"The Quarry isn't that bad! We could jump off of a cliff and still live!" Richie shouted through the phone, his abruptness making me move the phone away from my ear.

Richie and the boys wanted us to go to The Quarry, once again. I didn't quite understand it—whenever we went, they never did anything. They sat around and listened to the music from an old radio, and chatted about random things.

"Richie, I'll go once you boys grow a pair and actually cliff-dive." I chuckled, bringing the phone down to the dial.

"BUT—" The phone hit the dial, and the call was ended. I smiled, feeling a small warmth coming from behind me. I turned around.

"He sounds like a real charmer." Penny smiled. I shook my head in disapproval, grinning as I did so.

"When he needs to be," I answered, my voice filled with sarcasm. Penny raised his eyebrows, taking in a deep breath as he folded his arms. I stood there without saying a word, the presence of him being there enough to fill the silence of the room. "Richie had invited me to go out with him and the boys." It came out of my mouth.

Penny slowly moved his way over to the armed chair that was opposite of the couch. He smiled with the corners of his mouth, slouching down slightly to where his legs were hanging off of the seat. "So I've heard." He patted the fabric of his black jeans.

I cleared my throat, looking down at my feet. Penny's eyes darted to mine. He saw me waiting patiently as I put all of my weight onto my heels. He smirked, sitting up straight. His hands intertwined together.

"To The Quarry." He finished.

I nodded my head slightly, looking to him as if I were a puppy begging for forgiveness. He leaned back in the chair once more.

"I don't necessarily—" He was cut off by the sound of a knock at my door. My breath heightened, my head snapping towards the door as I soon sighed to myself. I blinked quickly, making my way towards the door.

"Stop, hold on Ariana." Penny swift moved his way behind me. I jumped, my sudden balance becoming uneven as I used his tall figure to keep me up straight. He placed his hands on my hips, his jawline above my head. "At least learn to keep your balance, kitten." He lightly chuckled.

There was another knock at the door. Penny's eyes shifted to the wood, filling a sudden movement of placing his hand on the edge of the door.

Penny looked towards the stairs, shifting his head. "Ariana, go." He whispered, his face moving closer to mine. I frowned, looking towards the door as I made my way up to look out the small hole in the middle of it. Penny took his hand and placed it on my shoulder, guiding my heels towards the floor.

"Go."

"What are you talking about, who's at the door?" I questioned, although Penny didn't give me an answer. He shook his head, pursing his lips together as he closed his eyes. He placed both of his hands on my arms, leaning in.

"I'll explain everything later," His breath hit my forehead. "Go upstairs and don't come down until I say so. Go."

Without questioning his demand, I hesitated for a moment, looking into his eyes. With affirmation, he nodded his head. Turning around, I slowly made my way up the stairs, turning around once more. I was facing his back. I made my way around the corner, pressing my back against the wall. I kept my breathing steady, and my shaking even steadier.

There was someone outside of my house that Penny didn't want me to see, or maybe he didn't want me to meet them. I didn't know which.

It was nearly scaring me half to death. It's my own house, for crying out loud. There was a possibility that Penny was in some sort of danger, but I couldn't handle the thought of someone hurting him.

The door opened. The light from outside shined up the stairs, giving me a clear signal that this was the time to stay back. Don't come down until I say so. The voices started. I felt my chest raising. I soon heard Penny's voice through the echo of the room.

"I see you're still alive." Penny's voice rang through the hallways. I gulped, feeling as if I needed to step down these stairs to be with him. Who was at that door?

"Don't sound so surprised and disappointed, I might come to the conclusion that you don't like me." A man spoke. His voice was fulfilling, almost as if he were trying. He woke with a rasp in his voice. The British accent had also thrown me off. Who was this person?

"What the hell are you doing here." Penny snapped at him, the sound of laughter ringing through my ears afterward.

"It's quite amusing, actually, because I could ask you the same question." The man snarled. Undefeated, the man continued to talk with no response from Penny. "That's no way to treat a guest. May I suggest inviting me in?"

"Over my dead body," Penny growled.

"We'll just have to see about that, shall we?" The man snapped. I felt the tension move throughout the house. I stood behind the wall with my hands clutched to the wall. "I'm only here to help." The man's voice became soothing once again, a satisfaction to anyone he would allow to hear it. 

With a small number of footsteps heard, the light shining from outside began to fade away; the door was shut. As much as I trusted Penny, I couldn't help but wonder the things this person could do. The man was inside my house.

"I don't need your help," Penny answered quickly.

"I'm sure you do."

"What in your right mind thinks that I would need help from a horrendous person such as yourself?" Penny responded in a mocking voice. My breath hitched.

I heard a faint chuckle. "Where is that little toy of yours," I felt his footsteps draw closer. "Ariana, is it?"

With a loud bang, I felt the vibration of the wall shake. My back left the wall, a gasp coming from my mouth. I quickly put my hands against my mouth, my eyes widening. What just happened?

"She has nothing to do with this!" Penny shouted. His voice was getting deeper. This had only happened two other times. He was starting to turn.

"She has everything to do with this!" The man shouted back at him. I could hear their breaths from upstairs. Had I started trouble?

Within a few moments, the strange voice spoke.

"Is she here?"

My head snapped up to the wall. My hands dropped to my sides as I backed away from the large opening to the stairs. What did this man want? How did he know who I was? How does he know who Penny is?

"That's none of your concern."

I backed up slowly. My heart was beating fast; I could feel the pulse throughout my body. A spread of fear moved through my veins, and I couldn't contain it.

Something had touched my foot. Without realizing what it was, I soon found myself trying to keep my balance. But with no luck, I fell onto the floor, my side hitting the tile. The voices from downstairs stopped.

My eyes went wide. What had I just done?

"She's here." The fluent voice spoke once again. I remained on the floor, my face heating up as I used my arms to move me closer to the bedrooms. I heard the footsteps getting even closer. I brought my knees up to my chest. I felt like a scared little girl.

"If you even dare to touch a single hair on her head, I will kill you." The footsteps stopped.

"Don't be foolish, brother. I could smell her from a mile away."

The footsteps continued. I pushed my back against the wall, going back as far as I could. I wanted to hide, but some part of me wouldn't allow it. I knew that if Penny was here, I was safe.

I looked to the floor. The footsteps got closer. I held my breath, as I closed my eyes. My knees were brought up to my chest, and I hugged them tightly. Within a moment or two, I felt the creaks of the floor in front of me.

"Ariana, open your eyes, love." I heard the man speak to me. I hesitated for a second, before soon opening my eyes. Slowly, I looked up at the man. He was crouched down to meet my eyes, though he was still a bit larger than me.

His eyes were looking into mine. Green eyes. His ginger hair fell off of his head perfectly onto his forehead. He had plenty of scars on his face; almost too many.

"That wasn't so bad." He spoke, his voice dialed down to a whisper. He soon stood up slowly, his back arching as he did so. Penny stood behind him, his eyes on me. The stranger was almost the same height as Penny.

The man smiled, pulling his hand out to meet level with my face. I flinched, drawing my head back as I looked away. It earned a light shade of laughter coming from the man. All I wanted at this moment was Penny.

"Stand up, sweetheart." The man said. His hand was still lifted, hoping that I would take it. I ignored his gesture, as I found a way to keep my balance. I got up slowly without his help.

The stranger standing in front of me was wearing a long, black coat, that draped over his shoulders and flowed down to his ankles. He looked as if he were in his late-twenties, maybe almost too old to be friends with Penny.

The man cleared his throat, lowering his hand. I looked towards the floor once more. Both Penny and the stranger were staring at me, their eyes making it hard to feel comfortable at a time like this. I was overall confused.

The man inched closer to my face. "Well, what a lovely girl you are. I can see why Penny is so infatuated with you." The man smirked.

I felt my cheeks heat up. Infatuated?

Penny quickly grabbed the man's shoulder, pushing him back with a strong force.

"That's close enough." Penny snarled.

"Once again, you clearly don't know any manors. Penny, dear, wouldn't you like to introduce me to my new friend?" The man raised his eyebrows, looking at Penny as he soon looked at me.

"Satan, wouldn't you like to leave her house, now?" Penny sneered, grabbing his shoulder as he had done before. The man shook his hand off of him.

"That's quite funny. You once told me that calling me "Satan" was an insult to Satan."

"Get out," Penny demanded, moving in front of me to where the man could no longer see me. I heard the man snicker under his breath.

"If you're going to be a dolt about it, I'll introduce myself." The man shoved Penny out of his way, moving closer to me as he flashed a smile.

"Hello, love. I believe I haven't properly introduced myself, have I?" He questioned a rhetorical statement, soon holding his hand out.

"I'm Xander." The man said. With a slow movement, I moved my hand up to meet his. He moved our hands in sync, bending down to meet my height. "Xander Gray," My breath hitched.

"Penny's brother."

➢➢➢

Plot twist.

So I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter. I know, I haven't updated in forever. But honestly, I think that this chapter was kind of worth the wait! It was fun writing it, and I'm sure you'll have fun reading from this chapter and so on! Thanks for being patient with me :) I love you guys! ♥︎

And now a gif of Bill that makes my heart go whoosh.

Quote of the Day: "Life is a party and I'm the piñata." -Charles Boyle