I don't Anubis.
Chey's POV
Victor wanted to put another girl in my room, but somehow I talked him out of it. Mick finally got accepted to that California school and left two days after Nina was proclaimed dead. Rufus had disappeared, which really made me worry.
There was a gas leak Osiris House, so two of the residents had to come to Anubis. I moved into the empty bed in Fabian's room after persuading Victor a lot more. I was not about to room with Joy or the other girl, Amanda. After losing Nina on top of everyone else, the only other person that I trusted was Fabian. Jerome was slowly making his way onto my trust list, but barely.
Why does my life have to be so complicated? Everyone just needed to pity me since my family was deceased. I still don't need their pity, I thought when they all found out about Nina. And that included finding out she was my sister.
"Chey, you okay?" Fabian's voice cut into my thoughts.
I snapped back to reality. Fabian had his guitar out, but he was currently looking at me worriedly. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just want to forget sometimes, you know?" He nodded understanding and continued practicing. "Just want to forget…" I echoed to myself quietly.
He glanced at me, stopping again. "What's wrong? And if you say 'nothing,' I can tell there's something."
"Nothing, everything, I'm not sure. All I want to do is have a normal life. I can't even get that!" I toyed with the key that I had so recently added to my necklace. I wanted to protect it at all costs. "If Nina was still here, I'm sure everything would at least seem normal for me."
"Normal people don't usually go into comas," he reminded me gently. "Why do you want to be normal, anyway?"
"I've always been known for my intelligence or my lack of family. I don't want to be that girl any more. It's annoying the crap out of me."
"In this house, nobody's normal. How have you not noticed that yet?"
I shrugged. "Things are tough nowadays."
"Not tough enough to pay attention to your housemates. If Nina was still here, we'd still have to ignore her. If she was here, we'd still have Rufus on our tails. He has no reason to come after us as of right now."
"Fabian, stay out of this."
"I loved two girls. One of them is dead. The other is becoming more and more distant. And you really think I'm about to leave her?"
A sigh escaped me. "Of course not."
He softened. "I know it's hard to live with all this. But you're not alone. You have Amber, Jerome, me, and virtually everyone here. They all want to help you. You just keep pushing them away."
"They won't get hurt," I retorted. "I know what I'm doing."
"Play something." He handed the instrument to me. I absentmindedly strummed a few chords. "See? Minor chords, and you weren't trying. That shows a lot." He sat on the bed beside me. "Tell me," he pressed, his voice pleading.
"Why did he kill Nina? I'm the one who knew where the key was, I found out where the Cup was hidden, and yet he went after her. What I want to know is why. She didn't deserve it."
"Apparently she was weaker than you. And if you died, the secrets would die with you."
I rested my head on his shoulder. "I don't want to pretend any more, Fabian. I'm pretty much acting and keeping secrets all my life. I witnessed murders, some of which actually were my family. I kept others' secrets as well as my own. I never found people I could really trust. I had to move all around the country and then across the ocean just to live someplace. Then the cycle just continued itself. I'm not strong enough to go through it again."
"Yes, you are," he comforted. "You're confident, brave, and trustworthy. That's why people went to you for secrets or advice. That's why you never complained about moving to those places, not once. And that's why you rarely show what you are feeling; you know you can handle yourself."
"What about you? You changed everything about me."
"I can't explain that, but I know it's because you know you can finally trust me. Patricia never trusted anyone except Joy, and now look where she is."
"Dating Jerome," I replied. Though he admitted to liking someone else…
"Exactly," he confirmed. "Jerome never trusted anyone, either, and now he has the three of us. Maybe even Amber. People change, mostly for the better."
"Stop being smart, will you?"
"I will when you will."
"Touché," I responded. "I'll miss you when I have to go home." He gave me a look that asked if what I said was true. I nodded. "I'm going back to Jersey for a few weeks. My friends want to see me, and I'll probably be moving here for good." I pulled him into a hug. "Promise you won't cheat while I'm away?" I teased, but my voice still dripped with sorrow.
He hugged me more tightly. "Your friends can visit you here, and you'll get your things after term ends," he whispered to my ear determinedly. "There's no way Victor will let you leave, and there's no way I'm about to."
I broke away before he squeezed the breath out of me. "Why do I have to stay?"
"Why do you have to argue? Don't you know to listen to what people tell you?"
We carried on like that for several minutes before I caved. "Fine, I'll stay. Only because you need me, though. Nothing else."
Four words: I. Hate. Writer's block. Once I get rid of my block, I'll get a better chapter in for all of you. Until then, I'd better see some reviews!
