Chapter 5 ~ Trapped
1080 Words
{Grace’s POV}
Sofia and I had returned to the apartment and there were mixed emotions in the air.
Meanwhile, the apartment looked even better inside. Which felt disrespectful somehow.
Dark wood floors. Modern furniture. broad fancy windows overlooking campus lights. Everything smelled clean and expensive.
Sofia was turning in a circle taking everything in.
“This is insane.”
“I know.”
“You are living with Damian Reyes!”
“When you say it out loud like that, it sounds like a hostage situation.”
She grabbed my shoulders tightly now. “Grace, listen to me very carefully.”
Oh no. Not the serious cousin voice.
“You got lucky earlier,” she whispered intensely. “What happened in that hall? That was insane. Nobody talks to Damian like that and walks away free!”
“But I’m still walking.”
“That’s not the point Grace!”
She tightened her grip. “Do NOT do anything stupid while you’re here.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“No, Grace, I’m serious. Nobody messes with Damian.”
“You’re being dramatic.”
“I’m being realistic!”
She looked around the apartment again before lowering her voice further.
“I feel like this is karma.”
I frowned. “What?”
“This is karma coming back for you.”
I stared at her. “For what?”
“For messing with the wrong person.” She said and I sighed. I was honestly tired of this.
The dude isn’t god.
“You’re trapped in his apartment now!” Sofia continued dramatically. “You challenged him publicly and now you live with him. This is how documentaries about missing people start.”
I snorted despite myself. “Calm down, sofia.”
“You don’t understand—”
“You need to start heading back to your room,” I interrupted gently. “It’s getting late.”
Sofia looked offended by the suggestion.
“I could stay instead.”
“What?”
“You could come stay at my place while I…”
She stopped speaking mid-sentence so I grew confused.
“Sofia?”
Nothing.
Her gaze had drifted past me toward the wall behind the kitchen. So I turned and saw the reason.
A giant framed sports poster of Damian hung there, shirtless with a basketball tucked under one arm.
Sofia stared at it like she was struggling not to run up to it.
“Oh my God,” I said as I forced my eyes off it. I promise I wasn’t looking at his body.
“Okay now you’re being weird.” I told her and she blinked rapidly.
“But look at those abs.”
I dragged her toward the door before she could start reciting poetry to the poster.
“It’s time to head home Sofia.” I said again as we reached the door. She hugged me then.
“I’m calling you tomorrow.”
“Alright.”
“Actually I’m calling you tonight.”
“Sofia.”
“Every hour maybe.”
“Sofia.”
She sighed before finally pulling away. “Please survive.”
“That’s not a question, Sofia.” I told her and then she cautioned me some more before finally leaving.
The apartment became painfully quiet after that.
I stood there alone for a moment with my luggage, then I looked down at them.
“Well,” I sighed. “At least I finally found somewhere to keep you guys.”
Silence.
Tough crowd.
Just then, movement sounded somewhere deeper in the apartment.
I looked up to see Damian step out from a hallway at the end of the room and I hated how much my eyes hesitated on him.
He was and I promise I wasn’t looking at his body. But life is genuinely unfair.
Because someone with a jerk attitude like him isn’t supposed to look this good. Or maybe he’s not always a jerk.
This was my conclusion but I was proven wrong almost immediately.
So… I guess this is it,” I said awkwardly now, breaking the silence.
“You and I don’t have to communicate.” He shut me down at once.
But I turned myself back up, completely ignoring him because I didn’t agree with what he just said.
I’m not a fan of malice. No one should be.
“Well, could you kindly assist me in carrying this bigger bag to my room?”
That was my attempt for peace but then—
“No.” Damien said. “I don’t do things like that,” his gaze dropped. “Or touch bags like that.”
— he chose chaos.
I grew a shocked expression immediately. “Are you trying to say I’m poor?”
He ignored my utterance. “Your room’s the second door on the left,” he said flatly instead… and then he motioned to throw the keys to me.
Panic immediately consumed me.
“Don’t throw it. I’m not good at—”
Too late.
The keys had left his hand and was making their way to me now at scary speed.
I lacked coordination and the velocity for this as my history suggests, but I tried to focus now.
Okay.
Focus.
I settled in a pose and assured myself I had human functionality.
And for one glorious second, I genuinely believed I was about to catch it.
Then somehow… somehow— I launched myself in the complete opposite direction.
My body hit the floor painfully while the key conveniently landed several feet away.
Silence.
I groaned into the carpet.
Maybe evolution had skipped me?
Slowly, painfully, I pushed myself upright to see Damian staring at me. Then slowly shake his head.
“And you were supposed to be my sister?”
Excuse me?
“That would’ve been a downgrade to my bloodline.”
My jaw dropped and I vocalized it now, “EXCUSE ME—”
But he was already walking toward the front door and would definitely leave before I got up.
Unbelievably rude.
I tried to get up to respond properly but he had already gotten to the door. And as he opened it, his shirt shifted slightly near his waist.
And there— tucked into the waistband of his jeans… was a gun.
Everything inside me froze.
Damian stepped outside and shut the door behind him.
Leaving me standing there alone.
Heart pounding.
Mind racing.
And suddenly realizing Sofia might not have been dramatic enough.
- Writer
