The Rock
By: RoxyRoo
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Summary: He was known as being rock hard with his emotions. No one was ever able to get through. But what happens when the one who did get through was the girl he was hired to kidnap? Trory AU.
Please note that this is an AU. Tristan never went to Chilton, so they do not know each other. He is about 20 years old, where as Rory is 17 years old and a senior in high school.
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Chapter Eight
Tristan groaned the next morning as he rolled over, trying to shield his eyes against the light. He glanced up at the bed, noticing the covers pushed down, but no one in bed.
Tristan sat up straight in a panic. Where was she?
He quickly got untangled from the sleeping bag, grabbing his shirt and pulling it on as he rushed out of the room. He rushed downstairs. He could hear voices coming from the kitchen. He let out a sigh of relief once he caught sight of Rory helping his grandmother with breakfast.
After catching his breathe, he walked causally into the kitchen, as if he had not just had a mild heart attack and sat at the breakfast table.
"Morning," Rory said cheerfully, setting a large plate of pancakes in front of him.
"Thanks," Tristan mumbled, rubbing a hand across his face.
"Still not a morning person," Evelyn smiled, shaking her head.
Rory grabbed herself a cup of coffee and her own plate of pancakes, before sitting down beside Tristan.
"I hope you like them, I helped your grandma fix them," Rory smiled, as she poured syrup onto her pancakes. "Well, I stirred the batter..."
Tristan could not help but smirk at that, as he took a sip of the coffee that his grandmother had just set in front of him.
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"Grandpa?" Tristan asked cautiously as he stepped into the living room. His grandfather quickly turned off the television where he had just been watching the news.
"Yes son?" Janlan asked looking up.
"I need to ask you for another favor," Tristan said, glancing towards the door, before taking a seat on the couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. "I'm going to be taking off tomorrow. Is it alright if I left Rory here with you and Grandma?"
Janlan stared hard at Tristan, before answering. "Tristan, I do not know what kind of trouble you have gotten yourself into, or how deep you are into it, but it's never good to run."
Tristan stared at his grandfather a bit taken back.
Janlan sat up in his chair, so he could talk more quietly with Tristan, not wanting his wife or Rory to over hear their conversation. "You think I do not know who that girl is? Her face has been all over the news for the last week!"
Tristan sat back in his seat, rubbing a hand over his face. He knew that the kidnapping had been in the news in Connecticut, but he did not think that it had traveled all the way down to New Jersey.
Tristan sat back up. "I just need somewhere where I know she'll be safe," Tristan said quietly. "It's not safe for her to go back to her family yet."
Janlan shook his head. "We'll keep her here as long as she needs a place to stay, but I think it will be best if you just take her straight to the police."
"You do not know the people that are after us," Tristan said standing up. "Thank you though, I appreciate this."
Janlan just nodded his head, fearing the mess that his grandson had got both himself and the young woman into. He just hoped it would not end with them both being killed.
-
Rory looked out over the country land. It was beautiful here. She hoped her and Tristan would be staying here for awhile, she liked it here.
She slowly rocked the porch swing that she was sitting on, as she glanced down at the book in her lap that she had taken from Tristan's room, trying to concentrate on it. She failed miserably.
She had so many different thoughts going through her head. They mainly consisted of Tristan, she would admit. He confused her to no end. She had started out thinking of him as her kidnapper, yet now she had come to think of him as more of her rescuer. He had saved her when that Zane guy had tried to attack her, and had been the one to take her away from that house. Sure, he was not letting her go home, but as he had said before it was for her safety. Zane could try to take her again.
That scared her, being alone with Zane. She could not help but wonder what her father had done to owe money to people like this. She shook her head, he never learns. This is why things never would work out between him and her mother.
"Hey," Tristan said, coming out onto the porch, leaning up against the railing.
Rory looked up from her book. "Hey," she smiled.
"Look, I have to talk to you about something," Tristan said, taking a seat at the other end of the swing.
Rory just nodded her head.
"I'm going to be leaving tomorrow," Tristan said.
"So soon?" Rory asked disappointed. Well, there goes that. "Where are we going next then?"
"You're going to be staying here with my grandparents, as it's safe for you here," Tristan explained, unable to look at her.
"You're leaving me?" Rory asked in a shaky voice.
Tristan did not say anything, just continued staring forward.
"Why?" Rory asked. "I think I at least deserve that much."
Tristan turned to look at her. "You're safe here. No one will ever find you. I can't stay put in one place for too long. It's time for me to move on."
"Can't I go with you?" Rory asked. She was terrified of being left alone. It had been her fear that he would just dump her somewhere. She had come to rely on him. He was the only consistent thing in her life since she had been taken from her home.
"It's not safe for you to be traveling with me," Tristan answered.
Rory glared at him, before getting up and running off.
"Rory!" Tristan called, getting up to follow her.
He went inside the old barn that he had seen her go in. He stopped at one of the stalls, to lightly pat an older black stallion on the muzzle, before continuing on through the barn.
He looked around, but could not see her. However he could hear the occasional sniffle. He followed the sound to the back of the barn. He found Rory sitting on a pile of yellow straw, hugging her knees to her chest. Tears were running down her face.
Not knowing what to do, he went over and sat by her.
"How long would I have to stay here?" Rory whispered.
Tristan looked away, unable to answer the question.
The tears started falling down her face faster.
Tristan tentatively put an arm around her, to try and comfort her. She immediately went into his arms, crying.
"I just want to go home," Rory whimpered, the stress of everything that had been happening getting to her. All the tears that she kept holding back taking advantage of being able to come out. "Please don't leave me here."
Tristan hugged her closer to him, fighting with himself about what to do. Without thinking, the words came out of his mouth, "I won't..."
When her arms tightened around him, he realized that he had said them out loud. There was no way she would let him take them back now.
-
"There you are," Rory said that evening, finding Tristan sitting on the porch swing. His elbow was resting on the arm rail, with his head leaning up against his hand. Rory went and sat by him.
Tristan looked over at her, before looking back in front of him.
Rory chewed on her bottom lip. She had several questions to ask him, but she was not sure how he would take them.
"Ask it," Tristan said.
She looked up at him in surprise.
"I can tell that you want to ask me something," Tristan said, staring forward.
"I was just wondering why you have never contacted your grandparents in four years," Rory said softly. "You seem close with them. Also, what happened between you and your dad?"
Tristan let out a laugh. "My dad and I don't have exactly the best relationship. It only grew worst after my mom died."
"I'm sorry," Rory said softly, reaching a hand out to place on top of his, to comfort him.
Tristan looked over to her surprised. He could see that she really meant it. He turned his hand over, to use his thumb to rub the top of her hand.
"I left home when I was 16," Tristan said softly, looking straight ahead. "It was that or be shipped off to military school in North Carolina." Tristan chuckled a bit, remembering back. "A couple friends of mine and I broke into one of their dads' safe. Dumbass Bowman forgot to make sure all the security alarms were shut off, so the three of us got trapped in the room until the police showed up."
Rory smiled.
"Man, was my dad pissed," Tristan said, rubbing his free hand over his face. "He had been threatening military school for awhile, but I always thought he was bluffing. He would never really do it. I told him I would run away before going there. So I took off the night before my plane was to leave. I haven't talked to him since."
"And not your grandparents neither?" Rory asked quietly.
He glanced over at her, shaking his head. "Nope, always figured my grandfather would tell my dad where I was. So I just stayed away."
"But you came here now."
"I needed to get you somewhere safe," Tristan said, before sighing. "I still prefer you to stay here. I don't know what kind of trouble I might get in after I leave here, and I really prefer you to stay out of it."
"I don't want to be here alone," Rory whispered softly.
Tristan glanced at her, for the first time noticing how close the two of them were sitting together. He glanced down noticing that their hands were still joined together. He was now rubbing circles in her palm, with his hand on top. He glanced back up to her face, seeing her looking at his lips. He looked down to hers, before he quickly stood up, breaking the contact, before he did something that he knew that he would regret. He already regretted saying as much as he had.
"We better get going in, it's getting late," Tristan said, not looking at Rory again. Afraid to.
Rory just nodded her head timidly, following him in quietly.
-
Rory settled into the bed, watching as Tristan rolled his shoulders, stretching his arms.
"Stiff?" Rory asked. He had tried to make sure she did not know, but she could tell that he had not had that great of sleep the last few nights, between sleeping in the chair, or on the floor.
Tristan just barely glanced at her.
"The bed is big enough for both of us," Rory said softly.
"I'll be alright," Tristan said a bit more roughly than he meant to.
"You really should get a good night's sleep before we leave," Rory pointed out. "It won't do any good if you're falling asleep at the wheel."
Tristan looked at her, knowing that she was right.
He went over to the bed, Rory scooting to the other side, and climbed in. He made sure to leave plenty of room between the two of them.
"Night," Rory said, looking at him, before rolling over to face the other side of the room.
"Night," Tristan said, before sleep quickly claimed him.
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AN: Thank you for all of your reviews! This would have been up sooner, but I had computer problems (Dell came and took apart my whole laptop! Very scary seeing it in pieces), and last night when I tried to send this, ff .net would not let me! Also have been busy with different things... but anyways, hope you guys enjoyed. You're close to catching up with me, where I'm at for writting, I guess I have to get to work... Now go and review for this chapter, the more you review the quicker the updates;)