Everything Has Changed

Chapter Two

Song: Silhouette by Aquilo

I was unable to move, but he slowly moving closer and placed his hand on my cheek carefully, as if his hand would go right through me. It was warm and soft. Our eyes met and I was instantly frozen. My heart pounded.

"You're real" he whispered, sounding close to tears. "It's really you"

I gathered up all my strength, forced back the tears, and pulled away shaking my head. It took all I had to step back. I looked at the others who were now coming closer. I started to feel weak again, and my legs started to buckle beneath me . All at once I lost my balance and fell backwards, landing on the floor. I felt a shock of pain in my hand and saw the dry blood on my palm. Christian stepped foreword instantly but Hunter caught his arm and held him back easily. He whispered something to him then looked down at me, removing his blond hair from his forehead. He stretched out his hand towards me.

"Skyler," He spoke, his voice deep but sensitive. " I know you're still weak and confused. We all are. But I think we all just need to sit down and talk about this."

I shook my head, feeling an unbearable pain in my stomach. I pushed myself up, ignoring the pain, and ran for the door, swinging it open. 

"Skyler please!" I heard someone yell in the background 

The light hit me hard but I didn't stop running until the pain in my body became too much. By then I was only a block away. I fell to my knees breathing heavily, letting out the tears that i'd been holding in for so long. I had spent two years avoiding those people and all of a sudden I wake up in Christian's bed. The funniest part was they just expected me to sit and listen after everything they did. Like I could just forgive what they did so easily. I placed my hand on my cheek.

"No" I said to myself searching for comfort. "This isn't happening. It can't be. Not yet" The pain all of a sudden was too much. 

A car door slammed in the background and I heard footsteps coming towards me. My vision blurred but in the distance I spotted a shadowy figure. 

***

I slowly opened my eyes and waited for my vision to clear. I was on a bed with a blanket over me, other then that my surroundings were unknown.

Not again, I thought to myself.

Slowly, I got up one elbow at a time. Beside me, I noticed another bed and a small kitchen with a small table. Clearly, I was in an apartment building. On my other side, a window which led to a fire escape. I walked towards the window slowly and opened it. The physical pain had disappeared, but the events that occurred earlier remained heavy on my chest. It was night time and the street below were quiet and empty, however, the Autumn weather left the air cold and dry. Behind me, I heard a door open. I turned around quickly and saw a tall figure with brown shaggy hair  walk through the door with groceries. I let out a deep sigh of relief. Alex.

He looked at me, and smiled. "Finally. I tried slapping you earlier before I realized it wasn't going to work. After a few slaps". He smirked. 

"Thanks." I attempted to say but my mouth was dry and my voice almost lost. "Where are we anyway?"

"Here, drink" he said passing me a bottle of water from the bag. "I rented an apartment in the building we always passed by as kids on the way to that small mall. It not much but it's all I could find at the moment."

"It's fine. How did you find me?" I said to my brother before opening the bottle. I hadn't realized how desperate I was for water until I chugged down the whole bottle in an instant.