Letting Isabelle Go

On The Run

22
I stared into his icy blue eyes, shock overwhelming me. "Move into the city? I- I just got harassed by a complete stranger."

I watched the crease that formed on his forehead appear when he was frustrated. He grabbed both of my hands, squeezing them tightly.

"I want to start a life with you, Isabelle."

My heart seemed to stop at the sound of his words. I had never felt so much emotion at once. Confusion. Shock. Fear. Love. The list went on. Blood pounded through my ears.

I stepped out of the truck, nearly getting hit by a car in the process. Before I could do anything else, he jumped out after me and grabbed my face and pressed his lips against mine. I squeezed my eyes shut, moved by the events that had just occurred. I pulled away, gasping for breath.

My lungs were saying no but my heart said yes. To be honest, the thought of starting a life with him didn't scare me. It was just the thought of losing him after building a life together. Building up to break back down happens to us all at one point in life. So I did the only thing I could do; I said no.

"I'm sorry, Jax. But I can't."

The second I stepped away from him, I could hear his shouts and was hurled forward, sliding against the concrete. A car screeched right behind us. I was laying on the side walk underneath Jax. His breathing came out ragged and forced. He had pushed me out of the way. He saved my life. Once again.

He pressed his forehead against mine and gasped for breath. All I could do was stare up at him in awe.

"Thank you. Again."

He forced a laugh but it only came out sounding like he was nervous as hell and out of breath. My heart beat against his chest. We stayed on the sidewalk until people started crowding around us.

One lady covered her mouth in horror when she saw my face. "How old are you, sweetheart?" Jax helped me up.

"Sixteen."

The woman nodded but I could tell that she was concerned what I was doing with an older guy.

"Do you need any help?"

Jax intertwined our hands together. "No. Thank you though."

We walked back to the truck, leaving the small crowd that had gathered around us.

In the car we sat in silence, afraid to speak. I didn't want to screw up. All I wanted to do was sleep and not have to worry about our problems until the morning. But I couldn't just simply escape my problems by sleeping. Jax drove down the street. The wind whistled in my ears and I closed my eyes, inhaling the cool air.

"Where are we going?"

His grip on the steering wheel tightened and I watched his knuckles turn white. "I don't know."

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and opened them to meet his gaze. He sighed softly and sped up to the speed limit of fifty five.

"I don't want to go back to that house. I don't think I can. I've been there too long and it took me even longer to realize I had to get away."
~
It was dark by the time we stopped. Jax pulled in front of a brick house and turned off the engine. We sat in silence before he stepped out and walked in the house. I ran in after him, hesitantly. The house was furnished and a strange aura hung in the air.

I noticed pictures of random family members on the walls as I followed him upstairs. He was sitting on a queen sized bed when I walked into the room he had disappeared in.

He had a smirk on his face. "Welcome to our new home. Well temporarily."

We slept in the stranger's house that night until we heard them coming home. Jax shook me awake and carried me out the window. He jumped first and landed with a thud on the grass before quickly jumping up to catch me fall. I fell into his arms, lightly. We raced to his truck and he zoomed out of the neighborhood.

During our ride I fell asleep before sun rise. When I did wake up I was in someone else's bed this time. Jax's arm was around my waist. His shirt was on the carpet. A tattoo of a purple flower was on his torso, along with a four inch scar hidden by the tattoo. I shivered out of the unfamiliar bed. The sight of the tattoo and scar made me realize how much I really knew Jax. I didn't.

The carpet was rough when I sat down and I wrapped my arms around my knees, rocking back and forth. I missed my family. It had been five months since the last time I saw Alyssa and my parents. Damn you, Jax. You did this to me. You made me this way. I am so in love with you. Let me go. I was thinking of leaving him when his eyes opened slowly. Then I fell in love all over again.

Our eyes locked but he could tell that something was wrong. Despite the despair I felt, my stomach did somersaults when he looked at me.

He sat up, stretching his arms out wide with a yawn. "What's wrong?"

I fingered the carpet, avoiding eye contact. "How'd you get that scar?"

He ran a hand through his hair and looked down at the floor. I watched his jaw tighten and his body stiffen.

His eyes narrowed before he responded. "You know how my dad was involved in an illegal drug market? His job was to import and deport the drugs from country to country and it eventually got him into trouble which lead to his disappearance," he took a break and shifted his body so I couldn't see his face, "While he got caught up in the drugs and money, he became abusive. He was always either drunk or high. When he came back from work he would be so out of it that he beat me every night. Well one night he did this," he motioned to the scar on his torso, "Soon after that he disappeared."

I gulped, pointing to his tattoo. "And what's with the flower?"

He cleared his throat. "It's a carnation. My um... My mother used to bring home carnations when I was little. She left when I was eight."

An awkward silence hung in the air. I got up from the carpet to sit next to him when he started talking again. "Don't. I know how possessive I am. I just never want to hurt you."

Our eyes met before I spoke. "That's impossible. You've already hurt me. Numerous times. I know that I've hurt you many times too. Everyone hurts each other. Whether it's on purpose or accidentally. But we forgive and forget."

His hands met mine and we sat in the stranger's room in our own world. Everyone has their own world. This was our melancholy world. But we were happily sad.

A/N: The song above is Lost It To Trying (Paper Towns Mix) by Son Lux. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Feel free to leave feedback. Thank you <3