Hidden Truth

Chapter 3

Claire

There was a pounding headache in my temple as my eyes slowly opened. I found myself in a dark room, lying across a bed. Slowly I raised myself up on my elbows and looked around the room I was in.

I was laying on a queen-sized bed with a black comforter draped over my body. The window to my right side was covered by a black curtain but I could see rays of sunlight shining through the top, casting a bright light on the ceiling. I looked to my right to see a lamp sitting on a nightstand and pulled the little string casting a dim light across the room.

A small white loveseat sat at the far end of the room next to a dark cherry wood dresser. A matching dark cherry table sat in front of the couch. Shifting my body to the right, I sat on the edge of the bed facing the wall. Slowly I slid off the bed and my feet hit the cold hardwood floor. The pounding in my head intensified from the sudden movement. Reaching my hand up to grab my head I felt a lump on my left temple and a scrape that clotted over.

I made my way to the end of the bed and my feet shuffled over a shag rug. Glancing down I noticed a huge light grey, shag area rug that went from the end of the bed to the other side of the room. My eyes landed on two doors at the other end, and I slowly shuffled my feet over there. Opening the one on the right side, I noticed it was a dark, empty closet. Moving to the next door, I pushed it open and flipped the light switch revealing a small bathroom.

It had the essentials; a white toilet, white and grey marble shower, and a double sink vanity with the same marble countertop. On the far side of the sink, I noticed it was already filled with products. There was another door past the sink, too. Curiosity got to me, and I slowly approached the door.

Pressing my ear to it first, I heard nothing on the other side. Gripping the gold handle in my hand I slowly turned the knob and pushed the door open. On the other side was another room. This room appeared to be occupied by some girl, probably a teenager with all the boy band posters on the wall.

"That's my little sister's room," a deep voice spoke behind me. I jumped and flipped around to face the blue-eyed man from the bar. He stood in the bathroom doorway, leaning against the frame. "You guys share a bathroom," he continued.

"Where am I," I croaked out. I wasn't aware how dry my throat was until now. The pounding returned and I gripped my head.

"Here, I have some meds for you." He placed a bottle on the counter and filled a cup with some water. "You had a pretty bad fall."

"What happened," I asked. I watched as his muscles moved under his shirt. My body was having reactions to him, and it scared me. I shook my head of the thoughts and looked to the opposite side of him. I didn't even know who this strange man was.

"You tripped on a rock and had a pretty hard fall. You got scraped up and have a decent sized lump." I listened to him talk, not meeting his eyes. The memories of that night slowly were coming back. I remember running and falling, but nothing before that. "I cleaned it up the best I could," he continued.

"Thank you," I trailed off. "What's your name?"

"I'm Blake," his voice was closer to me. I looked in his direction to see he took a step towards me and held his hand out. Tentatively I reached out and took his hand in mine. My hand melted into his, it was almost twice the size of mine. His skin was smooth and felt cold as he enclosed his fingers, gripping onto my hand.

"Claire," I replied and looked down at our hands. He seemed to realize he held on to me for a little too long and released my hand. "You were at the restaurant with your brothers."

"Yeah, and you brought us a beer," he replied and went back to leaning on the door frame.

"I'm sorry, I don't remember much," I apologized and looked at the ground.

"It's okay, the memories will come back eventually." He spoke so nonchalantly. "But you should take these. It will help with that headache." He opened his hand to reveal two small blue pills and held out the cup of water.

The throbbing in my head returned and I walked closer to Blake. Slowly I reached out to grab the cup and he dropped the pills in my open palm. Our fingers grazed and I felt a flutter in my stomach. A part of me was captivated by this mysterious man, and it made me nervous. Someone as attractive as him would never want someone like me. I was setting myself up to get hurt.

"Thank you," I told him as I quickly swallowed the pills.

He suddenly got off the door frame and started walking into the room. "I brought you some food too," he called back at me. Slowly I followed behind him, turning the bathroom light off behind me. He went over to the couch and took a seat, a plate sat on the table in front of him. He patted the seat next to him, watching me as I walked over.

"It's just a sandwich, sorry." He looked down, as if embarrassed. "I wasn't sure what you liked."

"No, it's okay," I quickly replied. "It looks great," I sent him a smile and hoped it would make him feel a little bit better. It seemed to work as he sent a small smile back. I took a seat on the opposite end of the couch and slid the plate closer to me. I took a bite and placed the sandwich back down, while I chewed it. After I swallowed, I turned back to Blake, "so, where am I?"

"You're at my house," Blake casually replied. He stood up and I watched his back as he walked to the bedroom door. He stopped at the doorway and looked back at me, "finish eating and then you should rest some more. I'll check on you later."

Before he could walk out and leave, I stood and called out to him, "I'm fine, I can go home. Thank you for all you've done, really."

Not even turning to face me he shook his head, "I'm sorry Claire, you can't leave." And with that he left and shut my door. I sat on the couch, speechless. This strange man was not letting me leave. The scream that wanted to escape my lungs never came out. My body wasn't sure what to do after hearing his words. My nerves were on edge as I tried to think of a way to get out of this house.