Aurora (#1)

t h i r t y - t h r e e

"Aurora." I whispered croakily. His head whipped up.

"What did you say?" He demanded.

"Aurora. That's my real name." I repeated, clearing my dry throat. Christian shot his arm out and handed me a cup of water.

"So you're saying you lied to us all?" He glared at me.

"I didn't lie. I just didn't tell you the whole truth." I shrugged.

"I fail to see the difference."

"Christian..."

"No Rori, Aurora, whatver the hell your name is. I like you, a lot. Hell I might even have fallen in love with you..."

"Christian, don't."

"No let me finish. I've fallen in love with YOU. Your personality, your character. I don't know about your future, and from what little you have told me, but it doesn't change the way I think about you. It doesn't change the way I feel about you. Pushing me away was wrong. I didn't understand it at first, but I have one hell of a step sister. Felicity made me realise you're worth a fight. I'm going to fight for you Rori. I'm going to fight. Just for once swallow your pride and let me take you out. Let me treat you the way you deserve."

"When did this happen?"

"I don't know. Somewhere between the first encounter with my dad and the Charity Ball. All I know is that I want you to be mine. I want you to be able to confide in me the way I confide in you. I want to be able to help you the way you helped me. If you hadn't entered my life the way you did, I think I would still hate my dad and he would still be working twenty-four seven. You've turrned my life around Rori. You've changed me. For the better. I haven't smoked since Thanksgiving, because every time I had the urge to pick up a joint or a cigarette your face popped up in my head and in that beautiful voice of yours, tell me to quit.

You're strong, the strongest person I know. But asking for help doesn't make you any weaker. It bruises your pride a little, but in the long run it'll help you. You should never be afraid to ask for help, especially not from me.

Sure I would never know what it feels like to have lived your life but you can make me understand. Please don't shut me out. Just please talk to me. I can bear it if you suffer in silence." He sighed deeply.

"We were coming back from my dance competition. I was excited that we had one first place and were going to nationals. We were all laughing and joking around when out of no where a huge lorry hurtled towards us. It was late and the road was narrow as we drove through a thunderstorm. My dad was blinded by the fog lights and lost control over the car. We ran off the side of the road and rolled down the bank into the river.

I think my dad died immediately but it was all a blur I can't really remember much of what happened. I was screaming for my mum, no it was my dad. I don't know. I was screaming and pulling at my seatbelt. The car quickly began filling up with water, it was already up to my waist. I saw my sister's head was snapped forward and lolling to one side, my mother had cracked her skull from the hit. Later, I found out her airbag didn't deploy because it was caught in the mechanism. The water had completely filled the car and by then I had accepted I'd die. I must have blacked out because I found myself in a hospital bed, orphaned and sister less.

We tried to contact my older brother who was fighting in Afghanistan when a few days after that I got the news that he was killed by an IED and that I would be put in the system. I had no family left so I had no other choice but to be put into foster care.

Being a teenager already no one was willing to adopt me, so I was shuttled between foster homes, some nicer than other. For four years of my life I had experienced things I couldn't imagine could happen.

The last foster home I went to was bad. Real bad. The 'dad' molested me because I was the oldest. He hit me and whipped me when I didn't comply. All the kids knew, they just couldn't do anything about it."

"Why didn't you tell the authorities?" he asked, appalled.

"I did, multiple times but in front of them he was the perfect dad so they didn't believe me. Eventually I found the courage to run away. I hitchhiked my way through America, keeping a low profile, with the money I had stolen from him. It wasn't much but I had saved up and put it in a bank account. I worked throughout the summer and while I was in the foster home, to get more money. And then I came here.

It was my dream to live in New York. When I was working in New Jersey, one of my co workers nephew was giving an exam for an elite school in New York. She encouraged me to do the same but I didn't have the money to pay for it. She pushed me till I finally did it and managed to get a full scholarship. The principle doesn't know about my situation because I didn't want her to report me to the authorities who would just send me back. So I just need to keep a low profile till I turn 18 and everything will be fine." I told him. Though my hasty didn't feel any lighter after telling him, I did feel some relief.

"I..."

"Give me your phone." I demanded. In a daze he handed me the device and I quickly typed a few words into the google search and turned the results page to him. On the missing persons page was a picture of me when I had longer light brown hair and a fuller face. I looked quite different. "They have a freaking missing persons page for me. But the reason he even reported me missing was because I brought him a lot of money because I was a teen."

"That bastard." He growled.

"You can say that again." I laughed bitterly.

"I'm going to kill him."

"Now what good would that be?" I rolled my eyes.

"Leave him be, he's not in my life anymore. I'm going to graduate and in going to major in law and I'm going to be happy." I told him. "I haven't let the past define who I am so far, so why should I bring it back. I'm where I need to be and I'm thankful each day for that."

"You're so beautiful you know that? Both inside and out. I couldn't haven't fallen in love with another person better than you." With that he kissed me, and I let him- for now.