Three days had passed since I had left the hospital, and they had all been far from pleasurable.
My dad had barely said a word to me other than to lay down my new rules. He was to drive me to and from work, and if for any reason he could not, there was a tracking device embedded in the dashboard. My phone was being monitored along with basically every other step I took.
In a fit of rage, I had also been instructed not to "see, speak to, or dream about Calum". If I was anywhere near him, even in my thoughts, he would know.
After my release, he told me he had confiscated my phone before the officers could get to it. When he found it, he noticed one missed call.
With a sigh, he had turned to me and shook his head.
"This was me calling to warn you. I knew they were coming for you, Leis."
I had merely shrugged in response, numb from the events of the evening.
"I also found your messages to...him. I deleted them. They don't need to be on file for your trial. I'm really putting myself on the line for you."
Feeling obligated to reply, I put my head on the window and muttered, "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, dad."
Now, the same clammed up quiet that flowed throughout my dad's car returned as he drove me to the daycare. At every red light, he would glance over at me as if he was hoping that I would say something monumental that would prove that I was on his side and not Calum's.
All I wanted was to escape the vehicle and leave the sticky leather and scratched chrome behind.
Eventually, he pulled into the parking lot, and I was already unbuckling my seat belt. A speech was brewing in my dad's mind, and I had to leave before he had a chance to share it.
"I get off at six. Bye." The door slammed harshly, but I ignored it and quickly strode up the sidewalk and into the doors. Immediately I took to the right and opened the door to the break room.
As soon as I stepped into the heavily air conditioned space, I spotted Ashton with his back to me.
Damn it.
As much as I loved him, I knew I looked like a complete mess. The sleep deprivation and stress, even though it had only been a short amount of time, had taken a toll on me. And Ashton, being the caring soul that he was, would notice right of the bat.
Tip toeing my way to my locker, I speedily clicked in the combo of the lock and watched it pop open. My attempt at throwing my bag into the tiny area was foiled when Ashton finally responded to the ruckus and noticed I was there.
"Leisa, hey! I expected you back days ago."
Christ.
Making sure I stayed completely faced to the locker, I continued to shove my things inside of it.
"Uh, yeah. I came down with a bug. Nasty really. Anyway, I'm better now, so I better head back to the kiddos." A few words ran together as I spat the sentence out as fast as I could. Swirling on my heel, I headed towards the door.
My trek was abruptly stopped when Ashton's rather strong hand gripped my arm. Even though he was holding me in place, I still didn't turn around. He removed his grip from my arm and placed both hands on my shoulders. He held them lightly as he rotated me.
Worry immediately creased his features.
"Leisa? Are you okay?"
I let my shoulders go slack, the exhaustion taking over. When I stayed silent, he pressed on.
"Are you still sick? Do I need to take you back home?"
Ashton. Always the worrier.
"No, it's not that. I just...shit is happening right now, Ash. I'm trapped and in trouble."
His bright hazel eyes doubled in size, and I knew that as soon as the words escaped my mouth, it was a mistake.
"B-but it's nothing really. I'm probably just overreacting."
My next effort to leave was also stopped. This time, he wrapped my whole body into his arms and pulled me in.
"Hey, you don't have to hide things from me. You know that. I promised you that a long time ago."
Draping my arms around his waist, I rested my head on him, and because of the severity of our height difference, it landed in the middle of his rib cage.
"I know. It's just...complicated right now. So, so complicated."
He rocked me back and forth gently, rubbing his hands up and down my back.
"Listen, you're in not in any condition to be working today. Stay here for a minute. I'm going to make a few calls and have someone come fill in for you. We need to talk about this, okay?"
