My teeth were chattering so bad that I figured Rosen wouldn't even have to look for me, he could probably just hear me. The goosebumps had been raised on my arms for the past hour, as I tried huddling in on myself to block out the cold. The phone battery had dropped to 30%, just from roaming for service over the past few hours. I thought about turning it off, but knew that Rosen could be calling at any moment now. The sun had dropped behind the trees, and that was when the temperature dropped right along with it. I could currently only see about three feet in front of me, and that was all thanks to the moonlight breaking through the treetops.
I jumped when the phone rang, my numb fingers trembling as I hit accept call.
"R-Rosen?" I stuttered, trying to control my shivering. "p-please tell me you're in town and not s-stuck in a- in a traffic jam." Rosen laughed lightly, but I could tell it was strained.
"We just got into town. Start walking out of the woods and then tell me what you see."
"Don't hang- hang up on me," I said quietly, starting to walk slowly in the direction I knew town was.
"I'll stay on the line with you," Rosen assured.
I only walked for about five minutes before I saw the treeline. Sprinting the last few feet, I almost cried in relief at seeing the first building in my site.
"Okay I'm r-right by a bar called z-zesty's," I read the sign out loud. I hesitated, but began walking towards the building and stepping onto the sidewalk. The bar was busy, and people were milling about outside smoking and laughing with each other. Nobody spared me a glance.
"Found it," I heard Cole say in the background. Rosen gave a relieved sigh.
"It's only a few block away Ellie, We'll be right there." Rosen's voice helped soothe my fear, and I knew that this would be over soon. Well, at least part of it would be.
I watched a car slow down at the front of the bar, before pulling off to the curb. I was on the side of the building, hidden by the shadows.
"Is that you that just pulled up," I asked quietly, not wanting to draw attention to myself.
"Yeah, that's us. Where are you?"
"Off to the right side." I watched as the driver side door opened and Rosen stepped out. I felt my heart flutter, but I resisted the urge to run to him. He locked eyes with me and I saw his tense shoulders drop and his face fall with relief.
We both started walking towards each other and at the last few steps I couldn't help myself as I flew into his open arms. He stumbled back slightly and I drank in his warmth, pressing my face into the soft cotton of his sweatshirt. I felt his breathing stutter, his arms clenching tightly around my waist.
"Thank god," he groaned into my ear. "I was so worried." I breathed in his familiar scent, not ready to let go. I realized I was crossing into dangerous territory here, but I didn't care. Rosen pulled back way too soon, but he moved his hands to cup my face.
"Are you hurt?" He asked, searching my eyes. He turned my face, looking for injury. When he let go, I shook my head.
"I have a few scratches and thorns on every part of my body, but other than that I'm okay," I replied. "More shaken up than anything." I added. He pulled me back into his embrace, and I sighed as my fear from all the past hours melted away. I knew I was safe in his arms.
"Come on guys, we better go. We have no clue where Knox is and putting distance between this place is probably the best idea," Cole interrupted, coming up behind us. Pulling away, I noticed his gaze linger on Rosen but I couldn't decipher what it meant. Rosen nodded, his face going serious as he put his hand on my lower back to guide me to the car.
"Ellie, why don't you sit up front? You've had a stressful 24 hours so you should rest," Cole suggested, climbing into the backseat before I could protest. I narrowed my eyes at him, and looked at Rosen who just shrugged.
Sitting in the passenger seat, I reclined back and curled up on my side, facing Rosen who was driving. He spared me a glance and gave me a soft smile. My heart jumped and I closed my eyes, internally cursing myself and my feelings. This shouldn't happen.
I couldn't help but picture the way Rosen acted when he saw me, how he clung on to me for dear life. As much as he tried to hide his feelings, I saw a moment of vulnerability in him that night. Maybe that was the reason Cole gave him an odd look. Either way, I couldn't help but think that I wasn't the only one who got that feeling in my stomach when we hugged.
I had to be honest with myself, as much as I didn't want to, I still had feelings for Rosen Parker.
☾
When I woke up, we were parked somewhere and there was a blanket wrapped around me. Rosen was missing from the driver's seat, and I could tell Cole wasn't in the car. When my car door opened, I turned slightly, blinking away the sleepiness in my eyes.
"Sorry, did I wake you up?" Rosen whispered, peering at me. I shook my head, sitting up and stretching my arms.
"Where are we?" I asked, my voice scratchy from sleep.
"We are going to stay at a motel for a few days. We can't go back to Amanda's anymore. It's not safe," Rosen explained. He held out his hand and I took it, climbing out of the car but keeping the blanket tucked under my other arm.
He didn't let go as we walked up the stairs and to the door where our room was located. Rosen let go of my hand to swipe the key through the slot, the door clicking open.
Now that I had slept in the car, I was wide awake. Cole was perched on the edge of one of the beds, staring at his phone when we entered. I settled into the couch on the far side, wrapping the blanket around my shoulders again. I was still chilled from spending those hours in the woods, but the temperature in the room wasn't helping much.
Rosen sat down next to me, and I couldn't help but catch on that it seemed he was afraid of being too far from me.
"So what exactly happened Ellie?" Cole asked. I sighed, rubbing my forehead as I recalled the turmoil I had just went through. Cole gave me a reassuring smile and I took a deep breath before I began going over the events of the past twenty four hours.
After I had finished, Cole and Rosen looked at each other in contemplation.
"I knew the Def was desperate for us, but I didn't think that desperate." Rosen muttered.
"What do they still want with Ellie? They must really be pulling at straws here to still be going after her." Cole mused, tapping his foot on the floor.
"So what's the plan?" I asked, interrupting both of their thoughts. Rosen sighed, rubbing his forehead.
"I guess we just have to continue to lay low. We'll stay here for a few days and plan out where to go next. Then we just go from there," Rosen shrugged, looking to Cole for confirmation.
"What about me?" I questioned, furrowing my brow. Both boys hesitated.
"They seem to have a higher interest in you than we thought. I'm sorry Ellie but you're going to have to stay with us for a lot longer than planned," Cole said slowly. I felt my eyes burn and my lip tremble at hearing this. I wasn't going home.
I wouldn't see my parents or my friends or even my sister Mia again for who knows how long.
"This is my fault, I'm really sorry I dragged you into this," Rosen said, reaching out to me but I moved back. He couldn't comfort me on this. This was something I would have to deal with on my own.
"It won't be forever. Just a little longer than we thought," Cole paused, looking to Rosen. "Maybe... maybe once we find another place to go we can drop you off at Shorely on the way." I could already tell this part hadn't been discussed with Rosen, as both boys were currently staring each other down.
"Wait!" I cried, suddenly remembering something. "What about Jay? Aren't he and Amanda in danger?"
"No," Rosen shook his head. "The Def will leave them alone. They didn't do anything and it still can be used as a safe house. So as far as their concerned, Jay and Amanda won't do any harm."
"Oh," I said, sighing in relief. I didn't know the little boy very well, but I was still concerned for him.
"Knox, on the other hand, failed the Def. They'll take him back." Rosen went on.
"What are they going to do with him?" I asked.
"It doesn't matter," Rosen shrugged. "He may be trialed and executed for failing a mission, or he may just go back into training."
"They could kill him," my stomach dropped. Sure, I hated Knox. But he didn't deserve death. He was only trying to stay free. I felt sick. "What did you do with his stuff?"
"Most of it we got rid of, but we kept a few supplies like the money and the gun. We can use as much of it as we can get." Cole replied. I nodded in agreement. I had really been wondering about the phone and if my mom really did call, but maybe now it was better I didn't know. "We also brought all your clothes with us, figured it wouldn't be worth putting all that money to waste," Cole added, pointing to a black trash bag in the corner.
"Thank you," I said quietly, giving them both a small smile. Although I was still upset, I had to realize what Rosen and Cole were going through for me. It was no wonder the def wouldn't leave me alone.
Maybe they didn't see it, but to me it was obvious they both cared what happened to me. Not only that, but these boys cared about me. And if I could see that, there was no question the Def could. All in all, if Rosen and Cole could just let me go, the Def would most likely leave me alone.
I thought about a way to bring this up to them, but my mind drew a blank. They were stubborn, and even if I did say something they most likely wouldn't see it.
"We also got something else for you," Rosen interrupted my inner monologue holding up a box.
I raised my eyebrows in surprise and in apprehension.
"Hair dye?"
Man I'm just getting these chapters out there so fast lately. I already have the next chapter finished too, but I'll post it in a couple days so it's a little spaced out. Thank you so much for reading/ voting! I hope you are enjoying it so far!