Chapter 7

I reached the door about to head outside when Lydia spoke, having her back towards me.

"It's a touchy subject with him, we had one incident with our dad and then our sister just made more problems a few years ago. He doesn't like to talk about it," she said. I turned around to face her back and walked over to her bed. I laid down next to her and she turned over to lay down on her back instead of her side.

"What happened?" I asked with a hint of curiosity that I was trying to hide.

She gave a sigh before saying anything. She turned her head to look at me and I did the same. She turned her head back to look at the creme ceiling while I still kept my eyes locked on her.

"Trevor was 8 and I was 6. I was supposed to start kindergarten and Trevor was supposed to start second grade. Our older sister is only 2 years older than Trevor so she was supposed to be in fourth grade but she was way more advanced than kids in our school. She managed to skip 2 grades and was already at a 6th-grade level. Since schools closed to stop the spread of diseases, our mom tried to teach us all that she could," she paused. She closed her eyes and her face tensed at the memory that was playing in her head.

"Our Dad had a really bad temper and I wasn't doing the best and one day my dad was drunk. Completely wasted, to the point that he came in stumbling in the living room when we were in a session. I was learning about multiplication and second graders aren't the best learners," She laughed.

"I started to cry because I was so frustrated. I didn't understand what I was learning and my dad was so annoyed with my crying that he started yelling 'Shut up you stupid kid' while he threw his beer bottle over my head. After that, I started to cry louder and my mom was about to take me to my room but that's when I felt the sting on my cheek. Our dad slapped me so I would shut up and it worked. But Trevor and our sister watched it all. The bottle, the slap, the yelling at me. Our sister did nothing, she just brushed it off but Trevor has always been protective of me. So he took me to my room and stayed with me until I calmed down," she said. Her face relaxed after she told her story.

"So that's why he hates your dad but what about your sister? He talks about her like she was a terrible person. He doesn't even say her name," I said, giving her a confused look.

Before she could tell me about her, Trevor walked into the room. We both looked at him with the same question in our eyes.

"I'm sorry, Lydia," he said, looking at her. She stood up from the bed and walked over to Trevor and gave him a hug. I could feel the faint smile creeping up on my face.

I tried to sit up on the bed, but I forgot that my stomach was bruised. I let out a small noise of pain that only Trevor heard because as soon as he did, he looked at me. He whispered something to Lydia and they both let go of each other at the same time. She left the room and I saw her walk past us through the window.

"You ok?" he asked, walking over to me. He sat on the edge of the bed and I scooted over to sit next to him.

"Yeah. Just hurts to sit up," I said looking down at my hands resting in my lap. I could feel his eyes looking at me. I didn't meet his eyes until I took a breath and started to speak.

"I didn't know about Lydia and your dad. But I just have one question about your sister," I said. He didn't seem angry, he seemed a little hurt. Like he knew what I was going to ask.

"Ok. Go ahead," He said.

I searched his eyes for the pain I was expecting but I couldn't figure what he actually felt.

"Is she dead?" I asked. I was scared when I actually asked the question. I expected him to shut me out when I asked the question but his face went soft. He looked away from me for a second and then looked at my hands in my lap, that were fiddling with my fingers. His brows drew together and then he looked at me. He took a deep breath before actually answering my question.

"She died last year. The WildFires traded her to scientists about 2 years ago for some cash. She was getting a little too old for their age range so they took advantage of that. The scientists ran so many experiments that she was so weak she couldn't support herself and one day her organs just...shut down," he said, looking through the window trying to focus on something.

"What is it?" I asked like I couldn't already hear what was coming. He narrowed his eyes to see what he could hear but he just shook his head, trying to shake the noise out. I stared at him with confusion on my face. I was trying to search his face for what I already knew. That he was like me. I could feel my brows drawing together in confusion. He turned his head back to me and laughed at my expression.

"So, I am guessing that you figured out what side-effects I got from the first round," He said with a bit of a joking tone. I could feel my face relax when I heard his voice. He laughed again.

His laugh was so sweet and soft and his voice was like honey. Just hearing his voice for a few seconds made me melt and feel more relaxed everywhere in my body. I could feel the smile creep up on my face when he met my eyes. I broke the stare when I looked down at my hands and started fidgeting with my fingers. Making shapes with them like I always do when I'm nervous.

"Can you tell me something?" He asked. I looked up at him and nodded.

He looked down and nodded at my hands before asking "Why do you always do that with your hands. Whenever you're thinking or nervous you always make a triangle and then a circle, and you just alternate."

I took a deep breath before explaining.

"Before my mom died, our family always had this little game that we would always play on road trips. We would always take turns making a shape with our fingers and the rest of us would have to guess what shape we made without looking at our hands. I usually do it because it reminds me of my mom. My shape was always a triangle and hers was always a circle," I said looking at him.

"Was she...like you?" He asked, with a small smile on his face. When he asked that, It brought me back to the day my dad and I went to Wal-Mart. The day he died. I looked away from him and then stood up from the bed.

"I didn't mean to make you upset. I was just curious what she looked like. If she was as beautiful as you because I'm pretty sure that looks don't just come out of nowhere," He said, with a teasing tone.

I turned around to look at him with surprise in my eyes. I could feel my cheeks burning when I heard him say that. He stood up from where he was sitting and walked over to me. He looked down at me looking for my reaction to what he said. I looked down so he wouldn't see my cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. I responded to his question about my mom.

"I look just like her. We both had the same hair and eyes but her smile," I took a pause and looked up at Trevor. "Nobody had her smile. She could make anyone in a 2-mile radius feel like they have nothing to worry about. She could make anyone smile," I said. I smiled when I remembered the sweet voice singing to Crazy Train. Trevor moved closer to me, closing the distance we had between us. His dark eyes were searching mine. I could feel his warm breath, and it sent a shiver through every inch of my body. He smelled like leather and rain, and it made every muscle in my body relax. I could feel him grab my hand and entwine our fingers together.

I heard the door burst open, and I backed away from Trevor and untangled our hands. Lydia was standing in the middle of the doorway, with her arms crossed over her chest. The sunset made her hair look more red than brown.

"So am I going to sleep out here tonight or am I going to be able to sleep in a nice bed tonight?" she said sarcastically. I couldn't stop the smile from creeping up on my face. She closed the door as she walked in and sat on the bed that she did earlier.

"I'm going to go take a shower," I said, walking into the bathroom with the clothes I plan on wearing for tonight.

I locked the door once I stepped into the bathroom. I set my clothes down on the toilet seat. I walked over to the shower, turning it on, and took off the clothes I was wearing. I folded them neatly and put them on the rack that had all the towels on them. I took my hair out of the braid it was in and let it fall past my shoulders.

I stepped into the shower, letting the hot water fall on my skin. I felt myself drift off into my thoughts. I thought of my mother's beautiful voice, singing a lullaby when I was little. I thought of my dad coming home for the first time after deployment. I remember the hug that he gave me when we were in the airport. He almost choked me in his grip but it felt so nice to be in his arms again. Then I thought of Jared. I thought of us eating candy at 1 AM, I thought of the nights that we spent outside, making shapes out of the stars. I thought about what he did on his birthday without anyone there.

I turned off the shower, replaying the thought of Jared all alone on his birthday. I wrapped the towel around myself, covering all the bruises that healed throughout the day and have minimized. I wiped my hand across the mirror, wiping the steam off, looking at myself. My hair was darker and longer because of the water. My skin was the same mid-tone of tan and pale. And my dark eyes were the same dark brown.

As I stared at my dark eyes in the mirror, I remembered a memory that was only of me and my mom. I was in Jared's bed with candy wrappers on my stomach. Jared was laying on his side, his back facing me and my mom walked in and saw me lying there eating a KitKat. I heard her soft chuckle before she sat on the edge of the bed, looking at me. I offered her a bite, trying to buy her off so she wouldn't yell, but even without the bribe, she still didn't yell. Instead she took a Twix and ate with me. She then walked me back to my room, tucked me in, and said the catchphrase Jared and I always use.

"I love you to the stars..." She said, her voice soft and sweet.

"And to the moon," I responded.

She left my room and as soon as she did everything went black. The knock on the bathroom door brought me back into reality.

"Amber, are you ok?" I heard the soft, husky voice speak.

I got dressed quickly, brushed my hair past my shoulders to where it stopped, and hung the towel up, before opening the door and walking past Trevor. I could feel his eyes following me all the way to the bed and then I heard Lydia say, "Don't get any ideas idiot, it's my turn."

She started walking towards the bathroom and locked the door as soon as she got in. I sat down on the edge of the bed carefully and swung my legs onto the bed, letting my upper body stay straight up and my lower body resting on the bed. Trevor walked over to my bed and sat next to me, in the same position I was in.

"What was it about me?" I asked, curious.

His face went from relaxed to confused in one second. "What do you mean?" he said, looking at me.

"When I first came to the warehouse. Nobody was even looking at me but when they were done with me, you were the only one to help me. Why?" I asked.

"Why not?" he said, counter arguing my question

"I just don't get it. You could have just left me there and let me deal but you helped me. Despite the fact that the guys weren't supposed to talk to the girls," I said.

"There was just something about you. I couldn't tell what it was but I knew when I saw you, that I needed to help you. Protect you," He said. Before I could even get a word out, he continued.

"It's like you were this little puppy. You're mainly sweet but you also have a built-in defense that you won't let anyone past. But like every puppy, you need support sometimes," He said, looking at me for an emotion.

I looked at him. My eyes searched his face before I said, "Yeah well this puppy is way more stubborn than the rest of the litter," I said. I sank my body into the bed, putting both of my hands on the pillow and laying on my side, having my back towards Trevor. Before I closed my eyes and fell into darkness, I felt his hand on my waist. His thumb was moving up and down in a soothing motion. I felt myself relax under his hand. Then I felt his body leave the bed and the last thing to leave was his hand. That's when I fell into a sweet sleep.

When I opened my eyes, it was pitch black in the room except for the light coming from the window. I rubbed my eyes with my hands and tried to focus on the dark figure standing in front of the window. He was tall and strong and most of all...shirtless. The moonlight lit up every bruise and scar on his body. His chestnut brown hair looked lighter than it actually was. I peeled my eyes off Trevor and stared at the ceiling. That's when I felt the movement next to me.

Lydia was squirming next to me and whispering under her breath.

"No, please, don't take her," she kept repeating. My eyes wandered to her dark figure and that's when I felt her sit up. Trevor looked behind him, so I closed my eyes pretending to sleep. I heard him come around to Lydia's side of the bed and he reassured her.

"Hey, hey, it's ok. It was just a dream," He said.

"No, it wasn't," Lydia said in a panicked voice. I could feel his body shift forward and hers as well too. What she said next sounded muffled, probably from his shoulder.

"It was the day at the gas station. When they shot Dad and took all three of us," she said. I felt their release from the hug that they were in. That's when I connected all the dots. Their dad was shot in a gas station 3 years ago, their sister was 16 at the time, and their mom said the exact same thing as the woman that was in the burgundy car. Was it possible that this was the family that Jared and I saw?

I felt Trevor leave the bed. He walked over into the bathroom and when I heard the door close I turned towards Lydia. Lydia's light brown eyes were searching my face for what I was about to say but before I could, her face turned into anger.

"You were there. The silver car parked in front. That was you wasn't it," she said, with shock on her face and anger in her voice.

I nodded at her and before she could turn away, I explained myself.

"I was 13. My brother was only 9 and our parents were in the store. We were both on the car floor trying to hide. He was so scared and our parents weren't there to drive us. I looked through the windshield to see what happened and it was all so quick. I saw your dad and your sister, and I didn't know it was you and Trevor until just now," I said, speaking quickly so she wouldn't ignore me. Her face seemed to relax and I found understanding in her expression.

"I get it. You were trying to protect your brother. I know that if the situation was reversed that Trevor would have done the same. I just wish that your parents were there to at least do something. That was...the scariest day of my life," She said. She turned onto her other side, turning her back towards me.

"But if Trevor finds out, I don't think he is going to handle it so well," she said with a bit of a teasing tone.

"Why?" I asked, curious why she could understand but he couldn't.

"Well because...It hurts his masculinity. You know, the brave 17-year-old boy show," she said laughing at her comment. That's when I heard the door from the bathroom open. Trevor was standing in the open space a few feet away from us.

"Excuse me but it's not a show Lydia," He said with a laugh following his comment.

"Ok, sure, whatever Trevor," She said before falling asleep.

I got up from the bed, carefully so I wouldn't wake Lydia up and not let a little noise of pain out. I walked over to the other bed where Trevor was sitting on the opposite side, his back turned towards me. I sat down on the edge carefully and sank into the bed, pulling the sheets over my cold body. Trevor put his legs up onto the bed and had his upper body straight up, having his hands behind his head.

"You ok?" I asked, propping myself up on my elbow.

"Yeah, it's just the fact that Lydia always has those dreams. She had that day on repeat for almost a month. They stopped a week ago so I thought that she was better but.." He lost his train of thought and then looked down at me. I didn't bother meeting his gaze, instead I was focused on a scar that was on his abs. I lifted my hand and traced it with my pointer finger. I could feel him relax as soon as my hand touched him. I looked up at him and his eyes were closed. I lifted my hand and before I could put it down, he grabbed me delicately and placed my hand back on the scar.

"It feels nice," He said, still having his eyes closed.

"What happened?" I asked, looking up at his messy hair. He opened his eyes and looked at me. I met his eyes, ripping them away from his light brown hair. He looked away and up at the ceiling before closing them again. He took a deep breath and I felt his body rise and fall under my hand.

"It was 2 years ago in the gang. I was taking care of one of the girls but I didn't know she had a knife on her. She stabbed me in order to get out of the warehouse but the guys stopped her and took her away. After that day, I never saw her again," He said, drawing his brows together in thought.

"What do you think happened to her?" I asked. I felt him sink into the bed. I took my hand off his smooth abs. He opened his eyes and turned to look at me.

"I think that...they either gave her to scientists for money or, they..." He paused. By the look in his face I already knew what he was going to say. I saw his jaw clench at my reaction. I stiffened right next to him.

"Do you think...that's what would have happened a few days ago. If you hadn't stepped in and said what happened," I asked, with a hint of fear in my voice. He put a hand on my cheek, cupping it with such care.

"I do. But I wasn't going to let that happen," He said. I moved closer to him and rested my head on his chest. His arm came around my body, putting me in an embrace that made me feel safe like my father's. I could feel his strong arms treat me so delicate and his touch was so feather-light.

"I wasn't going to let anything happen to you," He whispered in my ear. I felt his grip on me tightened and I could feel the warmth coming off of his body.

I felt safe in his arms. And with that feeling, I slept in his arms the whole night.