Ch2
I wanted to get up and run. There was a flickering streetlight a few metres away, which made this situation a whole lot creepier. It didn't help that the car that hit me was a white minivan.
My ears perked up at the sound of the car door opening. I put pressure on my hand and willed myself to get on my feet, but an excruciating pain in my left foot haltered me. Wincing, I put all my weight on my right leg and managed to get halfway up, before I lost my balance and fell, but this time, there were a pair of hands to catch me.
"Woah, watch it there" chuckled the guy with a smooth voice. I tried to push myself away from the strangers hands, but, again, ended up falling onto his chest, this time face first. Being the creeper I am, I took the opportunity to sniff the guy, and realised he smelled amazing.
Priorities Sienna!
I stood up and pushed away from him, balancing on my right foot, and awkwardly leaned on his car for support. My heart was hammering as the guy took a step towards me. When I finally caught a glance of his face, my heart stopped for a second, as though I recognised the face.
"You're new around here, aren't you?" He chuckled, looking at me with his head slightly tilted. I opened my mouth, and closed it again, my words stuck in my throat. My heart was hammering so fast that I was speechless. He gave me an amused smirk.
"You shouldn't just storm out of parties when you don't even know the neighbourhood" My eyes widened and now I was scared shitless. I gulped as I felt an earthquake happen with my internal organs. He must have noticed me suddenly paling and held his hands up defensively.
"No, no, no, I swear, I wasn't following you in the creepy stalkerish way.. I mean I was following you," He heard the whimper I let out and stepped closer to me, as if to earn my trust. "But" he said defensively, "only because I knew you were new in town and thought you'd probably get lost" he said, his hand frustratedly playing with his hair, and let an awkward silence take over.
I nodded meekly, and was about to walk away again, but the throbbing pain in my ankle notified me that this stranger was probably my only way of getting home tonight.
"Here, let me see that" He broke the silence. I flinched slightly when I felt his warm hands on my ankle, and he quickly removed them, bending his head up to look me in the eyes. "Can I touch it?" He said, asking for permission to touch my ankle. I sighed and nodded.
"My Mum used to be a nurse" he quipped, examining the swollen ankle "You twisted it, it doesn't seem broken. I think I have some bandage in the boot of my car" He said to me. "Brb" Who even says that? Isn't that technology-talk?
He was back to the front of the car in the matter of a few seconds, a first aid kit in his grip. He lay down the box on the floor and held my foot. I winched in pain. "Sorry" he said. "Just try and keep your ankle up, okay?" I nodded in response. I watched as his hands delicately wrapped the fabric tightly around my ankle and under me foot, fastening it with a grip. "There, I hope I didn't give you too much pain?" He asked. Judging from the dull reflection of the streetlight a few metres away, this guy had blue eyes, but I wasn't sure if the were electric, dull or ocean blue yet.
"You know, talking to you is basically like having one-sided conversation" he chuckled, brushing of his knees and standing up. He stood there for a while, smiling down at me, flashing his dimples at me, like he was trying to figure me out. And then he frowned, his brows furrowing.
"Oh wait, if you're mute, like you have a disability.. I mean.. Inability to talk.. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you, i'm not trying to be an ass, it's ...." He fumbled for his words, looking very flustered. I put a hand up to signal him to shut up.
"Well, I'm sorry I don't like to get all cozy with strangers who hit me with their cars and stalk me" I blurted out sarcastically, but then furiously blushing and looking away. "I'm not mute" I added meekly, looking down, playing with strands of my hair. I glanced up to see him visibly relax and let out a breath. And his smirk was back.
"You have an accent" he noted, tilting his head and crossing his arms over his chest. "Say something"
"What?" I asked confused.
"Say something so I can figure out where you're from" he said, well more like ordered me.
"Umm, okay well..." There are billions of words in the world, words as random as kumkuat or as useless as fartlek (it's a form of running), but when he told me to 'say something' my mind went blank. I couldn't muster up a sentence that wouldn't sound too weird or too dull.
"Come on, surely you can think of something, you're a nerd" he butted into my thoughts, causing me to snap out of them and glare at him.
"Hey, excuse me, but you don't even know me, mate, so you can't just assume I'm nerdy" I said, offended.
"Australian" was his reply, completely ignoring me. "'Mate' gave it away" he said, smiling like he'd won a gold medal. I frowned at this guy, somewhat entertained by his enthusiasm.
"Yeah, well, I'm from Australia" I said in a monotonous tone. "And we don't just go around saying mate mate mate mate mate" I said exasperatedly. That assumption really tended to irk me.
"Look, I'm sorry, for everything. I didn't mean to scare you" he said, a small smile on his face. "You just, kind of caught my attention at the party" he shrugged, his hands in the pockets of his black jeans. I whipped my head to look up at him, my eyes wide in shock.
Well that's a first...
"Why?" I asked cautiously. He narrowed his eyes and, again, tilted his head, as though he wasn't sure if I was joking or not. After a while, he finally answered
"For starters, you're the only girl who wasn't dressed skimpily, that definitely caught my attention" I opened my mouth, about to shoot back an insult, highly offended that he'd looked at me like that. "Wait, I meant that in a good way, it's a refreshing change, you know" he said, giving me an adorable grin. I tried not to get caught up in how good he looked right there and slowly nodded.
"It's a wander, right?, that there still are girls who don't like provocative clothing and are virgins in high school" I blurted out, my eyes widening when I realised I'd added in the last part. I inhaled slowly, to calm myself down, and averted my eyes.
"Virgin, huh?" Was all he commented, of course, with an amused smirk on his face. I rolled my eyes at his indecency. Suddenly, my phone started ringing. I fumbled to get my phone out of my pocket, but ended up losing my balance and landing on my ankle.
"Ouucchh" I screeched, gripping my ankle. He bent down and threw an arm around my shoulder. I could still hear my phone ringing in my pocket.
"Come on, I'll help you to my car" he said. I leaned on him for support and limped to his van.
"Why do you have such a creepy van?" I asked as he helped me jump into the passenger seat.
"Oh, no this is my brother's. Mine is at the mechanics getting fixed up" i nodded, and then realised that someone had been calling me. I fished my phone out of my pocket and paled.
2 missed calls from Mum.
I quickly dialled her back.
"Why weren't you picking up Sienna?" My mother's voice boomed through the speakers, causing me to flinch.
"Mum I'm sorry I just-"
"Having too much fun at the party, I assume" she said, her voice giddy. Oh, right, I was supposed to be at the party.
"Oh yeah, Mum, this is Ah-maze-ing" I emphasised sarcastically. I heard 'the guy' chuckle beside me, and I shot him the finger. He raised his brows, clearly amused that I did that.
"Is that sarcasm in your voice, Sienna?" Mum's voice turned condescending.
"Yes Mum, it is. It's horrible, stuffy and I hate it, okay? Is that what you wanted to hear?" I said crossly, ignoring the questioning glances the guy kept giving me.
"Sienna, honey, I thought you just needed to-" she started, but I angrily butted in.
"Well, you obviously thought wrong. After Dad, you know how I feel about these things. Goodbye" I said, and angrily pushed the end button. I felt my ears heating up and and I glanced out the window. "Sorry you had to hear that"
"No, no, it's fine" he said, tapping on the steering wheel. We drove in silence until we reached my house.
I refuse to call it home. A home is somewhere where you feel loved, accepted. You are free to be whoever you truly are, do whatever it is that makes you happy. Home is where you are comfortable. None of that is present at my house.
"Can I ask you something? Just out of curiousity" I turned away from the window to see him insightfully looking at me, his arms resting on the steering wheel.
"Yeah, sure"
"You don't have to answer" he quickly said before breathing in and asking me the question. "Where is your Dad?" He said slowly. His face looked worried, as though he was handling a timbomb. I froze up.
"Gone" I simply said.
"Gone" he repeated with a whisper, not pushing the subject, which I was thankful for. "Okay, so, we're here" he finally spoke, once we were at the house.
"Thank you" I said quickly attempting to leave the car, as the air seemed to be getting stuffier since the subject of my dad was brought up. I felt him hold on my elbow and halt me from leaving.
"Wait, before you go," he said, and then gave me a boyish smile. "I'm Max DiBrando" he jutted his hand out. "But that's the shortened version" He winked. I looked down at it and then at his grinning face, a small smile on my face.
"Whats's the lengthened version?" I dared to ask. He cleared his throat.
"Maximiliano Enrico DiBrando" he chuckled. "I prefer Max or Rick, but you can choose" he shot me a smile. I chuckled.
"Well, Max, I guess my name is Sienna Hadley" I said in a small voice, shaking his hand.
"You guess?" He chuckled. "What's that supposed to mean? Is it shortened?"
"I was kind of forced to change my last name" I said quickly, not really finding it amusing. The thought of it actually made me angry.
"Oh," he said simply. "Then what would you like it to be?"
"Sienna Kettle. My dad's last name" I explained.
"Well then, I'll know you as Sienna Kettle" he chuckled and I couldn't help but smile at the sound of my real name.
It's been a while since I'd heard that.
"Nice to meet you, Max"
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What do you guys think of his name? It's different right??? Yes, I know, a long name, but I really like this character and the name. What about you guys?
Song - Intoxicated: The Cab
Tv Show - I'm up to date with Teen Wolf! I think the benefactor is either Lydia's grandma or Danny
Movie - Bend it Like Beckham
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