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Chapter 5
Contacts.
It had to be colored contacts. I tried to convince myself for the thousandth time hours later. I couldn't even think straight while I was tearing apart Adriel's room looking for that damn receipt—to no avail might I add. That jerk either threw it away or had it hidden really well.
I groaned and leaned my forehead against the steering wheel. It was five in the afternoon, the exact time Adriel specified to be there, but he still wasn't ready to leave. Raf was playing on her Nintendo Switch in the backseat with headphones glued to her ears, completely oblivious to the fact that I had been losing my mind all afternoon.
"Hey—"
"Fuck!" I nearly jumped out of my skin when the driver-side door suddenly open. Adriel's brow raised questioningly and his lips pulled at the corners. "You scared the hell out me!" I snapped and urged my fingers to let go of their death grip on the wheel.
"Hello to you too... Hey," His amused look gave way to a worried frown and he reached for my arm as I jumped out of the seat. "Are you okay?"
"No, you freaked me out." I yanked my arm out of his grasp and walked quickly to the passenger's side before he could say anything else. I was afraid, but not because of him, and deep down I knew I shouldn't have taken that fear out on him. He just made it so darn easy to be mad at him.
"Hi Adriel!" His sister beamed as Dri climbed into the driver's side. He shot her a small smile in the rearview mirror as I buckled my seatbelt. "Hey kiddo, how was your day?"
"Great! Lark and I did a bunch of shopping, and we got ice cream! Except she bought a lot of gross healthy food and says we have to eat it." Raffie stuck her tongue out at me and I rolled my eyes.
"You excited for school tomorrow?" Adriel asked as he pulled out of the awesome parking job I did. I couldn't drive well, my ass. I backed this beast into that spot like it was nothing.
"Oh yeah! I got this really cool backpack and it has a bunch of—" I tuned out the long explanation of everything we had bought her and rested my head against the cool glass of the window.
Colored contacts. There was no question about it. But why did they look so real?
I hadn't realized my leg was bouncing anxiously until one large, and insanely warm, hand covered my knee. Adriel's blue eyes stayed glued to the windshield as Raffie rambled on, but squeezed my leg when he noticed me glance his way. "How was your day?" He asked carefully once Raf finished her in-depth analysis report of all her school supplies.
I dragged my gaze away from his hand and shrugged. It took all I had not to rub my palms nervously down my skinny-jean covered thighs. He was still touching me, and I could feel heat radiating from his palm into my skin. Was it hot in here? Or was that just the mental image of him running that hand up my thigh? I forced my leg to stop bouncing.
"It was fine. Nothing to report, General." Adriel rolled his eyes before—thankfully—letting go of my knee. I released a shaky breath. "What about you? Did you like your first day?"
He gave me a shrug of his own and a lopsided grin. "Yeah, it was alright. I'm not building skyscrapers or anything, but I'm in charge of a few teams so we'll see what happens."
"That's good." I mumbled and turned back towards the window. "Are you going to be working on that site in town?"
"Yeah, on and off... But I'm telling people what to do, not actually doing it, Lark." The low, soft, tone that overtook his voice hinted that the jerk knew a little too much about my worrying.
One good thing about obsessing over those creepy red eyes all day, was that it took my mind off being away from him. Now with Adriel sitting beside me and Raf behind us, tension eased from my shoulders. One day down, a million more to go. I hadn't realized my eyes were closed until they snapped open when a soft touch brushed across my skin. I glanced over to the beyond handsome man, the one who had decided to reach over and lightly squeeze the back of my neck.
"I'm sorry I scared you earlier."
I let out a small sigh so he wouldn't see how that simple touch affected me. "It's fine. I'm over it."
"Then why are you acting like you're about to jump out of the car?"
"It's just been a long day. For everyone. Don't worry about me." His face pulled into a frown, but he didn't say anything else as his thumb rubbed softly along my skin. The gentle touch sent shivers straight down my spine, into my stomach, and lower. Not good.
I wasn't sure why I didn't tell him about the red eyes. Maybe because I was still trying to convince myself it wasn't real, or maybe I just didn't want to make him worry. He already knew about the nightmares, the sleepwalking, and now I was seeing people with red eyes while I was awake. None of that added up to mental stability. I didn't think mentioning the incident was a good idea.
Adriel was quiet as he let go of my neck, though his strong jaw clenched shut. "You know you can tell me anything, right?" He spoke a moment later, his voice low so Raffie couldn't hear.
I ran my hand roughly through my loose curs and kept my eyes glued to the sunset beside us. "Yeah, Dri. Yeah, I know."
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"Okay, and you have your pencil bag and lunch, right?" I asked the sleepy, and rather annoyed child the next morning. Thankfully I didn't have another sleepwalking incident the night before. I didn't dream of anything really. It was the first time in a long time I was able to sleep through the night. Is it sad that was strange to me now?
"Yeah, Lark. I have everything, promise." Raffie reassured me for the fifth time. I was crouched down in front of her, making sure her backpack straps were even as Adriel stood patiently by the door. I let out a small sigh and brushed the invisible wrinkles out of her Corpse Bride t-shirt. The kid had a thing for Tim Burton films.
"We need to get going, Larkin." Dri spoke softly, and I could have sworn there was something warm filling those blue eyes as he watched us. I stood slowly to my feet and tried to erase the frown pulling at my lips.
"You have our numbers memorized in case of an emergency, right?"
"Yes, stop freaking out." Rafael rolled her eyes, and I felt a small bubble of laughter build in my chest.
Adriel was dropping her off at her new school on the way to work, and I had gotten up early—despite enjoying the first soundless sleep I had in weeks—to make sure she had everything she needed. But I was finding it a lot harder to let her go than I expected. It was the first time since their parents died that she was going back to any kind of school setting, and I was nervous that it might be too much. Though, in all reality, it really might have just been too much for me.
"Are you going to be okay today?" Adriel watched me intently as Raf skipped down the stone steps and headed straight for the waiting SUV.
"Yeah, Dri." I reassured the worry in his gaze as I turned towards the front door.
"You have everything you need for registration?"
"Yup."
"Hey," He spoke softly and reached up to flick my chin, a small smile pulling at his devilish lips. "She'll be alright. It's the other kids you need to be worried for."
Those dark eyes seemed to flash as I laughed. "You're telling me."
He grew serious again as my laughter faded away. "I'm going to get some motion detectors while I'm out today, okay?"
Great, back to the fact that my subconscious was clearly losing it. I let out a little sigh. "Okay, thank you."
Adriel had found a few Christmas bells in some random box the night before, and had wrapped it around my door's handle just in case. He even slept with his door open so he could listen for me. I tried to ignore how that caring action made my heart plummet straight to my stomach. No one ever cared for me like that before. It was terrifying.
"Have a good day, Larkin." He spoke softly before turning for the car, his tool belt and lunch box swung casually over one arm. "And my room better be spotless before I come home."
I let out an irritated groan and rolled my eyes skyward. "Just give me the receipt and I will."
"Not happening, that laptop is yours, and you're going to deal with it." Adriel's tone turned into that steely command I wasn't supposed to argue with.
"I told you it's broken."
"You haven't even taken it out of the box yet."
I crossed my arms in defiance. "No receipt, no clean room."
"Larkin."
My teeth grit shut in aggravation. "Yeah, fine, whatever." I grumbled and turned back into the house to slam the door shut. So, what if I hadn't cleaned his room after I tore it apart the day before? I was irritated about that damn laptop, and the sleepwalking and creepy red eyes didn't leave my mind in its best state. Despite that, guess what I spent the rest of the morning doing?
Cleaning his freaking room.
I did steal one of his flannels and t-shirts though, those things were damn comfortable.
After I made sure the jerk's room was spotless, I ate a quick breakfast and hopped in the shower. I wasn't expecting to meet anyone worthwhile during registration, so I pulled on a pair of black leggings, a dark blue tank and Adriel's flannel. I did decide to toss my hair into a messy bun instead of leaving it down though. I had a feeling I was going to be sitting all day listening to old guys talk about the school, and I wanted to be comfortable over sexy.
Dri's flannel stopped just below my butt, and the faint hint of sawdust and his aftershave clinging to the fabric made it seem like he was there with me.
I could do this. First day completely by myself since the accident.
I could do this.
It wasn't a far walk to the college, and I was glancing at the large sign supporting the universities name by nine o'clock. I was glad Raffie and I already came here before, otherwise I would have gotten so totally lost following the damn map on my phone. I had my plain, black, North Face backpack thrown across one shoulder, with that stupid new laptop zipped safely inside. I'm pretty sure Adriel bought a warranty on the stupid thing just in case I 'accidentally' threw my bag into oncoming traffic.
I held my breath as I crossed onto campus. The last time I was here there was that—that noise that pulled me towards the mountain. I was terrified something like that would happen again. With everything that's been going on lately, I wouldn't be surprised if my brain just decided to shut off and force me to follow some creepy disembodied sound into an uninhabited forest. Maybe I deserved to get eaten by giant man-eating cats.
"Hey, Larkin!" My gaze snapped to the familiar voice calling my name as I walked into the courtyard. Just fucking perfect. I grumbled to myself as that Luke-guy from the other day came jogging over. His wide, perfect, charming smile on full display. At least there was no creepy noise—yet.
I paused just outside the steeple-styled brick building with the sign reading Admissions pinned to its side. "Oh, hey, Luke. What are you doing here?" I tried to sound casual as he pulled to a stop a few feet away, but the guy still skeeved me out and I was never good at hiding what I was thinking. Adriel could always ready my facial expressions like a book, and it was maddening.
"I work for the school part-time and they wanted me to help run registration. You know, help all the freshmen find their way around?" His smile was beaming, as if he didn't know what the word 'frown' meant.
I nodded politely, even though I really didn't care. "Yeah, that's cool."
Luke laughed, and the sound was way too cheerfully for my pessimistic mood. "Not really, but it's a paycheck. Hey, listen, me and a couple of friends are planning on hanging out later up at Uriel Point. We usually have bonfires there and it draws a pretty big crowd. It'll be a lot of fun! Do you want to come?" His voice sounded almost hopeful, and although those dark sunglasses were covering his eyes, I could almost see their warm brown depths gazing down at me.
Oof. Hanging out with some strange guy that gave me the creeps and his buddies? Yeah, no thank you.
"Um, thanks but I have a lot to do today." It was the politest thing I could say without blatantly telling him to fudge off. Honestly, I didn't care about hurting his feelings, but I promised Adriel I would 'try', and starting off on the wrong foot with the townies wasn't necessarily trying.
That beaming smile faltered, but only for a moment before he shrugged and pulled a hand out of his jacket pocket. "Okay, well if you change your mind here's my number. Text or give me a call." I reluctantly took the small piece of paper with neatly written numbers from his hand. I had no intention of putting it into my phone, but didn't want to come off as completely rude. Despite the uneasily feeling in my chest Luke had only ever been pleasant.
"Thanks, I'll let you know." I raised the paper in acknowledgment before stuffing it into the water bottle holder of my bag. "I have to get to registration now. So, uh, um have a good day?" It came out more of a question than a statement, but that didn't seem to bother him.
"Yeah, I got to get going to. It was nice to see you! And I really do hope you change your mind about later. It'll be a lot of fun."
I didn't bother using the muscles it took to smile as he turned to walk away. There was just something off about that guy.
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"How was your first day, Raf?" I asked that afternoon as we all sat on one end of the large dining room table eating Chinese food. It didn't matter that I had bought us a bunch of stuff to cook with. Oh no, savior Adriel to the day with take-out. Whatever.
"It was good! The teachers were all really nice and someone gave me their candy at lunch!"
"Did they give it to you, or did you take it?" Those dark, blue, all-seeing eyes of her older brother shot to the small child in a pointed narrowed glare. Raffie's lips pulled into a pout.
"He wasn't eating it." She grumbled and stuck her fork into her pork roll. I rolled my eyes, which I seemed to be doing a lot of lately. And here I was upset that she ate candy. Now she's stealing it from other kids.
"I'm not going to have this discussion with you again, Rafael." That strict tone ringing through Adriel's voice made my back arch straighter in my chair, and it wasn't even directed at me for once. "Stop taking other people's things without their permission."
"Okay, I'm sorry." She mumbled and pointed those puppy eyes down at her plate. Oh, so the little twerp can manipulate me all she wants but the minute big bad Adriel gets involved she's a terrified kitten. Right.
"How was your day, Lark?" Adriel asked a quiet moment later after the tension between the two Markos fell away.
I shrugged and twisted the Chow Mein noodles uselessly around the ends of my chopsticks. "It was alright." I didn't tell him about my conversation with Luke. I wasn't sure if he would scowl at some strange guy asking to hang out, or encourage me to go make "new friends". Either conversation wasn't one I wanted to have.
"Did you sign up for your classes?"
"Yeah."
"Pick a major?"
"Undecided."
"Hm." He hummed around a mouthful of Orange Chicken. "That's fine, you still have plenty of time."
My gaze flickered towards him as silence settled over the table. Adriel looked more—gruff than usual that day, and it was doing funny things to my head. Stubble brushed along the sharp edge of his jaw, his olive-toned skin was darker from working in the sun, and his hair had started growing slowly from its short crop-cut. I didn't realize it was possible for that man to get any more attractive, and I was beyond frustrated at being wrong.
"Yeah, I guess." I flipped the noodles over in their box. "I signed up for a few art classes though."
I was never good at school, but not because I didn't understand. I just didn't see the worth in it. I was never going to use Calculus or Chemistry in the outside world, even if I had wanted to go to college. The only subject I ever saw value in was art and history, but I wasn't any good at remembering the latter.
One of my charcoal drawings had even made the Regional showcase my last year of high school, and Shelby and Dave had been so excited they bought me a special frame for the piece. I glanced over at the black and white image of the Golden Gate Bridge. Adriel had hung the picture up in the foyer the day we moved in.
"Oh, good. I know you'll like those." He mumbled around a mouthful. It didn't really matter if I liked them or not. Adriel wanted me to find a career with college, and unless you had connections in high places, an art degree didn't get you anywhere.
"I took tomorrow off." The annoying man announced a while later. Raf was still pouting down at her food, but that didn't stop her from digging viciously into the crab cakes.
"Already?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. "It's only, like, your third day." Those deep-set blue eyes flickered to mine, and their gaze made my insides flip upside down. It was really not fair how attractive he was.
"Yeah, but they can go one day without me and you need a car." A smug smile pulled at his lips as a groan ripped from my chest. Not this again. "This weekend is still too far away for you to be walking around everywhere—"
"No—"
"So," He cut off my protest before the words could pass my lips. "We're going tomorrow."
"Adriel, I don't need you to buy me a car."
"You're getting one."
"Then I will pay for it." I slapped my chopsticks down for emphasis. "Stop wasting your money on me."
"It's not 'wasting my money'." He leaned back heavily in his chair; those dark eyes unwavering in their determination. There was no winning when he got like that. "And we've talked about this. You don't have enough saved up to buy a vehicle that actually works, and you need to be able to get around quickly for Raf." I hated that he knew how to hold the kid against me. I didn't care about my 'safety' or walking, but Rafael wouldn't be able to rely on me if I couldn't get to her fast enough.
"Then I'm paying you back." The smirk taking over his handsome features was one of victory. I had to press my hands against my thighs to keep from grabbing a chopstick to shank him with. "I'm being serious, Adriel."
"Oh, I know. I just keep adding up all the money that you plan on 'paying me back'. You don't even have a job."
"Then I'll get one."
"Nope. Not while you're in school, you agreed."
"I didn't agree to anything! Just because you tell me to do something doesn't mean I agree with it! That requires a verbal or written acknowledgment!" I could feel my temper rising and I didn't bother keeping my chair from scraping across the floor as I stood angrily to my feet.
"You need to focus on your classes, Lark." By this point I knew he was messing with me, I could see it in the clear amusement shining through those dark blue eyes. It only made my blood pressure rise.
"I can focus on classes and work. People do it all the time—you did it!"
Rafael was watching us with wide eyes, a little bit of crab cake hanging forgotten from her lips. I never wanted her to see us argue, though this was obviously becoming a one-sided argument. When Adriel had his mind set on something he made it happen, regardless of my feelings on the matter. In a way I respected that. I wanted to be like that. Except when it was directed at me, then it was just beyond infuriating.
"That's different. I was dedicated and actually tried, and—" His eyes flashed and his words cut off—like he realized a little too late what he had said.
"And what, Adriel? Intelligent? Driven? Everything I'm not, right?" The anger simmering in my chest disappeared to something far worse. Pain.
Thinking those things about myself was one thing, but knowing that he of all people thought them too was... disappointing? Heartbreaking.
It was heartbreaking.
"That's not what I meant, Angel." He leaned forward to reach for my hand, remorse shining in that blue gaze, but I pulled away and turned for the stairs.
"I'm going to bed." I didn't want to hear anymore. I had hit my emotional quota for the day, and I just wanted to curl under my covers and try to fall asleep.
"Larkin wait—" I hurried up the stairs before he could say another word and closed my door with a resounding 'smack'. The Christmas bells attached to the handle jingled loudly as I did.
I hated that his opinion mattered that much to me. I really did.
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