Becoming Bad

chapter thirty-six

We are quiet as we enter the car, and I let out the long breath I held, trying so hard to stop my entire body from trembling.

Breathe, Adelina.

"We are fine, gorgeous." Damien turns to me and grabs my hands in his, his warm skin always a massive contrast against mine, and I'm forced to look into his hazel eyes.

They search for mine, flickering with worry and I try my best to calm down, letting our breaths synchronize. I'm almost there when out of a sudden Scarlett's words from the other day come to mind and I feel my heart skip a beat.

Watch out for Damien and yourself. Everything comes with a cost.

I try to convince myself she isn't here, that she can't harm us but it's useless. Not when I know she can, her brother can. My hands start trembling even more and I have to shut my eyes, wiping away the memory from my mind.

Breathe, Adelina.

The bad boy cups my face in the same heartbeat, circling my cheeks with his thumbs.

"What's wrong, Lina? Tell me," I shake my head, afraid that I will break if those words leave my lips but I know he won't settle down, so for the first time, I decide to be honest. It's what both of us deserve after what we told each other last night.

"Scarlett told me to watch out for you and me, that everything comes with a cost, and gosh, I can't forget it." Some sort of lightness washes through me, like a weight that has been lifted off my shoulders but the second I say those words, Damien grows tense, his hands leave me and I hear his breathing getting heavier and heavier.

I open my eyes and his hands are in fists on his lap before turning on the engine, not wasting any more time leaving this place. If I was tense, now I'm even more with the way he is.

"When and where, Adelina." The bad boy's voice is low, the only noise being the wind hitting us outside as we speed through the empty streets of the city. I freeze in place with his demand, managing to hear my heart beating through my chest.

It was a terrible idea to tell.

I have to grow every ounce of strength I still have left to let out the truth and not lie again straight at his face.

"It was at the underground fight." I only manage to mumble, not daring to look at the boy next to me but the minute Damien understands where I went, without him, he slows down the car in a sling motion and pulls into the sideway. The tires squeal against the asphalt and I catch my breath before we come to stop, knowing damn well we will argue about what I just said.

Breathe.

The silence in the car is deadly and with each second that passes Damien is silent, I grow more and more worried.

Breathe.

I don't know how long it passes until one of us decides to do something but it's the bad boy that gets out of the car, cursing under his breath and I don't where I find the courage to follow him, hands trembling at my sides and silent tears running through my cheeks.

Breathe, Adelina.

I'm fucking exhausted that something always comes along to ruin our moments, we can't even have a decent night without something or someone disturbing us.