Captive

Two

Finding Julian's apartment was not very difficult. I found it immediately after leaving Nolan's house. Number 128 in the tall, dusty colored apartment building close to Nolan's. The last time I saw Julian, he was in his second year of college. He graduated now, with a degree in Engineering. He always loved mathematics and design together. One day, he'd hoped to open a hotel in New York or Chicago: He'd always blab about it back when I was with them. He was so passionate about it, he'd told us all about every little detail included in his idea. I smiled, remembering his sweet face and mind. Julian was nothing like me. He loved the social life. He was the usual boy-next-door. Cared about his family and school, had a lot of friends here and there. I was the opposite.

There was a Welcome mat right in front of his apartment. There was a sign saying "Reality Is Intelligence Having Fun". I smiled, knowing Julian was always a happy soul, making the environment around him always positive. I took a deep breath and shut my eyes, hoping for a good outcome. My knuckles made contact with his front door, knocking it nervously. About one minute later, Julian opened the door. It sent a shiver to my body and my heart was already racing, causing my neck and palms to heat up and sweat. Julian stood there, staring at me for a hot minute, his face filled with utter shock.

"Juli-"

His arms drew to me and he engulfed me into the tightest hug. My head was pressed just below his shoulder. I breathed in his scent, and wrapped my arms around his torso, holding onto my brother for dear life. I could hear his heart too. It was pounding against his ribcage just like mine.

"I-I missed you" He muffled into my hair. I heard his voice again. My fingers clutched to the back of his shirt more, causing my backpack to fall off my shoulder. I wanted to hug him forever. His arms loosened from my back and I did too, hoping I'd see a smile on his face. He signaled for me to come inside his small apartment. He closed the door behind me and I dropped my heavy backpack on the floor, amazed at how his apartment was decorated. It was exactly his taste. It was very bohemian and welcoming, no colorful colors, just browns and darks. The apartment was small, but had enough space for Julian. Caramel colored blankets covered his white couch. There were beautiful green plants in just about every corner of the place. Many pictures of him were hung up. His graduation from high school and college, a picture of him holding Sophia at the nape of his neck. Over to the right I spotted a picture of me. It warmed my heart. I wanted to cry in Julian's arms for hours. 3 weeks ago, I would've never believed I'd see his amazing face again.

"I never thought you'd come back I..I" He stuttered with a worried tone. I turned to see him, his eyes flashed with bliss and confusion. It was a mixture of something strange, but I was happy that he finally could see me and I could see him again.

"What happened to you? W-where were you all this time? Are you okay?" He threw his questions at me. I smiled, knowing Julian was the only person who truly cared about me when I was gone.

"I don't want to talk about it, okay? Just..give me a few days to process some things. I'm just glad I got to see you again. Never thought I would too." I mumbled. He stood there, and I just then noticed how much he'd changed. He has more facial hair. His arms are muscular and broad, giving him an intimidating outlook. He cut his hair shorter, which made a major difference I was too caught up to notice earlier.

"Who was at the door?" Someone shouted from behind the kitchen. My eyebrows drew together. I didn't know Julian had company. The anonymous person came out, there, stood an old friend of mine.

"Noelle? Is that you?" Aiden asked. I didn't remember him clearly, for we hadn't always gotten along back in the day. "Hey" He laughed and engulfed me in a quick hug. I weirdly smiled at him and waved my head. I turned my gaze to Julian and smirked at him, lifting an eyebrow. I smirked wider and took one of the chocolates he presented in front of the exposed living room.