Chapter 25

   It's Friday, Officially the second week of my detention. The worst week of my life and the week I wish I could delete from my memory but it can never happen.

    Successful, I have ignored Devin and Xavier for the past two days. Good thing, we were asked to study extra hours on subjects we were not good at. Mine was history, so frustrating Mr. Caylord postponed the project because the majority of the class was not ready.

   That means, another time together with Nigel. The least I want is to keep getting his annoying and mischievous glance. I don't know how to put it but he seems more to me like Devin now with fresh bruises every day.

   After the nose bleeding and Neck bruises, Nigel came to school twice again this week with broken lips and a small cut on the nose. It's a huge surprise that I haven't heard much or seen anything about the video he threatened to post online. Sometimes, I would feel like asking him about it just to mock him and then I remember that he is not Xavier.

   For Xavier, I can push him to the wall, and yet he won't lay a finger on me, maybe I can say his father raised him well. At times, I would do things that I would kill myself if I wasn't me.

   It's indeed a huge surprise that I had been able to cope with Xavier for two days in the car. Our ride to school had been extremely silent, not even a smirk from him as he acts as if I wasn't in the same car with him.

   For what so ever reason I am yet to decide on, I wish Xavier would apologize. I wish he would change the fact that I saw him having sex with Eva and promise never to do it again. I wish he would apologize for touching another girl and stick only with me.

   But blah!

  I need to wake up and realize Xavier is my brother, half or not. The fact that I have some ill feelings for him doesn't mean I shouldn't wipe my tears and stand up from the bathroom floor I had been sitting for almost an hour.

    School won't come to me, I have to go to school, and just like every other day, I need to face my punishment. My parents haven't been in their best moods since I gave them the tip of my feelings and I don't blame them.

    Even my Dad, the step one actually. Many times, I would catch him fixing the toaster with the wrong tool just to have him lost in staring at my face. Mom hasn't been the best either, she had gone too lean and stressed out. She works too much, hides things too much, and spends so much time working on her makeup.

     Last night, I overheard her yelling and crying on phone and when I peeped, I saw dad hugging her. I know we have not been I great terms but seeing her crying to the point of having black eyes and covering them with makeup breaks my heart.

   At times, I wish I can just make everything better with the twinkle of an eye. Stepping out of the bathroom with my towel wrapped around my chest, I think all this is somehow connected to me like I haven't known well since I arrived in LA.

    Today I just don't feel like doing anything. All I want is to lay on my bed and cover my head with my favorite duvet. I don't want to see my secretive parent's faces, I don't want to see Xavier's handsome but yet betraying face, and I also don't want to see Devin's dark eyes, boring into the back of my head every second we spend in our detention classes.

   I just wish I could be the old Emilia that had nothing to worry about and not the one that keeps thinking about people that don't care about me.

    On reaching my bed, I decided to check the door to see if it is locked or open. On turning, my gaze locked with Xavier's.

   "I have been waiting for you to turn around for centuries," he said in pure satire.

   Slowly, I looked at him in grave silence for a while before holding the towel around my chest with my shaking hands. My head felt light as I looked at the open door and back at his face, I kept wondering what he might have done if the door was closed.

   His brown hair was neatly combed back. His shirt hugged him perfectly same as his matching faded jean trousers. His eyes were luring the same as his lips, tempting me! Wishing they would claim my lips even if it's just once.

   Piss off!

  I scoffed, turned back, and tried to somehow sneak my undies inside my clothes as I tried to take them to the bathroom. I refused to look at his face even when I heard the door close then noticed him walking close from the corner of my eyes.

   With my clothes pressed against my chest with my right hand, I held the handle of the bathroom door with my left and hesitated. I want to tell him things, tell him that I don't know why I feel so much for him and no longer literally hate him as my stepbrother. I knew all that would be a lot and more than I would be able to control later so I kept quiet.

   My heart skipped a beat and nearly exploded as I felt Xavier's warm palm on mine. The butterfly that had been trying to come out of my throat went back into my stomach and woke up the rest living in me. I felt the activeness of his touch, spreading like wide fire mixed with electricity.

    "Let go of me, Xavier" I forced myself to say "Xavier let go!"

   I tried to move my hand but his grip tightened, making me glare at his face.

   "I know you have feelings for me, Emily," Xavier said with a smirk on his face.

    For the next ten seconds, I found myself opening and closing my mouth like a goldfish. If not for the fate that I am afraid my towel would fall in of leaving it and my other hand is been held, I long to punch Xavier hard in the face.

    "I know you..." He hesitated for a few seconds "I know you lo-like me" he bite his lower lips.

   A small chuckle escaped my throat as I stared at him in disbelief and narrowed my gaze.

    "You are a clown," I said calmly at first "A freaking clown" I moved a step closer and glared at him, our breath fanning each other's faces but I don't care at this point "I hate you with pass-"

    I felt been dragged as my lips smashed against Xavier hard, hard enough to draw blood. One of his hands was on my waist while the other was at the back of my head, restricting me from moving back. Slowly, I became calm and did what no one might have expected...I kissed him back.

    I relaxed in his grip while Xavier did his wonders. His hands left the back of my waist to cup my bare but beneath my towel, as a faint groan escaped his throat driving me crazy.

   I am literally crazy! My eyes went wide as I pulled away and did the next thing that came into my mind. I slapped him.

    Xavier didn't move. His gaze was fixed on my lips as he sucked his. His eyes were still dark with want as he moved closer but I moved back and made sure to slap him again, this time hard.

   "You can slap me all you want," Xavier said "I know you have feelings for me"

   "Go to hell with your feelings," I said in midst of tears with my teeth clenched and fist also clenched by my left side "In your dreams!" I added.

    "Then why did you kiss me back?"

Huh?

  "You heard me" Xavier moved back as his fingers moved into his hair "Why did you fucking kiss me back?" He raised his voice "You can't just go ahead and toy with my feelings be-"

   "Toy with your feelings?" My brows connected "Do you ever listen to yourself?" I held my clothes and towel firm on my chest and moved a step toward him "You have been the one toying with my feelings and even went ahead to do whatever with Eva!"

    I saw Xavier's Adam Apple move as he swallowed nervously. His tongue ran over his lips before he moved back his covering his face with his left palm and clearing his throat.

   "Emily, I can explain," He said calmly "I tried to explain but you have been ignoring me, Emily" he paused for a few seconds "Do you have any idea of what you are doing to me?"

   Although I could see something different in his eyes but yet, I told myself that looks a lie.

   "I know" I scoffed "Giving you enough time to screw as many vaginal as you want" I added, nodding like I understood what I am even saying "So you can maybe have sex with many more of them and add me to the line"

   "You don't want to say that!" Xavier shook his head "I did whatever I do because i-"

    The door burst open. Normally, I won't have expected my parents until I scream for help to my stepfather before he shows up. And I also didn't think they would be another person, a familiar face for that matter.

   The familiarity was too much that I dropped my clothes. Good thing my towel was tight because I won't have known what to do if it had fallen.

   "Emilia Johnson" the third person smiled broadly.

    I still couldn't believe my eyes.

   "Daddy?" I gasped.

   My real Daddy! My birth Father is here after all these years, more than seven years.