Numbered

Chapter Twenty-Five

Kylie busied herself with the house, packing up the little stuff that they had. They had called Nick and told him about their move and Jared had found a property developer who was willing to buy the plot of land.

Kylie walked into the kitchen with another refuse bag, her clothes sticking to her with sweat. She didn't have much stuff to pack, but she had to get rid of stuff she wouldn't use.

She dreaded the thought of having to pack up her grandmother's room and wondered if she would be able to part with most of her stuff.

Jared set down a plate of spaghetti in front of her as she took a seat at the old plastic dining table.

The pans clanked together as he threw them in the sink. He filled up two glasses with tap water and put them on the table.

He sat down with a sigh and dug into his meal.

Kylie twirled the spaghetti around her fork and took miniscule bites of the food, washing down each bite with the water. The loss of appetite was startinv to affect her weight and she put it down to grief. She hadn't expected to be so thrown by the death of someone. Not even when Nico died had she felt this way.

Jared eyed her warily as she put the plate in the fridge and sealed it with cling film.

"You need to eat, Kylie," Jared said, shaking his head at her.

"I'm not hungry," she replied, dismissively. She avoided his stare.

"You haven't eaten properly in a week," he said, frowning. "No wonder you've been feeling dizzy."

"Will you please just leave it?" she asked, her voice tired.

As she tried to leave the room, he caught her arm. "Stop. Look what you're doing to yourself."

His eyes were sorrowful as he looked at her. Her ribs were prominent under the thin t-shirt she was wearing and her arms were like sticks compared to his.

"Not tonight," she growled, pushing away from him. She wasn't in the mood to argue with Jared.

"Every night since then, you haven't eaten. When are you going to start? Tomorrow? Never? Do you want to end up in the hospital?"

"You don't understand!" She screamed. "You don't know what it's like to lose someone so important! You never even cried over your father!"

Hurt flashed in his eyes. "You don't get to pull that card. Do you not think I was scared enough when they sentenced you to death? Do you think I didn't hurt at all? That I didn't give a fuck?"

She shook her head, avoiding his cold stare. "Did I say that?"

"No, you think I don't understand," he muttered. "You think I don't understand what it's like having to be strong for someone when inside, I was breaking. Dealing with that was hard enough, and then finding out my father was dead... And now, you don't even care. Do you want to starve yourself to death?"

"Leave me alone!"

"No!" He grabbed her wrists and held her still. "I promised myself that I would take care of you. I promised your grandmother that I would take care of you."

"You also promised her that you wouldn't hurt me," Kylie breathed, struggling against his hold. "But you're hurting me."

Jared released her, cringing as she held up her wrists, which were red from his grip. She walked out of the room silently, letting the door swing closed behind her.

She heard Jared smash his fist on the table and she bit her tongue.

She hastily pulled on her shoes, ignoring him as he walked over to her.