A Love Like This (Stauren) {Book 1: Completed}

Chapter 20

A/N
I've updated this like very day and I should probably spread it out, but I couldn't help but update this chapter *smiles evilly*

Emmie had actually made me happy that night. I thought that was the worst day of my life until Emmie came. That night, she slept soundly in my arms, holding onto me as if her life depended on it. She held onto my hand the whole time, making me smile.

The next morning, I had woken up with Emmie still clinging onto me. I didn't want to wake her, so I carefully unwrapped her arms from around me, sliding her small frame onto the bed. As I looked back at Emmie before opening the door, her eyes opened. "Lauren?" She asked tiredly.

"Yes, honey?"

"Please don't leave me." The scared look in her eyes made me want to break down in tears.

I walked back over to the bed and knelt down next to it. My fingers brushed her hair from her face. "I promise, I'm not leaving you....ever. I'm just gonna go make some breakfast okay? So you get a little more sleep and I'll wake you when I'm done."

"No, I wanna come with you," she said and pushed the blankets off herself, coming over to my side to hold my hand.

"Are you sure?" She nodded quickly.

We walked into the kitchen where Emmie sat down at the table and I went to make us cereal. I went to the pantry and got out some cereal and then got out the milk from the fridge. "Here you go." I handed a bowl to her.

Once the two of us were finished, I spoke up. "Were gonna have to call your dad and-"

She cut me off by yelling. "No! Don't let him take me back, Lauren! Please don't let him!" I could tell that she was about to cry. Her hands started to shake in fear and she looked at me with her sad eyes.

"Em, he's your father," I started but didn't get to finish.

"No....he's not anymore. I hate him for what he did to me and you." Emmie narrowed her eyes at the ground and whispered something that I couldn't understand. "Besides, if he actually cared about me, he would've called to see if I'm okay by now."

I didn't know what to say after that. Steven hadn't called, just like she had said.

*Steven's POV*

When I had gotten out if bed the next morning, I had expected Emmie it be sitting on the couch watching TV like normal, but she wasn't.

I sighed and called out, "Emmie?" She wasn't anywhere downstairs and there was no food out in the kitchen, so it was obvious to me that she hadn't come down yet. I slowly walked up the stairs and went to her bedroom door. "Emmie?" I knocked on the door and when she didn't respond, I tried to open the door only to find that it was locked. "Emmie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you. Just please open the door for me."

When she didn't open after a couple minutes, I went back to my room and dug around in the nightstand for a key, quickly finding it. I went back down the hall and unlocked the door, pushing it open and looking around the room. She wasn't there. "Emerson? Emerson, this isn't funny come out!"

Frantically, I searched the whole room only to find nothing until I noticed that her window was open. "No....no, no, no!" I felt a pang of guilt for what I had done to her and now she's gone.

My hand reached into my pocket and dialed her number. The phone just rung and rung until it went to voicemail. I called over and over again but nobody picked up. I sat down on her bed, my head in my hands. "Goddammit."

*Lauren's POV*

Emmie was upstairs getting changed when the doorbell rang. Without thinking, I opened the door to see Steven standing there. "Where the hell is she?!" He demanded. "I know she's here."

I couldn't make out a sentence as footsteps were heard from down the hall. Emmie froze when she saw Steven who stared at her, probably looking at the big purple bruise under her eye that he caused. "Emerson, why the hell would you do something like that to me?!" The tone of his voice made Emmie's eyes water and she backed up. I went over and she grabbed onto my hand.

I think Steven realized what he was doing. "Emmie I...." He started to slowly walk over to her but Emmie hid behind me. "Emmie please don't be afraid of me." His eyes softened after he said that. Emmie didn't buy it. She let go of my arm and ran up the stairs.

It was silent between Steven and I until we both looked up at each other at the same time. I didn't know what to say, so I didn't say anything. Steven sighed and finally spoke up. "Lauren I....I'm sorry."

"Are you really though?" I crossed my arms over my chest. "Why the hell would you bring up Jo?"

He took a couple steps closer to me. "You have to believe me Laur, it was a mistake, I shouldn't of said that. You know how I get under stress a-and you saw me that morning. I just wasn't having a good day." He paused. "Listen to me, please. I love you so much, and it was so dumb of me to hurt you.....I don't even know how I let myself hurt you. I don't deserve you at all. You deserve someone who would never hurt you, and obviously I'm not that guy. I don't know what else to say cause-" I had heard enough. I marched up to him and grabbed onto his shirt, yanking him towards me so I could press my lips onto his. I could tell that he was a but shocked at first but he then kissed me back.

Once I was out of breath, I pulled away, resting my head on his shoulder. "What about Emmie? Why would you hit her like you did?" I then lifted my head up and looked at him in the eye.

"I don't even know. I love her obviously, it's ust being a single parent is so hard and she just stresses me out so much all the time and gets annoying. She hates me and said that she wants to live with you. If you want her....you can have her for a bit," he sighed.

"I don't think you know what you're say." Right after I said that, there was a sniffle.

"Is that what you really think of me?" Emmie asked and a single tear fell down her cheek. She then took off running, pushing past us and out the door.

"Emmie!" Steven yelled as the door slammed shut. "I didn't mean it like that! What do I do?!" He asked me frantically.

I was about to answer when all of a sudden we heard Emmie scream, the sound of a car skidding to a stop, and a call for help. Steven and I looked at each other in fear before running out the door. There Emmie was, laying in the middle of the street, surrounded by a pool of her own blood.

A/N
Great job Steven....