I have taken way too long writing this... xD
sorry. :)
-xJ&Lx-
A Different Kind Of Destiny
Unknown
I swallowed hard and inhaled a sharp intake of breath, my grip tightening on the door and my heart speeding away furiously in my chest. My eyes widened as I kept my stare firmly on the stranger stood before me, finally managing to regain some consciousness and hesitantly opening my mouth to speak, "Uh," I began somewhat pathetically, chewing gently on my bottom lip as I searched my brain desperately for something I could say. "Who are, uh- do I know you?" I questioned, hoping that I sounded a lot more confident than I currently felt.
He smirked a little and raised an eyebrow, folding his arms over the smart suit he was dressed in and taking a sudden step closer to me, "No, I wouldn't think so," his deep, raspy voice replied, a hint of sarcasm edging into his voice. "Although I'm figuring that you're aware of a young Joseph living here? Not permanently, obviously. This clearly isn't his home," he muttered, a strange pang going off in my heart. Whether it was just because of the fright I was drenched in or the fact that he knew about Joey I couldn't really decide. I bit down a little harder on my lip to keep myself from lashing out, forcing a small smile as I waited for him to continue. "I was wondering if I could have a word with him, Lauren. There a few things we may need to sort out without the presence of a beautiful lady like yourself, if you don't mind." he mumbled on, all the while slowly nearing himself further towards me.
I took a deep breath and shook my head, furrowing my eyebrows and looking up at him, "No," I told him bluntly, shrugging my shoulders slightly. "How do you even know my name? Because I certainly don't know yours-"
"Never you mind, Lauren," he interrupted me sharply, his eyes narrowing and his tone becoming a little more harsh. "You don't need to worry about that, I assure you. Now, young lady, if you'd rather not get yourself into any trouble if I were you I'd get Joseph now and leave us to discuss a few things. Again, you shouldn't need to worry about that. It shouldn't be a concern of yours seeing as he's just your cousin, if I'm correct?"
I stared at him for a few silent seconds, my thoughts a complete blur. I really did not have a clue what was going on here. Who the hell was this guy, how did he know my name and what the hell did he have to do with Joey? I was pretty sure he wasn't just one of his mate's back from when he used to live with his Mum, but it did come to mind that this whole thing may have something to do with that. Without thinking, I took a deep breath and whipped my head around, "JOEYYYYYYYYYYYYY!" I yelled as loudly as possible, hearing his footsteps quickly come closer and closer until he appeared in the doorway, a worried expression on his face. "GET THE HELL OVER HERE AND TELL ME WHO THE HELL THIS IS!" I ordered him harshly, grabbing his arm and pulling him to my side.
I craned my neck forward to take a better look at him, watching as his eyes darkened and his muscles completely tensed, his jaw tightening as he attempted to contain the anger that was boiling up inside him. I ran my hand comfortingly down his arm until I could squeeze his hand tightly, reminding him that I was here and that I wasn't mad at him in the slightest. He gazed at the man in disbelief and shook his head, "Why are you here?" he questioned, his voice a lot calmer than I'd expected it to be. He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me gently into his side, making me feel a little more at ease.
The stranger wrinkled up his forehead, his lips forming into yet another smirk, "Why do you think I'm here, Joseph?" he spat back, projecting as much venom as possible into his words. He turned his attention to me and looked at us both suspiciously, "Just cousins? I knew Derek was right about you two getting it on. It's disgusting," he added, gesturing towards the way we were stood. I took a hard swallow and looked back up at Joey, knowing he was trying desperately not to let his anger overwhelm him. But it was clearly no use.
His fists clenched and his grip around my waist loosening, he took a few steps forward and in a matter of seconds he found himself lunging towards the stranger in fury. My eyes widened as I watched the man stumble backwards onto the steps behind him and let out a muffled groan, holding his bruised face in an attempt to ease the pain. I took a hold of Joey's arm once again and pulled him back indoors, slamming the door behind us and staring at him in disbelief, "What the fuck, Joe?!" I shouted, my voice a little harsher than I intended.
He winced slightly and ignored my question, bringing his hand up to his eyes to inspect his swollen knuckles. I sighed and made my way towards him, taking his hand in mine and gently dragging him towards the living room. He flopped down onto the sofa and put his head down, letting out a heavy sigh and shaking his head repeatedly, "I don't even know why he's here," he grumbled more to himself than me as I sat down next to him.
"Who is he, Joey?" I asked him softly, scraping my fingers comfortingly through the short hairs at the back of his neck.
He let out a breath and raised his dark, hazel eyes to look at me, "He's from back home - at Mum's," he began, pulling his bottom lip into his mouth to chew on it gently. "He, uh... he was one of Derek's mates," he continued with a hard swallow, as it all clicked together in my head. I had a feeling that this would have something to do with him. "I don't uh, know what his name is - nobody does," he added.
"Not even Derek?" I questioned, my curiosity getting the better of me.
He shook his head, "Not even Derek," he repeated in reply, shrugging his shoulders momentarily and dropping his eyes back to the floor. "You know how my Mum was sometimes, y'know... hurt?" he asked me after a short while, me nodding my head and patiently waiting for him to continue. "Well, uh... I remember him from back then... a-and-"
"You don't have to talk about this, Joe," I interrupted him softly, knowing it was hard for him to think, never mind speak, about what had happened to his mother. Sure, I'd never actually met the woman, but from the way he talked about her she seemed like a pretty damn amazing person. I got up off the sofa and headed to the kitchen, turning my head slightly and shouting over my shoulder, "Stay there - I'm getting you some ice."
I sighed, bending down as I opened the freezer and got out a few ice cubes, wrapping them up in a small towel and closing the door. I headed back to the living room and sat down next to him, taking my hand in his and putting the ice over his reddened knuckles. He winced again and looked at me, a smidgen of pain creeping into his eyes. I swallowed hard and snuggled up to his side, resting my head on his chest and taking a deep breath. Everything that had happened in the last few minutes overwhelmed me; that certainly was not what I was expecting.
"I'm sorry," Joey whispered suddenly, his hot breath tickling my ear sending shivers down my spine.
I raised my head and glanced up at him, "You don't need to be sorry. None of this was your fault," I reassured him, pressing my lips onto his for a brief moment before pulling back. "Why are you worrying so much?" I asked, rubbing his defined arm and studying him closer. His forehead wrinkled up and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed, as if he was deep in thought.
"Alice..." was the only word that quietly escaped his lips, the worry etching into his voice. "Alice hasn't called me, he's out there..."
"Relax," I told him bluntly, managing a small smile. I grabbed his phone off the side and turned it on, opening the message and turning the screen to face him:
-To: Joey -11:08
I'm here! Mum says she misses you
quite a lot ;). I still think you should
have come with me... AND Lauren! :D
I will call you tomorrow bc I'm rly
tired right now. See you soon. x
-From: Alice
"Oh," he got out, his lips lifted with a smirk. "When did she send that?" he asked, taking the phone from his hands and laughing slightly.
"Whilst you were out there trying to beat that guy up," I muttered bluntly, rolling my eyes. I shot him a stern look before flashing him a smile, shaking my head.
"I love you." he said simply.
"Love you too."
-xJ&Lx-
a/n:
Sorry for the long wait. I have rewritten this quite a few times and I'm still not happy with it if I'm being honest, so I hope you enjoyed it. :)
This chapter was quite short but I have much more to come for this story.
Tell me what you think! :).
- Charlotte x