Finding Cinderella

ღ Finding Cinderella (34)

"Shh! Stop distracting me."

He let out a small laugh. His words lingered in my head, and they began to drain me of enthusiasm.

"You're right," I said in defeat. I turned away and leaned against the column we were hiding behind. "She's gotta leave the nest at some point, and that's the sad and scary part."

With that, a serious look washed over his face. "Why?"

"Well... from the day our dad died, I have one purpose: to keep her safe from anything and anyone. I know I'm taking my protectiveness to a whole new level, but back when we were kids, I'd seen some of her classmates harassing her and old creeps trying to approach her. It was scary. I was pretending that it wasn't, and I was putting on a brave face as I fended them off, but it was actually terrifying. Yes, she's older now and more aware, but I'm still... I'm still scared."

I drew a deep breath and exhaled a shuddering sigh. My chest clenched from all the anxiety that came with the memory, but I forced myself not to tear up. However, this crushing feeling gradually eased when I felt my hand being squeezed. I raised my head and found a gentle smile on his face.

"She'll be fine. I'm sure she's learned a lot from you that she knows how to kick people's asses like you do," he said, and I couldn't help but laugh. "And I'm also sure that wherever your dad is, he's proud of you for taking good care of her."

"I hope so."

Time seemed to stretch as we exchanged smiles and continued to hold each other's hand. It felt incredible. And annoying. And reassuring. My heart was in a battle with my mind again, but it didn't go on for too long when I saw a familiar figure far behind him. I narrowed my eyes.

It was Julianne!

She was standing by the entrance of a boutique, her hands hovering over the clothes rack. Her curly hair had been straightened, and she almost looked like a different person, but I didn't have the chance to process her sudden change of appearance because she began flapping her hands and mouthing, "Go!"

Seeing my frown, Tristan turned around and said, "Oh, it's Jules. Wow. She looks different."

Julianne craned her neck to look into the store and snapped her eyes back to me, flapping her hands even more vehemently. "Go, go," she mouthed.

"I... I think we should leave," I said and held Tristan by the wrist.

"What? You guys in a fight or something?" he inquired.

I didn't answer as I began dragging him away. If Julianne was here, it meant Ronnie was here, too. I certainly didn't want to deal with her at the moment. Not when Tristan was around. I could already imagine the trouble we'd go through if she saw us together.

Before long, I felt a series of vibrations in my pocket, and I pulled out my phone to see two typo-riddled messages from Julianne.

rONJIE SAW U OMG RUN

SHES LOOKINF FOR HIM BICH HIDE

Frantic, I yanked Tristan in the department store and tried to blend in with the crowd. He began complaining about stuff I didn't understand, but I paid no attention to him as I stole a glance behind me. Amid the rushing mob of shoppers, Ronnie stood out in her red and black outfit. And she, unmistakably, was in search of us.

Ripping my gaze away, I hissed to Tristan, "Duck!"

"Where?"

"No, you dumbass. Duck!" I reached for his head and made him dip along with me behind the display of clothes.