**✨ CHAPTER 9 — The Boy Who Found Her
1587 Words
**✨ CHAPTER 9 — The Boy Who Found Her
Elias didn’t rush her.
He didn’t push.
He didn’t lecture.
He didn’t demand explanations.
He simply wrapped his jacket around her shoulders and held her hand gently as he helped her stand. Amani hadn’t spoken a word since leaning into him, and Elias treated her silence like something sacred.
The walk out of the cemetery felt unreal, like stepping out of a dream she had been trapped in for a week. The wind was cool, brushing against her face, grounding her. She clutched Elias’s jacket like it was the only thing keeping her from falling apart.
When they reached the main road, Elias stopped.
“Amani…” he said softly, brushing back a strand of hair from her face. “I’m taking you somewhere safe.”
She looked up, uncertain. “Where?”
“My house.”
Her heart fluttered in panic. “No—I can’t—your parents—”
“They’re not home,” Elias said gently. “And even if they were… I wouldn’t leave you alone. Not again.”
Amani swallowed, trembling. She had never been in a rich house before. She had never dared to imagine stepping into Elias Black’s world. But the way he looked at her—with fear, with relief, with something dangerously close to affection—made her trust him.
She nodded.
Elias released a breath he didn’t know he was holding.
“Okay,” he whispered. “Come on.”
---
A House of Light
Elias’s home wasn’t just big—it was beautiful.
The gate slid open silently as they approached, revealing a long driveway lined with tall pine trees. The two-story house at the end looked like a modern painting: glass walls, white stone, soft lights glowing from inside.
Amani froze at the entrance.
“I… I don’t belong here.”
Elias turned to her, gently tilting her chin upward.
“Amani. You belong wherever you choose to be. And right now… I want you here.”
Her throat tightened.
He opened the door for her, and the warm air inside wrapped around her like a hug. The house smelled like vanilla and cedar wood. Expensive, calm, safe.
Elias didn’t let go of her hand until they reached the living room. He placed his bag down and turned to her immediately.
“Sit,” he said softly. “You haven’t eaten in days. Let me get you something.”
Amani sat on the couch silently, watching him hurry into the kitchen. It felt strange seeing Elias—rich, confident, feared Elias—moving around nervously like he was terrified of failing.
He returned with a warm plate of food and a glass of water.
“I didn’t know what you’d want,” he murmured, cheeks faintly pink. “So I made something simple.”
Amani stared at the food. Her eyes burned.
“Nobody has cooked for me since… since Grandma.”
Elias froze.
Then he sat beside her and gently pressed the plate into her hands.
“You deserve people who take care of you, Amani.”
Her hands trembled as she took the first bite.
She ate slowly, like she didn’t want him to see how hungry she was.
But Elias noticed everything.
---
“Why did you leave?”
After she finished, the silence between them thickened. Amani stared at the empty plate in her lap, unable to meet his eyes.
Elias spoke first.
“Why did you disappear?”
Amani’s breath shook. “I… I couldn’t breathe. After the fight. After seeing Ethan. Everything came back.”
Elias’s jaw tightened. “He said something to you at Luka’s party. Something that scared you.”
Amani nodded, voice small. “He… he whispered things only the boy who hurt me would know.”
Elias’s blood froze.
“And you’re sure?” he whispered.
She nodded again.
Elias’s eyes darkened, and the edge of violence flashed across his expression. But then he saw her trembling hands, and he forced himself to breathe.
“Amani,” he said gently, “you can tell me anything. Anything.”
Her voice cracked. “I told people before. They didn’t believe me.”
“I’m not people,” Elias whispered fiercely. “I’m me.”
Amani looked up slowly.
His eyes were steady.
Sure.
Protective.
No judgment.
No pity.
Just… Elias.
Something inside her softened.
Finally—finally—she let herself speak.
“My first year of high school… I liked a boy.”
Her voice shook.
“He was popular. Handsome. My first crush.”
She paused, swallowing hard.
Elias listened without interrupting.
“One day he called me to the empty music room. I thought—”
She stopped.
“I thought he liked me too.”
Her breath hitched.
“But he didn’t. He just wanted to use me and when I refuse he force me and r**e . And when I told my mother, she didn’t believe me. Nobody did. They said a poor girl like me was lucky a rich boy even looked at me.”
Amani’s voice cracked into a whisper.
“They blamed me.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks. Elias moved closer, his hand hovering near hers.
“Amani…” he whispered.
“I ran away to Grandma’s. But she died. And now I’m back here, facing the same people who destroyed my life.”
Elias gently took her hand. She didn’t pull away.
“You’re not alone anymore,” he said quietly. “Not while I’m breathing.”
Her tears fell harder.
---
A Knock at the Door
They sat in silence for a long moment. The air felt fragile, but warm.
Then—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Amani stiffened in fear.
Elias stood immediately, his expression turning cold and dangerous.
“Stay here.”
He walked toward the door—but paused halfway, turning back to give her a reassuring look.
“I’m right here, Sunshine.”
Amani’s heart thumped painfully at the nickname.
He opened the door.
“About damn time!” Zariah’s voice burst through. “Where have you been? The whole school thinks—”
She stopped when she saw Amani sitting on the couch.
“Oh my God.”
Zariah rushed over, kneeling beside her. “Amani, we’ve been going crazy. Are you okay?”
Amani nodded weakly.
Zariah turned to Elias, eyes sharp. “And you didn’t even text me you found her?!”
Elias shrugged. “I was busy panicking.”
Amani almost smiled.
Zariah softened. “Come home with me tonight. You can rest. Elias can walk you—”
But Amani shook her head slowly.
“I… I want to stay.”
Zariah blinked. “Here? With Elias?”
Amani looked down. “I feel safe here.”
Elias froze mid-breath.
Zariah’s eyes widened, then she sighed dramatically.
“Fine. But text me if he faints. He’s been dramatic all week.”
Elias frowned. “Zariah—”
“Goodnight, lovebirds,” she teased, waving as she left.
Amani’s cheeks flushed.
Elias pretended not to notice.
---
The Storm Outside
It rained that night.
Heavy, loud, relentless.
Amani sat on the living room floor, wrapped in Elias’s jacket, watching the rain on the glass wall. Thunder rolled across the sky.
Elias approached quietly.
“Do storms scare you?”
She shook her head. “Just… memories.”
He hesitated. “Would you like some company?”
Amani nodded, so faintly he barely saw it.
Elias sat beside her, their shoulders touching. The warmth of his body grounded her. His scent—fresh, warm, comforting—wrapped around her like a blanket.
The rain hit the glass harder.
Amani whispered, “Do you think I’ll ever be normal again?”
Elias turned to her.
“You’re not meant to be normal,” he said softly. “You’re meant to be extraordinary.”
Amani’s heart skipped.
He continued, voice low and sincere:
“What happened to you wasn’t your fault.
It doesn’t define you.
And it doesn’t make you broken.”
She inhaled shakily.
“You make it sound so easy.”
Elias smiled, barely. “It’s not. But I’ll help you. Every step.”
Warmth filled her chest.
Dangerous, hopeful, terrifying warmth.
“Why do you care so much?” she whispered.
Elias paused.
His eyes softened.
His voice dropped to a whisper.
“Because somewhere along the way… I started falling for you.”
Amani’s breath caught.
The storm outside roared.
But inside Elias’s home, everything became still.
“I don’t expect you to feel the same,” he added quickly. “You’ve been hurt, and I’m not rushing anything. But you need to know this—”
He gently tucked a curl behind her ear.
“I’m here.
No matter how dark it gets.
No matter who comes after you.
No matter what Ethan tries.”
Amani closed her eyes, a tear slipping down her cheek.
Elias wiped it gently.
And for the first time in a long time…
Amani felt something fragile and new blooming inside her.
Hope.
---
But outside the house… darkness moved.
Ethan Kelvin stood in the rain across the street, soaked, furious, watching Elias’s house through clenched teeth.
“Amani…” he whispered, rage twisting his face.
“She’s back. And she’s with him.”
His grip tightened on the fence until his knuckles went white.
“This isn’t over.”
Lightning flashed across the sky.
And Ethan disappeared into the darkness.
- Writer
