Glass House - Lando Norris

Chapter 12

Just after she put away the payphone, the emergency door on the third floor blasted open, revealing Devon. He was a little out of breath but he smirked when he locked eyes with her once again.

Darlene hugged her backpack and ran as fast as she could. She needed to get away from his sight and then find another exit to the parking lot. Devon's footsteps could still be heard, that means he's still close.

She quickly skipped the stairs down to escape quicker, but she had to be careful. Just one wrong foot, and he'll catch up to her. From the railings, she could already see the canteen and oh damn, it's pretty crowded now. There were a lot of students hanging out at the moment, and the parking lot was pretty packed too. How were they going to find each other in this situation?

As she reached the ground floor, Darlene sprinted across the canteen. Many of the students threw a confused look at her but a few gasps could also be heard when Devon called her out loud from behind.

He's making a scene and this cannot be good. The last thing Darlene wanted was to gain people's attention. Great, now some of the students probably got curious and followed her to the parking lot.

She arrived between the parked cars and suddenly Devon caught up with her. He pulled her hair painfully, she had to stand on her tiptoes to ease the pain a little. It wasn't helping much, though.

"You're gonna make this difficult, huh?" he said sternly at her. Some of the students were watching through his back, Darlene could tell.

Putting aside the pain, Darlene mustered up the strength she had left and jabbed his chin hard. "You bitch!" Devon was startled, he didn't see that coming. He tried to grab her wrist again but she escaped his grip by a millimeter.

Now facing each other in a gloomy car park (a bit crowded too because they gained some audience, apparently), Darlene saw a black van storming through the gate. The door opened before the car fully came into stop and someone jumped out and jogged to her. He was wearing a dark colored hoodie, a baseball cap and a face mask.

But from his height and the way he walked, Darlene knew right away it was Lando in a disguise. The best one he could pull at the moment.

Turned out she wasn't the only one that recognized him, but also Devon.

Lando motioned her to go towards him but Devon walked past her, straight to Lando. "It's you again," he said through gritted teeth. Lando didn't have a chance to reply because Devon quickly threw a punch at him, but he swiftly dodged. Lando did not come here to fight him but at this point, it can't be helped.

Lando ducked down and replied to him with a strike to the jaw.

Charlotte let out a yelp from the van, watching the two boys fighting each other mercilessly. Darlene froze on her track with tears pricking her eyes. This cannot be happening again.

At some point, one of Devon's blows knocked Lando's hat off, revealing a part of his face. Jon took no time and jumped out of the van and Charlotte followed after him. He immediately stepped in front of Lando and caught Devon's fist, covering the blow that Lando almost failed to dodge.

Jon quickly twisted the wrist and Devon groaned painfully. They all could see some students watching and recording videos. This cannot be good. Charlotte quickly grabbed Darlene out of her trance and whispered a 'follow me' to her. Lando nodded quickly at her and Darlene followed.

With one last push, Jon shoved Devon away from them and they all made a quick dash towards the van. The door closed shut and immediately zoomed out of the parking lot. They all sat in silence, only their ragged breaths could be heard.

"That was one hell of a fight!" the chauffeur said excitedly, but earning no reply from the four of them. They all were as pale as cotton, sitting at the back. Charlotte's hands were still on Darlene's.

As they drove past the main gate of the campus, a few police cars headed inside. The sirens were loud and Lando gave Darlene a knowing look. He looked calm now, and she should too. They're safe now, right?

Lando's phone suddenly rang. "Hello?" he said.

"I've taken care of the police. Where should we meet?" It was Severine.

"The name's Charlotte," the voice from her side pulled her out of her trance. She looked at the blonde woman and forced a weak smile. "It's Darlene."

Charlotte was very gentle. She kept saying some comforting words to ease her mind, and it sure worked. Darlene's adrenaline was still high from all the action but she's more relaxed now in the car. Still having no idea where they were going, the apartment?

Lando closed his phone and leaned towards the driver. "Drop me off at my apartment, I'll take it from here," he said. Charlotte frowned in worry. "Are you sure?"

The boy nodded assuringly, saying he's got it under control just like they've discussed before. Darlene wondered, what discussion?

The black van came into a stop and Darlene shuddered in a little fear when she looked at the white building where she used to live. They bid goodbye to the crew and the van drove off, leaving the two alone in the driveway.

Leaving a heavy sigh, they finally looked at each other. Lando gave no time for her to gaze at him any longer but hugged her suddenly. She melted into his arms which were enveloping her in this foreign yet familiar warmth.

"Lando.. Thanks again," she managed to say. She realized she hadn't thanked him properly ever since he practically saved her ass at the campus. "It's nothing," he mumbled through her hair.

After the short hug, they went straight upstairs and gathered their belongings. Not all of them, but just enough. "Forget the pots and pans, we will get new ones," Lando said when he saw her trying to stuff one of her pots into her tote bag.

Lando scratched his head. "You know, I don't really have much room in that trunk." Darlene made an 'O' shape with her mouth, realizing the car they'll be riding in. Ah yes, those expensive cars weren't supposed to carry too much stuff, huh?

Rich people and their cars.

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The car ride was pretty calm. For the second time now, they watched the sun setting through the tinted car window. Lando kept both hands on the steering wheel and focused on the road.

Darlene didn't bother to ask him where he's taking her. She just trusted him.

Lando on the other hand, went full on multitasking mode. He's making sure everything was according to this abrupt plan of his. He took an early flight from Monza to get more rest time at home but if it turned out to be this way, he didn't mind. When it comes to Darlene...

He thought he just had to help her. But why?

Because he cared? He just wanted to keep her safe? Or he just wanted to be the one to be by her side whenever she needed help?

He brushed all that aside and thought that... he's just happy that she's here now, safe with him. And he looked forward to more car rides with her just like this someday.

When everything's safe and they can finally be opened up to each other.

Lando saw her hands resting on her lap and he reached out to them. Grasping it, trying to give more comfort to her. But at the same time, he realized it brought some to him too.

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A/N:

Another update :) I haven't double check it, I hope there's no too much grammatical error xD hope you enjoy it!