Chapter 45
(Kat's POV)
It has been a week since dad found out about Zayn. Oh, and a week since my crash also.
For one week, I had been laying in bed. My leg prohibited me from doing anything other than moving the short distance from my bed to the bathroom. I felt like I had heard every song that had ever existed, watched every movie on Netflix, and read the same book five hundred times.
Zayn had been taking time out of his day to sneak into my room. He often spent the nights with me, making sure I had everything I needed.
Dad on the other hand, managed to take thirty minutes from his day to come check up on me. Giving me my food and medicine was his only job.
If Zayn was in my room when dad came, he'd hide in the bathroom for thirty minutes. I insisted him to leave but he always stayed.
Dad had been avoiding much conversation with me. I don't know if he felt bad for when he hit me, or if he was still angry with me, but he didn't say much.
I was angry at him still, but didn't have the power to do much. So I kept it to myself. Not even telling Zayn.
Now, I was sitting in my room on my laptop. Neither Zayn or dad were home but I knew I wouldn't be alone for too long.
Just as I thought this, I heard my window open. I looked up to see Zayn stumbling inside, rather excitedly. I smiled at him as he caught his breath.
"I found it!" He was saying, "I finally found a job!"
I beamed. Zayn and I had been searching for a job for me ever since he had made me quit modeling. He made it his goal to find me a job that is ten times better than my old one, but I highly doubted that.
"Really! What did you find?" I said just as excitedly.
He ran to me, giving me a quick kiss on the forehead before taking a seat in front of me on the bed.
"A radio station!" He spoke. I stared at him, my excitement slowly fading. He noticed and quickly added, "they just opened right next to Caroline's restaurant. So you and I can work right by each other."
I had to admit, that was a plus side. But I knew that I wasn't so great with interacting with others, radio hosting was not my thing. But Zayn looked so excited that I couldn't turn him down.
"That sounds great," I smiled.
"You're lying."
I was taken aback by how quickly he figured that out. But I had to fake it. Who knows, maybe I'll end up liking it.
"I know, but I'll give it a shot." I tried to sound as convincing as I could so he could buy it.
He stared at me for a long time. "You don't have to do it if you don't want. We can find more."
I shook my head no. "I want to give this a try. The only hard part is that I'll have to deal with the annoying neighbors."
A smirk pulled on his lips as he leaned forward and placed both of his hands on my sides. He began to tickle me and I started to laugh. He was extra careful with my leg, but I could care less. He laughed along. A laugh alone that could end all wars.
Once he stopped attacking me with tickles, he fell to my side.
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
"Positive."
"But what if you don't like it?"
"I'll quit."
"And what if-"
"Shh," I quickly hushed him as I heard quiet footsteps coming towards the room. "Do you hear that?" I asked.
"Shit," he cursed as he slowly stumbled out of bed. "Your dad's here."
I watched as he ran inside the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Yet he always left a tiny crack open just in case.
There was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" I asked.
"Dad."
"Come in."
Once he walked in, I saw a foil box in his hand, take out from his own restaurant. Medicine was in his other hand along with a smile on his face.
"How are you feeling?" He asked just as he did every day.
I nodded, as if I didn't have to speak for him to know my manual answer.
He came and sat on the chair besides my bed, setting my food and medicine down on my side table.
"You're about to get your cast off," he started conversation.
I once again nodded.
We stayed silent for a while, and I knew that both of us felt how awkward it was.
Finally, I decided it was the right time to ask about my job. "I found a job," I said.
He looked up, "really?"
I nodded, "it's at a radio station."
"What?"
"A radio station," I repeated. "It just opened and it's looking for some part time hosts. It pays really well and it seems pretty simple."
He thought about it for a second. "From modeling to radio hosting. Sounds interesting."
I forced myself to smile. I knew he wasn't ready to accept it just yet, so I continued to try and convince him. "I think it'll be fun. And guess what?"
"What?"
"It's right next door to Caroline's restaurant, so it won't be out of our convenience." I beamed, really hoping he would buy the Caroline card. But I noticed how his face got stone hard. It took me a while to realize that Zayn was also a part of the deal.
"Next to Caroline's, huh?"
Shit, I shouldn't have said that.
I tried to keep my expression calm, pretending not to know what was coming at me.
"Yeah," I said as confidently as possible.
Rage filled his eyes, anger boiling into his emotions. I watched as his face became so hard that it was barely recognizable.
What have I done?
(Zayn's POV)
I stood quietly in the bathroom. Mark's back was facing me and I could see Kat's face clearly.
She had just revealed to her father that she was working close to Caroline.
I couldn't quite see Mark's expressions, but by the worry filling Kat's eyes, I knew something was wrong. He must've remembered that I worked with Caroline.
"You think I'm stupid," he suddenly barked.
I noticed Kat's eyes quickly meeting mine before she diverted her attention back to her father. She swallowed hard, looking as if she were bracing herself.
"You don't think I'm going to let you work next to that boy, do you?"
She bit her lip. I grabbed on to the cabinet behind me, making sure I wouldn't lunge forward towards him.
I was surprised when he knocked a picture frame off the table in anger. I noticed him growing frustrated even though I couldn't see him clearly.
"How many fucking times do I have to tell you to stay away from that boy?!"
She flinched at his words. I knew this wasn't going to end well, but I couldn't fight against him. It would risk everything.
"I just thought-"
"That's the problem!" He was now yelling. "You always think, but just never enough. That boy is no good for you Kat and you know that! He may be attractive now but he will never truly be yours. Guys like him always leave."
I narrowed my eyes at him, suddenly aware of how judgmental he was. I don't know what I ever did to that man, but I know that he wasn't going to believe me even if I told him I wasn't like the boy in his thoughts.
But he was Kat's father.
"Dad!" Kat finally yelled back. I wasn't surprised by this. I knew she couldn't tolerate others for too long. "You're overreacting. I don't even like him anymore! In fact, I don't know why I ever did!"
I looked at her desperately. When she looked at me for a brief moment, I knew she didn't mean any if this. It was a part of her plan.
"Besides, you're the one who wants me to leave this house, right? Make up your mind dad!" She was practically yelling. I sensed the impatience and annoyance in her voice. This was clearly a very common argument between the two of them.
What he did next made me want to beat the shit out of him.
He slapped Kat hard across the face. I held myself from lunging forward, which was one of the hardest things I'd ever have to do. I searched for a sign on Kat's body to tell me that she was fine and I needed to stay back. Then, I found her hand clutching a fist of her blanket. She shook her head and I knew that was meant for me, though her dad didn't notice.
"You don't have the right to talk to me like that. Do you understand?"
"Dad," she spoke, her voice full of consideration and calmness. "I know you think I'll be talking to Zayn, but I can reassure you that I won't. When he left me at the hospital, it obviously hurt. Why would I stick around with a guy who left me at a time of need?
"You need to believe me Dad, I'm there to make money, nothing else. Besides, if you doubt me you can tell Caroline to keep an eye on us. Okay?"
I noticed him stay quiet for a long time. He thought about the situation before finally declaring, "fine. But just so you know, more than just Caroline will have their eyes on you."
Her pink lips pulled into a small smile, "thanks dad."
He nods at her before getting up and walking towards the door. "Don't forget the medicine," he says as he stands in front of the door.
But before he leaves, he turns around. I see a small gleam of pain in his eyes as he says, "I'm sorry, Katrina."
She doesn't respond in any way, instead just looking down at her hands. He lets out a heavy sigh and escapes the room, shutting the door behind him.
Once I'm sure he's gone, I run over to Kat.
"Are you okay Kat?" I ask, worried.
She nods and smiles before reaching over and grabbing the food from the side table. She opens the box, clearly trying to avoid conversation with me.
I sigh, placing my fingers under Kat's chin. Her eyes lock with mine and I finally see a couple of tears forming.
"Tell me what's wrong."
She shakes her head, trying to erase the tears. She stabs a piece of pasta with her fork but doesn't eat it.
"Kat," I demand.
She takes a deep breath before looking back up to me. "He hits me when he gets frustrated. But it's no big deal, I'm used to it."
My heart sank as I swallowed the lump rising in my throat. "Why?"
She shrugged, "he says he can't control it. But he's never hit me hard enough to cause any major damages. It just happens."
I set her food to the side. I reached over and embraced her, holding her so close to me. She didn't hesitate to hold me tighter. I knew how much she needed this.
"If I ever see him-"
"Zayn please," she whispered. "I know Dad gets angry, but doesn't everybody? I'm lucky I don't have it as bad as other people.
"I know you're trying to care about me and protect me, but just leave dad. He's not someone that I need help for, he loves me throughout everything."
I took in a breath. Then I made my decision.
I would fight for her against the world, but not against her father. Because if anyone had more right over her than me, it was the first man she had ever loved.
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