I was both mentally and physically exhausted to the bone. That's why even after having coffee I never realized when in the middle of our chat, I fell asleep on the couch again. I woke up when the sun was bright. I didn't notice when he had left my side and covered me with a blanket. I opened my eyes and there he was making breakfast already. I could see only glimpses of him through the half open door that lead to the kitchen. I forced myself to get up after a cozy nap. On the coffee table, I saw a new toothbrush, towel, and soap along with a note that read "freshen up". I took the supplies and went to the bathroom. When I came back, he was already setting the table. He saw me and said, "Grab a seat you must be hungry," with a heartwarming smile.
Lucas' point of view:
We had breakfast together, after which I said, "I've thought a lot about your problem, and the immediate solution that came to my mind was ...." I paused, and started putting the dishes into the sink "...how about a contract marriage?" I continued while avoiding any eye contact and busying myself in my chore.
"A contract marriage?" she asked while still sitting on the breakfast table that was in the kitchen.
"It will only be a paper marriage to give you security. I thought about all of your options, and this seemed the right choice. You can't run away from home, and it's clear the longer you stay there, the more dangerous it gets. You also haven't even graduated high school yet, and you can't do much in your current situation. You need to complete your education and claim your father's assets. It's going to be a long fight. If you move out, you being alone will make you vulnerable and you will still be at a disadvantage." I said while washing the dishes.
"Once we are legally bound, they would think twice before making a move on you because I'm no easy target. They know it well, which is why they haven't been able to do anything against me up until now. But before we do this, I need to be honest with you." I paused and thought to myself before continuing, about how much information to give and keep. I am scared to trust Rosie. But for her to trust me, I had to gain her trust first, so I should rip the bandage off and tell her the truth.
"I haven't told you this before, but I am older than you, and my name isn't Lucas, which you might have guessed from a previous encounter I had with my friend when I was with you. I'm a college graduate. I only came to your school because I had to find something about my past."
After a silent pause, I continued, "I know what I'm saying may sound obnoxious to you at the moment and hard for you to process. But trust me, I am doing my best to help you at the moment, Rosie."
I saw the bewildered look Rosie had on her face after hearing this. I don't know if I have done enough for her to trust me. After a few minutes of silence, she stood up and finally spoke.
"Hold on a sec.. " her voice shook. "Are you telling me that everything I knew about you up until now was a lie? On top of that, you just proposed to me. How can you expect me to trust you after all that?? I thought we were friends! You can't imagine how I am feeling right now! Ohh, I know you must think I'm that crazy enough to be fooled again and again don't you?"
I turned to face her but still avoided her glances "I know you are shocked, but I never intended any harm to you. My parents were murdered when I was little. I came here to find the truth about it. I know I lied to you, but I had no other option. I couldn't reveal my identity and tried my best to stay away from you because I didn't like the idea of lying to you. I kept building walls between us, but I failed every time. I couldn't hold myself from getting close to you, no matter how hard I tried."
I finally gathered the courage to look her in the eye. It was hard to read her expressions. I took a step in her direction and she took a step back.thats when i knew she was scared of me now. I never wanted her to be scared of me. I took a few steps back and started looking down. I thought it was the best time to show her proof of my identity so that she knows what I'm saying is the truth. I walked over to my suitcase hidden in my closet containing all my information. I took out some documents and my ID card and showed them to her. The ID card read the name, Evan Davids.
As she was looking through my proof of identity, I told her, "I know how bad this may look but give me a second chance. I will show you that I'm worthy of your trust. You lost your father, Rosie, so you must understand what I was feeling, as you just came to know about his murder and how you were wronged. Also, about how dangerous those people are, you can imagine. Why I had to take this step, I had to find the truth. Wouldn't you have done the same thing if you were in my place?"
She finally looked at me with empathy and asked hesitantly "So, did... Did you find anything?"
"I did," I replied with a nod. I pressed my lips together and sighed before answering, hesitant to tell her "The people who killed my parents and the ones that killed your father are the same. But I'm still not done with my investigation. I need to find solid evidence against them so that they can be brought to justice, which is why I need you. We can fight them together."
I thought to myself that this would be enough for her to know for the time being. She is already going through a lot. I need to give her some time to process it.
"I know it's all a little too much for you to process at the moment, so let's take things one step at a time. Let's skip school for today. You had a rough night, let me take you out. I'll take you to your home first so you can change. We can spend the day together so that you can have a fresh mind to process all of this then, whatever further questions you may wanna know, I'll answer them and Whatever you decide, I'll respect your decision."
She at last gave just a little nod in agreement.
