Hope you enjoy!
---
---
The air around me is still and there is very little background noise able to be heard from where I am positioned. My eyes open the slightest bit, not wanting to get caught looking around if someone is holding me hostage. However, nobody is in sight. A searing pain courses through the top of my head from where I had been hit last night, but I choose to ignore it. I realize that I'm sprawled across a couch, and my eyes become wide as I study the scene around me.
I don't know where I am. Elegant furniture surrounds me, everything cloud white and polished. The room I'm in seems small. The sitting room, dining area, and kitchen are all compacted together, signaling that it is an apartment and not a house, and yet everything seems extremely expensive. I force myself out of my slouched position and fix my posture, taking in the very different environment.
After standing up slowly, my bare feet skid across the sleek, cold tiles. I wonder where my shoes are, and it's that moment that I realize I'm wearing different clothes from when I had investigated those men last night. My pajama shorts and tank top have vanished, and in their place I'm clothed in a simple, black unisex t-shirt and a pair of boxers.
Why am I wearing boxers? I think to myself, trying to make sense of how I got in this position. Last night, I had gone outside due to my curiosity of a loud noise. I ended up being knocked out, but now I wake up in a beautiful apartment and dressed in a male's outfit. I hope I didn't sleep with one of those idiotic jackasses.
I gasp as I see a sliver of sunlight through the closed curtains. Charging forward and pushing the flowing fabric aside, my eyes twinkle in awe as I stare at the outside scenery, pressing my hand against the glass. The glowing sun shines brightly and creates photogenic shadows of the tallest palm trees in Miami. Young adults and teenagers dressed in bathing suits and tropical themed clothing wander the sidewalks below the apartment, supposedly making their way to the beach that is mere minutes away from the apartment. I grew up spending large parts of my childhood basking in the afternoon sun and swimming with the dolphins, but I was unable to journey to the beach alone as an adolescent because it was too far away. Whoever rents this apartment might just be in my dream residence.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" I spin around quickly, recognizing the husky voice, but not entirely believing that he could be here. A familiar pair of silvery blue eyes meet mine, confirming that my desirable nightmare is true. Jay leans against a nearby wall next to a door that is presumably his bedroom. He is dressed in a simple, yet attractive white button down top that is slightly loose and a pair of his usual black skinny jeans.
I refuse to let his appearance distract me from getting the answers I need. "How did I get here, Jay?" I could have asked if he lives in this beautiful apartment, but the answer is quite obvious now that he is present. "I was on the street where I live, and then I got into a bit of trouble with some people," I say confidently, being purposely vague. I now understand that my actions were utterly illogical, but I wouldn't change what I've done because I live for the excitement of danger. "Did you bring me here?"
He nods his head slowly, moving away from the wall a grabbing a lone beer from a coffee table nearby. He takes a sip of the alcohol casually, which makes me assume he drinks beer often, before giving an answer. "We found you."
"Who did?" Is he working with those men? Is that how he was able to find me at school? Are those men stalking me under his orders? I try to shake these silly thoughts out of my head. I might not know and understand Jay Agron very well, but I want to believe that he wouldn't hurt me.
"Who do you think?" He sets his beverage down and walks towards me, stopping a few inches away. "My family, our family, found you. We were riding on the bus when sweet little Tessa saw you lying still on the ground, very far from where you have previously boarded the Secretò Bus." In the back of my mind, I take note of this small, odd detail. "We told the driver to stop and we discovered you were unconscious, so Tessa and I brought you here."
A slightly disturbing, but also strangely pleasing question comes to mind as I try to make sense of everything that has happened. "Why am I in different clothes?"
He runs a hand through his hair, somehow affected by the question, but trying not to show it. "Your clothes were covered in mud. Before Tessa left she insisted that she change you out of the filthy clothing, and I don't have any female clothes lying around so we decided you would be fine with those." He doesn't seem embarrassed. I don't view Jay as the kind of man who would become uncomfortable after such a simple question, but there was some kind of emotion that flashed in his eyes. It disappeared so quickly that I couldn't identify what it was.
"I know what actually happened, Victoria," he says, his eyes locked on mine. I let out a breath of hot air, not expecting him to know. "I knew those men were near where you lived and I've been keeping surveillance on them. I didn't expect them to attack you-"
I interrupt, not wanting him to think I'm completely vulnerable and weak. "They didn't attack me," I say slightly louder than I meant. It's common for voices to grow louder as the person gets more and more defensive, which is my current situation.
"What?" He seems genuinely confused. His eyebrows scrunch together in an adorable, but still attractive way. I refrain from biting my lip.
"They were being strange and I was curious, so I went to investigate," I admit to him, not seeing a point in lying. In a way, I suppose he has a right to know, considering it involves his secret organization somehow.
"Mierda, Victoria," he curses using a Spanish swear that I actually recognize. "Do you understand how dangerous that was? You could have been raped or worse killed."
He wants me protected, but I refuse to be the damsel in distress. "I approached them without a second thought because that's what I do," I say strongly, stepping forward so that we're closer. "I know I could have been harmed. In fact, I thought I heard a gunshot. That's why I went outside in the first place. They could have been armed and I know that. I don't need a lecture on safety because I don't need that word as part of my vocabulary."
He stares down at me, breathing deeply. I realize that I've, once again, gotten myself in a suggestively close position with Jay. The last time we we're in this situation was in the hallway at school, and I'm not sure I'm ready to repeat those actions. He leans down, his soft lips brushing against my ear. "If only you knew what your feisty attitude does to me."
I stumble backwards, putting distance between us. Jay sudden walks straight past me and slides open a door leading to a small, but relaxing balcony. I hadn't noticed the doorway before, but he seems to invite me to trail behind him. Following him into the fresh, outdoor air of the early morning, I stare at the stunning view. In the back of my head, I'm panicking about my parents discovering that I disappeared during the night, but the tropical paradise surrounding Jay and I is distracting me.
I stand beside him, leaning against the white railing of the balcony. "Are you going to explain to me who knocked me out and why, or are we going to have to stand here and play twenty questions?"
He chuckles softly, obviously finding humor in my question. "Of course I'm going to explain, but not here."
I look at him with confusion clear on my face. "What do you mean?"
He sends me a dazzling, confident grin that brightens his facial features greatly. The words that come out of his mouth next are not what I expected to hear today. "Fancy a day at the beach, Gatita?"
---
---
(Mierda = Fuck). This chapter was meant to be a bit shorter than this, but I got a bit excited. NaNoWriMo is almost over (11/27/15) and I think I'm going to win! I have over my writing goal for now, so I'll keep you guys updated :) I hope you guys liked this chapter. If you did, please vote and comment! If I know you guys like what I'm writing, then I'll be inspired to write more!
Update (12/4/15): I did win the Young Writer's Program for NaNoWriMo and I'm actually really proud of myself!
QOTC: In three words, how would you describe Tori?
YOU ARE READING
Secrets
Teen Fiction"You should never have gotten involved with the Secretò Bus, Victoria," he says as he trails his tongue down my neckline. "This is a dangerous way to live your life." I stare into his icy blue eyes, licking my lips unconsciously. "Teach me to live i...
