adrenaline ; j.g

thirteen

:: Jack ::

I forget about the rest of our buyers and lead Laila to the car, making sure I keep my mouth shut so she can calm down. 

I'm not too worried about ditching them because the fact of the matter is, they're desperate at this point and they know we're worth it so I couldn't care less. 

Once we get to the car, I start up the engine and begin driving back to the house. After a few minutes of driving and Laila's sniffles are at a bare minimum, I finally fight up the urge to form my jumbled up thoughts into questions.

"Laila?" I start. When I see her turn to look at me from the corner of my eye, I use that as my signal to continue. "What happened back there?"

There's a long pause and for a moment, I don't think she's going to tell me. "My foster brother," she simply responds.

I snap my head to her, my anger already building up inside me once again. "Your fucking foster brother? The one who tried shit with you?"

As soon as she nods, my fists clench tighter around the steering wheel as my breathing picks up. "Wait until I see--" I hiss, but I'm cut short by Laila's voice.

"You already did something, remember?" she asks, her voice just above a mumble. "Which by the way, why did you do anything to begin with?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean why did you hit him? It's not like you care about me. No one does."

"I do care about you and no one deserves to be vulnerable to some asshole, especially if that asshole is your foster brother who has tried doing it before," I assure. "You're a strong girl Laila and you've been through a lot and I respect that about you. I haven't met someone who has come from quite the same past as me and I think that's what draws me to you."

I glance at her and she has a weak, appreciative smile on her face. "Thank you for that," she half-hardheartedly laughs, her voice still hoarse from her crying. "I know I look stupid for crying but him and the rest of them just know how to get under my skin," she admits, wiping the remaining tears away from her cheeks. "And I just thought I'd never see them again so it's like he re-opened an old wound."

"I know, no need to explain yourself baby girl," I reply and with that, I move one of my hands off the steering wheel and interlock my fingers with hers. 

I close my eyes momentarily at a stop light, my thoughts running wild. This girl is driving me crazy. For the first time in awhile, I would much rather cuddle with a girl and make sure she's alright than have sex with her and kick her out the next day. She's different from the others and every day, it's becoming more and more apparent to me.