"You're insane."

"Insanely attractive? Yeah, I know. But it's great that you're finally admitting it, Chloe."

She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths, doing the best she could to keep herself from exploding in rage. In and out, Chloe. In and out.

"So, did you have a nice nap?"

Oops. Too late.

"HOW THE HELL DID WE END UP IN LOS ANGELES!" Chloe screamed.

Alek looked at her passively from the corner of his eye. "…Guess it wasn't so pleasant, then. Nightmare or something?"

In between clenched teeth, she managed to express herself in a low, harsh tone. "Answer. the. question."

Alek took his eyes off the road for a few seconds to stare at Chloe as if she had asked him the most ridiculous question on Earth…like where milk came from. "Gee, Chloe. I don't know. I think the magical unicorns gave us a ride…or. OH. OH! Maybe we swam with the narwhals. Gosh, which is it?"

Chloe pounded him on the head.

He yelled. "OW. WHAT WAS THAT FOR."

She scoffed, twisting in her seat so that her back was to the window and she was facing him. "OH. I DON'T KNOW. FOR KIDNAPPING ME, AMONG ALL OTHER THINGS. YOU PEDO!"

He furrowed his eyebrows, utter disbelief in his expression. "HOW AM I A PEDO?"

"YOU JUST ARE."

"I am NOT," Alek told her indignantly.

"Oh yeah?" Chloe challenged. "But you're a creepy kidnapper AND you're older than me. I don't know about you, but I think that certainly fits the description of a pedo."

Alek rolled his eyes. "Oh please. It's not creepy kidnapping if you like it."

She choked on air.

"Okay, okay. Don't die on me now. It's not the end of the world if you just finally admit it."

"WHAT THE FUDGE ARE YOU BABBLING ABOUT. DO I LOOK LIKE I LIKE IT?"

"No, I know you, Chloe. This is your defense mechanism."

Chloe's breath caught in her throat. Defense. Walls. Pain. Isolation. Those were the words that flashed through her mind after Alek spoke. Then, she remembered. The last three weeks, and all that had happened the night before. Strange. She really didn't know how she managed to forget at all. Maybe it was the shock of waking up to something as unexpected to this, to something as normal, annoying, and painfully amusing as bickering with Alek.

Suddenly, her head and her heart hurt again.

"Pull over." Her voice was cold, icy, emotionless.

She was staring straight ahead, but she felt Alek's gaze on her; probably wondering what brought about the sudden change of tone and conversation.

"Why?" he asked cautiously.

"Just do it, Alek. God."

He pursed his lips, almost as if he were actually contemplating it. Then, slowly, he began shaking his head. "No, not until you give me a proper answer."

She gazed out the window. The sun was shining bright in the sky, and a long road stretched ahead of them. On either side were vast expanses of desert—sandy brown and lifeless as ever. Just like her.

"I just want to go home, Alek. I want to think. I want to sort this all out. My head…my heart….I feel like I'm going to explode. I don't know what to feel, or even how to feel, and all these thoughts are just always so jumbled up in my head and I can't even think straight." As she spoke, she felt waves of sadness and grief beginning to overwhelm her—as if the weight on her heavy heart was finally being lifted from her shoulders. The tears silently streamed down her face, dripping down onto the hands that were folded over her lap. "Please. I don't know how much more of this I can take. It hurts so much…"

To Chloe's surprise, she felt the car turn into a sharp swerve on the side of the road. Goosebumps erupted all over her skin as she heard the sharp, hair-raising screech of the tires skidding to a final stop.

He grabbed her hand, placing it right above his chest—and, just like that; she could feel the steady beats of his heart beneath her palm. "Do you feel that, Chloe? I'm real. I'm here. You don't need to run away from me."

Chloe gulped, and though Alek's words were meant to be soothing and kind, she still felt that sharp twang of pain shooting through her chest. Because, once again, Alek knew. It was almost as if he could see right through her. An open book; easily read, a puzzle and a mystery that were quick to solve. He saw her pathetic attempts at avoiding the pain just for what it was.

Strangely though, his eyes only held sincere sadness—both his and hers—and a flicker of hope; not pity nor judgment.

"We need this, Chloe. You need this. Okay?" He inhaled gently, "So will you trust me?"

She nodded.

A/N: Ahh. Hi guys! It's been a while. But school's been hectic. Heheh. I hope you guys like this chapter. REVIEWS MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND! and also motivates me to update faster. xD -winkwink-