Chapter 2: My Little World
Annabelle's POV
Even though, Seth and I had had not been in the same room in nearly 5 years. I knew when he arrived. The room suddenly felt smaller. It felt warmer. I felt safe. Only 2 people had every made me feel this way- Barrett and Seth. Slowly turning around, our eyes met. Suddenly, it was as if time stood still. Neither one of us moved . Neither of us blinked. We just stared. I'm not sure how long we were frozen for, but the clearing of someone's throat brought me out of my trance. Glancing over Seth's shoulder to see where the sound came from, I saw Roman. I had met him a handful of time and he was always pleasant.
Glancing back at Seth, I quickly rose from my seat. I was unsure of what to do. Should I speak Should I hug him. When I called his number, I had not thought out my plan entirely. At the moment, I just need sanctuary. Seth had always been my sanctuary and I knew I could count on him to be there even after all these years. But as we stood face to face, I did not know what to do. Yes, he came. But that did not change anything. I had abandoned him with no real explanation. I ignored his calls, text, emails, and DMs. I completely turned my back on him, but he was still here. Even tied into a man bun, I could tell his hair was a little longer. But other than that not much had change. He wore grey joggers and white t-shirt. That was always his go to outfit even when he was a teen. He was here. He was really here.
I didn't have to dwell on what to do for much longer as he quickly took strides across the room towards me. Before I could even speak, he pulled me into a hug. At that moment, I realized I had been holding my breath. Sighing into his arms, I could not stop the tears. Even with everything that I have done and everything I had been through, I still had something to count on. My rock was here. "Shh, shh, don't cry. You know I hate it when you cry", he murmured slowly in my ear as he laid soft kisses in between his words. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry". I wasn't sure what I was apologizing for. There was a list of things that I owed him an apologize for- calling him so late, abandoning him, secrets.
We were the only one in the lobby, but I'm sure we both could feel the uneasiness of having such a private moment in front of both Roman and the nosey receptionist. Pulling away from me, he quickly wiped the tears from my face. "Where's your stuff", he asked glancing around. It was evident he saw the sleeping little girl. Hell, it was hard to miss. Quickly pulling completely away, I bent down to grab the unicorn backpack and my own small duffle. before gently picking up my little world. "This is all I have", I softly stated. He nodded before reaching for my bag. I knew he wanted to ask questions, but I was grateful that he didn't I was tired. I was hungry. But most of all I was unsure.
Seth's POV
Riding back to the hotel was pretty silent. Almost as soon as we got into the car, Annabelle was asleep. Glancing in the rearview mirror, I could see her slouched into the seat with her right arm around around the sleeping girl. The girl was young - most likely 3 or 4. I couldn't get a good look at her as Annabelle had carried her to the car without the girl waking up. But I could still tell she was beautiful. She had the same raven curls as Annabelle. She had on white shirt with a sparkling unicorn design, white leggings with a light purple tutu like skirt over it, and some tan fur boots on her feet. I'm not sure why I paid attention to what the little one was wearing, but I did. now thinking about it, I realized that the girl was well dressed so money could not be the reason Annabelle called. Yet, I knew she was in trouble. I knew she was running.
We were driving for about 30 minutes when I heard her voice. At first, I just thought I was hearing things. Hearing it a second time, "I'm hungry", I realized the little girl had woken up. She was sitting up from where she had her in Annabelle's lap. Once again glancing in my rearview mirror, I could see Annabelle was still sleeping. However, the most beautiful pair of chocolate eyes stared into the mirror. Roman, who hadn't spoken a word since we got back into the car, quickly found his voice as he turned around in his seat. "Rise and shine, sleeping beauty. What do you want to eat?'. She looked at him, before giggling. "I'm Rebecca", she stated stretching her arms up., before continuing, "can we stop at McDonalds?'.
"Your mom teaches you to talk to strangers?", I asked really just wanting more information. Roman glared at me. Shrugging my shoulders, I glanced back in the mirror. "But you're not a stranger and moms right there", she stated pointing at Annabelle. So Annabelle was her mother. "Yeah Seth, you're not a stranger," Roman glared at me again before turning back around to look at the girl, "McDonald's it is". Sighing, I began to look at the signs to see what food places were coming up. I wasn't trying to be rude, but somehow I must have come off as a jerk.
Around 5 minutes later, I found myself taking the exit which displayed a McDonalds sign near. The girl hadn't said anything else since she revealed she knew me and neither had Roman or I. Pulling through the drive through, I rolled down my window ready to order. It wasn't my cheat day, but what the hell crazier things had happened today. "What 'cha want kid?, I asked after telling the lady over the speaker one moment. "Can I get a chocolate milkshake?, she asked fully taking off her seatbelt and scooting onto the middle console. "moms sleeping and I promise I won't tell her". I wasn't sure what to say. She looked so eager and damn it she was cute batting her eyelashes and sticking out her pinky finger as if she wanted to make a pinky promise. Glancing at Roman, he just shrugged before chuckling. She knew exactly what she was doing, but I still couldn't say no. "Sure, but what are you going to have to eat?' was my response as I made the promosie with her. I had shaken the hands of many kids, hugged them, picked them up, you name it and I have done it. But pinky promising was a first. "Chicken nuggets happy meal with fries not apples", she replied scrunching up her nose as if she was disgusted by the idea of having apples. I couldn't help but smile as I placed her order.