#14. I'll

The silence in the room is loud enough to deafen a child. A pin would drop to the floor and everyone present would hear the sound of it dropping to the ground.

Justin stares at me in shock, and disbelief, unable to process what I just told him. In a split second, he's seething with anger and it feels like he might actually explode.

"You mean she did all that just because you wouldn't let her control you?" Justin's voice edged with tension, cuts through the silence, his fists clenched as he's still trying to contain his anger.

I fight to keep my emotions in check, knowing that once I let them surface, they might engulf me entirely.

I simply nod my head at him. He seems to notice my countenance and he sits down beside me. He turns to face and stretches out his hands to grab mine.

"Reina." He says, eyes filled with a deep depth of swirling emotions that pulls me in. "I honestly don't know what to feel right now."

He pauses, searching for words that can describe how he really feels. "I was wrong when I said you were strong. You're more than just strong, you're a fighter. You're unbelievably—" He falters, his grip on my hand tightening. "You're so incredible. You went through all that, and you're still here. That's all that really matters."

"I don't think words could describe how I feel right now. But Reina, I want you to know I'm always here." He holds my hand tighter and I find myself leaning closer towards him.

My thoughts were still guarded, though my stone-cold heart—or so I thought—was starting to beat again. And at that moment, every other thing didn't matter or make sense. I could only see him.

My head tells me I shouldn't, but my heart, reckless and yearning, goes for it. Little by little, I find myself leaning in closer, and our faces are just inches apart. The air between us crackles with an electric tension, a magnetic pull neither of us can resist. And a slight move from either of us and our lips would touch.

Not being able to hold back any longer, I do it. I kiss him. Time seems to freeze, and for a moment, He goes still, as surprised as I am and slowly he's recovering from the shock and his lips begin to move in sync with mine. His hands were warm and gentle, and his fingers tangled in the strands as if he couldn't resist the urge to touch me which sends shivers down my spine and it also felt as if he was reassuring me, telling me that I was safe in his embrace. A rush of desire courses through me and I respond by placing my hands on his neck and my fingers trace the contours of his neck, and I feel the rapid beat of his pulse beneath my touch.

With each passing second, the kiss deepens and my heart beats stronger and faster. I knew I was falling for him or maybe I'd already fallen for him. The barriers I had built around my heart were crumbling, and I welcomed it.

"Aha! I told you they would end up kissing."

"Whatever. Here's your five bucks."

Startled, we both pull away from each other and find Jade and Chris standing behind us.

"Great! I love you so much, man." Justin says sarcastically to Chris and makes his way to him.

Chris rolls his eyes "Chill. You both will get plenty of time to make out but for now, we have an outing to get to."

"Yeah. I mean we can't come all the way here for no reason." Jade adds

Still a bit embarrassed they walked in on us like that, I hurriedly make them leave my room and promise to get dressed so we could all leave.

Jade and Chris seem to be having a fun time teasing us because I hear Justin say "Quit teasing my girl, will you?"

They both go 'ooo' and I bite my lip to stop me from smiling widely. I hastily change out of my previous clothes into a new one and join them.

"I expected more, Reina." Jade sighs as soon as she lays her eyes on me "But thank Goodness you have me so we can work on that."

I stare at her dumbfoundedly and she seems to get the message and we proceed to leave the house.

***

I have no idea who would want me dead or who would want to break me so badly. I tried so hard to fight back, to escape death countless times, and still, it keeps coming back.

That laughter pierces through my soul as soon as he ends the call and walks towards me. A sense of foreboding grips me, making my stomach churn. The way he smiles sends shivers down my spine, and I feel sick to my core.

"Well, looks like you're leaving this world today," he says, his voice laced with sentimentality. "That's why I never had any friends, you know. The closest ones to us always hurt us the most."

And deep down, I wonder what he means.

He edges closer, and I find myself immobilized, drained of the strength to avoid his touch. My heart pounds in my chest as he slowly retrieves a menacing skinning knife from his trouser pocket. Fear washes over me, replacing the numbness that had enveloped my senses.

I lay on the ground, each breath a struggle, waiting for the inevitable, for the knife to come in contact with my skin and bring an end to it all. The anticipation is excruciating, and time seems to stand still.

But then, in this haunting moment, there is no searing pain as expected. Instead, a sharp sensation on my neck, intense but fleeting, leaves me bewildered. Before I can comprehend what had just happened, the deafening sound of a gunshot shatters the silence. Everything around me blurs and darkens.

In that final instant, as I slip into unconsciousness, I can't help but wonder who had fired that shot, and what fate awaited me on the other side of this darkness.