Quarantine

Chapter Eight

In the end I decided on a light wash dungaree dress with a white crop top underneath completing the look with pumps.

So far, I have the dress on but it's hanging around my hips as I've yet to put the top on. I'm just about to when I hear Hero say my name.

I instantly stop what I'm doing and freeze with my arms still in the short sleeves of the top that I'm trying to put on.

Please don't walk in...

"Yeah?!" I yell over my shoulder.

"Are we ready?" He calls from the same distance.

Whew, thank goodness.

"Um.. Nearly!" I answer loud enough for him to hear whilst struggling to connect the hooks.

Grabbing my phone from off charge, I give myself a quick spritz of perfume before closing the door to my room and heading along the landing before finally descending the stairs.

Hero's at the bottom, and for some reason he's giving me the strangest look.

"What's wrong?" I say, slowing my descent until I come to a complete stop, still holding onto the banister.

"Nothing, you look.. Nevermind." He looks away and turns and as he does so, I hear a jingling sound.

"What are those?" I ask, narrowing my eyes.

"Keys, Jo. They are keys." He says sarcasm thick in his voice as he turns to re-face me.

"Aren't you familiar? They come in all different shapes and sizes and are made from various different types of metal.."

I hold my hand up to stop him.

"I know what they are!" I snap. "But I also know what they're for, too." I shoot him an accusing and disapproving look.

"What?" He shrugs. "It's only sitting there gathering dust.. Which should be illegal." He scoffs.

"For a reason!" I interject, not liking where this is going. "Hero, if Anna found out.."

"Are you going to tell her?" He interrupts.

"I might?" I falter, making it perfectly honest that I won't, causing a big grin to erupt across his face, dimples and all.

"No! Hero.. We can't." I try my best to sound authoritative.

"Okay Tess, calm down." He mocks.

"Hero?! That's not funny."

"Don't act like her then!" He shrugs, his smile disappearing altogether now.

"I'm not." I frown.

"I beg to differ, anyway, come on let's go."

"No." I fold my arms assertively.

"Fine." He shrugs, placing the keys in his back pocket and heading straight for me.

"Hero.. What are you?.." I finish my sentence with a soft scream as he grabs me and places me over his shoulder.

"Hero!" I yell, trying to cover myself where the dress has ridden up.

"Don't worry about it, I can't see anything. Besides, I've seen it all before, remember?" He adds.

"No, you haven't." I hiss.

"..That's what you think."

By the time we've reached the garage I have given up flaying my legs up and down and just accepted the fact that I've met my match, he's too strong for me.

Somehow, he manages to unlock the door with one hand before literally putting me in the car and leaning over to do my belt, too.

"I can do it myself, thankyou." I snap, his face merely inches from mine.

He lingers for a moment, looking at me carefully.

"Fine." He finally says before removing himself from my side of the car and jogging round to the other.

"I hope your belt is on." He smiles to himself without bothering to look at me.

I ignore him, folding my arms and trying to distract myself with something else to stop my disapproving thoughts and worries.

"Not going to talk? Okay. I fancied listening to some music anyway." He shrugs, fiddling with the dial on the radio.

"So many things could go wrong hero!" I tell him, making him jump at my random outburst.

"Or, Jo, they could go right. Had you thought about that?"

"We could crash!" I say dramatically.

"We might not." He calmly counters.

"Someone could see us?!" I lower my voice trying to get through to him.

"Unlikely." He shrugs.

"I'm just saying.."

"..As am I."

"Argh, Hero! Stop." I yell.

He brings the car to a complete halt, white smoke  catches up and heads straight past my window matching our previous speed and causing me to cough and do up my window before shooting him a look.

"What? You said stop." He grins.

"I meant figuratively!" I tell him between coughs.

"Next time, specify. He smirks before putting the car into gear more roughly than ever and putting his foot down.

When he finally slows a little to a speed I approve of, I tell him "I want to get out."

"Not yet."

Well at least he didn't say no.

"Then When?" I demand to know.

"Soon, we are almost there."