Quick a/n, guys, you're finally going to be meeting the ex-bitch of our one and only; Arsen Reed. And no, that wasn't Shanaya. Shanaya's...something else. The pic is of the ex.
(Played by Megan Fox)
Chapter 19
I look up from my phone and furrow my eyebrows.
"Are we there yet?" I ask, and Arsen clenches his jaw. I smile at the sight.
"No."
I sigh and go back to my phone, looking at the area we're supposed to be going to on Google Maps since that's the only thing I can really do.
I have no idea where we're going, but I've never been on this side of Toronto before.
It's almost as if Vicky's sending us to another secluded place so she can come over, stuff us in an oven, cook us and then feed us to the very hungry lions down at the Safari park.
"Arsen, it's been three hours. Are we lost?" I ask, raising my eyebrow. I see his hands clench around the wheel and smirk. "Yep, we're lost."
"We're not lost," He growls, and I just about hide my smile when he shoots me a sharp glare.
Silence fills the car as we sit back, and you can faintly hear the snores of Sarge from the back seats. I turn to see him sitting with his head completely rolled over.
If I don't wake him, his neck's going to snap in three quarters.
"Sarge?" I call. "Sarge!" I sigh and look down at my phone. Arsen notices.
"Don't you dare, Xanthe," He threatens in his deep, menacing voice.
Him saying my name just confirmed the fact that I'm totally going to do what I was about to do. Which I will now be doing.
Going on Youtube and typing in 'air horn', I put my volume to as high as it can go and wait for a while. When Arsen realizes nothing's going to happen and his stance relaxes a little, I giggle and immediately press play.
The car is filled with the loudest horn ever, and even I jump. Sarge crashes his poor head on the top of the car and screams.
"Che cazzo sta succedendo?!" Sarge screams, and I burst out laughing, sneaking a peek at Arsen.
He looks angry, but it's not really surprising that he didn't get scared.
He's not scared of anything, unfortunately.
I look back at Sarge and smile sheepishly, and Sarge's furious expression turns slightly soft.
"Sorry, Sarge, your neck was about to snap off and I figured you wouldn't quite like that," I say, smiling. He just shakes his head at me.
"I'm okay. Are we in danger?" He says, still managing to sound nice. I smile at this, Arsen doesn't.
"Nope, sadly," I roll my eyes.
Sarge gives me a confused look and Arsen sharply glances at me before going back to the narrow, endless road ahead.
"What do you mean?" He asks. I sigh and shake my head.
"I mean, I've been sitting for so long I wouldn't mind actually getting out of the car and walking for a while. Plus, I'm a hundred percent sure we're lost."
I glance at Arsen to see him just stop himself from rolling his eyes. Or maybe he actually did, he's too unpredictable for me to know.
Sarge shakes his head and turns to Arsen.
"Capo? I think she is right, we must walk for a while," Sarge suggests.
Arsen gives the slightest of shakes to his head.
"No." He answers curtly, not elaborating. I groan as loud as I can.
"Please, Arsen, I'm pretty sure even your ass needs a little exercise," I say, and at this, I earn a well-deserved glare from my favourite person.
Unfortunately, he doesn't think my joke is as funny as Sarge does.
"I'm sure they taught you what 'no' means in kindergarten. Deal with it." Arsen says, his voice as smooth as a pearl and as cold as ice.
"Well," I mutter. "That's hardly fair."
We fall into a comfortable silence.
After a while of driving around, turning a bunch of lefts and corners, and coming to a complete dead end with just a thousand trees in front of us, Arsen turns the car off and sits as still as he possibly can.
"We're lost."
I laugh out loud. "I told you. You were wrong and I was right!" Arsen glares at me and unlocks the doors, before walking out.
I follow, and Sarge is the last one out.
"Boss, I need, um...I..." Sarge, who looks very uncomfortable, trails off. I raise both my eyebrows and Arsen raises one.
"You need to tinkle, Sarge?" I ask, grinning, whilst he's too busy blushing. Arsen glares at me.
"Go, Sarge," He says, still glaring at me.
Sarge scurries off into the forest, and I turn around, away from the penetrating gaze of Arsen's fiery, amber eyes.
"Since you're not letting me out of your sight, are you going to watch me powder my nose, too?" I ask, tilting my head to the side and smirking at him. Arsen looks away immediately.
"No," He hisses, and strides into the forest, clearly meant for me to follow.
I gladly do, since I need to stretch my sleeping legs to wake them up a little. For once, I'm glad Arsen walks as fast as he does because it gives me a chance to run a little.
"So, where are we going? To the mall?" I ask cheerily, swatting away a branch hanging low from a tree.
Arsen doesn't bother to answer, so I carry on.
"You know, if I were you, I'd bring a huge suit that covers my face and body, and it should be in green. At least then we can blend in and not get bit by--ow!"
Arsen whirls around, and I grab my arm, staring at it. A prickle of blood drips out and he glares at me. I smile sheepishly.
"I'm sorry. Although, that stupid rose bush should be apologizing. See, this is exactly why--"
"Xanthe."
I shut up and look at him. He's not glaring, but his eyes are still impassive. And cold. And brewing with fire. I sigh.
"Yeah, fine, I'll be quiet," I say.
That's when something catches my eye behind him, and then my eyes widen.
"Oh, my God! Shelter!" I squeal.
I'm about to run towards the chimney popping out of the trees but Arsen catches my arm, pulling me back so hard that my front almost goes crashing into his.
I stop myself just about a centimetre away from him, breathing hard.
My heart takes a leap.
"Hi," I say meekly, my voice quiet. Arsen's eyes burn into mine, and I don't think I'd be able to look away even if I wanted to.
"You're not going to run off again this time, Xanthe, and that's an order. We'll wait for Sarge," He says, his voice low and quiet.
A shiver slithers down my spine, and I just about catch myself from fainting.
Okay, wait for Sarge.
Arsen lets my arm go excruciatingly slowly, and a few seconds later, Sarge comes running in through the trees. I smile at him.
"I found a place to stay," I say, pointing behind my back. He looks to where I pointed and gives me a triumphant smile.
"Well done, bambina," He congratulates.
Sarge is about to shake my hand when Arsen abruptly turns to leave. I stare after him, my eyebrows furrowed, and Sarge just sighs.
"He's been like that ever since you went missing, bambina. It is not like him to be this snappy," Sarge tells me. I snort.
"This snappy? I thought that's the only thing he can be," I say, and Sarge laughs.
"Let's go,"
I turn to follow the trail of flying leaves Arsen left behind.
We emerge from the forest and see Arsen standing on the front doorstep, leaning against the pillar on one side.
Walking up the steps, I come to stand next to him. Sarge waits at the bottom.
The front door opens, and an elderly woman - probably in her sixties - opens the door.
Arsen lifts his head and his eyebrows raise imperceptibly after a glance at the woman. He stops himself from taking a step back and I raise a confused eyebrow.
Instead, he steps forward.
"Loren," He says, shaking her hand.
Loren smiles at him sweetly.
"Hello, sweetheart! What a lovely surprise. Who's this?" She asks. I take this as my cue and step forward, shaking her hand as well.
"Ariadne," He answers simply.
Oh, we're playing that card.
I'm afraid Ariadne's going to have a different personality than Xanthe's then, or I'll get confused with which name actually belongs to me.
My alter-ego is Ariadne Sayers, the girl whose heart is a battleground and works alongside a cold-hearted individual, Arsen Reed.
I give her a nod and follow Arsen inside of the house. Sarge stays out.
Well, obviously.
What do you mean?
He's a bodyguard. Did you think Loren was going to ask him for some milk and cookies?
Well, yeah.
Then you thought wrong, idiot.
Be quiet, meanie. Sarge totally deserves milk and cookies!
"So, what brings you here?" She asks, addressing me. Arsen lets me speak.
For once.
"Vicky," I answer, looking at her.
She's got pale blue eyes and greying blonde hair. She smiles at me and I don't like it.
Something's off.
"Ah, Vicky. I know her. Charmer, that rascal, and her little slave. What's her name?"
I know it's a rhetorical question, but I answer anyway. "Emma."
Arsen's left eyebrow lifts slightly, but that's the only thing I see move on his face. His eyes are glued to the front door as if somebody is going to barge in.
"Ah, yes! Emma! Poor girl. I pity her. Doesn't deserve the life she got," Loren says, shaking her head. I don't stop the snort.
"Yeah, she does," I answer. Loren raises a questioning eyebrow but doesn't actually question.
"Well, you sit down. I'll make some tea for us, and bring a few biscuits along the way. My granddaughter will be with you shortly," And then she walks into the kitchen.
I don't sit since Arsen doesn't.
"Don't drink her tea," Arsen tells me. I raise an eyebrow.
"Why? Is she a witch who curses it with maggots and spiders?" I ask in a spooky voice, and Arsen glares at me.
"No, Xanthe. She poisons them." He answers. My mouth drops open.
"What?!" I ask, laughing a little.
"She doesn't trust anybody. And after she kills a person, she throws them into her basement where her pet eats them," Arsen explains to me, his voice cold.
My mouth drops open.
"What?!" I repeat again, this time, not laughing.
"And if you don't decide to drink the tea, or eat the biscuits, then she'll simply try and get to know you. See where you're from. Know everything about you." He concludes.
I gulp loudly. "How do you know all this? Met her before?"
Arsen nods. But when he opens his mouth, it isn't his voice that answers.
"Yeah, he has. He used to be my boyfriend. And now, he's back for me."
I whirl around towards the sound and see a tall girl standing there.
Absolutely stunning.
Her hair is a dark brown colour, lightly tinted blonde at the bottom, and a little short. Her skin is as clear as daylight, and her teeth are as bright as light. Her eyes are magnificent.
They're a mesmerizing sky blue. An absolute contrast to her almond-coloured hair.
"And you are?" She asks, coming up to us, looking at me. I straighten myself.
We're exactly the same height.
"Ariadne," I tell her.
She looks me up and down. "No second name?" She asks. I glare at her.
"Why would you care?" Her eyebrows raise, and she smirks, leaning on one hip.
I don't like her. Not even a bit.
She's Arsen's ex, for God's sake! I thought it was just Shanaya, and maybe a few, forgotten one-night stands. But he's had proper girlfriends before!
And this ex knows how to show that clearly.
I hate her.
You're jealous.
Says who?
The voice in the back of your mind.
No.
Yes.
"Tegan," Arsen addresses, finally coming in between us and standing in front of me.
I look at his face, but all I see is a stone-cold expression with fiery, amber eyes. Other than that, he's completely normal.
Tegan, however, is over the moon.
"Oh, Arsen! I knew you'd come! You came for me, didn't you? You came back?! I knew you would! We deserve each other. I totally would have--"
"I need a room."
I try to stop my laughter at the look of stupidity on her flawless face.
"What?" She snaps, angry. I smirk.
Arsen doesn't like repeating himself.
"I don't like to repeat myself, Tegan," He answers.
Clearly, he's not the same Arsen she left - hopefully, many - years ago.
She doesn't deserve Arsen.
"Oh, right. You need a room." She mumbles. And then her eyes light up. "Uh, you can share with me! And Ariadne can sleep down here on the couch," Tegan replies, smiling enthusiastically.
Arsen gives her the coldest glare ever, and she immediately stops smiling.
"I need to keep my eye on Ariadne. Why don't you sleep on the couch?" Arsen asks, his voice cold as always. I snort this time and Tegan snaps her gaze to me.
"Who does this little bitch think she is, anyway? She can't go around thinking you'll just let her follow you. Tell her, Arsen, tell her how you're not going to sleep with her, and that she's just a slu--"
Arsen takes a threatening step closer to Tegan, who immediately shuts up and takes a step back.
"Slut." Tegan finishes.
I pounce and Arsen lunges to grab me just in time, causing me to stop flat and not be able to claw out her eyes with my nails.
It feels like déjà vu all over again, and I stop thrashing about in Arsen's arm.
He pulls me to him, and something flashes in Tegan's eyes before she turns and stomps on her heels, gesturing for us to follow.
My heart is beating wildly, but now, for an entirely different reason.
His arms are still around my waist.
We pull away at the same time and follow her out of the drab, brown room.
"Where are you going, sweetie?" Loren says, coming out of the kitchen. Arsen looks at her.
"We need to rest for tomorrow," He tells her.
All of a sudden, Loren shares a look with Tegan, and I'm pretty sure both Arsen and I noticed the short shake of the head from his ex.
Loren, seeming to understand whatever Tegan was shaking her head at, smiles at me, and I walk past, feeling super uneasy.
"Here's your room," She says, almost spitting it.
As she's walking past me and back downstairs, she grabs my hair and gives a harsh tug. Arsen doesn't notice, he's already inside.
I ignore the pain that shoots through the wound on my skull.
"If you try anything on my man, I will cut you up into little pieces and hide your body parts in the forest for the insects to eat," She hisses, tugging my hair again.
Quietly, I grab a chunk of her hair and tug even harder. She immediately pulls away, snarling.
"I'm not scared of you, weirdo," I growl, before storming into the room and slamming the door behind me.
I turn to see Arsen looking into the cupboard, and walk up to him.
"What is that?" I ask, my eyebrows shooting up. Arsen glares at me.
"It's a mattress, Xanthe. Folded up."
I burst into a fit of giggles. "Why did they fold up a non-inflatable mattress?" I snort, still laughing.
"For me to sleep on. Go get some sleep." He says, pointing to the king-sized bed in the middle of the boring, wooden room.
I go over to it and plop down, kicking off my clumps.
Damn, Arsen's going to sleep on the floor?
"Why don't I get the mattress, and you get the--"
"Don't argue with me on this one, Xanthe, I'm not in the mood," Arsen says, looking at me pointedly before grabbing a black t-shirt and walking into the bathroom, a towel swung over his shoulder.
I sigh and fall back onto the bed, trying to get comfortable under the rough sheets.
After a while, my eyes start to flutter shut slowly when I hear a door opening. I keep my eyes slightly shut so I can both see and pretend that I'm sleeping.
Arsen comes out of the bathroom, and my breath catches in my throat.
He's got nothing on, except for the dangerously low towel wrapped around his hips.
I stare at him. Not even caring if my eyes are open or not. I just can't help it. I keep on staring.
Oh. My. Frickin'. Chicken. Nuggets.
His body is...oh, my Lord. I can't breathe.
Wait...how do you breathe again?!
Oh, God, I forgot how to breathe!
His body is beautiful. I had already suspected the fact that he had an amazing body, but I didn't think it was this good. It was kind of, maybe, ever so slightly better than Don's.
In fact, it was way better than his.
Arsen had perfect abs, ab-solutely perfect! It was as if he'd literally been carved by a sharp knife intricately.
His chest was broad, and his body was lean and masculine. He seemed to look even more of a Greek god now than he ever had before.
I hurriedly squeeze my eyes shut when he looks over at me.
This time, I keep them shut when I hear the thud of a towel fall to the ground. I hear the rustle of clothes before everything goes quiet.
"I know you're awake, Xanthe." I hear his velvety voice say.
My heart stops beating.
Literally.
I open my eyes slowly, and Arsen's standing there, his hands in his jean pockets. All dressed.
My heart both drops and soars to the sky. Probably because I wouldn't have trusted myself around him being half-naked.
"Arsen," I whisper.
His glowing eyes look at me intensely, and he gently walks towards the bed.
I completely stop breathing when he leans over me, a hand on either side of my burning body.
"Xanthe," He whispers back, and my heart explodes.
No, no, no! I don't like this feeling, I'm not supposed to be feeling this, am I supposed to be feeling this?! Oh, my gosh, I'm freaking out!
I smell a waft of mint and Starburst. My stomach flutters. My whole body flutters.
"I like Starbursts too, you know," I tell him quietly. He raises an inquisitive eyebrow.
I smile. He stares at my lips, his eyes revealing nothing but a roaring flame. My hearts pace doesn't slow down at all.
Unconsciously, without realizing it, my hand reaches up and rests on the side of his face, my thumb stroking his smooth, soft cheeks, always so rosy.
His eyes flicker shut for a second, no longer, when he abruptly pulls away.
"Get some sleep. We're leaving early tomorrow," He mutters, before turning the light off and walking out of the room.
I stay where I am, my heart racing and my breath hitching every two seconds.
Oh. My. God. What was that?!
After a while of laying there and wondering what in the hell just happened, I hear a loud knock from somewhere, and I jump out of bed, staring at the window on the other side of the room.
It happens again.
I walk up to it slowly and pull back the curtains. My eyes widen and I hurry to open it.
"Vicky, what are you doing here?" I hiss, looking behind my back in case Tegan comes in. Vicky shakes her head.
"You're not safe here, Xanthe," She says. "You have to leave."
This time, my heart beats for a completely different reason than it had before. "What? Why?"
Vicky shudders.
"It's Tegan Walliams, Xanthe. She took part in helping to kill your sister."
Everything in me freezes.
The next words Vicky says turns the whole room cold.
"She's trying to kill you, too, Xanthe."
Right at the same time, I hear a scream from downstairs, and Vicky and I both rush away from the window and dash out of the room, running down the stairs.
Tegan Walliams literally killed my sister. She killed my sister.
She. Killed. My. Sister.
Oh, she's gonna pay.
___________________________________________________________________________
3350 words.
I knew a girl in primary school who was exactly like Tegan, her name shall remain unknown. But you're free to guess!
Thanks for reading, and remember...
Vote, COMMENT, Share!