A/N: If Christian is the way he is because of abuse and Elena, why is Elena the way she is? What happened to Elena? This story is not about Elena, but Ana meets Elena first and then saves both of them. Different circumstances, different events, but the same couple. Hope you like it.
I'm very, very excited about the story line of this story. Please stick with me, you will not be disappointed.
I wrote this chapter, and I hope you like it, but I could actually feel Christian's frustration and irritation… but then again, it doesn't take much to frustrate me at the moment as I stopped smoking twenty one days ago.
Important: I do not own the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters. They belong to the very talented E.L. James.
Christian POV:
"Anastasia Steele! Would you please just calm the fuck down?" I say in the calmest voice I could muster at this moment as I'm way too tired to deal with her right now.
"Not until you apologize, Christian Grey," the insolent girl says while crossing her arms over her chest. When she has to move one hand to grab onto the car to steady herself, I give in in a hope to get this over with.
"I'm sorry," I say for the first time in many years even if I only said it in a hope to get to bed before the sun comes up. I should still be sleeping, not getting slapped in the middle of a street in fucking Portland by a girl who is way overdue for a proper spanking. She does not seem to be pleased and I sigh, getting more exhausted by the second as more pissed off does not seem possible right now.
"What are you sorry for?" she ask and I glare at her.
"Excuse me?" maybe I heard wrong or she probably didn't think before she spoke, she is drunk after all.
"You heard me just fine. What are you apologizing for?" I don't know if it is her or the alcohol, but she is totally unaffected by the absolutely livid expression on my face that would have most CEO's pissing their pants.
"Can we please just go and get some sleep?" I try again as I will not give in to a hundred and ten pound drunk girl. Elliot and Kate are just about pissing themselves and their faces are dark red in their attempts to control their laughter. I so fucking glad someone is having fun at my expense.
"Not before you tell me what you are apologizing for… and you can quit trying to kill me with a look, it is physically impossible and I'm not one of your minions." Yep, she is practically begging for a proper punishment and I would be more than happy to offer my services. Defeated by drunken Anastasia, I sigh and run my hand through my hair in frustration.
"I'm sorry for being rude at the club." I say as sincerely as I can at this moment in a hope that we will finally get to leave.
"And?" She makes a rolling motion with her hand for me to continue.
Oh. For. Fuck. Sakes. I'm going to kill this damn woman. My head is starting to hurt due to the many times I have run my hands through it in the last twelve hours. Forget planning her fucking punishment, I should be planning what outfit to wear to her funeral. Elliot can't be seen anymore, but I can hear him laughing on the other side of the car. Kate gives a fuck about my level of anger and has given up trying to hide her laughter.
"Anastasia. You are… I am… Fuck! Can you please just get into the car?" I point to my car, but she rolls her eyes and opens her door to get back behind the wheel.
My black Armani suit with the black stripped silk tie and white button down shirt finished with my new platinum cufflinks... that would be the perfect outfit for the funeral of this beautiful woman.
"I meant the other car, Anastasia. Elliot will be driving this car as soon as he can pick himself up from the fucking ground." I spit out and point to my car again.
The petite brunette with the purest blue eyes I've ever seen turns around and walks until we are practically standing toe-to-toe. I take a calming breath and look down, fully expecting the look of defeat on her face… just to find the girl looking up at me with a smug grin.
"Anastasia, I am an ass. Please forgive me for being rude at the club and then proceeding to ignore your wishes to leave you the hell alone. Not only did I track you down when you told me in no uncertain terms to go fuck myself, I also scared the crap out of you and almost gave you a heart attack. I also promise not to use my spyware on you again," Anastasia says in a deep voice and even I would be laughing at that if I wasn't unbelievably pissed at her. "Oh, that's quite alright Christian. And I apologize for slapping you across your face, even if it was the most satisfying thing I've done in a long time. But now that you mentioned it, invading my privacy with, what I'm sure is illegal, spyware is not cool." She continues and I've had enough of this shit.
I take the keys out of her hand and toss it over the roof of the car where Elliot managed to pull himself together even though he is again half bent over the car, slapping his one hand on his knee.
"Follow us. They can sleep at the hotel." I tell Elliot and extend my hand to Anastasia. True to her stubborn nature and drunken state, she refuses to move. I walk up to her with a huge smile plastered on my face and then pick her up, throwing her over my shoulder and walking to my car.
She is kicking and complaining and just before we reach the car, she vomits… right down my back. I don't stop. If I stop now, I will go thermonuclear on her ass and will definitely be attending a funeral next week. I am beyond livid. I don't even think there is a word to describe just how pissed I am at this very moment. It's not a good thing to know that I was wrong earlier and that I am able to actually reach new heights in pissed-off-ness.
Elliot and Kate both have their hands over their mouths… in shock this time. Elliot is unsure of how I'm going to react and after I put Anastasia in the car, I slam the door shut while she is still busy apologizing. I cannot see or talk to her right now. I'm torn between getting into her car and getting the fuck out of Portland and taking her to the hotel to make sure she is taken care off.
"Elliot, please can you hand me my jacket in the back of Anastasia's car?" I ask Elliot while I'm already busy removing the t-shirt that just got puked on. What I'm feeling right now is possibly the highest level of frustration and irritation known to man. I have never been puked on.
I throw the shirt in the back of my car; of course slamming the door shut again, and put on the jacket. Kate and Elliot are yet to say a word and continue to stare at me with wide eyes.
"I'll see you at the hotel," I say to Elliot and get in the car. I'm in no mood to argue with any of these two women regarding where they sleep tonight. Since they are clearly incapable of looking after themselves, they will have to do what I decide until they are sober.
I phone Reynolds to ensure we get into the hotel unseen. When we get to the hotel, Anastasia has passed out. I can't say exactly when that happened, as I refused to look at her. I'm so mad and so confused. I want to really hurt her. I want to punish her for being so irresponsible tonight. I want to spank her for pissing me off and being disrespectful. But at the same time, I also don't want to cause her pain.
Why the hell did this have to happen to me? Everything was perfect in my life. Controlled. Now… well now everything is just messed up. I'm tired, irritated, frustrated, pissed and carrying a passed out, drunken woman upstairs with a dress that can barely be classified as such. Oh, and did I mention she fucking puked on me?
I look at my life at the moment and think… what the fuck happened to my perfect life? Why did I have to meet the most insubordinate, disrespectful, disobedient, beautiful, amazing, captivating woman?
I take Anastasia to the bathroom first and try to clean her up, but she is only half awake and grumpy, not helping in my irritated state… but damn adorable. I unzip the dress and even in my pissed state, I can feel the spark as my fingers stoke her naked back. Amazed that I can actually get it up right now, I go to fetch a t-shirt and pull it over her head while ensuring that I stay behind her. I pick her up after she rinsed her mouth with some mouthwash and put her gently under the covers.
"You look very mad, Mr. Grey," she says with the duvet pulled to her chin, eyes partially closed again.
"That would be because I am very mad, Ms. Steele. Go to sleep, I would not want to be you when you wake up." I say honestly and walk away.
I jump in the shower and just stand there until the water runs cold, thinking it will somehow magically make everything all right. Giving up on trying to figure this shit out, I get into bed just as the sun is coming up… just fucking perfect.
Instead of falling asleep instantly, I turn on my side and look at the woman next to me… in the same bed. As much as I hate what this woman unknowingly has done to my perfect life, I strangely feel at peace at this moment.
She is safe where I can keep an eye on her and that somehow makes me happy. I let my eyes go over her sleeping form and because I just can't seem to control myself, I gently brush the hair away from her face.
"Christian." she says and I freeze thinking I woke her up.
When she doesn't open her eyes, I relax and let my hand fall on the bed between us. While sleeping she moves her hand to cover mine and even with her half comatose, I feel the spark. With the soft moan escaping from her lips, I'm guessing she feels it too.
"What am I going to do with you, Ms. Steele?" was my last words before I fell asleep with my hand wrapped in hers.
Ana POV:
I wake up and open my eyes slowly, but close them again very quickly. I must still be dreaming. When I open them again, he is still there, in bed, with me. I don't move out of fear that I will wake him up. My hand is over his between us and it actually feels good. He looks so peaceful and carefree at this moment that I want to snuggle closer to him and go back to sleep.
Then my brain kicks in and I just about fall out of the bed, taking the duvet with me. I jump up and prepare to run out of the room, but instead I pick up the duvet to cover him again. It took a lot longer than needed because he is in just his pyjama bottoms. He obviously works out a lot judging by his sculpted back and I'm suddenly disappointed that he is not sleeping on his back. What normal woman would want to cover this masterpiece? After I pull the duvet over him, I run out of the room and panic hits me just as I close the door and I sink slowly down the door until I'm sitting against the door on the floor. I put my head on my knees in an effort to think with the massive headache.
What the fuck happened last night? He left. We stayed. We drank. He forgot his jacket. I wanted to phone him. Yes, that sounds about right. Did I bring his jacket to his hotel, which is where I'm assuming I am at this moment? Where is Kate? When I glance down, the next obvious question in my mind is where the hell are my clothes? That was soon followed by nausea, a pounding headache and a possible heart attack. My head falls back against the door and I lower my legs in order for my hand to reach the spot over my heart, gripping the t-shirt that is definitely not mine, so hard that my knuckles are turning white. Oh God, I hope we didn't… we couldn't… he wouldn't…
"Ana, you're up and looking much better this morning?" Elliot says in a good mood coming out of the next door room and closing the door behind him. I'm fully aware of my half dressed state in what I think is one of Christian's t-shirt. Instinctively I try to pull the t-shirt further down and Elliot laughs. "Let me get you a robe and then go hunt down some Advil for you." He goes back into the room and comes out with a long, fluffy white robe that he helps me to put on. It feels like I'm wrapped in a teddy bear, so I'm in heaven, apart from my massive hangover and the panic attack looming behind this fake smile.
"Where is Kate and what time is it?" I ask softly as I sit down on the soft couch in the living area. If this is a hotel suite, I can just imagine what one pays for a room like this.
"Kate is still sleeping and it's just after eleven. Christian should be waking up soon, even though we just got to bed as the sun came up." He explains as he runs out of the room and comes back with a bottle of water and two Advil tablets.
"Thank you. I'm never drinking again." I mutter as I take the pills.
"If I had a dollar for every time I heard that. So, while we wait for the sleeping beauties to wake up, let's order some breakfast. What are you in the mood for?" Why is he in such a good mood? Never mind… I so don't want to know.
"Sleep." I say as I pull my legs up and under me. This is actually comfortable.
"Well, that I can understand after what you went through last night. At one stage I was afraid that Christian was going to kill you." He goes on and I frown. He starts laughing and sits down after a couple of minutes and an order to room service that would feed a small army. "What exactly do you remember, Ana?"
"Well, you left and we started drinking shots. Kate saw that Christian left his jacket there and I searched for a business card to phone him to get it to him. From there I'm pretty much assuming that we brought the jacket here or you came to fetch it. I'm not too sure." I'm trying desperately to recall the rest of the evening, but my headache is still very much present and it's hard to breathe, never mind think.
"Oh no, sweetheart. The rest of the evening was much more interesting than that. I'll give you the short version." He comes to sit on the couch next to me, turning to face me, in typical gossip mode… even if the gossip is about me. "You did phone Christian to tell him that you will courier his jacket to his office, then to go fuck himself and that he was rude. I think you mentioned something like money can't buy manners as well. Then you got lost as both of you were beyond drunk and in no condition to drive. We tracked your phone and found the two of you giggle beside the road because your phones were not working as it seemed blurry. When Christian approached your side you slapped him. After an argument between the two of you, that I will never, ever forget or let him forget, he picked you up over his shoulder. I think he was debating between getting you in the car or in a grave and decided that the car is the better option. Oh, that was after you apologized to yourself on behalf of Christian and then accepted your own apology." He explains with a huge smile, but I'm mortified. What the hell got into me? I bury my face in my hands and pray for the ability to teleport myself anywhere else but in this hotel room. No wonder Elliot thought that Christian was going to kill me.
"You forgot the part where she vomited on me before she passed out in my car." I hear Christian's voice coming from behind me. He does not sound happy and honestly, I can't blame him. "I hope you slept well, Anastasia," he says as he goes to open the door where someone is knocking, fully dressed in black jeans, a white shirt and black boots. He shows the waiter to the dining room to set up breakfast, but I can't eat. Honestly, if I eat now, I might just puke… again it seems.
Elliot excuse himself to go and wake up Kate, leaving me alone with a not-so-happy Christian.
"We didn't… I mean… in bed…last night," I can't even say it.
"Anastasia, you were comatose. Necrophilia is not my thing. I like my women sentient and receptive." He says, understandably offended for me even asking that question.
While he is busy getting coffee in the next room, I go back to the bedroom I came from and sit on the bed. This is so not like me. I would blame Kate, but it seems that she actually behaved herself.
This has to be the most embarrassing moment of my life. If I've ever said it before, I was wrong. This tops any stupid thing I've ever done. I told Christian Grey to go fuck himself, that he is rude, that money don't buy manners, slapped him and puked on him. I wonder how high up we are at the moment. Maybe I can sneak out the window? Shit… Kate. I will have to take a shower and go face the music. How bad can it be? It's not like I will ever see him again, so I can walk out of here after a very sincere apology and forget this ever happened. Kate does it all the time and she seems fine.
I decide to take a shower and get myself looking respectable before facing the understandably upset Christian. The shower is amazing and the shower gel smells like Christian. I've never seen a shower with eighteen shower heads, all spraying water, so this is new for me. I smile at the fact that I will smell like him the entire day, as if I needed any more reminders of him. When I get out of the shower, I dry off and put the fluffy robe back on before helping myself to his toothbrush and toothpaste. I wash the toothbrush afterwards and put it back in its place. When I get back to the bed, there is a set of clothes on the bed with a note on top of it.
Anastasia,
These are for you.
Breakfast is ready when you're finished.
CTG
Not having the energy or the guts to get into another argument with this man over something that really looks insignificant compared to what I did to him, I get dressed and dry my hair before leaving the room. Whoever bought the clothes is very good. The tight fitting blue jean with baby blue top is a perfect fit, just like the pretty black flats with the pretty bow on top.
I get to the dining room where everyone is already waiting and take comfort in the fact that I'm not the only one battling with a headache. The food look amazing, but the smell is just… awful. I can't even think about food for at least a couple of hours.
"Ana, you look… like crap. Sorry, but you really do." Kate mutters and I glare at her.
"Thank you, Kate. You look rather crappy yourself. I'm never going out with you again." I say as I sit down, but apart from getting some coffee, I avoid everything else at the table. As luck would have it, I somehow chose the seat right next to Christian and as suspected, he does not look happy. "Morning Christian, did you sleep well?" I ask and he looks up at me.
"I did, and you?" He tries to hide the confusion in his eyes and I'm tempted to ask him what it is about.
"All things considered, actually good, thank you." I finish my coffee while Christian is in deep thought and Elliot and Kate is busy discussing their plans for the weekend. By the looks of it, they did much more than sleeping. Since I really want to remember my first time, whenever that might be, I'm grateful that Christian is a gentlemen. I might as well get this over with, "I would like to apologize for my behaviour last night and for being an inconvenience. You have no responsibility towards either of us, yet you came to our rescue at three in the morning." I say to both of them before turning to Christian, "I'm sorry for insulting you and… the other stuff. I can assure you it's not my normal behaviour. I don't know what got into me." I finish and he looks at me with a straight face.
"Oh, I know exactly what got into you… twenty seven shots between the two of you. What you did was very irresponsible, Anastasia. You put yourself in danger and by getting behind the wheel; you also put Kate in danger. I don't care about insulting me, although I have to admit that I've never been treated so disrespectfully." He says and I see Elliot and Kate each grab their plates and leave the room to give us some privacy. "Do you make a habit of drinking well beyond your limit?" he asks and I feel like I should be looking down, but I look straight into those angry gray eyes.
"Actually, apart from a couple of cocktails or a glass of wine, I never really drink." I answer as polite as possible, but what I want to tell him is to fuck off. Who the hell does he think he is?
"That's good to know." He takes a deep breath while looking down and when he looks back at me, his eyes are a lot softer and not so angry anymore and I calm down a bit. "I'm all for pushing limits, Anastasia, but what you did compromised your safety and you can't let that happen again. I can't even think about what would have happened is we didn't find you. For such a smart girl, that was a really stupid move. I have never been as angry as I was last night. I had to remind myself you are not mine to keep from giving you a proper spanking and believe me, you definitely need one." He gets up and walks to look out the window. "No one has ever made me that angry before and I've also never slept as well as I did last night… or at least this morning." He says as if he is speaking to himself and I remain quiet, unsure if I should respond to that. When he turns around I catch a glimpse of the confusion in his eyes before he puts his impassive mask back on. "You should eat, Anastasia." He says, but remains at the window.
"I'm not hungry. I'll get something to eat later." I say and get some more coffee.
Christian walks to the living room and comes back with an iPad. He clears the space in front of him and starts to work. "That will be fine as I have some work to catch up on; we will just wait here until later then." He explains with a smirk on his face and I wish I remember what it felt like to slap him last night. I would like to slap him right now.
After twenty minutes, Elliot peeks into the room to see me glaring at Christian, who is doing a remarkable job of ignoring me, and decides to rather leave us alone. Admitting defeat, I take a piece of toast and put some marmalade on with a small bit of yoghurt on the bowl next to my plate. As I eat the toast, I can see the smile on Christian's face.
"You better be reading an amusing e-mail, Mr. Grey." I tell him and he looks up to give me a smile that literally feels as if liquid fire replaced my blood. He is just too good looking for his own good.
"Actually, I'm reviewing a very boring spreadsheet. Why?" he asks innocently.
"Oh, just forget it. Tell me what you do for a living?" he initially looks amused until he realizes that I'm serious.
"You really don't know who I am, do you?" he asks.
"I know that your name is Christian Grey. You have a bother, Elliot , and a sister named Mia. Your mother, Grace, is a paediatrician, and your father, Carrick, is an attorney. Elliot is in construction and Mia is the Assistant Manager at a restaurant you own. You are business partners with Elena in the salons and Kate mentioned something about Grey Enterprises Holdings last night. Oh, and Jason Taylor is your CPO." I'm impressed with myself that I'm even able to recall all the information I gathered on him last night, but he doesn't look impressed, he looks… shocked. "Did I leave something out or did I get something wrong?"
"No, no, you remembered everything. It's just that when people are normally asked 'Who is Christian Grey?', that's not the answer they give. It's refreshing and also…" he stops himself and run his hand through his perfect hair before continuing, "Well, let's just say that I normally don't give out any information about myself to anyone. I can't believe that I told you all that after only seeing you for a second time last night." He actually made me curious now.
"What do people normally say when they are asked who you are?" I ask and he thinks about the answer for a while before getting a sad look in his eyes.
"It's the first time anyone has ever asked me a question like that. They would say that I'm ruthless in business, that I'm a control freak with an obsession for information. Most will include billionaire businessmen and others will say that I'm heartless." He answers with that same sad look and sad voice.
"Why would they say that you're heartless?" he seems kind and caring to me. Friendly at times and closed off in others, but definitely not heartless. I've seen heartless people in my life, and he definitely does not seem anything like that.
"Because they know me well," he puts back that emotionless expression, "Are you finished with your breakfast?" he asks as he close the iPad cover.
"Yes, thank you for breakfast and thank you again for last night… err, and this morning. We really should get going as we are planning on leaving for Seattle later. As we will only be living here for another week, we might as well pack as much as we can in the cars today. I would like to apologize again, especially for slapping you. That must have been something new for you?" I finally stop when he gets that strange look again.
"Yes, this trip to Portland was certainly filled with a lot of firsts for me. You should drive safely and I hope to see you again soon." He says as Elliot and Kate comes back into the room.
"Ana, we have to go. Are you done?" Kate asks with eyes focused on Christian.
"Yes, I was just getting ready to leave. Enjoy your weekend and thank you again for last night." Why I keep thanking them I don't know, but I still keep doing it.
"Ana, I invited Kate to my parent's house for dinner on Sunday. Please would you join us? We won't eat too late and Kate mentioned that you only need to be back before twelve on Monday to hand in your paper." Elliot says and Christian's head snaps to Elliot before he too looks at me, both waiting for an answer.
"Uhm… I… that would be great. Thank you for the invitation." I answer Elliot, but look at Christian to get his reaction and am disappointed to get no reaction at all. Well, as I said several times already, he is way out of my league. He probably even has a girlfriend. For some reason, the thought saddens me and I get up to leave.
I excuse myself and after gathering my things, I take another look at the bed that I shared with him. We could be friends… eventually, but not now. For now I have to stop myself from constantly thinking about him and start my new life in Seattle.
A/N: Please let me know what you think of this chapter. I really had fun writing it.