The Snowy-haired Genius

Chapter five

I thought about Winter while I lay in the bath. He definitely seemed to be the boss of this place, but there was something about him that scared me. Maybe it was the crazy glint in his eye, or the way he ordered everybody around. Maybe it was his smile.

Maybe it was his calmness towards this entire fucking situation.

And his rules... I wished I could say they were crazy like him, but they seemed fair to an extent. Except for the one where he was going to sleep in the same bed as me. That sounded weird.

I got out of the bath at around nine o'clock, wrapping a towel around my waist and walking out into what seemed to be my bedroom. Sitting on the bed, neatly folded, was a pair of blue pyjamas. The chain that had been on my ankle was removed from the wall, now nowhere to be seen.

I pulled on the pyjamas and explored the room, checking for cameras or escape routes. There was a single picture hanging on the wall- a picture of a dead flower in a vase. Somebody had cleaned the room when I was in the bath, because all the plates Winter had pushed off the table were gone. My bed had also been made from when I had slept in it last. There didn't seem to be any cameras or recording devices, but I double checked the place thoroughly just in case.

Winter wanted something from my father... but what? What could my father possibly have apart from money he wanted enough to kidnap me? And... What was he planning to do to me?

I decided to abandon my thoughts for that moment and instead sat down on the bed, running my hands over the covers, The pillow seemed surprisingly harder than it had been earlier. I sat up again and moved the pillow to see a book. Wildwood.

So, he wanted me to read. I couldn't help the smile that tugged at my lips as I turned all the lights off except for the torch on my bedside table and curled up under the blankets.

How did he know Wildwood was my favourite book?

How was I not freaking the fuck out about all of this?

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"Time to get up, Jace!" A voice said. I rolled over, groaning

"Five more minutes, Mum," I mumbled, putting my pillow over my head.

"Ha, that's cute," Something cold and metal snapped around my foot. "I'm not your mother."

I sat up instantly, looking down at the metal band on my ankle. Winter was sitting at the edge of my bed, watching me. He waved happily. "Hello, Jace. So, I was thinking today we could go for a walk and I could show you my house."

It wasn't a dream. I was still there. Winter was there in front of me, but... I didn't feel scared at all?

"Aren't you scared I'm going to run away?" I asked, genuinely curious.

He grinned. "I've thought about that. Now, instead of using boring old bouncers I have decided to let my dogs roam around outside. I know for a fact you're scared of dogs. You have a good reason to fear these ones. They'll attack anything I want. But that's just the outside area. There's plenty of room inside, so if you feel like running and hiding you're perfectly welcome. But see this?" He pointed at the metal band. "It's a tracker. So, you can hide all you want, but I'll always know where you are until I take this off," He dangled a key in front of me. I stared at it. "With this key!"

"If you have a tracker, what's the point of the dogs?" I asked.

"They needed a run," He admitted. I narrowed my eyes at him, wondering why the hell he was so damn extra. He pointed at the table. "Now, are you ready for breakfast? I have waffles."

"I... Uh... I need to get dressed," I said. He nodded.

"Yes, you can after breakfast. See, I'm in my pyjamas too," He stood up, so I could see he was dressed in a blue dressing gown, a pair of black tracksuit pants, and a big white shirt. "There's a dressing gown right there."

I picked up the dressing gown off the bedside table and pulled it on, hugging it tightly around me. "Can I... Uh. Can I have some breakfast?"

He grinned, nodding, and pulled out a chair for me. I sat down across from him, in the same place I had the night before. He drizzled maple syrup on his waffles and offered some to me. "You know, Jace," He said as we ate. "I think you're not as much of a brat as everyone seems to think you are."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, of course you don't know," He picked up a newspaper and held it out to me. "We've made the headlines."

I grabbed it and read the bold writing out loud. "Teen Tantrum Turns into Kidnapping. Sixteen-year-old-- they got my age wrong! I'm seventeen."

"Keep reading."

"Sixteen-year-old Jason Williams, son of billionaire and scientist Daniel Williams, disappeared after walking out of a family dinner. A ransom note was left in his place-- You left a note? What did it say?" I looked up at Winter. He smiled.

"Doesn't matter. Keep reading."

"'Kidnapping the boy must have been the work of a genius,' says chief of police--"

"That's me. I'm the genius!" Winter wriggled in excitement, clearly happy at being referred to as a 'genius,' and grabbed the newspaper back. "So, you should feel honoured. You're eating breakfast with a genius."

I rolled my eyes, but he didn't seem to be angry at my annoyance. "What else does it say about me?" I asked, watching the newspaper closely.

"Boring stuff. You done with breakfast?"

I nodded, pushing my plate away and standing up. "I'm going to go get dressed," I looked around. "Uh... where are my clothes?"

"Victor has some new ones for you," Winter pointed over at the door, where the man who had served us dinner last night was standing with some folded clothes. Winter leaned on his elbow and smiled lazily at me. "I chose them for you myself."

I was already scared to find out what he had chosen for me. Cringing, I took the clothes and walked into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me. There wasn't a lock.

I looked at the clothes. Black jeans, white shirt, black denim jacket, and some white sneakers. It was such a Me combination I began to wonder how long Winter had been watching me. I couldn't help but smile as I pulled the clothes on. First the book, then my favourite breakfast this morning, and now these clothes. It was like he already knew me.

Wasn't that kind of creepy?

But... He cared enough to find all these quirks about me that even my own parents didn't know. I found that... Nice, actually.

I was trying to fix my messy hair when Winter opened the door, dressed in the same outfit as last night except in black. He smiled when he saw me. "You look good," He decided. My stomach swooped, and I plastered an awkward smile on my face.

"Um. Thanks."

"Come on."

I followed him out the door.

Author's Note:

Winter: Go big or go home. Honestly, he's literally like that. Like, seriously, all he needed was a tracker but no, he's like "DOGS! DOGS EVERYWHERE! DO NOT QUESTION ME, THEY MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE JUST NEEDED A RUN!"

Fucking MOOD bro.

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Thanks for reading, my darlings!

Xoxoxo,

-Kai

<>THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN EDITED. THIS IS NOT FOR THE READERS, THIS IF FOR ME TO REMIND MY DUMB FUCKING SELF. THIS HAS BEEN EDITED, KAI!<>