An Angel Amongst Devils (An enemies to lovers, slow burn romance)

Chapter 9

 "What?" A million thoughts are running through my mind, too many to comprehend what I'm actually thinking. A couple of them go along the lines of what the fuck. And then a couple of them go along the lines of I think I'm hallucinating. I haven't given a thought to actually ever leaving New York. Never once did it cross my mind. Of Course I have been outside the city, multiple times when going on my mothers little holidays with steve. But they were always a compulsory thing and were usually filled with so much terror of what the two would get up to, that I hardly ever had a straight minute of relaxing and the sweet ability of enjoying myself. But after that, I never once thought of leaving. I guess, New York has been my home for as long as I can remember, and it has. During my childhood, in the times where my curious adolescent brain would get the best of me, I would ask my mother the classic childish questions, the one that for unprepared mothers, will put them into a total stroke, and that question was where did I come from mummy? My mum's answer was believable, even I, as a grown 18 year old, can give her credit for the scenario she came up with. She said that it's when mummy and daddy give each other a special hug, that hug sends a signal to mummy's tummy and then a little egg is created, and inside that egg is you, she booped my nose to conclude her explanation. That question followed by, how did I come out?Did it hurt? And Where did you take me? That led to the answer of: We took you straight home, she gestured around the apartment.

Even though I don't like the memories behind my family and the city, there were some aspects of New York that I thoroughly enjoyed. Very little of course, I didn't have the freedom to roam around, well I guess I did, but I was very cautious of the idea that If something ever happened to me, I don't think anyone would have noticed until at least a couple of weeks later when either mother or steve would question if there was this girl that lived in this bedroom, or if they were simply hallucinating from the amount of weed in there system. But I liked central park, I liked watching people walk around, loved watching the pigeons fly around in flocks and stay together like one tight family, I have always admired that. Or I would simply sit down in a shaded spot and immerse myself in the world of literature. That was always my favourite spot to read, I was able to get fully absorbed into the book, my surroundings disappeared and my total focus was on nothing other than the letters on the paper. There was no other place that I found where I was able to reciprocate the feeling. Even with the chaos of the birds, wind, yelling of kids and the occasional homeless man talking to himself; I was able to block all of it out. And I could do it for a significantly long amount of time.

That is a thought that runs through my mind. I wouldn't be able to read in that spot anymore.

"I want you to come with me tonight, when I leave New York." Arlo repeats, extinguishing the possibility that I was hallucinating. Before I get a chance to get a word in, he continues. "I think I can physically hear your brain stressing, but let me just reiterate the facts: You have nowhere to go, am I right?"

"Yes, but-"

"You don't have any place to sleep tonight. That would mean that you also don't have the necessities to live, Emma. No food, no shelter." He pauses. "I know I said that you were brave and strong, but this goes a little beyond your capabilities, angel. You'd also be dreaming if you thought even for a second that I would leave you by yourself out there." I look up at him and he looks back. His elbows are crossed in front of him and are leaning in on the table, his broad shoulders shifting forward. "So, I am leaving tonight. And you're going to come with me. I still haven't decided where yet, I was thinking you could contribute some ideas. You would come with me Emma, travel the world. Experience everything that I was talking about. You come with me and I promise, you will see places that even that little imagination of yours wouldn't be able to think of."