The Caged Princess

Chapter 4

I pull out some yoga leggings and a hoodie along with a running sports bra. Maybe getting some fresh air would help with this splintering pain in my chest? I take a deep breath pull on my clothes, running shoes and quietly exit the room. As soon as I turn and take a step, I collide into a hard chest of all muscles and the familiar smell of coffee, pine wood and musk hits my nose.

I stop breathing... because I don't want him to smell so familiar? Or is it because I can feel him grazing my hair with his nose. I close my eyes for a millisecond trying to memorise his feel when I'm pushed back with so much force I hit the door. My head rams into the wood bringing stars in front of my eyes.

A gasp leaves me while I hear a, "What the fuck?''.

Dusan pulls me to him inspecting my head for any injuries. I can feel a small point of pain where I am pretty sure will be a bump if I touched it. His hand gently touches the spot and I flinch in pain with an 'ow'. I look up into Dusan's eyes and see pity radiating from them which makes me want to cry. I try to take fuller breaths to stop my lips from trembling so that I don't burst into tears. Dusan looks up behind me with a raging expression on his face.

I'm so afraid to turn, to look at him, I don't want to see the anger, hate and distrust in his eyes.

"Are you fucking her now?" Keir explodes from behind me.

"Keir, man don't be such a dick. You pushed her into a damn door. She has a fucking bump spot on her head. What the hell were you thinking?"

"Well she might want to stop throwing herself at me. It's starting to get really old and I'm in no mood to appease your concerns." He turns to walk away.

"You might want to do it somewhere else."

Dusan's hands freeze on my face as he looks up with a murderous expression at his best friend "What?"

"I said you might want to fuck somewhere else. This is my home. The least you can do is respect those damn boundaries."

"Stop being a fucking asshole, you moron. Whatever happened between you is ancient history. Tala is here to make it fucking easier. And not that you've bothered to find out in the last year but I have a fiance." Dusan side steps as he walks away without looking at me.

My heart is squeezing in such a painful way that I'm really finding it hard to breathe. I wait for Keir to say something, anything at this point. But all I hear is his bedroom door shutting with a bang.

Oh god. What have I done? Now I was in the middle of Keir and Dusan's friendship. Two people who were joined at the hip since college were now not speaking to each other because of me? How had this happened? I look up to the universe to give me some answers.

The answer is a splitting headache which makes me want to throw up.