Seb these days. "Sure," I say anyway, not wanting to start anything with her. As much as it pains me to think that Seb might have chosen her over me. It's not in my character to give a girl grief about it. Seb, however, I can be mad at. "I think you got it all wrong," Sara says as soon as we are out of earshot of our peers. I blink at her, "I'm sorry, wh
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 31. Confrontation
I guess I will forever be a coward. Seb is out tonight, possibly with Sara and I still can't confront him about it. Instead, I invited Dina over to get drunk. I don't tell her what's wrong, even she doesn't know about me and Seb. But she could clearly tell that I am hiding something."Something is bothering you," Dina remarks, narrowing her eyes at me as I down another glass. "You're usually not this heavy of a drinker."I laugh nervously, "What are you talking about? I just wanted a girls' night, Dina. We haven't had one of these since..." I trail off. The last time we drank was with Olive and Brit, and we had a great time, too."I think...what we can do now is to move on," Dina says, guessing correctly what I was thinking, "I want to think positively and say that everything's going to be alright between us and them, but...I don't think we can go back to what we were before."I open my mouth to reply, but there is a knock on my door, "A
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 30. The Past
"That weekend, in California. I finally visited Mom's grave." Seb's finger stops tracing circles on my thighs. He grips my waist, settling himself on my chest, not saying a word. "I thought I would break down again, but strangely enough, I felt calm." I smile as I recount, "Maybe because I got to talk to Olive before I came to her." "You were probably thinking that everything would be okay." Seb says, smiling at me. I smile back and gave him a peck. His lips are stained red, courtesy of the gloss from my lipstick. His hair a mess and there are scratch marks on his chest. I expect them, of course, we had a pretty intense night. A blush creeps up my face, even as I chuckle at the thought. This. The contentment that I feel with him makes my heart swell. I can stay in this moment forever. "What's funny? Huh? What's funny?" Seb asks, positioning to tickle the sensitive spot in the dip between my waist and hip. I squirm, screeching. "Shhh...Lucien might hear you." I clamp down my m
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 29. Close Again
I know it isn't going to be easy making things right with Olive. Even as she agreed to my plan, she isn't talking to me yet, and only does so when it involves the case against Lyle. I also know that it isn't going to be easy convincing Kier and the others to drop the charges against Olive. So, in order to do that, I had to tell the boys my deepest darkest secret, the truth about my life in California. Feeling like I just ran a marathon, I slump in the sofa of our living room, spent. It's hard for me to remember the things that my mother and I went through living with Lyle, and even harder for me to tell the boys about it. I close my eyes, unable to look any of them in the eye. Beside me, Seb moves, as if he's unable to stop himself from touching me. But I know he wouldn't. He had promised to give me space. Plus, our friends don't know about us yet. I don't know how they will react if they found out that Seb and I were keeping our relationship from them. The silence stretches inside
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 28. A heart to heart
The California air does not burn through my lungs anymore. But then again, it didn't try to do that the entire time I was here. That was only when Cassie died. "Is this really the best idea? To talk to her alone? A, you're smarter than this." Seb says on the other line as I walk through a wide path in the cemetery. Once I've explained everything to Brit, she was calm enough to at least hear us out about what we want to do next. Hours later, and I've landed in California. I sigh, "Do you really think I'm here alone? She says she's staying at the hotel but I know Dina is here somewhere, ready to jump in and rescue me in case anything happens," I reply, almost smiling. Having Dina as a friend is like having a bodyguard. "Yes, and about that. Is it a good idea for Dina to skip classes? Last I heard, she's failing most of her classes due to several absences." Seb says, "You should've taken me or Dave with you, really, any of the guys will do." I sigh, "I know. And I heard you told Lu
Love and Letters (Ari & Sebastian's Story) 27. Stalemate
My hands shake as I pick up the cup of tea that the waitress just gave me. I finally did it. I called the number, and the blackmailer agreed to meet. After telling her of my suspicions and about the number that the blackmailer left me, Dina insisted on coming with me to confront her. I couldn't argue so she's currently sitting just two tables behind me, and I can feel her gaze burning a hole through my back. The bell to the cafe's door rang and I look up nervously, and behind a man in a dark suit entered a woman. I close my eyes, steeling myself. She isn't what I expected but it was close. "Brit." I murmur as she approaches my table, "Don't tell me...are you...?" "Ari?" Brit asks, taking a seat in front of me, her forehead scrunches in confusion, "What are you doing here?" I frown too, "I...um...I was just...what are you doing here?" "This is Olive's family's cafe," Brit replies. Olive. The sound of her name leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. The moment Dina spelled it all o
