Beaten By Love

Chapter 10

The remainder of the day was pretty relaxed – I stayed in my room whilst Bran and Jace stayed in the one across the hallway. I rang Ms. Thatcher's telephone not long after 5PM, and spoke to Oscar, explain to him that there were some issues with daddy that I needed to sort and I didn't know when I would be home, but that Ms. Thatcher was taking good care of him. I asked him about his day at school, to which he replied his usual way, before I managed to get a few more details out of him.

After we had said goodbye, Ms. Thatcher came on the line, reassured me that she could have Oscar for as long as I needed, and that I should just focus on the situation with my dad, and not to worry about him at all.

If only she knew.

Half an hour later, I was just leaving the bathroom when Jace and Bran stepped into the corridor. Jace had a backpack slung over one shoulder, wearing dark jeans, the same vest, and a leather jacket. Bran was wearing the same clothes, obviously.

Jace turned to me.

"We're heading out for the evening, things to take care of. Cook whatever you can find for dinner, and I'll be back later tonight"

He suddenly walked over to me and took my phone from the front pocket of my jeans.

"Hey!" I tried to snatch it back but he swung his arm away, out of my reach.

"Easy. I'm putting my number into your phone. Anything happens, you call it, understood?"

"Yeah, sure. Where are you going?" Maybe it had something to do with those people wanting to get to me and Oscar.

"I told you, things to take care of. And like I told you earlier, you don't need to know. I'm handling this"

Then he stormed away, not bothering to wait for him to catch up.

I rolled my eyes, Bran chuckled before speaking quietly so Jace wouldn't hear.

"I know it might be frustrating not being told anything, but, it really is in your best interest. And he is trying to get it sorted, as much as he may not show it, he's trying"

He then smiled gently at me, spun around, and followed Jace through the apartment and out the front door, not before shouting back "Laters, Shay!"

I sighed. Those two were polar opposites. How on earth were they such good friends?

***

Time ticked by slowly. I cooked some pasta for my dinner, dressed in my pyjamas, and threw a load of different herbs and spices in with it that I found hidden away at the back of a cupboard. It was pretty obvious Jace wasn't a fan of cooking. Fresh food was at a minimum, ready meals were...well, mostly all he had. I didn't understand how he could eat those. They were just so processed, full of unneeded additives and preservatives, and they tastes awful anyway.

As I was just finishing up doing the dishes, I was thinking about how I'd occupy my time for the rest of the evening. There were no TV's in the apartment except the one in his room, and I wasn't about to go back in there again. I was drying off my hands when I noticed a small remote control tucked down the side of one of the sofa cushions. I'd only noticed it because of the angle I was at from where I stood, that was why I'd never noticed it before.

I bent over and pulled it out of the slot it had gotten wedged in. It was a fairly simple remote. What could it be for?

Out of pure curiosity, I pressed the power button. Next thing I know, the wall across from me moves. Well okay, not the wall itself. But a large framed image of a mountain scape - which surprisingly I'd never taken notice of – moved backwards in to the wall, and slid down, disappearing behind inside the wall itself. Then a huge plasma screen TV moved down from inside the wall, and once aligned inside the space, was brought forward.

I stood there in shock.

Like...I'd seen that happen in movies but...to see it actually happen before my eyes was...well...amazing. It dawned on me just how truly grand and luxurious Jace's apartment was. And again...how could he afford this? Was he born into a rich family? But then it surprised me that he would go to a public school...

There was something big that Jace wasn't telling me. I could feel that it was to do with the situation of his enemies wanting to find his weak spot AKA me. But why did these people want to put him down so badly? What was it that he was doing to make someone hurt him so badly? This, and the money...it spelled trouble.

Sighing from frustration, I plonked down on the sofa, and started flicking through the channels, looking for something to watch. I was only used to the free channels at home, so I was usually limited to choice. But Jace had every single channel, meaning I had access to movies, as well as music and sports.

I settled on a children's film – One that I loved as a child, and always watched it with mum.

The thought caught me off guard. I usually kept my mind trained into not thinking about her, because whenever I did, a lump formed in my throat and my heart always felt like there was a big hole missing from it. It was never filled, but most of the time I forgot it was even there because I was so used the empty feeling. It occasionally hit me – the grief, and how much I missed her. I was so used to being the strong one now, taking care of everything, worrying about everything, including the stability of my dad, that when I let myself feel, let myself remember, it was so much harder picking myself back up.

Not long after, I drifted off to sleep on the sofa during the film, thoughts circling my head, worries, anxiety, bringing me to exhaustion. Such exhaustion, that I didn't wake to the sound of the front door opening quietly, and silent footsteps approaching me from behind.