~•~ Chapter 9 ~•~
Tomorrow is a new beggining...
Claire's POV
The boys and Kate were done a few minutes later, leaving Harry and I to do our job. We were quiet, none of us bothering to speak. The silence was awkward to me, but he seemed more relaxed by my side. I couldn't stop myself from stealing glances at him every now and then. Especially his hands. A few tattoos were inked on his skin and a few scars as well. He moved quickly, carefully. He was skeptical the whole time, so I didn't dare to say a word.
I turned around to grab some more dishes, thick sweat trailing down my brow. We couldn't use the dish washers, they were already full. And after all the practising Zayn put me through, I could feel my body giving up.
"I heard what you did today." he shocked me by saying, his voice deep and raspy.
I froze. What should I do? What should I say? My heart thudded louder as I picked up the plates and turned around. "Oh, really?" I asked, my voice coming out surprisingly steady.
"Yes." he placed one plate on top of the other. "It was shocking, to be honest. Never thought anyone could run that long." He said, his words making my lips curl into a small smile.
I didn't say anything, I just kept my eyes focused on my hands as I quickly tried to finish. I really wanted to go to bed. It was already midnight, and I had to wake up at 7 tomorrow morning.
"You know, I would never expect to hear the entire hideout talking about the only person who managed to break my record." He said slowly, making my stomach churn. Oh oh, is he angry? Is he jealous? Is he okay with this? I have no idea. I glanced at his face to see no emotion as he stared down, confusing me even more.
"Life is full of surprises, huh?" was all I managed to voice. I was still a bit scared he would start yelling at me, because who knows, maybe this tough façade hides a huge ego.
He suddenly dropped the plate he was about to wash and wiped his hands on the towel, muscular body turning to face me. I looked up at him, my heart thudding faster with fear. Oh God, did I upset him by saying that? He dumped the towel on the counter and leaned closer to me, hand resting on the counter beside him.
"You know Cher, you really confuse me." he said, a vain bulging out beneath his neck.
I furrowed my brows. "It's Claire." I corrected for what felt like the 100th time. Does this boy have a bad memory or something?
"Don't change the subject," he said lowly, voice coming from deep within his throat. "I have a feeling that there is something more about you than you show."
A small frown appeared on my face. "I-I.." What the hell?
He leaned even closer, making my breath hitch in my throat at how close he was. His lips could easily hover over mine and his emerald green eyes were so intent, that their pupils dilated, bringing a darker shade. Full of mystery and passion. His scent hit my senses, making my heart plummer.
"There is something you're hiding from us." he said slowly, his deep voice giving me chills. Fear brought knots to my stomach as I struggled to speak.
"What do you mean?" I asked, my brows furrowing even more.
He raised his arm and placed his hand on the wall right next to my head, the other leaning against the counter, blocking me from moving any further. I sucked in a breath when I saw a hint of anger flash behind his eyes. Oh oh.
"Who are you?" he asked, voice cold.
"Claire." I answered quietly.
"No, I mean who are you? The real you?" he leaned even closer, making me collide with the wall behind me.
It was too hard to breathe as I stared down to his heart-shaped lips that were so close to my own. Fear and a burning desire were both kept in my stomach, making me struggle to pick what to do.
"I'm Claire." I mumbled slowly. There was nothing I was hiding, and there was no one else that I was.
My eyes snapped up to meet his. He was reading through me. Trying to find a hint of lie. I was so scared, my heart was thudding faster than ever. I was also a bit hurt, knowing that Harry didn't trust me. But he couldn't really trust me, right? I was here for about three days. He barely knows me. But still, something within me hurts more than nessesary about the fact that Harry doesn't trust me.
He narrowed his eyes, staring at me suspiciously. "You expect me to believe that?" he said, voice coming out like a growl. "Your aim is one of the best, you survived for half a year all alone out there and you beat my record." Anger appeared across his features. "So who are you? A random person that has no experience wouldn't make it like you did. So tell me, Claire, who are you and whom you work for?" he put emphasis in his words. I could see that that moment, it was like he hated me for some reason, and I hate it.
"I told you. My dad trained me and Kate since we were little. I'm not working for anyone. And I'm nobody else than myself." I said, holding my ground. Scared or not, I wasn't going to accept others to think of me wrong.
He stared at me for a few more seconds skeptically, not even moving away. We were still dangerously close, and I could smell his scent and feel his hot breath against my lips. I seriously was about to melt. Something like a burning wave of lust had surrounded me, and all because of those forest green mesmerizing eyes.
"You're joining the army group," he was dead serious as he said that. "I don't want traitors." I had chills the moment he said that.
I nodded, gulping. "If you don't trust me, then why do you put me in the army group?" I asked, raising a brow. I suddenly felt more confident about myself and I didn't back down to look him right in the eye with the same serious expression he had.
He hummed and looked down to my lips for a moment, making my heart flutter. I was a bit lightheaded that moment, but I kept myself together. He bit his lower lip, teasing my hormones as I started burning again deep inside. He looked back up to my eyes and finally pulled away, giving me the space to actually breathe.
"Because you got skills, and we need them." he answered and turned around, grabbing a plate and continuing his unfinished job.
I inhaled and looked down. I grabbed the towel and finished what I started, keeping the distracted thoughts in my head for later. I just hope tomorrow Harry will have completely erased the thought of me being a traitor.
...
"Wake up, sunshine! Time to grab some guns and get bullets on the other side!"
I groaned at the sound of Niall's voice coming from the other side of the door and the knocks. Last night Harry and I finished around 1am, and I was certain that I didn't even sleep for nine hours straight.
"Please, just thirty minutes more." I pleaded, hiding my face under the blanket.
"No, sorry to ruin it to you sweetheart, but you have to wake up now!" his voice escalated at the end, showing how important this day is.
I pulled down the blanket and sat up. "Fine! I'll be out in ten." I sighed as I stood up. I was seriously too sleepy to even move.
"Good. And just so you know, I have a watch with me."
I rolled my eyes and went to the bathroom. I purposely splashed cold water across my face, waking myself up for good. I brushed teeth and changed clothes. I put on black leggings and a warm deep green sweater, a white tee beneath it in case I got all sweaty. I put on my snickers and walked out of the room, finding Niall leaning against the wall, staring down at his wrist that was hugged by a black watch.
"On your time." he smirked. "Good."
"Will I at least have the chance to eat this time?" I asked, rubbing my left eye.
He huffed. "Duh, of course you will. I never start my day without at least a croissant." he said and we started walking down the hallway. Some people were already awake and left their rooms, while others still had their curtains closed.
"Really?"
"Well, not always."
"Doesn't matter, at least today I get to eat something."
"Damn right." he chuckled as he opened the door to the cafeteria.
We ate quickly, both of us prefering to eat bread with jam and juice. Well, Niall actually ate two eggs and a sandwich too, but nevermind. He must love food more than anything.
"Harry told me you're an expert at using .9mm guns." Niall said, chewing on his sandwich.
"Does it have mustard in it?" I asked, ticking my head towards his sandwich.
He nodded. "Always, now did you hear what I said?" he raised a brow.
"Yes."
"Good, now, today I'm going to see what other kind of guns you can use. Can you shoot a moving target, too?"
"Yeah," I shrugged one shoulder.
He smirked. "Good. I guess you'll be on my side every time we're going on a raid."
"How many of us are going on a raid? Shouldn't we be a few so we don't get too much attention?" I furrowed my brows.
He nodded. "Exactly. Me and the boys go forward, Kate and Liam keep an eye while we search for supplies. Only when we go out at nights Harry orders just me, Liam, Zayn and Louis to come over, knowing that with us he works faster and better." he shrugged. "But you might come over every time we leave."
"I think you five have a natural chemistry between you, I wouldn't want to ruin it." I chuckled at the end.
"Oh you wouldn't, you would actually make it even easier for us." he stated.
"How are you so sure?"
"With your aim baby, you can kill hundreds of zombies in two minutes." He winked, making my cheeks blush.
"Don't be so sure,"
"Oh I am, and you'll see that I'm right. Just wait till Harry tells you you're ready."
Oh yeah, if Harry ever starts trusting me.
Once we were both done, we stood up and threw our trays in the trash before we entered the training room, which was full, as always. My stomach churned when I saw Harry, talking to Chris with his arms crossed, wearing a black tight V neck, showing off his biceps and collar bones. White shorts and neon yellow Nike shoes, a bandana keeping his hair away from his face. He looked good as always, but the fear that had taken over my insides didn't let me admire his charm.
Niall took me to the room with the guns, calling it the 'fun room'. He opened up the door that had around 100 guns, gathered on shelves. Niall picked up four of them, two large and two smaller ones. His muscles on his arms flexed as he turned to me, carrying the guns one on top of the other with him. "We'll try these ones first, then we'll come back for the others." He told me and I nodded.
We went back to the other room, the shotguns that filled the room were loud and quick as Niall and I walked behind the guys that were here to practise. Niall handed me the headphones ans gave me one of the small guns. He showed me how to load it and then told me to shoot. I raised my arms and aimed, quickly pulling the trigger and sending a bullet straight to the figure's heart, shocking Niall.
"Wow, that's a start!" Niall clapped his hands, an excited grin plastered across his face.
Seeing him being so positive brought only pride and excitement through me. I knew that I was going to succeed, that I was going to go through this project and enter the army group. I was determined to win Harry's trust and show him that I'm not a traitor. That I'm one of them. And that I'm willing to help the others like they do.
This is my home, and I'm going to protect it.
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