Hello Stranger

Chapter 19

I sat in the chair beside her bed and watched as she forced herself to stop crying. They were going to be taking her to prep her for surgery any minute so I didn't have much time. "Why didn't you tell us you aren't our parents, Bailey?" I ask. I could no longer call her mom because it just feels so foreign.

"We couldn't. But as you got older, I wanted to. You guys deserved to know!" Bailey responded.

I scoff, "Yet you never told us." My phone vibrated and I looked down to see a message from Asher.

Xavier picked me up. I'm staying at his again. I'll see you at school tomorrow.

Of course. I should've known he wouldn't wait.

"I was going to tell you. That's why I was at the house on Friday," Bailey answered pulling my gaze from my phone.

She had come and said she needed to tell me something important, but she left so I assumed it wasn't important. "You left."

"I wasn't supposed to be there. Robert didn't want you guys to know so I came back without him knowing. But he found out I had come," She explained.

"Who are our parents?" I ask boldly.

"I don't have enough time to answer the questions you're asking," Baily replies as doctors enter the room. "Go to our hideout. The answers you want are there. I promise." I say nothing more and exit the room to let the doctors do their job. 

Now, I had to go back to the boys' house but I wasn't exactly sure how to get there on my own. I didn't exactly want to either. I'd rather go to my house and stay there alone. As a matter of a fact, that's exactly what I plan to do. I put my phone on silent and I make my way back to my car once more and headed home.

* 

Not dreaming could mean many things. Among those things is sleeping bad, physical health problems, or mental health problems. But that's if it's chronic. I usually do dream. They're usually nightmares but they're still dreams. It's occasional that I don't dream. It feel like I'm floating in an empty pool of nothingness. Much like how I feel now. 

A loud thud pulls me from my dreamless sleep causing me to jolt up. It was silent. Was that me dreaming? Was I hearing things? Or was it real? Seconds later I heard footsteps coming up the stairs. My mind was telling me to run and hide, but my body was frozen in shock. My heart was bounding heavily in my chest as the footsteps got closer to my door. Then they stopped outside my door. I could see the shadow underneath the door. I held my breath hoping that they wouldn't come in if they didn't hear anything. But I was wrong, the door flung open.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" I yell out.

"So, you can't answer your phone?" He asks in response.

"Why the hell are you here?!" I yell again.

"Did you miss me saying you weren't answering your phone?" He looks at me in disbelief.

"Why are you in my house, and in my freaking room? Did you break down my door?" I was furious.

"You weren't answering your phone," He says irritably. "You're not suppose to be here."

"This. Is. My. House." I say slowly making sure he heard and understood what I was saying.

"It would've been nice to know you were here. Ellie was freaking out because she couldn't get a old of you," He says nonchalantly.

"I'm a big girl and I'm pretty sure it's okay for me to stay at my own house," I state. "Especially when the alternative is staying in a house with one or more deranged, hormonal teenage boys." Yes. It was directed specifically at him.

"You're not safe here," His voice had changed. He had spoken softer then he had moments before.

I groan, "I'm fine here. I can handle myself."

"Not against this," He says sternly. Okay, this boy's moods were all over the place and I can't keep up.

"Yet, none of you can tell me what it is that's making me unsafe," I say desperately hoping someone would give me some kind of answers. "Grayson I need to understand."

"Please, just trust me," Grayson begged.

I stood up tossing my blanket to the side and approached him. "Where has trusting anyone ever got me? All trusting has done for me was gotten me hurt and used. I don't trust you. Not when you're lying and keeping so many secrets. I don't trust any of you."

His eyes fell to my body and I remembered that I had changed into an oversized shirt with very short shorts underneath. My whole legs were revealed to him. His jaw tensed. "Andrea," He said through clenched teeth.

I took a step back. "Give me answers or get the hell out."

"I'm trying to but I can't," Grayson said. He looked just as desperate as I felt.

"Then, get out!" I yell.

"Andrea. Please -" Grayson started.

I interrupted him by saying, "No. I'm tired of the lies and the secrets. I just want time to think. Tell Ellie I'm fine and I'll call her when I'm ready. But right now I just can't."

Grayson hesitated and seemed as if he wanted to say something, but instead he left. Part of me felt relieved, but part of me was also sad. There's something about Grayson, he's different. He's intriguing and he makes me feel something. I'm just not sure what. I heard the front door shut. Maybe it wasn't really broken.

I plopped down on my bed with my thoughts running 100 miles per hour. My emotions were all over the place. Xavier lied for months. Joesph, Jackson, and Grayson all supposedly liked me. Asher was angry and hurt. Mom and Dad aren't actually Mom and Dad. Drew tried to talk to me at the party. Asher was in an accident. The people I thought were my parents were in a car accident not even two days later. And on top of that... I have a stupid history test tomorrow!!!

I let out a frustrated groan. I needed to get everything off my mind and only focus on the things I can control. Which right now only seems to be my history test tomorrow that I'm already prepared for.

Since there's nothing I can actually do to fix any of that, I needed a distraction. And I knew the perfect person to help distract me. I take out my phone and go to the messages.

Need a distraction. Meet and Viper?

Viper was one of the most exclusive clubs there is. I was lucky enough to make my way onto the VIP list but that's a story of it's own. The response was instant.

Yes. Be there in 15.

I threw my phone to the side and rummaged through my closet looking for the perfect dress to wear. I settled on a royal blue dress that ended mid-thigh and hung low at the top. It was revealing my petite waist. The dress itself hugged my body in all the right places. It was sure to draw attention. Not just from guys, but from both genders. I was sure of it. I threw on a pair of strappy black heels and ran a brush through my hair to let my natural curls show.

And just like that, I made my way to Viper. I took an Uber because I knew I'd be too drunk to drive myself home. If this goes as planned, I will be too drunk to worry about anything or remember anything.