Rise (Colton Dixon)

Chapter 10

Chapter 10
Colton
I feel my breath catch at the sight of the fresh wound marring Alexis’s wrist, just under the Respect & Honor bracelet.
She winces and pulls back, looking away like she’s been slapped. I open my mouth, but no words come out. And they shouldn’t. This isn’t the place to talk about this. I take a deep breath and start again.
“You said your parents were gone. Does that mean you walked here? Or can you drive?”
I can tell I caught her off-guard with the sudden change in subject. Enough so that she doesn’t lie to me.
“Uh… I walked.”
I nod. “Well, I’m not letting you walk back home by yourself. You want me to drive you, or you want me to walk with you?”
“I…” She shakes her head as if trying to clear it. “You don’t need to do either. I walk around at night all the time. I’ll be fine.”
I just shake my head. “Look, even if you do it all the time, that doesn’t make it any less dangerous, and anyway, I want to.” I glance out the window. “It seems like a nice night. How about we take a walk?”
“I’m seriously fine,” she tries. “I’ll go by myself.” And she gets to her feet to do just that. “Tha-“
I cut her off. “Look, I seriously want to go with you, Alexis, and I’m gonna follow you to make sure you’re safe whether you like it or not. But I’d prefer we agree and you let me walk with you instead.”
She hesitates another long moment before shrugging. “Fine. Do whatever you wanna do.”
I crack a smile. “Thank you. And anyway, you’re getting me out of work. The personal aids can pack up while I’m gone.”
This time, it’s a bag of chips, and this time, it’s Devin that throws it at me. I ignore him and turn to Annie.
“You coming or staying?”
She glances over the boys and shakes her head slowly. “I think I should stay and babysit the aids. They’re not gonna get much done on their own.”
I laugh, nodding. “Well, that’s certainly true. I’ll see you in a while.”
She nods and blows me a kiss. “Bye. Goodbye, Alexis. I’ll hope to see you again.”
Alexis nods and mumbles a farewell, and we head out of our lounge. But I don’t think we’re quite ready to really leave just yet.
I know this is something I’m supposed to do. But I don’t think I’m supposed to do it alone.

A/N: So, I know this one's short, but I wanted feedback before I continued. I couldn't resist putting in a little of the other artists at Winter Jam, but I wanted to know who you guys would like the best. I mean, besides for KING & COUNTRY, because... honestly, they're going in whether you like or not, lol. :)