vehement

12

this chapter is dedicated to uwannabeme123 and her blue balls <3

• AMALIA •

I wake up in an empty bed. I roll over, rubbing my eyes. It's a mistake, because my head starts hurting, so much so that I groan into my pillow. I make myself sit up, then look around. Where did Archer go?

"Archer!" I shout.

There's no response. I look out my window, finding that it's completely dark. I climb out of my bed, groaning from the pain in my stiff limbs. I walk out my room, down the hallway and to the bottom of the stairs.

No one is here.

"Dad?" I whisper. "Dad?"

"Amalia."

I spin around. Relief pours into me like an opened dam when I see Archer there. He furrows his eyebrows and reaches out for me, wordlessly pulling me into a hug. I lean into him, exhaling a heavy, slow breath.

"Where did you go?" I ask. "I woke up and you weren't there."

"Ally made me take her back to get some of her things." He tells me. "I didn't want to wake you up." He looks down at me. I glance away, but he puts his fingers under my chin and tilts my head up, making me meet his eyes again. "Sorry."

"It's okay." I whisper.

He smiles. Then he leans forwards and kisses my forehead. "You hungry?"

"A little." I admit. I'm surprised he can't hear my stomach rumbling.

"Okay." He replies. "I'll make you something."

"No, it's fine." I assure him. "I can."

He tilts his head, giving me a certain look that makes me sigh. I nod. "Okay. Could I just have some toast, please?"

He smiles. "Sure." His hand goes down to mine and he intertwines our fingers. He pulls me into the kitchen and guides me to sit on the counter. "How about pasta instead?"

     "Okay." I whisper.

     He nods and grabs some out of the cupboard. He boils water and then pours it into the pan with the pasta. He puts it on a boil before beginning to make a sauce.

     "I didn't know you knew how to cook."

     "I can only cook a few things. I wanna learn, though."

"Maybe you could ask Xander to teach you. I think he would." I say.

His shoulders stiffen. He looks up at me and pastes a smile on his face. "Yeah. Maybe." He walks over to the sink and begins washing the dishes. I shuffle down the counter, next to him, beside the sink.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"Nothing." He assures me as I grab a towel and begin drying each dish that he washes. Lightly, I kick his leg with my foot. He looks at me.

"Did Xander say anything to you?"

"No." He says.

I tilt my head. "Archer."

He lets out a small laugh. "I'm being honest, don't worry." He whispers. He finishes washing the dishes and I dry the last one before he leans on the counter beside me.

He moves a piece of hair from my face.

"Do you wanna stay in my room?" I ask. I feel like a teenager again, sneaking around at night and staying in one another's rooms.