Chapter 50: Connection.

HELENA Aaron's deep and comforting voice reverberated through the room. My shoulders fell, and I ran towards him. I hugged him tightly, and only then did I realize I was already crying. 'Shhhh…." He rubbed his fingers in circles on my back, while holding me by the waist. 'It's okay, they're gone." He whispered. I was trembling, clinging onto his shirt like my life depended on it. Eventually, I calmed down, and withdrew from his embrace. I sat on the bed, still clutching the bottle Luna gave me. 'Are they gonna keep coming?" I said, my voice barely a whisper. Aaron scooched over to me, and placed his palm on my arm. 'They will. But don't worry, I and Luna are here to protect you." 'If you'd stop being such a stubborn brat, we wouldn't have to deal with this." Luna's voice cut him off. I glanced at the door. She leaned on the frame, flicking a piece of bone off her fingers. 'This has nothing to do with being stubborn." Aaron retorted. He got up and walked towards the window, placing his hands in his pockets. He remained silent, just staring into the horizon. 'I don't want to go through that again." I muttered. 'Whatever you want to do, do it. Just….keep them away." I fidgeted with my trousers. I was still in my work clothes. I heard Aaron sigh deeply, and Luna came to sit with me. Her blue eyes pierced deeply into mine, and I felt comfort immediately. 'I will." Was all Aaron said, before walking out of the room. 'Are you okay?" Luna said the moment Aaron shut the door. She checked my arms and legs, searching for any sign of injuries. 'I'm fine." I adjusted my position on the bed. 'Are they gonna come back?" 'Not for now at least. But they're getting stronger." She said, sitting down beside me. 'Are you blaming Aaron?" The question left my lips before I could think. She glanced at me, then shook her head. 'I've been in his situation once, so I perfectly understand. But running away isn't the solution. He needs to face them. And he's putting you in a lot of danger." Sigh. 'There has to be a way. It's obvious he has a reason for not wanting to go back. Him coming here couldn't have been just an accident." Memories of the first night we met flashed through my head. 'Until he can find it, I'll keep hammering on my advice." A brief silence followed. 'Helena. I'm running out of time." Luna began, running her hands through her hair. I knew what she was talking about, but I wasn't ready. Yet. 'When do we start?" 'We need to tell Aaron first. I came up with a list of places the scroll is likely to be, but from your experience, it should be somewhere that's secluded enough. Not easily accessible." The Nook. The trap door. The storage room. One of those three places was likely to be it. I nodded, and made a mental note to check out those places later. Alone. 'Yeah. I have a few ideas. We can check it out when we're ready to go." I said, getting up. I gave her back the bottle and returned to my room. I took a hot shower and plopped on my bed. I didn't even have the appetite for bread anymore. That was a lie. By 12am, I tiptoed to the kitchen, trying to be as silent as possible. I was wearing a bra top and night trousers, and my hair was in a mess. I scanned the island. Squeaky clean. I decided to try the cabinet. Just cookies and Nutella. Where the hell was my bread? I was about to give up, when I caught a glimpse of brown beside the stove. Hehe. I steeled my steps, careful not to make a sound. I grabbed the paper bag, and took out the bread. Fresh coconut goodness wafted into my nose. I giggled with my prize and turned to return to my room when I crashed into a hard wall of muscles. 'Ow…." I scrunched my nose, and looked up slowly. The familiar scent… Oh no. Aaron towered over me, watching me with his signature smirk. His hair was wet, and the water dripped down in little drops down his face. I swallowed, and sucked in a breath. 'Why isn't this little human asleep?" His voice was like silk, smooth and tempting. Tempting????? Breathe. 'I wanted a snack. And I'm not little." I said quietly. He folded his arms. 'Well, you look little to me." He ruffled my hair. 'Being tall means nothing." I muttered. 'Being tall and strong, you mean." He added, clicking his fingers. Brushing past me, he grabbed a glass of water and looked at the paper bag I was holding. Then, he turned towards the stove, grabbing his own paper bag of chocolate bread. 'Cocky idiot." I muttered. 'Shall we?" He motioned towards the living room. I stood there confused for a second until my brain clicked. We both walked out of the kitchen, and settled on the couch in the living room. I tore open the paper bag, and began eating my bread immediately. 'Hey, you owe me that." Aaron said, swatting away the chunk of bread from my hand. I glared at him. 'I don't owe you anything. You cheated." I frowned, picking up the chunk and shoving it into my mouth. I chewed with defiance. He laughed, and my frown deepened. 'Once again, I didn't cheat. Cheating isn't in my vocabulary. It even sounds absurd." Those words had a deeper meaning that he probably thought. I had been cheated on, twice. Once by fate, and another by a certain human who shall not be named. Regardless of how many times I've seen him since then. 'Have you ever been cheated out of something?" I asked, taking another chunk of bread and shoving it into my mouth before he could react. He laughed, and took a bite out of his own. The living room was dark, with the kitchen being the only source of light. Aaron's eyes glowed brightly in the dark, and his fangs were visible. I had gotten used to seeing him like that, but this was…. too much. He looked like something straight out of a movie, or a fantasy novel. He glanced up at me, and my heart skipped. Who am I kidding? It always skipped, as long as he did as much as look in my direction. 'I've been cheated out of a lot of things." He said, his mouth filled with bread. He shut his eyes and munched, groaning at the taste. I frowned. 'What do you mean a lot of things?" I took another bite out of mine, still eyeing his. 'When I was nine, I was the fastest sprinter in my class. There was this kid, Hunter, who put laxatives in my orange juice just so that I wouldn't run properly on the day of the audition. He won the race that day, and became the leader of the team. I knew what he did, but kept mute till this day. I could find him, get revenge. I was nine. Mom said I should ‘let it go,' "he said, shrugging. 'How does a nine year old have access to laxatives?" I scrunched my eyebrows. It was absurd. 'His mom was a doctor." Shit. 'Oh." 'Yeah. I was furious." He laughed. 'But I guess that's part of the learning process. We don't always get what we want. And people will do anything to get what they want themselves." Deep. 'That must've been hard. Sorry you had to endure that, but it doesn't mean you're faster than I am." I said, matter-of-factly. 'Now who's being cocky?" He smiled, handing me a piece of chocolate bread. I stared at him in confusion, but I wanted to devour the pastry in front of me without hesitation. 'I'm not cocky. I just like to state facts. Um..can I?" I pointed at the half loaf of chocolate bread in my lap. He nudged me to go ahead, and I hurriedly tore off a piece. Gosh. I should have bought the chocolate bread instead. This wasn't fair at all. I focused all my attention on the bread that I didn't realize Aaron had been watching me the whole time. 'What?" I said, wiping off crumbs on my face. 'You're beautiful. I was only admiring." He said nonchalantly. '..." I was sure my face had gone full tomato now, and I was grateful for the dimly lit room. He got up, tossing his paper bag in the trash. He dashed into the kitchen, and returned a few moments later with two glasses of orange juice. Such a gentleman.