The Exchange

Chapter 31- Angel Gabriel

Sasha stumbled around the side of the house, walking away from the crowd of people. A small path of stones crunched underfoot as she reached the front doorway and she sighed a breath of relief after realising that there was no one about. Her heartbeat drummed loudly in her ears, threatening to explode in her chest. Reaching an empty space, she slid down the wall allowing her head to fall into her hands.

So she'd admitted defeat once more.

Why did it always seem to go the same way with Julien? Those similar patterns repeating again and again leaving her feeling detached and clueless? One second Sasha would feel secure in where they stood with each other, content that they were still on the same page, and then the next everything would come crashing down.

Fighting for someone she had started to care about was hard. She hadn't been in battle before, and the armour felt heavy around her heart. This weight that changed her thought process completely, so she no longer just considered herself.

She cursed. Why couldn't she be what people desired? Why couldn't she be the one that stuck in peoples heads, like Julien was in hers?

This door that he had opened and led Sasha through, welcoming her to a new, euphoric land, was both wonderful and terrifying. The way he touched her and looked at her was startling. It stirred something within that she didn't realise existed. A pleasure that felt wrong but at the same time so right. Could she have really suppressed her sexuality that much? Was there no hope?

Sasha rubbed her forehead with hard fingers pushing her skin together and causing lines of worry.

"Hey are you okay?", a northen voice asked from above. Sasha glanced up sharply attempting to place whoever the person was that had intruded on her moment alone.

Standing on the garden path, a little way to her right, was the tawny-haired boy from the exchanges party.

Gabriel. The boy who had been sweet to her when Julien decided to act like a complete asshole.

Shocked at his sudden arrival, Sasha's eyes widened even further as she took in the bright yellow uniorm he was wearing and the concerned expression on his face. 

Clearing her throat, she attempted to find her voice, "Oh hi, what are you doing here?"

Gabriel gave her an amused smile before pointing to his eye-catching clothing, "Delivering pizza's. You don't think I purposfully choose to dress like a mustard bottle do you? I know my fashion sense isn't great but I can promise you that it's not this dreadful!"

Sasha giggled, agreeing that his outfit was beyond ridiculous. It looked comical, as though he'd just stepped out of a cartoon and was about to break into a slapstick routine.

"It suits you", she teased, "And at least now you're hard to miss".

"Didn't your mother tell you never to lie", Gabriel scoffed, rolling his eyes at her sarcasm.

With a small smile playing at her lips, Sasha averted her gaze back to her feet. She sighed as her mind wandered back to Julien and what he was possibly doing at the party. She wondered whether he'd even noticed her disappearance, picturing Cass rubbing herself all over him like a cat  when they mark you with their scent.
 
Gabriel studied her skeptically, "So Sasha, what are you doing here?". His words were soft and sympathetic and hit deep inside of her causing her throat to clench. He was right, what was she doing here? Hiding away again as though she were a little mouse.

She shrugged, attempting to play off the wave of emotion that was slowly rising inside of her.

"Well if you hadn't noticed there's a party going on. I just came along for the ride", she joked, but her voice cracked.