13. Chapter Thirteen
”Connor, you”re gonna kill us if you keep driving so fast!” Ignoring my shouts, he continues driving recklessly, swerving through the other cars on the main road, trying to get us home as quickly as he possibly can.
I”d stood frozen for a few minutes after Ryker told me he”d be staying with his mum until the twins rushed out and hurried me into the car.
”My poor baby is gonna need new tyres after this.”
I roll my eyes at Callum. He”s the one who let Connor drive, knowing he”d most likely get us back home before our dad got there,. He can’t really complain if his tyres or anything else on his car ends up fucked.
Connor spins the wheel and takes the turning at a worryingly fast pace. We’re only a few minutes from home now.
Surely, we”ve got here first.
”You two jump out as soon as we get in the driveway and get into one of your rooms. I”ll park the car in the garage.” My stomach churns. I know Connor”s saying that because he”d rather get caught by himself and for us two to be safe but I”d much prefer if he didn”t put himself in danger.
”No, Con, you come with us.” Connor’s already shaking his head at Callum before he”s finished his sentence.
”If the car’s in the driveway, he”s more likely to check it. It needs to go in the garage.” He takes another turn and then we’re whizzing up our street.
We shoot past Jasmine”s house and I peer out the window, watching it pass, wondering if Ryker is there at this very moment. I want to see him, I want to talk but I also want the comfort and safety he used to make me feel whenever I was wrapped up in his arms.
The tires screech as Connor pulls to a stop in the driveway.
”Out!” Both Callum and I jump from the car as quickly as possible and then Connor peels away from us towards the garage that’s at the side of the house.
Callum grabs my wrist and we run to the front door, unlocking it as quickly as my shaking hands allow me to. We burst through the front door before slamming it shut. My chest is rising rapidly and my stomach twists with worry.
I rush towards the stairs with Callum hot on my heels. As we reach the top, the front door bangs open. My body freezes and Callum bumps into my back, not realising I”ve stopped in front of him.
“It’s just Connor, no need to worry.” He gently pushes me in the direction of my room, urging me to unglue my feet from the floor.
Once I’m safely locked away in my room, my pulse starts to return to its normal rhythm and all the anxiety flows out of my body. I yawn as I start stripping off my clothes, realising that today has taken its toll on me. I’m drained, but I know I’m still bound to struggle with sleep tonight.
- Kat created a group chat -
Kat:
Why am I hearing about Callie and Nate”s kiss just now? Also why tf am I being told by fuckface out of all people?!
Brad:
I”m fuckface btw
Connor:
Are you serious rn. Why am I in this?
Callum:
I think we”re gonna be adding another person to this group chat soon
Kat:
Who? What have I missed now?
Also, I”m still waiting for a reply Callie!!
Brad:
Are you talking about that sexy hunk that Callie was with in the carpark?
Brad:
He”s a God! He had me almost drooling. Seriously considered being gay for that man until I realised that he liked my girl
Nate:
Wait, who are you on about?
I groan reading through the texts that are making my phone buzz incessantly like a goddamn vibrator.
I regret suggesting that we add each other’s numbers the other day while we were at lunch. After getting changed and lying in the comfort of my bed, I was enjoying reading an eBook when my phone started up. It’s only been about twenty minutes since we got home.
My phone then starts ringing and I groan again, seeing that it”s Kat.
”Hey, Kat.”
”What happened tonight with my brother? Why didn”t I see you at the bloody warehouse? Also, who is this sexy hunk that Brad”s talking about? I thought we were becoming best friends, Callie. Why don”t I know anything?” I can”t help but chuckle at her rambling.
”Kat, chill. I was going to talk to you about it all tomorrow, considering we were going to plan something. Also, I didn”t know you wanted to know about me and Nate. I wouldn”t want someone to tell me if Connor or Callum had been kissing them and then almost-”
”Okay, yeah, this was a mistake. Don”t ever tell me anything involving my brother. I think I almost just threw up imagining what you might”ve finished that sentence with.” I laugh again, glad she interrupted me before I finished that statement and had to explain what really went down with Nate.
”Anyway, that”s not what I was curious about. Who”s this guy that Brad was on about?”
”Sooo, you know we were talking the other day about that one guy.”
”Oh my god!” I have to pull the phone away from my ear because of how loudly she screams. ”He”s back? When and how?” I pick at the fluff on my duvet as I debate what I should say in response to her questions. As we sit in silence for a few moments, I hear a faint tapping noise.
”One second, Kat.”
I eye my bedroom door, waiting for the tapping to start again.
My head swings around to face the bathroom when the noise starts again. Someone”s tapping on my bathroom window, and I have no doubt about who it is, and my heart flutters in my chest.
”Kat, I”ll explain everything tomorrow, I promise. I need to go. If I don”t reply to you in the next few hours, tell Connor and Callum I was with Ryker.” I hang up before she can reply and then I slowly climb out of my bed and tiptoe over to the bathroom door.
As I push the door to the bathroom open, the tapping noise grows louder.
I stare at the window for a few moments, not sure what to do. I know that we need to talk about everything, but I don”t think I”m ready for it.
I want to know where he”s been and why he didn”t contact me in the past two years but I also know that if Ryker has me alone, he”ll realise that I”m different. He”ll pry the information out of me and I know for a fact that when he learns about how bad my father and Cameron have got and when he learns about Fraser, he”ll blame himself.
He”ll also be furious and probably end up doing something stupid that will get us all in shit. I also feel guilty because of what happened with Nate tonight, which I know is ridiculous.
”Callie, I know you”re there. Open up, please.” His voice is muffled through the glass, but his words are pleading and soft, they kick me into action and I walk over and open the window.
He”s clinging onto the drainpipe and has one leg outstretched behind him where his foot is balanced on a branch from the tree. This was how Ryker used to always sneak into my house.
”Can you let me in please, Pretty Girl?” I step back and watch him expertly climb through my window.
Once both feet are on the floor, he pulls the window closed and then turns to face me. His hair is a mess as if he”s been running his fingers through it for hours, wearing black jogging bottoms with a black zipped-up jumper that moulds to his muscular arms.
”I thought we should talk. I don”t want to wait any longer. Put on a coat and some shoes, and let”s go back to my Mum’s. I don”t want your dad to know I”m here.”
I nod quickly and then rush into my room. I”m glad to be wearing a long-sleeved top and some leggings because if I was in my normal tank and sleep shorts, Ryker would”ve seen all the added cuts and scars on my body that weren”t there the last time he was in my life.
I rush to get dressed and then join him in the bathroom. He takes in the coat and shoes I shoved on before turning back to the window and climbing out, waiting for me to do the same.
”Don”t stare at my ass, Ryk, and don”t touch it either when you”re helping me down.” He chuckles softly.
”I can”t promise anything.”
Kat:
I think Callie”s being kidnapped!
Or something”s going on… idk
Connor:
WHAT?
Kat:
I”m not sure. She hung up on me about 5 mins ago and said if she doesn”t reply within a few hours then I need to tell you guys she was with Ryker
Brad:
Naa, she”s not kidnapped. She”s just gone to get some dick from a very sexy man.
Callum:
I can see her sneaking out of the house now, she”s fine and I”m assuming she”s going to Ryker”s.
Nate:
Who tf is Ryker?
Why do I not know anything?
Brad:
Aww, don”t be jealous Nate. She still likes you but this guy is just out of this world, if he fucks as good as he looks then maybe we should be a little worried... Okay, now I”m worried
Connor:
Jesus Christ.
- Connor left the chat -
- Brad added Connor to the chat -
- Connor left the chat -
- Callum added Connor to the chat -
Connor:
FFS
Walking into the outhouse that Ryker’s staying in has my heart pumping fiercely and my thoughts whizzing around at a mile a minute trying to figure out how this conversation is going to go.
Ryker closes the door behind me as I observe the interior. The leather sofa against the wall is new but identical to the last one. The bed is still in the middle of the room with rumpled sheets and the set of drawers on either side are still the same. From what I can see through the open door, the bathroom hasn’t changed either.
“Are you thinking about the last time we were here?” I blush almost immediately and my eyes dart over to Ryker, he’s got a cheeky smile spread across his face. I scoff, rolling my eyes at him and walk over to sit on the sofa.
“What’s up, Callie? What’s going on in your head?” I look up at him and raise my eyebrow in question.
He chuckles lightly and comes over to sit with me. “I can tell that something’s going on with you.”
Giving him an incredulous look, I ask, “How exactly do you know that?”
He reaches his hand up to my face, smoothing his thumb over my forehead and then letting it drop to my lips before pulling his hand back down and placing it on my knee.
“I may not have seen you for a while, but when I was with you, I studied every little thing about you for years. Whenever something”s playing on your mind, you get these little creases on your forehead from your eyebrows being slightly drawn down. It’s almost unnoticeable really. Your lips twitch every now and then when your mind is trying to sort through everything because you get the urge to bite the inside of your cheeks, but you refrain from doing it.” As he rambles on about how I also pick at the skin on my fingers, like I’m doing right this second, I can’t help but stare back at him in awe.
“So, what’s going on, Callie? Talk to me.” I look down to see his hand still resting on my knee, his thumb rubbing back and forth.
I nibble on my bottom lip, wondering how to tell him about what’s been playing on my mind. He squeezes my leg gently in an encouraging manner. I take a deep breath and place my hand on top of his. He turns his hand over and interlocks our fingers together.
“I almost let a guy called Nate finger me earlier…” I look up nervously to see his reaction to what I’ve just said. He stares at me with a blank face, his eyes swimming with humour. He nods at me in a way to tell me to carry on talking.
“I stopped it before he could even really start it though because I panicked.” The humour from his eyes disappears in an instant and he shuffles slightly closer to me.
“Why’d you panic? What did he do?” I look back down at our entwined hands and mull over the information in my head for a minute.
If there’s anyone that I can comfortably talk to about the abuse, it’s Ryker. He’s always been my rock, and he’s always made me feel safe and comfortable, no matter what. I’m just worried about how he’s going to take everything.
“Nate didn’t do anything, I promise. He’s a great guy. It had nothing to do with Nate as to why I panicked.” His brows furrow. I take another deep breath and then untangle our hands before standing up and pacing around, walking to the bed and then back to the sofa.
“A lot has changed since you’ve been gone, Ryker.” I stop and sit on the bed before I look over at him. “I didn’t tell you about something before you left.” His head tips to the side, concern evident on his face. He stands from the sofa and comes to crouch in front of me.
“What didn’t you tell me?” My eyes fill with tears, knowing he’s going to hate everything that I’m about to tell him.