The Tangent Lines

Chapter 15 - I'm only interested in protecting my princess

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Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.

-Louise Erdrich, The Painted Drum LP

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Chapter 15 - I'm only interested in protecting my princess

Tyler leans forward, gently putting his arms around me, which makes me very surprised and stunned. My heart thumps loudly, the kind that makes me wonder if my heart is going out of my body soon. I lean closer and inhale his expensive cologne and the cinnamon scent. How could someone smell this good, this spicy and this addicting?

He distances himself from me a few inches away, probably because of my injury. Resting on his shoulder is actually so comfortable, yet it makes me so nervous. His arms that linger on my back makes me forget my injured ribs and all the pain I've felt. It feels like flying, and the euphoria I feel right now is turning my insides to jelly.

All I can hear is his breath, and my own messed-up heartbeat dueling with his. My mind is so messed up right now - am I listening to my own heartbeat, or with his, too? Is his heart beat as fast as mine? And why is that? And why do I feel so comfortable with him?

"Don't overthink things, Chello," Tyler whispers, and I swear I forget how to breathe.

"Mm." I say, unable to form words. This has to be illegal - because it makes me feel too happy and ecstatic. His arms and his scent, they make me forget things for awhile, and it's so soothing. My arms sneak up to hug him back, not wanting to pull away any sooner.

"Chello," he whispers so softly, softer than a butterfly's kiss.

"Tylo." I reply back, breathless. There is nothing better than this moment. The way he calls the nickname he made for me sounds so perfect, despite how weird it is. I don't care. In this moment, there are just two: Tyler and Chelsea, and we are as infinite as any number possibly existed. Nothing else matters for me.

Why do I sound like lover?

Whatever.

"Next time, you have to tell me. I'll protect you, 'kay? I told you to tell me."

"Tyler, I am not a princess. I don't need a knight in shining armor," I sigh, or a handsome prince charming, if I even need one.

"Well," he mutters nervously, "I'm not interested in protecting a princess. I'm only interested in protecting my princess."

I guess my heart just stopped.

No, I died.

If this is a dream, please don't wake me up any sooner. His hand gently touches my hair and caresses it, and I let out a sigh. "Tylo, thank you so much. But really, you don't need to do that. I... I just.." I say nervously, "I just don't want to worry people."

And in this moment, I swear our line is starting to get blurred.

"Just like Chris said, you should stop thinking about the worrying you made. I was so scared back then. I thought of many things that could happen to you, and they're all unpleasant. I can't afford losing you or seeing you getting hurt."

I inhale his scent, feeling safe already. "Mm," I murmur, "I guess I have successfully driven everyone insane by today."

He chuckles and says, "Right. But none of them is your fault, okay?" The way he comforts me makes my subconscious does a perfect pirouette and bows gracefully. But he still can't erase the scorching pain I feel right now. Jack's attack hurts me in any ways I could imagine of. Not only physically, but also mentally. The way he reminded me of John still traumatizes me. Not only that, I hate the way Samantha terrorized me. Her friendly threat isn't even friendly. Who does she think she is? She even makes me unable to play violin. The competition tomorrow is national, I've prepared almost half a year to excel it. And now I can't be able to play on the stage. I can't even move fast. All of this is because Samantha and Jack's irrational attacks on me.