"There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless."
Jason and Lilianne were about to leave, however, the sound of the phone stopped them.
"Sorry, I have to take this" she smiled and walked away. Jason couldn't help, but overhear a bit of the conversation.
"Michael? I'm glad you call, but I'm about to leave a party, so I think we can meet the next time. I understand, don't worry, there will be plenty of parties while I'm here. Bye, take care too"
Jason felt a kind of jealousy for the first time. The thought that Lilianne was going out with someone else made him go crazy. The only mechanism he knew was denial. He preferred to protect his feelings or what was left of them. So when the girl came over he threw a quick one:
"I don't think this is a good idea. We should probably call it a night"
"Oh no, Jason. You won't get rid of me this fast. I owe you after you saved me last night"
Jason liked that Lilianne wasn't one of those people who are hesitant and cowardly at every opportunity. It made him want to get to know her better.
"But your boyfriend is probably worried about you" he added
"My boyfriend?" she asked surprised "Michael, he isn't my boyfriend. I've just met him today and since I don't know anybody I decided to invite him"
Could Jason be jealous of her?
"Then, we are good to go" he smiled.
They rode in silence at first, but the silence was not awkward. Words weren't needed at that point.
"So how long have you been living here?" Lilianne asked.
"Since birth. I have never lived elsewhere and to be honest, I'm glad. I don't feel at home in any city like there. Someone said that once you lived in New York and it has become your home, no place is good enough and I agree with that"
"So I guess it has never been my home'' she smiled
''What do you mean?"
"I was born here in New York, but when I was, I don't know, 10 years old we moved out from here"
"Why?"
"It had something to do with my parents' business"
"So why are you still here?"
"Because of my parents' business"- she smiled but it wasn't an honest smile
''You aren't probably happy about this''
''I hate this city''
''How dare you?'' he exclaimed, pretending to be offended.
''This journey is getting more and more interesting. I'll make you love New York tonight''
And so it happened.
Jason tried to show Lilianne, non-touristic, unusual places that hardly anyone knew about. He knew the city like his own pocket. He owns this city.
"The last point of our adventure will be the viewpoint, but we cannot get there by car"
Lilianne was tired, but she didn't want to be a weak one, so she only nodded, but halfway through she was so exhausted that she couldn't make it.
"Jason, maybe a break?" she gasped
"No way, sweetheart. We have to catch the sunrise. Normally, I would have left you here, but I took the challenge, so I will take you there".
Lilianne couldn't help but smile. The thought of being so close to Jason made her have butterflies in her stomach.
''Thank you, I guess''
''You should stop with I guess, Lilianne. This is not a game show named guess guess" he laughed
''I guess so'' she winked.
The panorama of the city spread in front of the two of them.
''Wow, Jason. This is beautiful''- she said with her mouth open
''So I won the challenge?"- he asked
"Definitely"
They sat for a while waiting for the sunrise. Lilianne lit a cigarette, not because she felt like it, but out of habit.
"Parents know you smoke?" he asked, but he probably knew the answer
"They would kill me, but I like this addiction, however it sounds. Destroys the image of the perfect girl with perfect grades"
"So you tell me that you are a perfect little girl with perfect grades? I like it" he smiled
"It was like that in Barcelona"
And suddenly it clicked in Jason's mind. He was good at matching the facts, his work forced him to do so. He didn't want the girl to suspect anything so he casually asked:
"You lived in Barcelona?" She nodded. That didn't stop him from asking another key question.
"What's your surname?"
"Scott, and why do you ask?"
Scott. She is the daughter of Vivienne and Jeremy. He wonders if she knows that her parents work for one of the most dangerous criminals.
"I'm trying to get to know you better"
"And what's yours?"
He ignored the question. It is better for her that she doesn't know, but maybe. Why don't take the risk?
"You have to promise that it will stay between us and you will not run away"
"Why should I run away? I promise, I won't"
"Mccann. Jason Mccann"
Her heart skipped a beat, her stomach plummeted to the floor.
"Yo, you, you are a criminal" she exclaimed ''You kill people for fun and you will probably kill me too" she cried.
He was prepared for the fact that the girl would be shocked and run away. He tried to calm her down.
"Relax, I wouldn't bring you here and spend time with you, just to kill you. Besides, I don't kill people for fun. It is very offensive. Killing for fun would make me a psychopath and of many words, you can call me, I am not a psychopath"
Lilianne had 3 options to choose from:
a) run away
b) call the cops
c) stay, because she promised
And she chooses the third one. She had spent the whole evening with Jason and had it not been for his name, she would have spent any other night.
She remembered her mother's words: "And this is how girls your age end up dead"
But she ignored it. She ignored the fact that she was sitting with the most wanted criminal that everyone had warned her about. She decided to stay.
"Thank you, I finally felt like a human with you"
The long-awaited sunrise has come, but nothing was the same anymore. They both drowned under the waves of words they weren't saying...
A/N
By now, probably my new favorite chapter!
Let me know what you think!
x V
YOU ARE READING
Return to the roots
Romance"They called him dangerous, but he was her safe" After a few years, Lilianne has to go back to her roots and start all over again in a city that she vaguely remembers. What if one day her paths cross with the ruthless criminal?
