Royal love

Chapter 29

When I could finally open my eyes and move, I was in a dorm. Not my dorm but a strange dorm, nobody else was here, just me.

I got out of bed and walked around, the dorm I have now is much bigger than the one I had with Sonya, it feels wrong.

The image of her laying in a pool of blood on her bed filled my mind again, her eyes open and staring straight at me. Her skin burnt and opened. I ran to the nearest bathroom and threw up. Over and over again.

She was staring straight at me. Looking at me like she was crying for help, begging me to have been there for her. But I wasn't.

A knock on the door makes me jump. I don't answer but the person comes in anyway. I hear heavy footsteps coming in my direction and I hide. I close the bathroom door and hide in the bathtub. The smell of my vomit fills the air. The room is dark and I flinch at every touch, every time I rub against something or hear a noise.

A knock on the bathroom door startles me, pulling me out of the zoned out space I was trying to get into and making me live through this horrifying moment.

"Addy, It's me, Hayden." I relax and get out of the bathtub but don't open the door, in case I'm being tricked. Sonya was looking right at me, that has to mean whoever killed her is coming for me next.

Now I'm paranoid.

"Go away!" I say with a voice crack, my throat hurts from holding my tears. When he doesn't respond I worry maybe it's not him and there's only so many voice recordings they could get from him, not including a response for me telling him to leave. "I'm fine, please go away," I say more calmly, hoping he responds and leaves this time.

"You're not okay. I've been where you are now, I don't want you to do something you regret."

"I won't! Go away!"

"I'm coming in," he says.

"No!" I scream as he pushes the door in, breaking it off it's hinges with no effort at all.

I curl up in a ball against the wall and cry. "Leave me alone!" I yell.

"No," he says softly. "Come here." He pulls me into a tight hug, the embrace is warm. I can't make myself pull away. I've needed this.

"Let's get out of this dark room, okay? I'll carry you." And he does. He picks me up, bridal style, and brings me to the couch. "I'll get you a cup of water," he says and tries to leave.

I grab his arm.

I didn't want to grab his arm but I did.

I want to let go, let him leave me alone.

"Stay," I say.

What is wrong with me?

"I don't need water, please stay," I beg.

I feel out of control of my own body, my own voice.

"Okay," he says sitting next to me on the couch. I curl up next to him and put my head on his chest.

"Thank you," I whisper as I fall asleep.

When I wake up I expected Hayden to have abandoned me, but no. He was still under me. His arm was around my waist, holding me up so i wouldn't fall off the couch.

"Good morning," he smiles as it becomes obvious I'm awake. I do not return the greeting. I get off of him, he takes his hand away from my waist.

"Why are you here? This never should have happened—" I say running a hand through my hair panicked.

"Hey," he says, not moving from his position on the couch. "Nothing happened, okay?" He says with the slightest hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Leave," I demand.

He doesn't move.

"Leave! Get out, go away!" I yell as I start throwing things at him, things he easily dodges or catches. "I don't need your help," I say. Now he stands up and starts walking towards me. I continue to throw whatever I can get my hands on at him. "No, NO! Get away from me. I don't need your help, I don't need anyones help! LEAVE ME ALONE!" He grabs my arms before I can throw anything else and smirks.

"Not needing anyones help might be a bit of a stretch."

Anger boils inside me. I break free from his hold, which was harder than it should have been.

"Hayden. Get. Out."

"Can't," he says with a shrug.

"Why not?" I spit the question out angrily. 

"I live here," he says easily.

"What." I can feel my hands shaking. "Why are you in my dorm, why are we in the same dorm? The headmistress hates different sex's sleeping near each other."

"I lied to your mom," he says with a shrug like he didn't commit treason.

"What."

"I told her I was trained to be a bodyguard in the military, told her I'd gone through years of training, she didn't mind having one more bodyguard around."

"You know, you could be put to death for lying to the queen," I say still in shock.

"I hardly remembered she was the queen," he says. "Now will you please relax? It's too early in the morning for this and you don't look so great."

"What do you mean, 'you don't look to great'?" I ask.

"Your all pale and you have, sorry to be rude, huge eye bags, and they are very purple. Your hairs a mess, your clothes are," he looks down at my shirt causing me to look down and realize, it's slowly falling down my shoulder. "Yeah," he says with an awkward half cough.

I'll let you have the win, just this once, Hayden. I say to myself.

"See you in a few hours, blondie," Hayden says closing his eyes and spreading out over the entire couch.

Fantastic.

"Yeah, supper exited," I say with an exaggerated sigh.

Word count: 1004
7-1-23
12:39 am
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