💫ANGEL💫

ANOTHER WEEK OF SCHOOL PASSED quickly. Everything went the same as the week before. Class, café, V came over a time or two, kicking back at Loki's place twice. I'd seemed to come up with a healthy routine. I didn't see much of Giselle, other than in class and once at Loki's house. We didn't speak to each other much, which was ok with me. We ended up talking a lot the night she came to my place. I felt like we both were trying to get to know each other. Ironically, the one girl so different from me reminded me of home. The part of home before things got bad.

"You sound good today." My father spoke into the phone in a muffled tone. It was almost like he was hiding.

"I'm alright, dad. How are you? How's mom?"

"I'm fine. Mom's the same." He sighed loudly. "Are you ever coming back?"

"No. There's nothing there for me."

"We're here, son."

"No, dad. You're there. And that's not enough."

"Ouch. Ok, so I'm not enough, but what about—"

"What do you what?" I huffed.

"I just wanted to check-in. Just wanted to make sure you're ok."

"Well...you have your answer. Thanks. Talk to you later."

"You know, she still loves you, son. She's just hurting. You could never understand what she's dealing with. What she's going through."

"How could I not, dad? I'm going through the same pain. At least she has you. I have no one. Mom hates me, Lina's gone, and my life sucks. I've got to go, dad."

I wasted no time getting high after speaking with my dad. So many memories flashed into my head that I wanted no part of. So much hurt and pain and regret and guilt. All the things I aimed to escape, and had done so the last couple of weeks, came right back. Just like that, I was back at square one.

"You're quiet today." V was sitting on the floor below me as I sat on the couch.

"Mm..." I hummed.

Silence.

As she polished her toenails, she looked up at me every now and then. I could tell she wanted to say more, but she didn't. That was one thing I liked about V. It was easy having someone around who didn't pry or ask too many questions. She just sat there and let me be. And, occasionally, gave me a little something to take my mind off whatever had me under its spell.

"Want weed?" She grinned, digging in her pocket and pulling out another bag of her infamous candy. Without an answer, she handed me one. I popped it in my mouth, ignoring the fact that she was just wrist deep in a toenail session.

V finished up with what she was doing, sitting her feet underneath some type of light for a few minutes. Then, cleaned her mess, and crawled up between my legs. I looked down at her, expressionless. She smiled her devilish smile. It didn't take me long to comprehend her intensions. The room began to dance, I could hear my heartbeat drum a cadence seductively, sending chills up and down my spine. My body grew warm and tingled a little.

"What the fuck did you give me?" I mumbled.

"Just cbd. Why?"

"This isn't the same."

"Shh.." She put her finger up to my mouth and I bit down on it, pulling on her to come closer to me.

V stood to her feet, slowly removing every article of clothing on her body. Once she was completely nude, she straddled me. I pulled out a condom from my pocket and handed it to her. She did the rest. For the next hour and forty-five minutes, V rocked my world like she'd done a few times before. She was good at it. She loved it. I was distracted and satisfied.

I WOKE TO A LOUD KNOCK at my door. I jumped up from the couch, frantically, forgetting where I was. The loud knock repeated. Looking at the time, it was two am, V showed herself out already, and the apartment was dark. I attached the chain and cracked the door open. A tall, chubby guy stood on the other side, hands in his pockets.

"What's up?" I mumbled.

"You the dude that beat up my little brother?"

"Probably not man, wrong door."

"Nah. I'm sure it's this door."

"I doubt it, man." Closing the door, I turned to head back to the couch. Then he banged harder.

I snatched the door open, breaking the chain, and shoved the chubby dude all in one motion. He was startled as he stumbled backwards onto the door across from mine.

"What's your problem, man?" I shouted through clenched teeth.

He tried to swing, but he was too slow. Who in their right mind would send someone so big and goofy to avenge the last little idiot that I'd already taken down? I hadn't the slightest idea what the point of that would be, so I decided not to fight him.

"What do you want?" I asked in a low relaxed tone.

"I didn't come here to fight man."

"What do you want?"

"My boss just wants the girl."

"What girl?"

"The girl with the purple hair." His hands were up in the air as he surrendered all suspicions of violent intent.

"I told your brother and I'll tell you; There is no girl. He pulled the same shit and got knocked out. Don't make the same mistake." Leaving him on the floor, I went back into my apartment and closed the door.

"If you don't give over the girl, my boss will show up next, and he's not going to knock or ask any questions!" The chubby guy yelled through the closed door.

I didn't respond. I sat back on my couch and waited for him to leave. My mind began to race, coming up with any logical scenario for the mess that V had made. I hadn't the slightest idea what kind of people I was dealing with or what they were capable of. Two topics I needed the answers to, immediately.

THE NEXT DAY I GOT UP, showered, and made my way to V's house. We were riding up to campus together and there were a few questions I intended to get answers to. Once in the car, I cut straight to the chase, turning down her radio and giving her a suspicious look.

"That guy who was looking for you a few weeks ago..." I huffed.

"What?" V turned to look at me, taking her eyes from the road.

"What type of person is he? Better yet, what type of stuff is he mixed up in?"

"I don't know. Why?"

"Because another one showed up to my door last night."

Vanessa stopped hard on the breaks, forcing us both to shoot forward. A rush of fear washed over her face, and I could see that she was on the edge of freaking out. Watching her closely, trying to remain patient, while she took her time explaining herself.

"Well?"

"I don't think they're dangerous people. They host a string of member's only parties throughout the city. High-end quality parties with high quality guests. They're not violent or anything....I don't think."

"You don't think?"

"What did he say?"

"He said his boss wants you."

"His boss?"

Frustrated, couldn't even begin to describe the way I was feeling. I left predicaments like this behind when I left home. The last thing on my agenda was to get involved with shady business in my new life. Negativity seemed to be at the cusp of my grasp every direction I turned, calling onto me like a force from within, urging me to step onto the dark side. No matter how much I ignored it. No matter how much I avoided it, trouble lurked around every corner, waiting for me.

"The next time you go looking for trouble, leave me out of it." I snapped, jumping out of the car before she could shift the gear to park.

Leaving Vanessa in the wind, I contemplated never looking back. I contemplated minding my own business and allowing her to face her own problems. Clean up her own mess. Truth is, I knew she wasn't equipped to handle it on her own. Torn in the middle of a good and a bad decision is supposed to feel like a win or lose option. This was not. Either way, I lost something.

When I arrived at my anatomy class, my usual seat was taken. The only option I had was one right in front of the professor and one next to Giselle. I took the worst of the two, squeezing through the aisle until sitting directly beside her, not acknowledging her presence.

"Hi." She whispered.

I nodded her way.

Throughout class, I avoided looking in her direction. I wasn't angry with her or disliked her, I just didn't know what to say to her. The only thing I knew to do was to stay away from her altogether. skimming through chapter two while the professor lectured the topic of body organization. After listening to the steady cadence of her voice for thirty-minutes, I found myself bored and easily distracted.

"Did I do something wrong?" Giselle whispered from my right.

"What?"

"You've been distant. Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"You already asked me that."

"But you didn't answer."

"No."

"So why are you going back to giving me the cold shoulder?"

"Class dismissed. Please work on your diagrams. The details and expectations are available on your syllabus." The professor waited until dismissal to sound enthused enough to capture my attention. How convenient.

Standing to my feet quickly, I inched out of the aisle and made my way to the door. I could hear the clacking of Giselle's footsteps quickening behind me. As I headed to the café, I tried to keep up my pace, with her behind me. It didn't take long for her to catch up, eagerness running through her veins as she tugged on my arm.

"Stop!"

I turned to see confused eyes staring back at me. "What's up?"

"One day I'm at your house chatting it up or at Loki's place being friendly, the next you're acting like I don't exist."

"Don't take it personal. It's not intentional."

"So, what is it? I thought we were becoming friends." Her eyes showed how troubling her feelings were for her.

Pausing, I watched her squirm from within. I didn't want to be friends with her. I also didn't want to admit that after that night at my house, it was hard not to think of her. I wasn't a person equipped to feel anything for anyone. Not wanting to think of a woman when I'm awake and dream of her when I'm asleep, I was only trying to shut her out to make things easier for myself. Some may call it selfish. I called it survival.

"Friends?" I laughed. "I barely know you." With that, I left her standing there to take in the cold vapors of my temperament.  

***Author's Words****

Uh oh!! What have V gotten Angel into?

And Giselle? On the route to paradise and sidetracked by a little trouble.

What are your thoughts on this chapter?

GISELLE ON THE WAY 1/21

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