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Dedication: R0chTheuns for the amazing banner on the side. Thank you so much for it, I absolutley love it! <3
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Oh God.
What do I do!?
My heart beat was roaring in my head to the extent I could hardly hear anything. My stomach was churning like a washing machine. I thought I was going to be sick for sure. His eyes were wide with fury and my mum's face as pale as a ghost. I tried to speak, but my voice failed me. I licked my lips, my chest rising and falling at a rapid pace. I cleared my throat and tried again.
"Okay..." I said, my voice coming out strained and high pitched. "Let's just calm down."
"Didn't mean to ruin your perfect little night." he spat out. "Although I am curious as to why your own mother wasn't invited."
"It wasn't exactly a planned dinner." I explained, my eyes trained upon the knife which was currently pressed at the base of my mum's throat. I gulped as he tightened his hold around her. Her eyes were wide with fear. "And besides, because she was dating you, mum and dad aren't exactly besties right now."
He gave me a dirty smirk, which, if I wasn't so scared, I would want to wipe the floor with it. I practically growled at him. How dare he show up to my house, holding my own mother hostage! Anger flared up inside me and I rolled my tongue across my teeth, showing that I was seriously irritated.
"Oh. It's my fault. That makes me happy." he grinned like a little child that just got presented with an ice cream or some new toy. I gritted my teeth in agitation. My eyes narrowed at him and I made a gesture with my hand to continue on with whatever he wanted. He just gave me a toothy smile and silence lapsed. I exhaled.
"No wonder Daniel is the way he is." I said, shaking my head, giving him a sympathetic look. "How sad."
"Don't you dare speak to me like that!" he thundered causing me to jump in alarm. "Have you not realised I'm holding your mother with a knife?"
"I do see that." I nodded, sounding a lot calmer than I felt. I folded my arms across my chest and stared at him levelly. "So, you were just lurking around in the bushes until I came out?"
"Lurking is a good word to use." he chuckled.
I squinted at him. He was screaming at me a second ago and now he's laughing? His mood changes were faster than my blinks. Bipolar maybe... "The reason would be because my son is now expelled because of you!"
"Because of me?" I echoed in disbelief. "I think you need to reconsider who you're blaming here!"
"I think it's pretty clear."
"Well maybe he shouldn't have tried to rape two girls!" I screeched, anger pouring out of me.
My words were filled with as much venom as I could muster. This was like dealing with Mark all over again! Mark was obsessive, watched me like a hawk and tried to make my life miserable, but he never tried to rape me or rip out my mum's jugular.
He flinched at me using the word 'rape'. His lips parted slightly. He stood there, gaping at me for a few moments. Okay, so Danny boy and his dad haven't exactly had a heart to heart, I'd say. I smirked upon knowing the full story when he didn't.
"What? You didn't know that?" I asked, cocking my head to the side, pretending to think about something. "Huh."
"You're lying." he bit out, anger flashing through his eyes. I kept the smirk on my face and shifted my weight, planting a hand on my hip.
"Because I'd lie about something like that." I retorted, rolling my eyes. "What did he tell you he was expelled for?"
"Fighting."
I chuckled, shaking my head at the excuse. "I guess that would make sense with the hit on the head he received from me."
"Yes, he said you punched him after he said some words you took the wrong way."
"Words I took the wrong way? No, I hit him over the head with a plank of wood as he continued to try and rape his stepsister after I kindly told him to stop. I warned him clear as day. And why wouldn't I be expelled then, instead of him?"
He sucked in a breath of surprise at this information. His mouth opened and closed a few times before and words came out.
"Britney!?" was all he spluttered.
"Yes."
I thought I'd finally got through him, by telling the truth. Acting more confident than I felt actually worked!
"STOP LYING!" he screamed, causing my mum to whimper. I jumped at his outburst. Okay, so maybe not. My breath was coming out short and fast as I stared at her. He was obviously on thin ice and unfortunately my mum would be the one to feel his 'wrath'.
"Why don't you ring Principle Harlon and ask him yourself?" I asked, trying to calm him down. I shrugged. "You'll either find out what you want to hear or not."
He didn't have a reply for that. We stood there, death staring each other for a few moments, before I could hear sirens. He whipped his head to the sound. I rolled my lips into my mouth and felt a sense of relief fill me.
"You called the cops?"
"You've been watching my every move. How on earth would I have had the chance to do that?" I asked him like he was stupid. I shook my head at him. He really did have many brains, did he?
He looked conflicted on what his next move should be. Before he got the chance to decide, the front door opened and I gasped at what I saw.
"Drop. Her. Now." my Dad's voice bellowed.
Daniel's father slowly turned around and saw Dad's shotgun aimed right at him. He looked furious that Dad would dare to do such a thing. Dad twitched and took off the safety switch. Daniel's father slowly let go of Mum. Rachel took her chance to sprint up the porch and hide behind Dad. Oh sweet, leave me here, why don't you.
"You will leave my family alone. Got it? I know where you live. I know how to track you down if you run. If I hear you harassing one more of my family, I swear to God, I will hunt you down and personally kill you myself."
My jaw was practically touching the floor now. The anger in my Dad's eyes almost had me cringing. I couldn't believe it was him. His threat was actually scary. With wide eyes, I looked at Daniel's Dad who just stared back. He looked over his shoulder. He glanced back at me and we held each other's stares for a couple of moments.
"Touch her, I'll shoot." Dad deadpanned. Yet again, I gaped at him. Holy fudge cakes. I never knew he could be so intimidating.
In one fluid movement, he took off down the hill and into the slightly foresty area that surrounded the bottom of our hill. Dad spun on his heel and took off inside the house, obviously to hide the gun. I was so shocked, I couldn't make my feet move quite yet.
Blue and red filled my vision and I saw a police car slowly wind up my hill. They parked and three officers leaped out of the car, guns in hands. They began scouting the area and I was completely frozen to the spot.
"Oh God!" I cried out, swaying slightly, black dots dancing across my vision.
There were guns everywhere!
* * *
Melanie's POV:
This was the moment I had been waiting for, for, well... thirteen weeks apparently, if you wanted to be exact. I nervously waited for the doctor to do her thing. I put my hand out and sought out Luke's. I entwined our fingers, seeking his comfort.
"Are you ready to find out?" Doctor Kennedy asked with a kind smile on her face. I exchanged a look with Luke and he nodded at me. He smiled encouragingly and I exhaled deeply, turning back to her. I rolled my lips into my mouth.
Did I really want to know?
I thought about it for a few moments, contemplating. I had already made my decision before I came in here, so I didn't have to think about it for too long.
"I'm ready."
"It's..." She paused for dramatic effect and I wanted to grab her stethoscope and wring it around her neck. I wanted to know now! "It's..."
"Just get on with it!" I snapped, irritation lining each word.
She frowned at my rudeness, but continued. "A girl, congratulations."
A grin broke out on my face. That's what I had been wanting. I turned to Luke and embraced him in a tight hug.
"We're having a girl!"
"Secretly, I was hoping for a boy." he admitted with a sigh. "I wanted to take him out motor bike riding."
"You can take her out too." I said, pursing my lips. "Man up and be happy, woulddya?"
"Hmph."
This afternoon, my mission was to go in search of names. I couldn't be happier that I was going to have a little Mel running around. I was going to get her cute little dresses and shoes. I wonder how old she will be before she masters walking in heels...
Doctor Kennedy began talking more, but I sort of tuned out. I knew what I wanted to know. My baby was girl and she was healthy. That's all that mattered to me. After another half an hour, we were released. As soon as I could, I hit speed dial.
"Hello?"
"I'M HAVING A GIRL!" I squealed so loud that probably the patients in comas could probably hear me.
"Oh my God!" Emma cried out. "How exciting! Name ideas?"
"I don't know yet! I'm going to go name hunting this afternoon." I explained. "But I have her middle name chosen already."
"What is it?"
"Emma." I replied simply.
"What!?" she shrieked. "Oh my God, you're naming your baby girl half after me!?"
I grinned into the phone. "I see you're taking it well."
"This is awesome! She's obviously going to be amazing is she's going to have 'Emma Ross' in her name. Well, when you guys get married."
I rolled my eyes. Trust Emma to come out with something like that. "Of course."
"Ah, I'm so excited!"
I was beaming as I followed Luke out to the car. We slipped in and I pushed away the feeling of being nauseous as much as I could. "How are you holding up from the whole Daniel's dad thing?"
"Better. Mum's okay, she's spending the next couple of days with Dad, so I'm staying with Jason so they can have some alone time. Guess what!"
"What?" I asked as Luke pulled out and we began motoring down the road, towards our place on the beach.
"I got a job!"
"Ew," I replied, scrunching up my face. "You're going to work?"
"Yes, Mel," she deadpanned and I just knew she'd be rolling her eyes. "Some people have to work to earn money."
I tsked at her, shaking my head. "Where?"
"The local supermarket."
"Ew."
"Ew yourself," she laughed. "It'll be fun. Well, maybe not fun but definitely experience. So how far pregnant are you?"
"Thirteen weeks."
"Wow."
"Yep."
"Times gone by fast." she commented. I rested my head back on the seat behind and sighed. I couldn't agree more with that.
"I reckon."
"Jase-Jason s-stop!" she giggled. "I'm on the... the phone!"
I pursed my lips. "Tell him hands off until I'm not listening."
Luke made a disgusted face and I smirked at his reaction. Little did he know she responded the same whenever I mentioned us two doing stuff like that.
"Look, ha, stop it!" she cried out, giggling like a young girl. "Look, I'm going to have to go Mel, talk soon!"
I frowned as the line went dead. Shame on her. Who hangs up on their best friend to canoodle with their boyfriend? Okay, most people probably and I've done it, but still. Luke's hand was loosely on the gear stick and I reached over and out his hand in mine.
He glanced over and I smiled at him. "Thanks for coming today."
"Of course I'd come."
"Still." I pointed out. "I'll have to thank you."
"How are you going to do that?" he asked, his eyes lighting up with excitement. I smirked at his reaction.
"Hmm. Ice cream?"
"Maybe, anything else?" he probed.
"Chocolate?"
"More..."
"Oh. I know." I said, grinning.
"What?"
"I'll just have to show you."
He grinned at me and I winked. He suddenly stepped on the accelerator. I tried not to let my smirk widen as I noticed him do this. I glanced over at him again.
"Why the rush?" I asked innocently.
"Suddenly, I just can't wait to get home." he breathed, flooring it. I threw my head back and laughed, shaking my head.
Oh, do I have this boy wrapped around my little finger.
* * *
Emma's POV:
"How are you feeling?" Jason murmured, his thumb caressing my cheek as I quickly hung up on Mel. Being reminded of last night, my giggles soon died down. I sighed, leaning into him, seeking his warmth.
"Okay. It was just a hectic night." I sighed, rubbing my face wearily.
I had purposely been avoiding thinking about it, but I knew that was useless. I hardly got any sleep last night. All I was replaying in my mind was the knife, the shotgun, and the continuous cycle of questions I got hammered with from the police.
"I should have stayed." he shook his head, gritting his teeth, obviously angry with himself. "You wouldn't have been in that situation."
"I would have seen Mel and Luke out though anyway." I shrugged, leaning up and placing my palms on his chest. "I would have still gone outside. Don't blame yourself for anything. It's definitely not your fault."
"But-"
"Don't argue with me."
"Yes, Boss." he smirked, rolling his eyes.
I grinned at him. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his. I leaned back and smiled at him. He was so beautiful. His tanned, golden skin was glowing from being so sun kissed. His blond hair was getting that sun bleached that it looked like he had gone to the hairdresser and gotten highlights. His bright, blue orbs were round and staring back at him. His lips were full, red and in every way extremely kissable. I sighed in content. He was perfect.
I lifted my hand up and brushed his fringe from his forehead. I moved over and wrapped my arms around his waist, snuggling into him. He leaned back and rested his upper arm on my back as his fingers ran through my hair and over my scalp.
"What did the police ask you?" he asked.
"Mostly about my relationship with Daniel and his Dad." I replied with a sigh. "I came clean about most of the things he has done to me. I left out Mark though. That would just cause a lot more trouble than its worth."
"What are the cops going to do now?"
"They're looking for them. When the cops raided their place, all their stuff was there, but they weren't. So they have some undercover cops stationed near the house to look out for them. If they find them, Daniel will be sent to Juvie for attempted rape and his father will be sent to jail for attempted murder."
"Wow," he breathed, his nails scratching my scalp. A sigh escaped my lips. I absolutely loved when he ran his fingers through my hair. It was so nice and relaxing. I especially loved it when I was dozing off. I got to sleep so much easier.
"We should go hang out somewhere soon. Go to the movies or something." he suggested. I snuggled deeper into him. "Something fun."
"Yeah, that would be nice."
I shifted my head back so that I was now gazing up at him. He moved his face closer to mine and kissed the tip of my nose. He then kissed my forehead, cheekbones, jaw line before he eventually reached my mouth. His fingers left my hair and his palms secured my head. The annoying sound of the doorknob turning caused me to leap off of him like he was on fire and ran my hand messily through my hair. The door swung open and Miranda walked in, looking exhausted.
"Hey guys," she said, hitching some shopping bags after her. "Jason, honey, could you go grab some bags from the car? There are only a couple in there."
"Sure." he replied casually, his eyes flickering to mine briefly.
He rose to his feet and padded over to her. With a quick kiss on her cheek, he jogged outside. I walked over and grabbed the bags from her. She smiled gratefully at me and I took them to the kitchen. I began unpacking and she came in, throwing her keys and handbag onto the bench.
She slipped out of shoes and sat heavily on one of the bar stools. She placed her head in her hands. "Jason told me what happened last night. Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm okay." I nodded, placing the stuff away. "I was pretty shaken up at first, but I'm getting over it now. Where does this go?"
She slowly got up and helped me. "Thanks for helping, Emma. I appreciate it."
"No worries," I replied as Jason entered, dumping the rest of the groceries on the kitchen island. After we unpacked it all, Miranda set the dinner. After helping where I could and learning some odd, new things I didn't know before, we all settled down and ate.
Jason's eyes met mine across the dinner table and my cheeks grew warm. This dinner wouldn't be going so smoothly if Miranda had walked in a couple of minutes later...
We finished, cleaned and I set upstairs to go and shower. Jason stayed with Miranda and they caught up. (They had these bonding moments where they'd tell each other about their day and stuff. It was really sweet). I quickly showered and dressed in some comfortable shorts and a hoodie. The wind had picked up, making it a bit cool.
I began watching some T.V. as Jason took his own turn to shower. He finished up and crawled into bed beside me. I turned my head, pecking him on the cheek. He smiled at me, before throwing an arm around my shoulders. I rested my head on his shoulder.
I knew I'd get a solid sleep tonight if I was in Jason's arms.