Not A Monster [LIAM DUNBAR]

Broken Glass

"Chris?" Aspen spoke softly from the passenger seat of his car. He raised an eyebrow in her direction.

"I.. I've been thinking," she said, "I almost died today. And there was nothing I could do about it.."

"I felt useless.. Weak.. I-I don't wanna feel like that anymore," she sighed, "Can you teach me how to defend myself?" She knew that if there was anybody that could help her, it was Chris.

The corners of Chris's mouth tipped upward and he pulled something out of the backseat. Aspen realized it was a cross bow, about the length of her forearm, and a hunting knife. He smirked.

"We start tomorrow night."

••••••••
Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you, been here all along so why can't you see

"Stop singing Lydia.." Aspen slurred in her sleep.

You belong with me

She opened her eyes to see a note on her beside table. It read:

Went to the lake house. Be back around 12. Call me if you need money for lunch.

XOXOXO Lyds

Aspen rolled her eyes at her sister's unnecessary amount of X's and O's, accompanied with her spidery yet elegant writing.

Aspen spotted another note on the back, reading:

PS: Keep the door open if Liam comes over!

Even though no one was there, Aspen still blushed furiously.

Taylor Swift blasted from her phone again, causing her to jump. She quickly grabbed her phone, checking the caller I.D.

A picture of Liam popped up and Aspen rolled her eyes, realizing Lydia had changed her ringtone to You Belong With Me.

Aspen tapped the green button, holding the phone to her ear.

"Dunbar," she sighed, "It's seven o' clock A.M on a Saturday, you'd better have a good reason for calling me."

On the other end of the phone, Liam snorted. "I was wondering if you wanted to hang out with Mason and I today?"

Aspen nodded her head, "Sure. I'll be over in a few."

"Do you need a ride?" he asked. "Nah," Aspen said, "You're just a couple blocks away."

Liam sounded unsure. "Are you sure? I mean, I don't want anyone to.. You know.. Throw you in a well again.." Aspen chuckled at his concern. "I'll be fine, Liam. See you in a few."

"Yeah," he replied uneasily, "See you." Liam wasn't sure why he didn't hang up then, but he pulled the phone away from his ear, staring at it until the call was ended.

Minutes later, Aspen stepped under the scalding water of the shower head and sighed. She watched as the dirt from the well washed away. She had been so tired the night before, she hadn't even taken her wet clothes off before she had crumpled onto the sheets.

Aspen washed the blood out of her hair and winced, accidentally hitting the spot that was sore. After she had lathered, rinsed, and repeated, she stood for a while more, savoring the warm water against her skin.

Getting out was the last thing she wanted to do, but, sadly, she had to. Aspen wrapped a towel around her waist and wandered back into her room, getting dressed in leggings and a t-shirt.

I almost died yesterday, she thought to herself as she admired the outfit in the mirror, I deserve a lazy day.

She grabbed her phone and house key, skipping down the stairs. The house was eerily quiet, excluding the sound of her boots on the wood floors. Aspen grabbed her bag off of the table, the bag that contained the mini crossbow Chris had given her, along with the hunting knife. Aspen patted Prada, Lydia's dog, on the head, pouring a can of food in her tiny food dish. Grabbing a glass from the cabinet, she set it down and went to the fridge to grab the milk, but as she turned around, her elbow hit the glass, sending it crashing to the floor. Aspen cursed and got on her knees, picking up a piece of glass.