Chapter 69

"-Lexis. Alexis!"

The said girl jumped in alarm, barely knocking over her soda as she turned to her friend Blair.

"What?" She asked, after forcefully swallowing the chunk of bread she hadn't chewed for the past five minutes.

"I've been calling you for ages! Whats gotten into you!" The fiery red head exclaimed, worry etched in her face.

Alexis felt bad at the sight of it.

"S-Sorry. It's nothing". She shrugged unconvincingly.

"It's that boy, isn't it? That guy named Shane. I don't like him. He seems dangerous", Blair shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Right. Shane". She groaned at the sound of his name.

The only thing that helped make her feel a bit less depressed was the fact that she didn't have to sit through another lecture. Classes had come to an end and all she wanted to do was go back to her apartment.

"I'm going back to the complex", she muttered as she stood up gathering her mess.

"What? What about Amy's party!?" Blair shouted, louder than she needed to.

'Oh.. right. Amy…' she was the main reason Alexis failed her course. Amy Thatcher was a pretty popular girl who took a liking to Alexis. Inviting her to any of her parties and chatting with her whenever she could.

Why she liked Alexis was an unanswered question. Until, the second year came along and she introduced Alexis to her twin brother who had a crush on Alexis. Let's just leave it at things didn't work out. At all.

Alexis shivered at the memories.

'Not going near that girl again…'

"I'll have to skip, but you go and have a great time" she waved at the pouting red head.

"But I don't know anyone there except for you!"

"Mingle!" Was all Alexis called before she sprinted off to her complex which wasn't far off from the College.

The apartment room was the same as it was left. Unpacked boxes labelled in her fathers unintelligible writing.

'Typical doctor' she snorted nostalgically at them. And for a moment she continued to stare at them.

Her hands rummaged her pockets for her phone, pressing the home button. Fingers gliding across the screen until she stopped on her mother's number in hesitation.

Her hand trembled and in its uncontrollable movement she had unconsciously pressed call. It was when the ringing met her ears that she cursed.

But she didn't hang up. Instead, she waited. And waited. Until the call went to voicemail.

"Hi This is Anna Marine. I'm not available right now so you can leave me a message or just call again. Have a nice day!" The familiar soft voice. The warmth Alexis has missed so much. She wanted to hug her and cry to her about all the stuff that has happened. Tell her about Alastair and ask her for advice.

She felt hot tears slip down cheeks. Falling faster and faster and in thicker clumps. She became a hiccuping mess, balled on the floor as she cried for her mum.

When her tears had dried and so had her eyes. She continued to stare at her phone.

It took a while for her to realise she couldn't call her mum. At least not yet anyway. Things had to be done.

And she had to clean the mess she made.

The room had darkened, the sun had set while she had broken down, leaving her in darkness. But, she could see. Her mana hadn't left or disappeared.

She moved to her bed just as a groan sounded out from her bathroom causing her to flinch and spin around to the door.

'I don't remember there being a home invasion'…

She walked carefully to the door, kicking it open in feigned confidence as she shouted.

"You messed with the wrong girl!"

The door banged against something and a louder groan emitted from what sounded like a grown man. She jumped forward into the room, surveying the place in less than a second just as her eyes met a sight that made her gasp.

Golden hair tousled over a chiselled face. A red cape spread across the floor, reflecting light off its fur surface as if it were fine silk.

"A-Alastair! What are you doing here?!" She cried at the man who lay on her bathroom floor, shrivelled in agony.

"To save you", he muttered between groans.

Alexis stared at his trembling body in shock. She moved her lips to shout at him, say something anything, but nothing left her lips except a strange sound. A muffled sound full of a barrel of mishandled emotions.

"I- I- huuu" she didn't expect the ugly crying to start all over again. As if her eyes weren't already swollen enough.

Alastair shot up at her sobbing, grasping her arm which attempted to cover up her face.

"Don't cry. I won't take you back if you want to stay, but I had to see", he paused looking at the ground as his face blossomed a light red, "I couldn't breath until I was sure if you really were safe"-.

"Stop", Alexis choked out between her tears, "Stop it. Stop it." She met her swollen eyes with his beautiful face that seemed to become even more enchanting than before. "I can't stay here. I have to go back".

Alastair nodded silently. He sat up with a groan and clutched his head with a sheepish smile.

"I'm glad".

He threw her a tired smile which she returned with another despite her swollen eyes and snot filled nose.

"Thanks for coming back for me. I mean it", she didn't expect his arm to fall on her shoulders so suddenly in a half hug, but she enjoyed it.

Basking in his warmth that made the thoughts of her parents disappear. His soothing presence was enough for her at that moment, so much that she didn't realise when she opened her mouth and said the words she had tried so hard to not say.

"I love you".

It took a moment for her realise the gravity of her words. In that moment Alastair's breath hitched and he stared at her with a blushing face. His eyes wide as he wanted to ask if he had really heard what he thought he did.

It was when she met those wide eyes that she realised what she said. Her heart thumped in her chest as her shocked face met Alastair's. Heat travelled up her body and she turned away in shame.

"I- I- didn't realise I said that. I didn't mean it"- her words were cut off by Alastair's hands that cupped her face turning her back towards him.

"I love you too".

Silence met them. The unromantic bathroom felt very romantic at that moment.

Her face flamed up when she processed his words. All too instantly, a smile she couldn't control appeared on her face, widening on it own.

She was so happy. So uncontrollably happy that she couldn't force down the smile and when her eyes met Alastair's and his smile, she grinned harder.

He chuckled and she joined in.

They both laughed together in a mess of emotions where love just happened to be.