Sweet Aftertaste (Shawn Mendes)

Chapter 4

Addi's P.O.V

I come to a quick stop outside Tom's house and throw the door open, grabbing my bag from the passenger seat as I jump out of my car. I run up the steps and open the unlocked door, "Tom?" I shout, my voice echoing. When there's no reply I shout again, "Tom!"

Despite all the horror movies I have seen, I decide to investigate around the house; my stomach twisting itself into a knot, what could have happened to him? I push open the sitting room door and creep through; my feet sinking into the soft carpet, scanning the room as I go. The TV is still on but the volume is turned right down and I don't recognise the channel. I continue through to the kitchen; finding nothing on a cursory glance. I retreat back to the hallway and slowly begin to climb up the stairs. I curse as a wooden step creaks beneath my foot just as I reach the landing. I take a quick look down the corridor before moving towards a door. I look in Tom's parents' bedroom first; to find nothing before moving onto Tom's room. I push the door open, holding my breath as I look into the room. I move beyond the doorway and scream as the door crashes back into it's frame. Someone leaps at me and puts their hand in front of my mouth, muffling my scream.

I remain frozen in place as I look down at a familiar hand. The person behind me laughs and I feel the fear in my mind and body being overtaken by annoyance, "What the hell, Tom!"

"You should have... seen... your face!" Tom can barely speak; he's laughing so much. He moves weakly over to his bed and collapses, his laughs turning into silent ones. I quickly cover the slight smile on my face, remembering why I'm here.

"What was that even for? Never do that again you idiot," I shout, Tom stops laughing and sits up to look at me innocently. I glare back before speaking again, "I thought you had an emergency?"

"Oh... Yeah. About that..." Tom scratches the back of his neck and looks at a pile of dirty socks on the floor. Finally, the penny drops for me and I feel the anger bubbling back up inside of me before boiling over the top, "For f*cks sake Tom! Don't you dare tell me that you made me leave Shawn just for you to play some stupid joke..." I take a breath, "In fact that's not even why you did it, is it? You just wanted to ruin my evening because you don't trust Shawn!"

Anger flashes briefly across Tom's face and I flinch as he raises his voice, "Don't tell me that you believe Shawn actually wants to be with you, he's a player; a f*ckboy. He likes breaking girls' hearts and you're just the next in his line... Didn't you see him and Kiara?"

"So you're saying that I'm never going to be in a proper relationship? That I'm gullible?" I shoot back icily. I thought that Tom, of all people, would understand how much this means to me. Despite me never physically telling him how I feel; I'm pretty sure if he hadn't guessed before he certainly has now. Anyway, who is he to tell me what to do and who I can talk to or be friends with? He doesn't find me acting like a third parent to him.

"Addi, are you blind or something? I want to protect you! I... Actually, never mind. You wouldn't care," He replies, speaking quickly. What's he going on about? 

"Protect me?" I splutter, "If you wanted to protect me you should let me be happy without interfering."

"You're so naive Addi for goodness sake, you don't know everything that I do," Tom sighs, pushing his hands through his hair.

"Until you're ready to stop treating me as a little kid; I don't want to speak to you," I shout back. Yes, it sounds childish but it's true; I don't want to speak to him if he's going to treat me like a child. Tom can be so irritating sometimes; what does he mean 'You don't know everything that I do'? 

"Maybe if you stopped acting so rashly then I might," Tom fires back. Before I know what I'm doing I feel my hand raise from my side and hit him across the face. He raises his own hand to a shocked face before looking at me. I expect to see anger in his face but instead I just see dejectedness. Before he makes me feel even more guilty than I already am, I run out of his room and out of his house. I hear quick footsteps on the stairs and I run faster. I get into my car, my eyes watering; threatening to spill over as I grip my steering wheel tightly. I raise an impatient hand to wipe them away; I vowed that I wouldn't cry ever since the day my Dad went out of my life, that I'd used all my tears in those horrific days. A single tear escapes my eye and I let it drip down my nose onto my cheek. I feel it fall off my face and its path quick dries.

Tom appears in the doorway of his house and I push my foot down on the accelerator, my car jerking as it starts. I pull around the corner and change gears as I push my foot down harder on the pedal. My phone starts ringing from the passenger seat and I ignore it as I see Tom's picture flash up on the screen.

I'm driving too fast and I don't know where I'm actually going to but I carry on, just wanting somewhere to clear my head. I turn around a corner, misjudging my speed and I frantically turn the wheel as my car starts spinning into the middle of the road. I panic as I see a pair of headlights appear out of nowhere and the last thing I remember thinking is 'oh sh*t' before a crashing noise fills my ears, resonating through my body. A sharp pain shoots up my legs into my chest and my vision turns spotty before the darkness swallows me.

A/N I'm so excited about the next chapter!