No Strings Attached

CHAPTER 45

I turn the tap off as I pat my face dry, placing the cloth down on the sink before drying my hands and walking out of the bathroom.

The last 24 hours have been a complete mindfuck, and now that everyone's asleep, I finally feel as if my head is clearing and I can make sense of everything.

I walk down the corridor to my room, unable to help myself as I stop outside Anastasia's room as I hear laughter.

I wait to hear Azalea or Clarisse's voices but I don't, just more sad laughter followed by hiccups.

I raise my hand to knock on the door but stop myself, unsure if this is a wise thing to do.

Why do I even care if she's ok?

I don't care about her.

At least that's what I keep telling myself.

I hear a small sob and my hand finds the doorknob, pushing the door open as I feel my stomach lurch.

I gently close the door behind me as my gaze lands on Anastasia, slowly approaching the panicked girl.

She's curled up in a ball, her knees hugged to her chest as empty bottles lay discarded around her, her baby hairs plastered to her forehead as she sucks in short, rapid breaths.

"Ana what happened here?" I ask softly, peeling a half empty bottle out of her hand as she looks at me with wide eyes.

"Enzo?" she breathes out, as if unsure whether or not I'm real.

"That's right Ana, it's Enzo," I smile at her, sitting across from her as I push the sweaty strands of hair out of her face.

"Wanna tell me what happened here?" I ask again, my tone gentler than I've ever heard it.

"I got scared," she whispers, her eyes widening further as she speaks, her tone thick as her chest begins to rise and fall quicker again.

"Scared of what?" I ask, my eyebrows furrowing in concern as her eyes drop from mine.

"Ana tell me what you're scared of and I can fix it," I plead with her, gently lifting her chin up to look at me.

"I don't want to see him again," she says, her voice tight, "I don't want to see him again Enzo," she cries, her shaking hands coming up to cover her face.

"Why not sweetheart?" I ask, drawing her into my lap without thinking, immediately knowing who she's talking about.

She just shakes her head as she cries, burying her face in the crook of my neck as I wrap my arms around her.

"Ana, sweetheart, tell me what's wrong," I ask again, my voice pleading with the drunk girl.

"Every time I see him, it's like it's happening all over again," she finally whispers, "I thought this would make me feel better, but it didn't," she breaks down again as she clutches onto me.

"I'm sorry Ana," is all I can think to say, gently rubbing her back to try and calm her down.

"I hate him!" she sobs, "I hate him so fucking much," she stands up out of my lap as she grabs one of the empty bottles and hurls it towards a wall, the glass shattering onto the ground, making me jump.

"And I'm exactly like him," she says, her voice breaking as she crouches down and covers her face. "I'm exactly like him," she repeats in a smaller voice, "And I hate it,"

"You're nothing like him," I almost scoff, removing her hands from her face as she frowns at me.

"I'm so angry though Enzo, I'm so, so, fucking, angry," she whispers.