Samantha

Chapter Eighteen: Nathaniel

Somewhere between Leeds and Scotland

The coach jolted violently as it drove down the motorway at high speeds.

Samantha was curled up at the back on Nathaniel's lap with a coat around her to keep warm, and the boys asleep around her. There were other strangers on the coach too, further towards the front.

She checked her new mobile phone. It was 3.00am in the morning. She pouted and yawned pocketing her phone and resting her head on Nathaniel's slowly rising chest. The boys were lucky. They were asleep, but she couldn't sleep and she didn't know why.

Dominic had sent them on their way up to Scotland to start their tour. They had been rehearsing only a month before they had been made to leave London. But Dominic was punishing them. Was punishing her more like it. They had been travelling for what seemed like days. Due to heavy traffic and an old coach driver.

They had been sent packing to Kings Cross to catch the Nottingham bound train to East Midlands Parkway, before boarding the first coach to York. They had then caught a connecting city bus into Leeds before boarding another coach up to Scotland. They all knew there was an easier way to get there, but they couldn't argue, not with that contract on their heads.

Samantha stared out the window, not that she could see anything. It was blackness on either side. All the lights were on, there were no curtains and she had a bad headache. She squirmed trying to make herself comfortable when she felt a hand on her back. She jumped at the unexpected touch but looked up to see Nathaniel rubbing his eyes.

He peered at her through half closed eyes.

"What's wrong Samantha?" He yawned softly

She sighed seeing it was him and rested her face in his chest, He was the only one of the boys that she trusted. Maybe because he was the nicest, and they had a lot in common.

"I can't sleep" She mumbled closing her eyes. "Sorry I woke you, I didn't mean to"

He crooned lightly and stroked her hair. Samantha froze a little before relaxing and he moved his hand away.

"It's okay" He muttered.

There was a brief pause of silence. All that could be heard was their breathing.

"Do you want me to sing you to sleep?" He asked quietly. Samantha looked up at his face and their eyes met for a few seconds before she looked away.

"Yes please" She said quietly. She turned and pressed her lips to his chest before closing her eyes and trying to sleep.

He began to hum softly. Samantha didn't recognise the melody. But it made her feel light and happy, it made her forget all that had been happening in the last few days. In the month before they left Dominic had done countless and unrepeatable things to her. The only thing she had been able to do without breaching her contract was to tell Nathaniel. And even he couldn't do anything more than hug her as she cried, and console her. That's probably how they had become so close. Even Richard and David had noticed. But despite their jealousy, there was nothing that neither of them could do about it.

Samantha was asleep. Nathaniel checked and could hear that her breathing was slower and more relaxed. He couldn't believe the things that she had been through. It was even worse than what he had ran away from and that was saying something.

When Nathaniel had been no older than Samantha he too had ran away from home. Not because he was being abused. But because he wanted to be free. He spent at least 5 months on the streets, begging, staying around friends houses, staying with random girls he met. Until he was in the bar, and he met Dominic. He was just a naive 16 year old. Now he was 18 and he knew how ridiculous he had been. He missed his Mother, and his sisters. But they had moved away when he went looking for them. Dominic had helped him get his own place, and sorted him out with a record deal, and until Samantha had appeared Nathaniel had worshipped Dominic. Well not anymore. For some reason he couldn't explain Samantha held some form of importance to him. Girls never used to be important to him. But now, he was contemplating murdering his boss for her. And that confused and scared him. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head and fell asleep, dreaming of the day when he confessed his love to Samantha..