Page 25

I close my eyes and roll over on my side. The wind seems like it wants to take my misery away with it. But it can’t.
Damn it, it hurts. It aches like hell.
I want to see Emily, the girl who is brave enough to go inside my heart.
When she talks to me, I want to look into her eyes.
When I make her laugh, I want to see her lovely grin curve on her lips.
I want to see her angry face too.
But my eyes can only see one thing.
Darkness.
As I head to the kitchen to fill up Liam’s water jug, I think about what occurred with him yesterday. I felt like I nearly got to him. He’s slowly allowing me in, and all I want is to see the true, kind, altruistic man within him.
I also kept thinking about how intense it was while we danced.
I might have attempted to disguise it by being happy, but every time I was near him, my pulse raced.
I can see the real him behind that frigid exterior.
The man who cares so much about the people he loves.
The man who was ready to give up his life to save his young sister, even if he lost his sight while attempting to save her.
The man who is always upset because he can’t do anything to aid his sibling.
I fill the jug with water in the kitchen, then turn the corner and run into a guy’s chest.
He puts his hand over my mouth, and I almost scream. The jug of water slips out of my hands and shatters on the ground. He pulls me into another corridor, which is empty, and pushes me against the wall.
Arthur is looking down at me, and my eyes go big. He puts his finger over his mouth to tell me to be quiet. I don’t know what he’s going to do, but I can only nod so he can let me go. His eyes soften, and he gently lets go of his hand.
I ask, “What are you doing?”
After seeing my tattoo, no one would do that to me again, but I also know that Arthur is a kind person. I don’t think he’s going to hurt me.
“I left for weeks because they gave me a very lame job, and now that I’m back, all I can hear is everyone talking about you and Liam,” he adds, looking angry. “Is that real?”
“Do you know about my tattoo?” I ask him again.
He agrees. “I know. That’s crazy.”
I frown. I didn’t expect it to happen. The other members are scared of it.
“Did he think he could just claim you with a tattoo? With that kind of bullshit?” he shouts, and his face shows that he is getting angrier.
“I don’t think he did,” I respond. “He was just trying to keep me safe.”
Arthur’s expression shows disbelief. His eyes go big with surprise. “What did he do to you? Did you even hear yourself? Don’t you remember what kind of person he is? He’s a terrible person.”
I can’t believe how angry I feel after hearing Arthur say that.
“I’ve been living with him, and I think I know him better now,” I say. “We can’t judge how he feels unless we’ve been through something like it. I’m trying to help him get better.”
Arthur screams, “What the f**k does that mean?” I’m shocked that he’s so angry. He really looks like he’s about to blow up.
“Look, Emily.” He holds my shoulders and scares me. “I know you. I see myself when I see you. You’re not supposed to be here, Emily. And we’re not supposed to be like those people. We’re better than them.”
Arthur told me that he was stranded in this world because he was looking for his sibling. I still admire him since he didn’t allow his brother and Kelvin pick on me.
“Liam is a king here.” When he talks about Liam, it’s clear that he hates him. “But his heart is rotten. He doesn’t have one at all.”
“You don’t know his heart,” I respond firmly. “Nobody here is trying to understand him because he built walls around himself. He’s blind. He can’t see. How do you expect him to know everything and control everything around here? And his brother might be dying on a mission. Give him a break, Arthur.”
His expression shows even greater disbelief now. “I can’t believe I just heard that. The way you talked about him, it was like…” He’s speechless. “You can’t get too close to him. He’ll ruin you.”
My lips make a tiny line. Arthur talks about Liam in a way that I don’t like. Why does he dislike Liam so much?
Arthur hisses in anger, “I thought we were the same.” “I thought we both didn’t want to be a part of Eagle Wings, but then you got that tattoo—”
“It’s not about my tattoo,” I eventually yell at him.
He holds on to my shoulders tighter, and it aches.
“Arthur,” I hiss in anguish.
Arthur says between clenched teeth, “So the rumour is true.” “Are you really with him? You can’t be with a guy like him. He can’t see you, Emily. He can’t even see how beautiful you are. He won’t appreciate you or make you happy.”
I ask, “What do you mean by that?” since his comments upset me.
He rapidly swallows when he realises he made a mistake. “That’s not what I meant. Please listen to me, Emily.”
I can already feel him pulling me back as I see something move out of the corner of my eye. I turn my head quickly and see that Tera is gazing at us with wide eyes. Her face quickly goes from calm to worried and panicked.
Arthur looks at her and swears. “Shit.” He looks at me again and says firmly, “We’re not done. We’ll talk again later.” With that, he finally lets me go and walks down the hall.
I put my hand over my heart to attempt to calm it down. I guess I can only be friends with Arthur, the only other Eagle Wings member except Tera and her dad. But now that everything has happened, I don’t know if I can look at him without feeling something. I feel so bad since I could have just lost a friend.
Tera runs to me to see how I’m doing. Her face shows just worry.
I answer softly, “I’m okay.”
Tera hugs me to soothe me, and I sigh.
****
Days go by.
I haven’t seen Liam all evening, so I go down to the basement. Liam should have dinner by now. I wonder whether he’s lost track of time.
I push the door open and see him in the boxing ring. He’s working on it by himself. No one else is here. If it weren’t for us, the whole place would be empty.
I move closer to the ring and observe Liam. He moves so quickly and accurately in his martial arts. It seems like I’m seeing a magnificent piece of art being played in front of me, exactly like the first time I saw him.
He is as gorgeous as his lonely soul. If only he could see it for himself. If only he could be happy again.
Liam Carter is better than he believes he is and better than most of the people who live here.
He abruptly stops, which makes me think he can feel me moving.
He rotates his body to face me. “Why didn’t you stay in my room?”
I let out a sigh. I grin. Instead of answering him, I walk closer.
He takes hold of the rope on the side of the ring and jumps out. I grab his towel, which is in the corner of the ring, and meet him halfway.
I enquire in a puzzled tone, “How did you know it was me?”
He lets out a sigh. “I can tell by your footsteps that I know how you walk. I can’t be wrong.”