Deep Into The Water (Book 1 Phoebe Grey Fanfic)

Chapter 12: Too much too soon

 

Phoebe

After a week of not going to work or school, I have decided to just go for it and take a shift at Gabe's dad's bookstore I work at every week. Being home all time is becoming extremely overbearing for me. Whenever I turn the corner, I see my dad. Whenever I go take a shower, there's my dad checking in on me. Whenever I go to the gym downstairs, there's my dad with Taylor watching me! Life is really hard to live when you have someone right behind you with a leash. A very short and tight leash. But I am eighteen so technically, I can leave whenever I like. 

Just as I suspected when I got dressed in my all black uniform skirt and tight black turtleneck, my dad whirls around the corner with his vein popping out of his forehead in anger. "You are not going anywhere young lady. Not until we find him!" Dad stomps after me as I walk down the stairs.

I do my best to ignore him and tie my apron around my waist as I grab my keys to my Audi in the garage. While I fill up my water bottle he goes on and on and on about how disrespectful I am all the time. 'You use to listen so well', blah blah blah. The man is more controlling than a drill sergeant, seriously I think a drill sergeant would be scared of this man. 

When he tries to grab my arm is when I lose it, "Dad there's always something with you. No, Phoebe, you can't ride a bike you could fall. No, Phoebe, you can't go see a movie by yourself, someone could kidnap you. I'm done not living my life just because I'm a part of yours." Slamming the door shut in his face walk down the driveway and I am met with a flower delivery man. "Can I help you?"

The tall man smiles and hands me a large bouquet of blue hydrangeas and pulls out an envelope, "Ms. Phoebe Grey?" 

"Yes?" 

The man then shoves the envelope to me and pulls out a confetti popper. "Mr. James will see you soon." 

I thank the delivery man and wait for him to leave before throwing away the flowers in the trash and get into my car to head to work. If he thinks he can just ignore me for days and then send me flowers as nothing happened, then Mr pop star has got another thing coming to him. I do deposit the note in my purse in case I decide I am interested in reading it later. I miss him very much but he fucked up and right now I have a job to get to. 

The usual place is a lovely place to work. Coffee is in the air, books are in stacks, couches matching the one like friends are spread out. My boss is Tammy. She's all long legs and firey red hair. Our customers flirt with her consistently but she doesn't seem to mind. It has happened a couple of times to me but mainly just Tammy. Gabriel's dad technically owns the place but he is never actually here just comes in occasionally to do the audit. Tammy loves to waltz around the customers and get them to order more of the ridiculously overpriced espresso shots and lattes. Her tactic works wonders but little do the horny hipsters know, Tammy has a wife named Beth. 

Gabriel sometimes performs here but he called Tammy and told her that he was sick. Which is complete bullshit because if he was actually sick he would've come anyway. Teddy closing the chapter on the two of them still hurts. I assume because he hasn't called me back he's still working on winning Teddy back somehow. I have no clue as to how he is going to prove to Teddy that he is mature enough to handle everything. The being a full-blown couple in front of everyone thing.  In all fairness to Teddy, he did wait a really long time for him to want to be public to everyone and instead he just kept blaming on it being too much for me. 

And I thought I had relationship problems. 

The bookstore is less busy on Monday's so I mostly just sit behind the counter and make the coffee that Tammy's lurkers order in the hopes she will pay more attention to them. I start the espresso machine and begin to wipe down the counter space when I hear a quiet whisper. 

"Phee", turning around I am caught off guard by the sight of him. Grant. Black skinny jeans and a white t-shirt. Slick back hair. I guess he wanted me to speak but I couldn't. I haven't seen him in two days and now he comes to my work and wants to talk. "I guess you don't have the best impression of me but I promise the reason I didn't call you was not because I had gotten what I wanted from you. I didn't call because of a family business." Did you break your thumbs too? Is that why you didn't text me you prick!

"Family business? You could've just called and said 'hey phee sorry that I can't talk I have family problems at the moment', and I would've been fine with that but you didn't so here we are." A table waves me over and I pick up a tray. "Sorry about that what can I get you."

"A small espresso, please. Oh, and where do you keep your teen romance books?" The young girl with the bun asks but she is lost when she sees Grant. Her eyes stopping right in their tracks and glued to him for eternity. A wave of jealousy hits me and I snap at her. 

"Just over there in that corner under teen fiction." She nods along and walks off after her face turned a deep red color probably from embarrassment. I didn't realize how popular he really is. The thought of millions of young girls with his face plastered all over their walls sends shivers down my spine. Can I handle this? 

Grant grabs my arm and stops me before I can go behind the counter. "Phoebe I promise you it had nothing to do with us. My birth father is causing some issues is all. It was all so hectic and I didn't want to burden you. " And then his smile stops me. His smile with his copper hair and dimples just has me. I think if he asked me to do anything when he flashed me that smile I would do it, even now, when I am pissed, I would do anything for him. Is that love? This complete unnerving experience? 

I have to rip my eyes away from his face in order to think straight at all, "I had family issues too. Of course, you would've known that had you called." I shrug his hand off my arm and go behind the counter and he takes a seat in front of me and I do my best to ignore him. 

"Phoebe look truth is its still an issue but I go back on tour in a month and I would like to see you."

A huge part of me just wanted him to go. But the other part of me just wanted him. All of him. "What happens when you back on tour then? What are we even because I am completely lost." Grant reaches for my hand from across the counter and I know that I should still be angry, and I am, but I also just want to be something to him. 

"You are clearly my girlfriend Phoebe, I wouldn't have slept with you and then not cared." I raise my eyebrow in suspicion because I think he does that exact thing to girls before, "Okay I would have but I didn't. I like you in a deep way. I promise I want this I am just not great at it. You need to teach me how." How am I supposed to teach him when I have no idea. 

"Hey Phee your dad is here!" Tammy yells from the back.

When dad enters his eyes go straight to Grant and his hand clutching mine.

Grant's eye roll and he lets go of my hand to stuff his in his jean pockets, "Seriously you have the worst timing ever," Grant tells my dad. 

"So do you," My father sneers at Grant. 

"Are you usually this possessive or is it just a nice new look on you?"

I can see the veins really popping out of my dad's forehead and I feel if I don't call this down now it is going to prove to be difficult to put out this fire later. I take Grant's arm with my hand and place my tray on the counter. "I'm sorry about your family problems but spend two days without talking to me again and it will prove to be fatal for you because you will not be allowed to touch me again. Now please go before my father murders you." Grant kisses my forehead and shakes his head at dad.  

"Good day Mr. Grey", his charms do nothing except anger dad and his face becomes extremely stiff. 

He watches him walk out and get into his car before he says anything to me, "Phoebe what did you two do on your date?"

"Went to a museum."

"I know that bit. What else?"

I don't say it. He already knows the answer. Or at least kind of knows what happened. I gave myself to Grant. I don't exactly know why but I did and now he's telling me he wants this. He wants us. Even my father's death stare won't ruin this moment for me. I will take his death glare with this feeling every day of my life because, in all honesty, I don't care how anyone else feels about Grant. I only know how I feel about Grant. 

I feel like he has finally lit my fuse so that I can start my life.