Chapter 2
1627 Words
CLEO DAWSON
I spent the next couple of hours in the library doing nothing but staring into space.
Sophia and I had absolutely no plans on studying together hence she had returned back to her dorm. Even she hadn’t, I couldn’t call her to study with me when I was supposed to heading home simply because I wasn’t ready to face Johnny and go home with him.
I glanced at the wall clock occasionally, hoping the hands of the clock would move any slower. I wasn’t ready to go home. I wasn’t ready to sit with Johnny in the same car or sit on a table with a bunch of people I didn’t know.
I couldn’t run away from it though. At least, not for forever as the second the hands of the clock hit 12, signalling it was 6pm already, my phone burst out ringing, signifying a call from Johnny.
“Where are you? I’ll come pick you up so we can leave.”
Reluctantly, I told him where I was and immediately grabbed my bag to rush out of the library. After about five minutes of waiting, I could finally spot his car before he parked right in front of me.
“How was studying?” he asked, the second I got into the car. “Fine? And Sophia?”
“It went well. She’s fine too. Really fine.”
My reply came out in a final tone and just as I wanted, Johnny took the hint and remained silent throughout the rest of the drive.
Johnny driving while I was headed home felt strange. My heart kept on pounding in my chest, threatening to rip out while I wondered if I was simply nervous about being the same enclosed space with him or if I was just nervous about going home. My house was about a thirty minutes drive from college and like normal people, I could take the bus home or even better, stay at in the campus dorms. But thanks to my overprotective father, neither of them was allowed, leaving me with no choice than to wait for my dad everyday to pick me on his way from work.
Silence prevailed as Johnny tried to keep his gaze fixed on the car. I, on the other hand, tried to keep my gaze on any anything but him. My breathing was slow and I though just the thought of us being in the same space for so long when my palms sweaty, I tried my best to stay calm.
After what felt like an eternity, we finally got home. With a sigh of relief, I watched Johnny unlock the car from his side then immediately grabbed my bag to step out of the car.
I quickened my steps and the second I got to the front door, pressed the bell, my father immediately opening the door to reveal himself with a huge smile on his face.
“Cleo,” he said. “You’re finally home. You came with Johnny, right?”
“Yes,” I nodded, realizing it had been so long since I last saw his smile that widely. “And, um, he told me about- everything.”
“Oh,” his expression changed as I walked past him to step into the house. “Cleo, I know I should have told you about it earlier-”
“But you didn’t.”
“I’m sorry, okay?” he sighed. “I was just a little worried you wouldn’t- also, I wasn’t even interested. I didn’t think anything would come out of the blind date so I didn’t think I needed to tell you I was going on it. I didn’t know things would suddenly change when I met Beatrice.”
“Oh,” again, I was unsure about how I was feeling. “It’s fine.”
“Cleo-”
“Johnny said she’ll be coming over tonight,” I interrupted him. “It’s getting late already so don’t you think you should also get yourself ready? I need to change too.”
He sighed again. “Are you mad at me, Cleo?”
“I’m not,” I shook my head. “I’m just taking a while to sink things in. But I’m not mad at you. I’m fine.”
“Cleo-”
“That shirt looks good on you by the way,” I finally flashed him a smile. “I’m sure she’ll think so too.”
“Thanks, Cleo.”
I nodded then headed straight to my room, ignoring Johnny who was now by the dining, trying to set it up. I should have gotten used to having Johnny around at the most random moments but I apparently wasn’t yet.
Quickly taking a shower, I changed out of my regular jeans and a t-shirt into a sky blue pretty gown, freed my hair from the bun and had it hang loosely around my shoulders. Confident I looked decent, I nodded to myself and just as I was about to step out of my room to head downstairs, bumped into Johnny who seemed like he was on his way to my room.
“Your dad asked me to come fetch you. Beatrice’s here already,” he immediately said. “By the way, that gown looks pretty on you.”
I swallowed. “Oh, thank you. I’ll be right downstairs.”
With a nod, he turned to return downstairs, leaving a flushed me behind. Taking deep breaths, I tried to collect my thoughts together and the second I was finally calm and ready to face whatever was waiting for me downstairs, resumed my steps.
My steps down the stairs and all the way to the dining were slow. I was nervous and I couldn’t exactly tell why. Was it just the fact that I was about to meet the new additions to my family or could it be something else?
My gaze was fixed on the floor as I stepped into the dining, my dad’s voice managing to finally get me shift it.
“Cleo,” he said, the second he spotted me. “There you are. Come.”
I stared at just him and nodded, immediately walking towards him. He was on his feet and directly opposite him, I could guess his new woman was standing there with her son by his side.
“Cleo, this is Beatrice. Beatrice, my daughter, Cleo.”
I finally raised my head to meet a middle aged woman in front of me, smiling. With blonde hair and icy blue eyes, she was beautiful, I couldn’t deny.
“Hello there,” her voice was as cheerful as her expression. “Nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Oh,” I tried to break into a smile. “Well, same here. My dad also talks about you, a lot.”
“Oh?” she shifted her gaze to smile shyly at my dad. “Well, allow me introduce you to my son too. Cleo, this is Ash, my son.”
“Hi.”
I turned to look in his direction, every word I could have had to say getting stuck in my throat the second I met his eyes, followed by heart immediately skipping a beat.
I could swear I immediately felt a jolt of electricity run through my body as our eyes met. I swallowed and almost took a step backwards, totally confused and in awe about what was suddenly happening.
He stood tall and confident with long dark hair falling casually around his face. Fighting the urge to take a step closer towards him, I stared at him, looking into the darkest yet brightest eyes I’d ever seen.
Dressed in regular jeans with a white short sleeved t-shirt, I could spot tattoos around his muscular arms. A piercing glinted from his earlobe, another from his eyebrow, all matching the silver necklace he had around his neck.
“Hi,” he finally spoke, managing to unfreeze me for a second. “I’m Ash.”
He stretched his arm forward for a handshake and at that moment, I realized I was completely mesmerized by him. He had a beauty and presence that was alluring and at the same time, dangerous.
“Cleo?”
I let out an exhale as I looked up, realizing all eyes were on me. Right, they were expecting me to take Ash’s hand.
“I’m Cleo,” I whispered as I took his hand, feeling the familiar jolt of electricity flood my body at his touch. “Nice to um- meet you.”
He nodded and looked away, pulling away from the handshake. My eyes immediately followed his gaze, staring at him again like he was the only person in the room.
“Cleo, take a seat.”
It was Johnny’s voice that pulled me out of my unexplainable trance this time, immediately pulling me back to my senses. What was going on? What was I doing?
For the first time in forever, I was in the same space with Johnny and yet I found another man attractive? What?
What was I even saying? How could I find him attractive? He wasn’t someone I was to find attractive. He was my father’s girlfriend’s son and if everything went smoothly, he was going to become my step brother.
But my brain seemed to be processing that information rather slowly as I found my eyes on him again, staring at him again. He was no different to a stranger to me at that moment, I still couldn’t deny the instant pull I felt towards him. A feeling that managed to awaken something deep within my soul.
And I didn’t need to be told how dangerous that unfamiliar emotion was.
- Writer
