"What's up, blondie?" A voice behind me stops me dead in my tracks. I freeze as arms slip around my waist and I attempt to pry myself away from him, but it only makes things worse. He pulls me closer to his body and I could practically smell the disgusting liquor from his breath, "Don't worry, I'll take care of you." He assures me.
Sure, like the 'take me to your bed that would most likely smell like wine and females' type of babysitting. "I'm not your toy." I hiss at him and push him away firmly.
"You're fierce for a blondie." He flirts.
"Stop calling me that!" I spit the words at him and try to walk away, but his firm hands grabs onto my wrist like a cuff.
"Let's go to the pool," he says, "You'll feel more relaxed there.
"No!" I scream at him over the music that is growing stronger each time I am pulled nearer towards the pool. His hands wraps back around my waist, and he reaches to squeeze my right arm so hard that I'm was so afraid that I won't be able to write anymore. I push his hand off my right arm and flex my wrists before demanding aggressively, "Hands off!"
"Are you afraid of a little water?" He tease but I pretend to look fine.
"No." I lie.
"Then?" He tests.
"I just want nothing... like nothing to do with you." I growl at him and he backs off.
"Fine then, I'll show you to my friends, they're just around the corner. Let's see which one of 'em are able to entice you."
"Fine." I give in. I don't have all the energy in the world to argue with him, neither do I want to stand here like an idiot. So, I follow after him pushing away wet bodies as they block our path back into the house. I stare with disgust at my shoulder as it brushes across a half naked man who just took a dip in the pool. He is so hairy that I have this urge to grab a kitchen knife and cut it off for him.
I scrape that thought and steady my breathing as we walk further away from the pool. "Want a drink?" He asks.
"No." I spot Henryk with Anna at the counter... making out. Henryk notices me and reluctantly pulls away from Anna, I wave him off which most likely assured him that I'm fine, because he walks away. I instantly regret dismissing Henryk when the annoying boy grabs my hand and leads me over to a group of people with most of them having a bunch of tattoos on their bodies and I find out with dread that one of them is Mason.
"Hey." I wish I'd die the moment I hear his voice.
As we approach them, I notice the hair in Mason's chest are exposed by the way he wears his shirt with the top three buttons let loose. He has a thick english accent, I realize, he must be from the UK. He actually looks handsome, maybe Scottish. His dimples shows as he smiles cutely, his hair scrawled messily on top of his head.
"Hey." I swallow the lump in my throat.
What is wrong with me?
"Didn't think I'd see you here." His accent is kind of sexy.
"My sis- no brother's... girlfriend is throwing this party." I explain.
"Anna?" He raises a brow.
"Yea, you know her too." I could feel my heart racing as I struggle to breathe.
"That's incredible, sit." He motions at the chair beside him and grabs me a cup of something. I reject it without even looking at it. He looks surprised but shrugs and asks, "So what is your association with Anna?"
"I told you." I manage.
He laughs, "Yes... but do you know Anna in person?"
"No, she came over for dinner, once. Like I didn't actually... I don't know... I didn't talk to her." I stumble with my words, and I suddenly feel bad for not getting to know Anna more.
Mason laughs again, "Okay, then... tell me about your brother." Many seemed to have turned their heads over, interested. I start feeling uneasy and uncomfortable with the attention I was receiving.
"He's a singer-songwriter... he's twenty two this year... he likes his own songs and he... er. Yeah... that's about all I have to say."
"Ooo." Some hot chic pipes in. Tattoos are visible all over her arm as she wraps it around Mason's waist and kisses him. He kisses back.
Gross! Okay.
They revert their attention back at me but it was probably because I stand and left the room. I wouldn't have left, the chair was extremely comfortable, but I knew if I stayed I may react with a disgusted outburst so I move out of the house for some fresh air.
I plop my elbows against a railing of a ledge that looks down to the pool. I sigh and close my eyes just as a voice interrupts the serenity, "Are you okay?" My head snaps up to Mason and I nod slowly. "Then why are you crying?" My eyes widen and I realize that I have been tearing up. I laugh. He stares at me, his eyes are looking at me but they are not fixated on my eyes. I say his name and he snaps back to the present, "What?"
"Nothing, I just wanted to say that I'm fine, honestly I don't even know why I was like crying, it's so stupid, sorry."
"Oh." This is the first time he's so quiet.
"Period." I turn back to the pool and observe it. It is an open air swimming pool in a leafy suburb. It is shaped like a chunky letter L with one section for the diving boards. There is a lane roped off for anyone that wanted to swim, but became a place for couples to make out. The radio blares from the side of the pool and my eyes trails around the pool to a grassy area dotted with deciduous trees for fair skinned girls to lie in the shade some still lie in the sunshine and flirt with cute boys. Splashes, squeals, broad smiles, floats, water slides, wave machines, squirt guns, but none are aware of the dangers of it that naturally gives me shivers that raptures down my spine. I shudder and my blood turns cold as the color drains from my face.
"You don't seem okay." Mason is still here.
"Fine." I choke out the word.
"Come on let's get back in." He pleads.
"No." No way I would go in there and watch him make out with girls in front of me.
"Let me take you somewhere else at least." He suggests and I could tell that he knows that something is disturbing me.
I hesitate before nodding, "Okay."
He led me to a expensive looking car and I cross my arms and stop walking about a few feet away from it. "What's wrong?" He asks.
"I'm not getting in." I tell him firmly. He groans and grabs my hand forcefully yanking me over, opening the door for me and breathing on my neck, "It's okay."
I shiver and step in too quickly. He starts the car engine, making the car roar to life. "Ready?" He asks.
No.
I don't say anything and he shrugs, "Silence is acknowledgement, let's go."
Yeah, you go.
He drives me into some woods. "Are you trying to kidnap me?" My heart races.
Oh no. No. Not again.
My face turns pale and I gasp for air, my hands gripping the door handle, my vision starts to blur as I start to recall the past. It was okay... just me leaving my home to be better cared for, but then started the weird talk. I scrambled for the door but was pulled back. The men laughing at a young girl's attempt to run back home.
Mason snaps me back to the present, "Hey, hey. I'm not trying to kidnap you, okay? Relax. Skyla!" He notices my expression and he tenses up, his hand grips the wheel tighter, his knuckles turns white. He brings a hand over to me, but I jerk away and snap in fright, "Don't touch me!"
"Please you have to trust me." He begs.
"No!" I repeat it over and over again until I seemed like I was chanting.
"Skyla." His voice is loud but somehow soothing. The way he says my name is... sweet.
"Okay." I finally manage to breathe. His hands comes back to my knees. He hesitates but this time I say nothing as it squeezes my left knee in comfort.
Breathe... I tell myself.
"You okay?" He asks.
"Kay." I reply. "Where are we?" I force myself to say the moment we get out of the car.
"Me and my cousin, Anna used to come here. It was like our getaway, we come here twice or thrice a week, sometimes together, mostly by ourselves nowadays because our schedules are messed up. When we're together, she usually talks to me about complications in my life, she understands me, she's the closest I have to a sister." I wince at his last word and he notices, "Sorry, I heard you had a sister. I didn't mean to—"
"It's okay." I cut him off.
"Are you sure?" He confirms and I nod. He reaches for my hand and I move it away. "Don't be afraid." He somewhat mocks me but I've got this feeling that he meant it in a comforting manner.
"I'm not afraid I just don't like making body contact with strangers." I scowl.
"Fine. Try to keep up with me then, stranger." He looks back at me once more before disappearing behind the trees. The word 'stranger' was very forced from him. There are so many trees I regret not holding his hand for a moment.
I accidentally sigh with relief when I find him, but it was thankfully covered up by the gasp that escape my lips when I see the river up ahead. It is so clear, but what pleased me most was how, closed up the area was and how relaxing the place is. It really is a private getaway place, the birds are chirping and there is just enough sunlight to make the clean water glint under the shade of the trees. There are little fishes and you can practically see the rocks underneath.
"It's beautiful." I gasp.
"Come here." He motions to the river and I hesitate. Memories like a current flush into me and I fall to my knees. I see my sister again...
"You lying bitch! I know what you did to her! You've all ruined her, and I can see it!" Her voice echoed throughout the neighborhood making my heart ache in a familiar way.
"We don't want to make this hard for you, Gemma, but if we have to we will forcefully make you leave." I heard the clicking of a gun. No.
"You ugly lying bitch! I'll report you, I swear I will!" The gun lifts and I watched the younger me gape and start running towards Gemma. Gemma was stubborn and she continued her yelling, "You wouldn't dare kill a child!" Tears pricked her eyes, "Honestly, I don't care if you do, if Emma is dead in her heart, so am I. I'd rather be dead than to watch my sister suffer under something she can't control and I'm not going to let you take control of us like we're your toys." My heart tightens threatening to burst, and I cry a trail of endless tears that run down my face.
I watch as the younger version of me topples over my older sister and the gun sounds.
Someone calls me and I suddenly remember that I am with Mason. "Skyla? Skyla!" A pair of weary eyes searches for mine and I clear the tears from my eyes. "What's wrong, did I say something?"
"No." I croak, my voice cracks from my dried up throat, "I'm okay." I manage.
"I won't ask what happened. If you don't wanna go I'll stay though." He sits down on the leaves and allows me to sit on his legs so as to avoid getting myself dirty.
"Thanks." I sigh and lean back into his chest that has been covered back up, since God knows when.
"When you want to go, I will go."
"Okay." I want to stay like this forever but after a few more minutes of just staring ahead, I finally stand up, startling him slightly. I sway a little and he hurriedly stands after me and reaches out his hand to support me.
This time, I take his hand and allow him to guide me out of the woods.