Chapter 19

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Chapter 19

Declan's POV:

"Are you okay, Ellie?" I question; her stiff body language just an observation I take into account.

Something feels off; the way she's sitting is the first indication. Her body is super still like she's trying not to move, her arms are glued to her sides, and her eyes won't leave the Tv. She's barely even blinking.

Nervous? Yeah, definitely nervous. Instead of answering me, she nods her telling me she's fine, not bothering to use words. Fine is a funny word because saying you're fine is actually another word for saying you're not okay.

Letting out an annoyed sigh, I turn my head to the Tv but watch her from the corner of my eye. She looks like a statue, so fucking tense. She won't look at me, won't acknowledge me, and if I didn't know any better, I'd call that ignoring.

Rolling over, I take her small arms and pin them above her head, each knee on either side of her stomach. A shocked expression takes over her face. God, she's beautiful, stunning me every time I look at her.

"What's wrong?" I say, scanning her face, wanting an answer.

"N-nothing." She mutters, not meeting my eyes. I swear she looks everywhere but me and it kind of irritates me.

Bullshit, there's nothing wrong. Come again?

"Ella, tell me," I growl.

Can't she just tell me? Did I do something to upset her? I swear if I did...I will be fucking pissed. This girl does things to me I can't explain and her not letting me fix the problem makes the anger boil.

She shakes her golden head of hair and stutters. "I-I can't."

Her extremely blue eyes begin to shine with pent up tears. Did somebody hurt her? I swear if anybody touched my Ellie, I will kill them.

"Did somebody hurt you?" I demand, trying real hard to keep it together.

Just then, the shine in her innocent eyes begins to spill out, sliding down her reddened cheeks. She immediately squeezes them shut, so tightly it's as if she's in immense pain. Oh, Ellie baby.

Discomfort settles in my chest; I don't like seeing her cry, no matter how beautiful; it broke my heart. I did this, I made the situation worse, and now I feel like shit.

Getting off of her, I pull her delicate frame onto my lap. Her body molds right against mine, her head falling onto my chest in a cradled form. My fingers trail down her arms and glide back up as I hum my apology feeling guilty for making her cry. "Shh, I'm sorry."

"I want to tell you, but I'm scared." She murmurs, her voice quiet.

Resting my cheek against her hair, I say, "Ella, you can tell me anything." And I mean it, though she trusted me?

She hugs her thin arms around my waist, her tears dampening my shirt, but I could care less.

"I know, but this is different."

How is this different? What can be so different that she can't tell me? I just want to fucking fix it, to make her feel better. Seeing her like this, I don't like it. I don't like seeing my Ellie sad. It makes me feel helpless.

"Different how?"

I don't want to upset her more.

Then the words come out, words I didn't expect to hear. "B-because I l-lo-love you."

Those four simple words make my body go limp, the world stopping in its rotation. No sound, just the repeated words of 'I love you' replaying a million times over in my brain.

Her soft quiver, the loveliest sound in my head. She loves me; Ellie loves me.

I have never felt so defenseless, so unprepared, and completely dumbstruck. Mute, I'm mute: unable to make my mouth form words. She's waiting for my response, and suddenly I can't seem to voice one.

Her bottom lip trembles terribly as she glances at me, her eyes then begin a full-fledged flood; just like that, she's off of me and ready to run. That kicks me into motion real quick, breaking me out of my shock.

As she's about to hop off the bed, my hand catches her arm, pulling her back. I then spin her to face me, my eyes thick with emotion as I smash my lips onto her pouty ones.

Her eyes widen before falling closed, letting me kiss her as she melts.

Sweat like sugar, smooth as honey, and warm with want. She was bliss and heaven, shy and innocent. Fucking perfect, she is so fucking perfect it's unreal.

I kiss her until I lose my breath, drunk on her taste. As we pull away, we both heave like we just ran some kind of marathon. If only she knew how long I've wanted to do that.

Staring into her stunning eyes, I find my words. "I love you too, silly girl." I then lean in real close, edging her ear. "You're mine."

The apples of her cheeks flush, shading rosy red, and gosh did I love it. She is as pretty as an angel, glowing with her own light.

My hand lifts and caresses her cheek, her skin blazing hot, making my lips quirk. I love the way her body reacts to me; it's hella attractive.

"You're so fucking perfect," I murmur.

She turns to me, lips set in a shy smile; I take the chance and lower my lips back onto hers. After I let my lips trail down peppering kisses along the line of her jaw and down her neck. She tilts her head instinctively as her fingers find my hair raking through it.

It feels good as hell, her combing her fingers through my hair like she owns it.

Ella is a beautiful mess with her hair tangled, sticking to her forehead, her harsh breathing, and her shaky hands.

I smile, good.

Pulling away, I bring her back onto my lap, cradling her small frame. I loved it. I loved every goddamn inch of her.

*

Ella's POV:

It's been a little over an hour since Declan left for football practice, and I already miss him. Just sitting in between his legs with my back against his chest and his fingers brushing along my skin felt special, safe. The way Declan makes me feel is amazing. He makes all things in this world better.

I haven't left my bed since he left, it smells like him, and for some reason, it brings a permanent smile to my lips. The smile won't leave, so my cheekbones are beginning to hurt.

I need to get up and take a shower, but I have been putting it off. My skin is covered with a sheen of sweat, and my face needs to be scrubbed clean of the dried tears.

Tonight, unfortunately, I have to go out to dinner with my mom, Julian, and Thomas. Thank goodness Thomas is coming, because if he wasn't, then I would pretend to be sick or something, just so I didn't have to come either. If Thomas is there, he'll make small talk and hopefully keep all the attention off me.

Small talk and I definitely didn't mix, I always end up stuttering without a clue of what to say, and it's extremely embarrassing.

Inhaling one last gulp of Declan's lingering scent, I get out of bed and trudge lazily to the bathroom. Stepping into the shower, I do what all people do in the shower and clean myself and then get out.

Dinner isn't till six, so I have a couple of hours to chillax. Just as I get out of the bathroom, my phone vibrates.

'Hey Ellie girl, can't wait to see that smile:)'

As I read the message from Declan, a smile takes over my chapped lips as my heart skips a beat.

I don't really know what to say back; he's so sweet. 'Me too.'

I cringe as I send my response; maybe I should have thought a little harder before sending that. After it's sent, I wait a minute for his reply, but it doesn't come. He was probably on break when he sent it or something..

Walking down the stairs, I go to the kitchen, get out a bowl, and pour frosted animal crackers in it. These are literally the best animal crackers; I'm obsessed at the moment. Taking one, I pop it into my mouth, and my taste buds dance in yumminess.

Without further ado, I skip to the living room, take out a blanket, and hop on the couch with my delicious animal crackers. Next to me, I grab the remote and scroll through the Tv stations looking for something bearable to watch. So that means skipping right past Hallmark because literally, every movie on it makes me cringe.

Seeing the movie 'Me Before You,' I click on it without hesitation. It's so good but always makes me cry because of how sad it is.

*

Wiping my eyes (the after-effects of that movie), I decide to get ready for this dumb dinner. My mom should be here anytime now, and I just know I'll hear an ear full if I'm not ready: she hates being late. It's too bad, really if I could have it my way I would get there late.

Pulling on some overall shorts and a white tee with a couple of buttons, I'm dressed. Nope, not wearing a dress, so this will have to do because I'm not changing. I quickly dutch braid my hair down the middle then, put on some platform sandals and call it a day.

"Ella, Thomas, are you ready to go?" My mom yells.

"Yeah, coming." Both me and Thomas yell back in unison.

Meeting my mom and Thomas downstairs, I take in their outfits. Thomas is dressed in khaki pants and a light blue button-up shirt, while my mom wears a long black dress with flats. They look more put together than me.

When we arrive at the restaurant, we meet up with Julian for our reservations. He greets us with a smile that sends chills down my spine, kissing my mother's hand.

He was a lot taller than both my mom and me; even Thomas was shorter than him. His charcoal hair was slicked back, his blue eyes piercing, and his smile had an off-putting charm to it. Julian was attractive, probably charming too, but he also was intimidating: probably because of his height and sharp features.

The waitress seats us, I sit next to Thomas, and on the other side of the booth, my mom and Julian sit. I'm already uncomfortable. Going out and having dinner with someone I don't know isn't really my thing.

"How's school, Ella?" Julian asks. "Your mom mentioned something about your recent absences."

I glance up at his deep voice, my face burning. "Umm, my friend's been bringing m-me my work," I say quietly.

My mom smiles, and so does Julian, "They sound like a good friend," Julian comments. "That's very responsible of you staying caught up with your studies."

I nod a silent thanks; my anxiety felt in my shaky hands. Thankfully another conversation stems, Julian every so often touching my mom whether it's wiping something off her lip or whatnot. Thomas joins in talking about cars while I sit silently with a very fake forced smile.

"Excuse me. I'm going to use the restroom," I mumble, looking at my mom.

She turns her head, acknowledging me, "Okay, sweetie."

Julian smiles as I scoot out of the booth; they fall back into conversation as I walk to the bathroom, though I can feel eyes burning into my back, which makes me speed up my pace. I don't bother glancing back to see who it is; it will only make me nervous.

After doing my business, I wash my face and hands, freshening up. I take my time, not really wanting to go back out there to sit and fake a smile when really my anxiety will gnaw at me.

When eventually I run out of things to do and can no longer stall the inevitable, I open the bathroom door and step out. As I go to take another step, a silhouette overtakes my vision, blocking my way. A sudden nervousness settles in my stomach.

I go to say 'excuse me' but don't get the chance as the tall man in all black pushes me hard against the bathroom door. My breath gets knocked out of me almost instantly before I can even realize what just happened, my back searing with pain.

Confusion, worry, and drastic terror encase me all at once as the man hovers over my frozen figure, trapping me. His hand lifts towards my face with a cloth in it; he goes to press the fabric against my mouth when I completely lash out, kicking and punching.

As I'm about to kick his shin hard while protecting my face, the man clamps his hand around my neck, cutting off my air supply. My foot drops as my hands go to claw at my throat, but this guy was much stronger than me.

I go to scream, but he shoves the cloth in my mouth. "Shut that pretty little mouth of yours, or I'll kill you." The man growls, his voice rough.

Complete panic drowns me, my heart pounding so hard I might just have a heart attack; tears well up in my eyes, ready to pour out.

Not being able to breathe weakens me immensely, my hands losing their fighting strength. I try not to breathe in the substance that the cloth obviously has soaked in it, but with his hand around my throat, it's impossible not to open my mouth.

My eyes quickly begin to blur, and my body begins to tremble; he's going to kill me. He's going to kill me.

God, please help me.

I try to scream as a last attempt, but it's muffled and it only makes the guy dig his nails into the skin of my neck, causing extreme pain. Nausea rains over me in powerful waves, the scariest feeling.

This is it; I'm going to die.

"There, there; you'll be asleep soon."

Fat helpless droplets soak my face as my consciousness begins to fade at an accelerated speed. I try so so hard to fight it, to stay awake, but the heaviness is too much. All I want to do is close my eyes and sleep, and soon enough, I do.

Blackness cages me in, holds me prisoner, and makes me powerless.

Edited by @Marilyn_McKnight! Thank you, I appreciate you lots!

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