Only, Always, and Forever You

50 - Anddd cut!

Amara's POV:

Hand still intertwined with Cole's, we exit the elevator and make our way down the hall to my apartment door.

I look at Cole and at the same time he looks down at me, side by side, and we recite all of those unspoken vows to each other with a simple look before taking a synchronized deep breath.

With the confidence we offer each other, I'm determined to overcome what lies behind the door.

Cole opens the door, the same determination coursing through him, and we're met with quite the crowd.

The room falls deadly silent, and for a moment we're all just standing there assessing each other.

I see Andrés fuming in the corner, arms crossed in front of him as he silently glares at me and then Cole.

My mother is on the couch with none other than the man himself: James Anderson.

She had been tending to his wounds from when Cole had punched him earlier, and she had stopped dead in her tracks to look over at me with a slight frown and angry eyes.

Mr. Anderson, however, was looking at Cole with a mischievous, conniving smirk, which easily sent chills down my spine. I could feel Cole tense up beside me, but I squeezed his hand lightly to try and reassure him.

Lastly, Mrs. Anderson was also on the couch, sitting on the other side of her husband and almost hidden behind his large frame. Her glance shifted between Cole and I, an unmistakable apologetic expression present on her soft face.

A single tear dropped from her glossy eyes, but she didn't move to wipe it away, she just stayed chillingly still.

The stuffy tense air lingered a little longer, almost suffocating me as I watched the stand-off between Cole and his father, who haven't stopped glaring at each other from the moment the door opened.

"Amara," my mother spits sternly, breaking the silence but not doing anything to break up the dangerous and silent battle between the Anderson men.

"Where have you been?" Andrés cuts in, arms still crossed as he tries to intimidate me with a look.

Where have I been? That's rich.

I don't have time to respond before Mr. Anderson finally stands up and speaks, "She's been out with my pathetic son all evening, of course."

I don't miss the evil smirk on his face as he slowly stalks over towards Cole and I. Cole's glare just gets even more deadly, and for a moment, I feel like him and his father are the only two in the room.

"Isn't that right, son?" he questions knowingly, his sly steps coming to a halt as he stands only a few inches in front of Cole.

"What did I tell you about calling me 'son', James?" Cole retorts coldly, a lethal edge lacing his words.

Cole releases my hand and motions with a nod of his head for me to move away from the two men. He has still yet to break the staring contest going on between him and his father.

"And what did I tell you about respecting me?" he replies sharply, "Because like it or not, son, I am your father and you will respect me."

Mr. Anderson's words almost cut through the thick air of the room, but even then, the tension is so thick that his sharp words couldn't even do much.

"Quite the father, you are," Cole scoffs, sizing up the man in front of him. If you can even call that a man...

"Cole, please, just—" Mrs. Anderson tries to cut in with a pleading voice.

"Shut up, Anne!!" Mr. Anderson cuts her off harshly, and I watch her flinch from his tone of voice as another tear drops down her cheek.

"Don't speak to my mother like that," Cole growls. I watch his jaw clench as his fists turn white at his sides, holding back from knocking Mr. Anderson out (again).

"Or what, Cole?" Mr. Anderson taunts, now getting all up in his son's face. "You need to watch your tone with me, boy. You know exactly what I'm capable of, and our little audience won't stop me from putting you in your place," he threatens, motioning to my brother, mom, and me with a sinister grin on his face.

"You sure about that?" Cole taunts back, a faint smirk tugging at his lip, "We wouldn't want for your delicate reputation to be ruined, especially not after how much you've worked to cover up the fact that you're a pathetic deadbeat excuse for a father who manipulates his way through the world and puts his filthy hands on his wife and child—"

Mr. Anderson launches himself at Cole, holding him against the wall by the collar of his shirt. At this point, he is seething, almost shaking from how much anger is emanating from his reddening face. His sinister grin has completely disappeared, and his face is now just... sinister.

Cole maintains his composure, which is very out of character, and merely smirks at his father. There is still a deadly threat in his eyes, though, and his expression is almost daring Mr. Anderson to do something else.

Anne is now sobbing on the couch, her hands brought up to her mouth to muffle her pleas. My mom and brother sit there, stunned and helplessly watching the encounter escalate. The room seems to still as all eyes are on the two angry men.

"You think you know everything, hmm?" Mr. Anderson grits, "Guess I really do have to put my hands on you again since it didn't seem to show you your place the first time! And as for your mother, as long as she has my last name, I can throw her around as much as I fucking want to. Though, I'd hardly lay another finger on that ugly wench, that's what my sexy little assistants are for. You understand, don't you, you little shit? You and your little whore over there will only last so long before you get bored and end up just like your old man!"

Mr. Anderson is now fuming, each of his disgusting words carried out with so much rage that anyone on the receiving end should have been terrified.

But Cole's smirk only grows.

"Anddd cut!" I say, pressing the pause button on my phone's camera.

All of the blood drains from Mr. Anderson's face as his attention snaps to me, and his grip on Cole's collar loosens. Cole starts chuckling knowingly, and I can't help the sly grin that pulls at my lips as I stare dead into Mr. Anderson's shrinking eyes.

And just like that, it worked...

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A/N: WHAT HAPPENED???

An explanation will be coming shortly, my loves, don't fret....

In the meantime, can we please talk about how repulsive Mr. Anderson is??? I actually get so angry whenever I'm writing about him that it makes me nauseous!!!