Chapter 29: Chapter 29

Twenty Nine- Little girl.

Tobias and I sit together silently for a few hours, binge watching a series on TV about a murder house. Occasionally one of us will make a slight comment when things get a little gruesome or exciting. There's a bowl of popcorn nestled between us on the couch and the sun is beginning to rise outside causing it to create a soft glow inside the room.

It's early hours in the morning and the birds begin to sing their song. I yawn and stretch my arms over my head, shifting in position to get comfortable.

"How are you still tired? I've never met someone who can sleep for so long." Tobias comments, his gaze never leaving the TV screen.

The main character had been stabbed with a piece of glass and blood was cascading down the walls. Clearly Tobias is enjoying it too much to look away . . .

"I haven't slept well for years, living with someone like Trevor can do that to you so I'm making the most of it whilst I can." I half joke. I take another handful of popcorn and watch Tobias still before turning towards me. His brown eyes flash with sympathy and I immediately curse myself for bringing up the topic of Trevor.

"I haven't been the most welcoming since you got here. Just because I have issues with Jake doesn't mean it should effect the friendship between you and I." Tobias says quietly. My eyebrows raise in surprise from his sudden honesty and I open my mouth to respond but he cuts me off —

"I'm sorry Emily. It won't happen again."

I choke on the piece of popcorn in my mouth and quickly cough it back up.

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Tobias?" I gasp, bringing light to the situation. His shoulders immediately relax and a small smile flickers across his face. A silent peace offering settles between us and I'm grateful for that.

I realise Tobias doesn't have to be my enemy, I'd quite like it if we were to become friends.

Who knows . . . Maybe it'll rub off on the two cousins and get them to sort their differences.

"What happened between you and Jake? He never told me." I asked, eager to know what had caused them to dislike each other so much. Tobias sighed deeply, his face turning serious. His eyes held guilt in them and he turned towards me sheepishly -

"I did something unforgivable, I betrayed him and took something from him that he cared deeply about. Me and him were so close before it happened and I ruined it," he said sadly, turning back towards the TV.

I waited for him to elaborate but he never did so I took that as my cue to drop the subject. It wasn't my business to do so and I didn't want to appear pushy.

The door of the living room opened slowly and Jakes head popped round. His eyes looked sleepy and his hair was sticking up in different directions. He wore black jogging bottoms that hung loosely on his hips. His white shirt clung to his arms showing off his strength and I couldn't help myself from gawking.

Even in the morning, this boy managed to look good.

"Morning," I smile at him, patting the seat next to me. He gave me a small smile in response, warily glancing between me and Tobias. Jealousy flashes through his eyes and I frown —

"What's going on here?" He asks me, his voice low and husky from sleep.

"Im watching a movie with Tobias." I respond, confused as to what he's implying. I sigh and push myself off the sofa, grabbing the bowl of popcorn with me as I do so.

"Tobias was keeping me company, I woke up a few hours ago," I explain, walking towards the door. I brush past Jake and head for the kitchen.

"Why didn't you wake me?" Jake replies, trailing after me. He pulls back one of the dining chairs and sits himself down. I place the bowl of popcorn onto the side and turn to face him.

"You weren't there when I woke up and it was early."

Jake ran a hand over his face, his eyes not quite meeting mine as he replied.

"I thought I'd take the spare room. I knew it was going to be a restless night and I didn't want to wake you."

I nod slowly, knowing me and Jake have lots to talk about. The police visit, DC Jones and the incident with Tobias. I sigh and tale a seat next to Jake.

"We need to talk Jake."

After a lengthy talk with Jake, he agreed not to lash out without knowing the truth again. The boys still didn't see eye to eye however Jake promised me he would act civil towards Tobias.

I pull on my high waisted jeans along with a white off the shoulder top. Next I decide to tackle my hair and instead of putting it up into a messy bun as I usually do, I let it flow down my back. After applying a little makeup, I feel content with my appearance.

My phone beeps, letting me know I've received a text. I decided to ignore it as I'm already running a little behind. I grab my belongings and head downstairs, ready for college.

Jake is waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs, just as he does every morning. He's wearing a white shirt, dark blue jeans and trainers. I laugh out loud, realising we're both matching.

A complete mistake but it's kind of cute.

I smile at him and stand on my tiptoes, planting a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Ready to go?" I ask him, my heart warming a little as he slides his arm around my waist, pulling me in closer.

"Ready when you are Muffin," he murmurs in my ear, causing goosebumps to erupt over my bare skin. I bite the corner of my lip to stop the smile from spreading right across my face. The boy made me happy, really happy. He opens the front door and gestures for me to walk ahead of him.

"You're such a gentleman at heart," I tell him over my shoulder, grinning as I walk out. He smirks back at me in response, blue eyes shining —

"Tell anyone and I'll kill you."

*****

"Emily, your phone is buzzing." Trish hisses at me whilst maintaining eye contact with Mrs Wilkins as she lectured us on our math exam results. Apparently we all did below her expectations and she wasn't happy.

"It's fine, it's on silent." I whisper back at Trish whilst doodling in the corner of my book. Trish pokes me in the ribs, signalling for me to check my phone and I sigh, pulling it out of my jean pocket. The screen flashes with five different text messages and I scroll through them, reading each one.

How's my little girl been doing?

Answer me when I ask you a question, little girl.

Did your mother never teach you not to ignore someone? It's very rude Emily.

Maybe I should teach you? Would you like that?

We'll be together soon Emily then we'll have all the time in the world.

My grip tightens on the phone as I read each message, the next one creepier than the last. I swallow the lump in my throat and ignore the chills running through my body.

DC Jones terrifying face flashes through my mind and I'd bet a million pounds it was him sending me these texts. I haven't heard from him in a while causing me to think he had crawled back underneath his rock somewhere. Oh, how wrong I was.

I turn my phone off and shove it into my pockets before focusing on class. I didn't noticed my hands shaking and Trish looks at me worryingly. I can feel her gaze burning into the side of my face. I look over to find Jake doing the exact same. He's leaning back into his chair, looking as bored as every other student in the classroom.

Mrs Wilkins monotone voice could put vampires to sleep during the night. His eyes fill with worry and concern as he notices the distress on my face.

"Whats wrong?" he mouths over to me silently. I shake my head, not wanting to get into it right now. No matter how hard I try, the daunting thought of DC Jones getting me 'alone' with him is all I can think about.

Who is he and what does he want with me?

Is he one of Trevor's allies in the police force?

How does he know my father?

I have too many questions that sadly I know I won't get the answers to until I'm face to face with the man himself. So I pull out my phone and do the only thing I can think of.

I text him back . . . asking for a time and place.

Stupid, I know.

I need answers to the endless amount of questions I have and this is the only way to get them.