𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗔𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲: 𝗡.𝗛.

Chapter Twenty Two

"Aunt Rachel?" I question, tightening my grip on Niall's hand. No, she's never done anything bad to me necessarily but I don't really trust her. 

"Dahlia! You're so much taller than you were the last time I saw you!" She exclaims, looking happy. Why? Why does she care?

To say that Niall looks confused is a understatement. 

"Niall, this is my Aunt Rachel." I explain and he slowly nods, still shocked. 

Rachel stands up from her desk and walks around to pull me into a hug. I'm too upset to hug her back though, so her long arms, covered in her scratchy blazer are awkwardly around me as I stand still. 

"I don't get why you are so upset, love." She says, I glare at her. Only one person can call me that and that person is Niall. Only him.

"Don't call me that." I say monotonously, giving her a look that can only mean, get away from me.

"Well someone's feisty, didn't see you fighting back two years ago, maybe he'd still be here if you fought back." Rachel sneers, she knows what she's doing to me right now. She knows what she can do to me with one simple fact. And she knows how easily she can break me with it. So she does. 

"He died. Jamie died." She leans in and whispers it in my ear, smiling maniacally. At this point, Niall is clutching my hand with his left and drawing his right fist back before swinging it forward to make contact with her eye.

"We're getting out of here and getting a new lawyer." Niall says and we walk out of the room.

Without

Looking

Back.

***

Many phone calls later, Niall has gotten us a new lawyer. 

"Hello, I'm Richard and I'll be helping you with your case." He says politely. Niall steps forward and shakes his hand while I give him a small wave. Richard walks us over to a sofa and sits down in an armchair across from it.

"Okay, so why are you here?" Richard asks. 

"I would like legal custody over Dahlia." Niall explains and Richard turns to me.

"And do you want him to have custody over you?"

"Yes. Having Niall as my legal guardian would be amazing." I tell him. He nods in agreement and continues.

"Who currently has custody over you?" He asks. 

"My parents."

"And do you want them to have custody over you?"

"Definitely not."

"And why is that?" 

"They've never treated me right. They abused me physically and mentally. Two years ago, I had a brother. They abused him too. Neither of us fought back, we knew that it would just be worse if we tried." I explain, trying to hold in tears as I tell my devastating life story.

"What do you mean you had a brother?" Richard questions. I look Niall in the eyes. He's not the one who asked the question but he also doesn't know the answer. It's the one thing about me he doesn't know.

"They killed him." I say, and they both let out uniform gasps. Niall wraps me in a hug and Richard writes it all down. 

"We're going to win that case." He says. "I won't let you lose and end up with people like them who obviously could kill you given what they did to your brother. 

After the meeting, Niall takes me back to his apartment and the second he closes the door, engulfs me in a giant hug. He rubs my back and whispers soothing things in my ear.

"Niall?" I ask and he nods his head as if to say, go ahead. 

"Of course, love. We can have a sleepover party." He says and I laugh.

"We can give each other makeovers, and paint out nails, and gossip about crushes!" He exclaims in a very fake valley girl voice. "And I can invite the guys over too and we will all have a bunch of fun." He says. 

This will be fun.

***

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