I'm so sorry that this took me so long to post! I hate to give excuses but this may happen a little bit more. I've just started grade 12 so I'm going to be busy for a while, but I promise it won't be as late as this has been.
SEQUEL.
Do you want another one? I've just finished writing this story, but I want to know if I should start writing a second one. If so just comment.
Thank you!
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"Rose, everything will be okay." Lissa held my hand, gently rubbing my back as I slowly deteriorated thought by thought.
It has been four weeks since the first note and since then my shoulder has healed and I'd begun working, but quickly my sanity has been disappearing. Why? Nathan has been sending more notes, slowly getting worst and more dangerous. By now there are about eight notes, each one stating things that I've done, things that he shouldn't know, threatening people I love and care for.
"Rose." she insisted, my eyes not leaving the slips of white paper on the table.
"Where are my parents?" when the fourth note came in, threatening my parents and hinting at their exact location, I called my mum and father, who I did keep in touch with, and ordered them to come down.
Mum had become a guardian for my father after they got close at the graduation. They were on holiday, travelling, when I caught up with them. They weren't happy to cut their holiday short but when I explained the situation they understood.
"They should be here soon; when I spoke to them they were fifteen minutes away." Dimitri sat beside me, holding my hand and right now was one of the only reasons I was still holding on. I was struggling, but having my sister and the one guy that I loved sitting on my sides truly helped me right now.
I didn't reply to Dimitri, my eyes had not moved from their position on the slips of paper. Eddie, Dean and Christian sat on the other side of the table, staring at me worriedly. Staring at me as the once strong, independent girl they knew broke. I was lost. Who was betraying me? Who was going to hurt my family?
Will someone die again? Like Mason, like when I couldn't save him. Will it be Dean, Christian, Eddie, Lissa, Dimitri? Will it be my parents this time? Will it be me? Will it be my fault like before?
"Kiz?" for the first time in about an hour my eyes moved, shooting up to the space behind Eddie. A whimper left my throat, my chair was thrown back and faster than anybody saw I was sprinting for my father, throwing my arms around the older man as tears finally escaped, crawling down my cheeks.
"Oh, Kiz." he whispered, kissing my forehead.
"You're not hurt, you're safe!" I whimpered again, because despite knowing that it was irrational I was terrified that my father and mother had been hurt. Despite being that tough teenager who believed she never needed her parents, she had changed and grown up. She became close to her parents and realised just what having someone there meant.
"Of course I'm safe, no one can keep me away from you." I sniffed and smiled.
"Rose." I felt a hand on my shoulder and quickly shifted so that I was now embracing my mother instead.
"It will be okay, I promise." and she gave me the comfort that only a mother could.
"Have you eaten? You look thin." she pulled away with a frown and I shrugged.
No, I hadn't been eating too much. Worry had been weighing me down so much that it was the last thing on my mind. I felt sick every time food was even mentioned. I think this was one of the main worries that the others had. I was never too sick, scared or upset to not eat. Food had practically been my life.
"Come on, let's get some food in you and then we'll talk about how to handle the situation." Dad wrapped an arm around my shoulder and I could only nod, following him like a lost puppy.
…
"Maybe we should go find him? Attack him head on, he won't expect it," Christian offered but I shook my head, much to the shock of the others.
"No, he has a spy here, not only will he know he's probably got an army and allies. Too much death, too much fighting and too much risk of losing you guys, I won't allow it."
"I think, first, we need to see who he is going to try and use against us right now. He's unpredictable, I mean, everyone that I know is at Court, under wards, but there has to be more," I frowned for a moment "Dimitri, your family live in a commune, they don't have wards there. Call them, tell them to get to Court, I'll pay for their flight tickets if I have to. Christian, call Tanya, get her to the Court as well. I know that she can handle herself but I don't want to take the chance." he nodded and got out his phone.
"Why protect them? Nathan is after you, why worry about them?" I stared at Dean for a moment, wondering how he hadn't caught on.
"Yeah, he's after me, and what better way than to get me than to take someone I love? Someone I'm willing to fight for?" he frowned again.
"You've never met Guardian Belikov's family, why hide them?" I glanced over at Dimitri, seeing him staring at me questionably as well.
"Because Dimitri will go after them and I'd go after Dimitri." and then I looked back down at the notepad I was scribbling on before I felt my throat choke up.
"Is, um, is Adrian…is he at Court?" the table went silent for a moment, everyone except Dean, who looked confused, went tense.
"I don't know I'll call him for you, Rose." I nodded, thanking Lissa.
"I think…I think that's all for the moment, we're under the wards right now so we're safe…I might go for a walk."
"Rose, is that wise?" I looked over at dad.
"It's safe, we're under the wards." I pointed out in confusion. He looked at me as if I was stupid. Right now it was highly likely, though I didn't appreciate it. Although, it was times like these, when he makes those types of expressions, that make me realise just how alike we really are.
"I was more talking about your state of mind right now. I don't want you to do anything stupid," I gave him a fake grin and shrugged my shoulder.
"I always do something stupid, but I promise I won't today." I added the last bit after I noticed the look on his face.
My father tended to remind me of a bear. He's intimidating and strong, and if you go after his kid or his food, he will attack without hesitation.
…
I wasn't sure where I was walking. Nowhere yet somewhere at the same time. It wasn't until I had arms wrapped around my waist that I realised where I'd gone.
"Roza, I haven't seen you in ages, are you okay?" I looked down at Paul, my mind flashing back to the thoughts of Dimitri. What would he have been like at this age? For some reason I imagine him being a down right, little shit. I grinned at that thought.
"I'm fine, Paul, just been busy." he looked me over after letting go of me.
"You're skinnier than before. Are you eating? Ma says that you need to eat a lot to be healthy, your greens as well, even though they taste bad. Are you eating your greens?" his head tilted to the side, the brown shoulder length hair he refused to cut falling into his face. It was one of the most adorable things I've seen. Paul had that effect on people though.
"I haven't been, but I promise to start again." he grinned.
"Paul, come play soccer with us!" I heard some of his friends call. It must be lunch, or they had a break.
"Roza, come play with us?" I bit my lip as I looked down at him before shrugging.
"Why not? I don't have anything to do." he grinned widely, showing those two dimples that I found adorable on him. The two dimples that Dimitri got, but you rarely saw since he never smiled wide enough.
…
"You look like you're having fun." I looked up, slightly shocked to see Dimitri there. I smiled at him and nodded.
"I haven't been able to just have fun for a while, it feels nice," I said as we looked at the kids as they kicked the ball around. It was around that moment that they were called back into class and Paul pouted, running over and hugging me, saying a quick hello to his uncle and giving him a hug and running away.
"Now, I know you didn't come and find me because you felt like it, so what's up?" I asked, turning to look at him.
"We haven't spoken lately," he said and I sighed, knowing that this was coming. You have to admit though, I'm good. It's been five weeks and I've been able to put it off. Although, being an emotional wreck during that time helps as well.
"No, no we haven't." I sighed, motioning that we should walk and he nodded.
"Why did you avoid me?" he shot straight off the bat.
"Wow, no beating around the bush either," I stated before sighing "because it won't work Dimitri. Us…it just won't work. I've got a job here; you've got a job with her. I can't give you the family you want or the lifestyle. I will never be that happy little wife, waiting for you to get home with a meal on the table and a kid on my hip. There will never be a puppy or a perfectly clean house or a white picket fence. There will only ever be late nights, long hours and work. That's all that I can give, Dimitri, and that isn't what you deserve." we'd stopped and he was staring at me with something akin to shock.
"I don't want that lifestyle. All I want is what you can give me," I shook my head, smiling at the ground in pain.
"We both know that's a lie. We both know that's the family you want and the family I can't give." Dimitri shook his head, as if denying it.
"If I can't have you then I can forget about that," he insisted.
This really wasn't the Dimitri I once knew. He was different, acted different, spoke different. He acted more like he did with Tanya, and I felt because our relationship isn't forbidden now he isn't stopping this.
"You won't forget about it Dimitri. You will never forget about it. I won't be the girl that destroyed your dreams, no matter how much it breaks me in the meantime."
And then I turned and walked away.
Really though, I wondered in the back of my mind who's dreams they truly were. His? Or mine?
