Chaotic (sequel to Psychotic)

Chapter 6

Harry still held me in his arms. Tenderly and securely, as if he believed what I had said was true and was afraid of it just as much as I was, wanted to keep me safe as much as I wanted him to. His body tightened as if he were shielding me from her. Like he was guarding me as if he thought she could stagger in at any second. But he didn't. That I could see in his eyes. 

His thumbs came up to my face which was inches from his, gingerly wiping away my tears. "Are you sure?" he asked me with a voice as soothing as the movement of his hands. I nodded. 

"Don't you believe me?" I demanded. 

"Of course I do," he whispered. Trying to calm me still, I'm sure.

"I believe you saw her . . . I just don't know if she was actually there." 

I looked at him in confusion, waiting for an explanation. She had been there, and my fear and worry had me frustrated. What was he going on about? 

"Rose, we only got out of there three days ago. That girl really shook you up, and she's not someone you can really get out of your head. Plus we've been running for days, you're tired and dehydrated and not to mention got hypothermia just this morning. Maybe you're just confused." 

"Are you calling me crazy?" I asked. I was still shaken up and the worry in my voice reflected it. 

"No, babe, of course not. All I'm saying is that maybe your fear of seeing us on the front cover of that article brought some memories back. Your mind was playing tricks on you and you thought you saw her, which is completely normal after everything we've been through these past few days." 

I sighed deeply. Maybe he was right. And I wanted to believe him, to excuse this as some trick of the mind. But she just seemed so real. 

"Plus, she's got screwed up legs. How could she have kept up with us all this time? She can only move half as fast as us, if that." 

I let out another sigh, discouraged at myself. He brought up a good point. It had just seem so there, like I felt it in my heart when it was rendered to stop and it my stomach when it started to churn. I had been undoubtedly afraid, and to see an image that clearly, that certainly, only to have it not even have been there brought about another fear; I was seeing things. 

"I guess you're right," I said in a voice that was relieved but also defeated. 

"Don't worry, Rose. We'll get some water and food and stay at a motel or something, rest up. Then tomorrow we'll be as good as new, yeah?" he asked. And I liked that he used "we" instead of "you," taking some of the pressure off of me, like he had seen her too. It reminded me that he was also tired and stressed, and that we were inevitably and completely in this together. 

"Yeah," I said. "That sounds good." 

"Good," he smiled, pressing a kiss to my cheek. And despite everything I got butterflies in my stomach. He had kissed me plenty of times, but rarely on the cheek. And each touch of his lips held the same blood-pumping electricity as the first. 

"I love you," I said out of the blue, but just needing to say it right then. His smile grew wider and those crinkles formed next to his eyes. 

"I love you too," he mumbled, kissing me on the lips this time. But after a few seconds my mind returned to the fact that we were still in a storage closet. So finally we decided to return to the lady holding our bags of groceries at the check out. 

We walked out of the small room at the back of the store in very aware, very awkward steps. Or least I did. All of these people had seen me have a breakdown just minutes ago, and I felt like they were all still eyeing me. They probably thought I was crazy. I just hoped it was only for that reason.