He looks so deadly serious, delivering another wound to my soul and I break down properly. Heart-wrenching with how bad this can feel, how bad his rejections always affect me, and I start to cry painfully. Like a wounded child who doesn’t care if anyone sees her. Arrick moves towards me as tears make their way down my face, his own face crumbling at the sight of them, and losing all resolve.
“Stop crying, Mimmo, you know I hate seeing you cry.” His voice breaks with emotion, reaching for me, soft and tender, but I just slap his hands away aggressively. Full fury pouring out at his rejection, heart bruised again and not in the mood to have any more of his touches, innocent or not. He just messes me up.
“Go to hell.” I walk past him at speed, shoving him aside with a shoulder bump, determined to get away from the source of my pain and head towards home. Arrick pauses for a moment, watches me, and then follows me closely.
&ldq
There have been so many tears this morning. I’ve seen Leila, Daniel and the twins, after I went to see Ava at the hospital with Jake and Emma; another beautiful little green-eyed darling, yet she’s fair, so I think she will be a mix of her two parents rather than one of each.It’s clear that they are both completely infatuated with her, and they had all three kids in the private room while Jake was taking it in turns to cuddle up with them and the baby, to let them see their new sister. The whole scene was just heart-warming. Emma looks amazing, recovering in bed and hoping to be home later today, despite Jake’s reservations that she should stay there for a few days.I throw the last of my clothes in the packing boxes on my bed. I have taken everything I want this time, including some stuffed bears and personal things with sentimental value and the rest of my cosmetics. It’s real this time, leaving home properly, and this time with my fami
I have finally unpacked the clothes I want to keep handy, into Arrick’s spare room wardrobe, and every other box is piled neatly in the corner. I know with the speed the Carreros get things done, I should have an apartment sooner than later. I’m looking forward to having my own space though and if last night is anything to go by, staying here will get harder as time passes. The sooner I move out and get some distance, a real step up in my life, get this show on the road, so to speak, the sooner I will feel better.The drive home was strained, mostly silent, and Arrick hasn’t even tried to talk me out of my mood. He left me be to stare at the scenery, lost in my own thoughts and listen to the radio. Four hours of music and heavy silence, with only the odd conversation about food when he stopped at a drive through-u. I have literally lost all will to even try today, and he is doing what he does best. Submerged in his head, mulling over God knows what and prese
I won’t let either of them see me upset. I dig my heels in, bite down the hurt and drag on that perfect mask of indifference. He wanders the last few feet to greet the opening doors, and I stiffen inside. I try to relax, try to make this look as natural as I can sitting here with my food. I channel hop to find something to watch, without any sort of attention or focus on the screen, laying my water on the table and pull over a cushion for my lap to cradle my plate.I hear Natasha’s voice in the foyer with his, greeting him, and mumbling small talk. I refuse to look their way, even though my heart is hammering in my chest and just focus on the music at the start of the movie I randomly clicked on. I don’t want to see them embrace, kiss or whatever; he must be gone in the head to think this is anything but abnormal.“Hi, Sophie. You look nice today.” Natasha’s silky sweet putrid voice sets my teeth on edge and I turn her way with a fak
I don’t know even how to react to that, and all I can feel are Natasha’s trusting eyes on us, as we both act like guilty kids whose mom just caught them dry humping on the couch. I grab it from him as we both catch it and click on any button my finger hits. Only it’s worse, and it is actual porn this time, with an up-close view of someone’s ass being violated by the world’s biggest penis. Arrick has one of those dumb TV’s with internet crap and buttons for crazy things. It would seem he has a direct link to porn on this damn demon-like contraption, which actually surprises me. He doesn’t seem like the porn type. I throw him a serious questioning, if a little accusatory, frown as he slaps a hand over my eyes, covering them.“For the love of God.” Arrick groans and slides the thing from my fingers as I push his other off my face, to do some
“I know he does... He told me he does... But I don’t know if he’s still in love with me. I think there’s maybe someone else.” She glances my way again, and the trusting ache reflected in those pleading eyes tells me she truly does not look at me and see a threat. She has no idea he could look at me that way, and it only kills me more. Throat dries up, my body gets clammy and my skin cools as all my blood drains from me. I stammer, clear my throat to get a grip on my voice and then take a deep breath.“Have you asked him?” I force out, gulping hard, trying to evade this conversation, yet caught in it with no chance of escape. She shakes her head sadly.“I’m too terrified that the answer might be yes. And then what will I do? I’ll die without him.” She sobs some more, and I start willing like crazy for him to come and save me from this conversation. I have no idea what to say or how to act. It&rsq
I spend the morning filling out applications and emailing Jake’s assistant back, over apartments she’s sent me to look over. Choosing a couple that I think look nice I tell her to set me up viewings for as soon as possible. One of them is small, close to the school, and looks cozy and easy to maintain. My instant gut reaction to the pictures is that it is more than a possibility.Arrick came back so late last night I didn’t even hear him come home. Sound asleep and oblivious to what time he came back after tossing and turning myself into unconsciousness. I don’t want to know anything about where they were, what they said, or what they did. I don’t even want to know what time he showed up, because my mind will probably point in directions that kill me, about what they could’ve been doing half the night at her apartment. I’m so not able to cope with tha
“These are good, Sophs, I mean it. You have skills.” I can’t tell by his tone if he’s joking and mocking me, or if he’s serious. I’m still hanging down his back, using my palms on his muscular shoulder blades to try to lever myself up. Aware my hands are roaming over him freely, and he doesn’t seem to give a shit. It’s obvious that his ‘not appropriate’ sensor is switched off at the moment, and he really is focused on my artwork.“Let me go. You’re an asshole.” I snap at him and then yelp when he slaps me on the ass hard enough to make it sting and ring loudly. I guess my book has been discarded if he suddenly has a free hand and twist to try and get a better look. We’re now at the kitchen counter, and instead of holding it up he has it laid out on the black marble surface and is turning it, page by page, slowly as he takes a proper good look.“Sophs, I’m serious. These are
“Pretty sure we have, more than once. Maybe you were just too drunk to remember. I carried you to bed twice when you stayed here, after a party. Couldn’t trust any of the guys not to climb in with you and make a play for something more, so you slept with me.” I stare at him in disbelief, trying to recall any time I have ever woken up in his bed and seem to remember hazy memories of doing so once or twice, but always alone. I just assumed he let me use his bed and slept elsewhere. It feels kind of nice, in a warm weird way, to know that I have actually slept with him. That he took care of me that way and shared a bed without even knowing I had. My heart expands with affection, appreciating him with a definite smile and losing all the last ounces of shyness.Still my Arry after all.“Always the gentleman.” I giggle, toying with his shoe with the toe of mine still, distracted by the motion, and happier that we are being more like us,