Insane - Who Are You To Judge? (Gripping Psychological Thriller)

Chapter 34 - Avery

October 2009

"The fuck are you doing every goddamn night?" I interrogated Julian as he tiptoed through the door at two o'clock in the morning.

My hearing was impaired by the drumming of blood coursing through my veins, and my vision was obscured by the red spots in front of my eyes.

"None of your business, Avery," he exclaimed, the volume of his voice increasing with every word. "I didn't realise that when I moved in I had to get permission from you to fucking leave!"

"Oh don't be so overdramatic. I've got every right to want to know why the hell you're walking through the door every day when the sun is coming up!"

"I don't have to listen to this." Julian disregarded me, storming up the stairs. I could hear a crack form in each step as his weight pressed down on the old wood.

My fists clenched at the sight of him walking away and I swear there was a faint wisp of smoke emitting from either my ears or my nose.

I snatched up the piece of paper from the coffee table and chased after him.

When I reached the bedroom I held up the paper and presented it to him with a question. "Why don't you explain this, then?"

He stopped dead and examined its content. Suddenly he wasn't so confident.

"Where did you find that?" he shakily demanded. The poor little thing looked like a deer in headlights.

"Well, since you're home so late every night, I have a lot of time on my hands. When I get bored I snoop. Man, did I hit the jackpot snooping through your drawers." I glanced down at the sheet, taunting him. "I guess now I know what use you have for all those flashy computer skills."

He laughed snidely. "You don't even know what you're looking at. For all you know, that could be a kid's online game." He really was scraping the bottom of the barrel. Even he knew what he was saying was just plain stupid.

"Let's not forget who got a first in her master's now," I reminded him, slightly defensively. "I may not have learnt all of your fancy computer codes and tricks, but I have enough common sense to work out that this is no kid's game. It's got Parliament's emblem. And is my eyesight starting to go or does this," I pointed to a word on the paper, "does this say government security?" I raised my eyebrows and shook my head. "Those two things combined with all these fancy codes and passwords that I really don't think an IBM tech geek should be knowing, it's not looking good for you."

His shoulders slumped and his eyes dropped to the floor. Bringing someone who thought they were so powerful under my control was almost a better feeling than the sensation my extra-curricular activities gave me. Almost.

"Okay," he finally yielded. "What do you want?"

I threw my hands over my mouth in offence. "But I'm your girlfriend. Why would I want anything but to protect you?"

Julian simply raised one eyebrow. I supposed he knew me too well.

"Well", I replied as I began pacing around the bedroom. "Firstly, I want you to teach me how to bypass simple firewalls and how to access someone's CCTV. Next, I get to choose the dates we go on without any complaints from you. Do you know what that means? That means if I want to go shopping and I want you to carry my bags, you'll eagerly turn yourself into a frikkin' pack mule." I paused, dragging out the moment of power. "And finally, I will be keeping evidence against you in case there ever comes a time that you need a gentle reminder of where your loyalty lies. Let's just say I've had a few run-ins with the law over the years myself."

He looked up at me, puzzled by my last demand. "What are you talking about?"

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Nothing you need to worry your pretty little head about. It's nothing major so don't let your imagination run wild. It's simply a precaution."

Julian reluctantly bowed his head, agreeing to my terms.

I walked up to him and leant down since he was now sitting on the bed. I twirled my fingers in his golden locks and touched my lips a millimetre from his, waiting for him to close the gap completely. He refrained for three alarming seconds, before the electricity was too much for him to resist. He pressed his lips hard against mine and pulled me into him, our bodies fused in heat and I had to manually yank my atoms from his.

"Now," I announced, after regaining my breath, with a more chirpy tone. "I'm glad that's all out the way, I don't like when we argue."

He chuckled. "Really? Even though it's multiple times a day?"

I hummed, reconsidering my statement. "Okay, maybe I like it just a little bit," I admitted. "I'm not really tired now, so what do you want to do? Make-up sex or pizza?"

He thought about the decision probably a little longer than he should have. The choice was pretty obvious – in my opinion, anyway.

"How about," he finally replied, "we have make-up sex whilst eating pizza?"

I beamed at him. We must be two of a kind. "Ooh, good plan. I'll stay up here and you go sort the food out."

"Oh?" He raised one eyebrow. "And why do you think I'm gonna be the one making the food?"

I let out a soft laugh. What a silly question, wasn't it obvious? I flicked my eyes briefly towards the sheet of paper. "Are you forgetting something? You're basically my bitch now."