Danger's Back (By JileyOverBoard)

30. Are you trying to get yourself killed?

Kelsey's Point of View:

By the time I had woken up this morning, Justin was already gone. The imprint of his body that once lay beside mine during the night left in his wake as I adjusted to the bright sun beaming through the slits in-between the shades.

It had been about three days now and I have seen Justin only a total of six times; every morning and night before we go to bed, other than that, he's been locked away with the guys discussing what Carly and I were told to be "business".

It was driving me crazy to say the least having to be stuck in this huge house with absolutely nothing to do. I tried everything I could to convince the guys to let Carly and I go do some shopping, each of them coming up with an excuse that this place was all packed for a week's stay with all the things we needed to survive.

I wasn't even allowed to go outside in fear that someone would spot me. They had no idea who the Snipers were tied with and for all we knew, they could be right in this very neighborhood. It's utterly ridiculous but trying to show Justin the absurdity of the matter was a big no-no because no matter what I said or did, it was wrong and he was right as per usual.

Ever since our rather large argument when we had arrived, things have been on edge between us even though we had made what seemed to be amends that night. I could feel his hesitation every time he looked at me and it made my stomach twist painfully at the lack of emotions he was pursing.

Pushing the blanket from my body, I stretched my limbs, wincing at the strain in my muscles. All night I had been tossing and turning with various thoughts swirling around in my head, warning me of something.

It was there, the darkness, the numbness, the burning intensity. It was brewing and it was only a matter of time before a match was lit and thrown into the fire causing everything to go into flames.

Forcing my legs to start moving, I ignored the pain in my body as I made my way to the bathroom. Splashing cold water on my face to wake me up, I brushed my teeth before shoving my untamed hair up into a messy bun.

Wiping the counter clean, I threw the paper towel I had used in the trash can before looking up into the mirror, the bags under my eyes a definite sign of my distress and lack of sleep. Sighing to myself, I decided on laying off on the make-up for I'm in no mood to cover up what everyone already knew.

Stepping out into our bedroom, I began looking through all the piles of clothing I had brought with me. Settling on a pair of jeans, a simple thick strapped tank top and a cardigan, I pulled the t-shirt I had worn to bed last night off, folding it and stuffing it back into my bag for I knew I'd be using it again later tonight before covering my bare feet with a pair of fuzzy socks.

Standing up tall, I gasped at the sudden looming presence of another. Snapping around, I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sight of Justin's distant eyes staring at the length of my body. Suddenly feeling a bit self-conscience, I awkwardly wrapped my arms around my upper body, shifting my weight to one side as I peered up at him through my lashes. "Hey," I softly spoke, tucking the loose strands of my hair behind my ears.

"Hi." He curtly responded. "What are you doing?"

"I'm just getting ready to come downstairs and have breakfast. Did you eat yet?"

"Yeah, John and I grabbed a bagel on our way in." A silence fell amongst us as Justin walked over to me, his hands cupping my cheeks into his palms. Brushing his thumbs under my eyes, he frowned. "Have you slept at all last night?" He murmured.

"I just haven't been feeling all that great. It's been a lot to take in these past couple of days... and for some reason I've just been restless but I'm fine, really."