Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Ally was under my skin already, and I didn’t want her anywhere else.
There was so much pain in her beautiful eyes that she tried to hide from everyone, but she couldn’t fool me. And when I spoke to her, there was hope and longing in those eyes, making the gold flecks shine, but she wouldn’t let herself go with me.
But I wanted her with me.
I wanted her to stop surviving and fucking start living.
My phone began ringing on my coffee table. With a grunt, I sat up, snatching it up. Ally’s name was on the screen. My heart rate picked up speed in my chest, a smile tilting my lips.
She was actually calling me for once.
“Hey, beautiful,” I greeted.
“Is this Christian?” a girl’s voice asked me, her voice timid and scared.
I tensed, my chest clenching. Why was some random girl calling me from Ally’s phone? “It is. How can I help you?”
“Ally, she’s—there’s something wrong,” the girl said, sounding panicked. “There’s blood—there’s so much. She begged me to call Axel, but he’s not answering, and Julian isn’t either. I don’t know what to do. She won’t let me call 9-1-1.”
“Fuck,” I swore as I jumped up to my feet. I’d fallen asleep in my work clothes, but I didn’t give a fuck how much of a rumpled man I looked.
Ally had harmed herself.
“Tell her help is coming, okay? Don’t call 9-1-1.” Fuck, she could not call 9-1-1. They’d commit Ally, and that would make shit so much worse. “Just hold a towel over her cuts to try to stop the bleeding. If she’s coherent, then it’s not life-threatening,” I assured the girl. “What dorm building and room are you in?” I demanded to know.
“We’re in Green—room two-oh-four,” she told me. “Please hurry. She’s scaring me.”
I hung up the phone, shoving my feet into my shoes. I shrugged my hoodie on and rushed down the steps of my house toward my car.
Hang on, beautiful. I’m coming.
Ally
“I’m so sorry,” I sobbed. The voices had come back. I couldn’t stop them.
He doesn’t really care about you.
He just sees you as an easy piece of ass, just like your ex.
Go ahead, relieve that pain.
“Julian, I’m so sorry,” I wailed.
The door to my dorm room burst open, and Christian rushed in. I stared at him, tears rushing down my cheeks.
He was seeing how weak and fucked up I was.
My roommate quickly moved out of the way as Christian kneeled in front of me. He cupped my face in his hands, forcing my eyes on his. I whimpered. “I’m here, beautiful,” he soothed. “I’m here. You’re not alone, baby.”
My bottom lip trembled. “I’m so fucked up,” I cried.
“No.” He shook his head. “It’s a chemical imbalance in your brain. You’re just built a little differently than other people, and that’s okay.” He brushed his lips over mine. I sobbed, wishing I could cling to him, but I didn’t want to spill my blood, my filth, on his clothes and his skin. “Let me see your wrists, beautiful.”
He released my face and slowly removed the towels from my arm. I wailed as I looked at my fucked up arms. Christian gripped my face again, forcing my eyes to lock on his. “Stay with me,” he coaxed. “Come on, beautiful, don’t leave me. Stay with me.”
“I’m so sorry,” I cried. “I broke my word to Julian. I promised him I wouldn’t do this.”
Christian kissed me again, and my chest clenched. “Come on, baby; breathe,” he soothed. “Breathe me in. It’s okay. They’re not that deep; they’ve already stopped bleeding. It’s okay.”
I whimpered.
“Easy.” He kissed me again. “Be my moon,” he begged me. “Come on, beautiful, be my moon.”
I scooted closer to him, sobs wracking my chest. He sat on his ass on the floor, holding me tightly on his lap. He gently rocked me, his face buried in my hair. “There you go,” he praised. “Let it out, beautiful. Be the moon. The moon has dark phases, but it always glows again.”
He looked up at my roommate, who was staring at us, her face pale. “Can you pack her a bag that’ll last her for a few nights?” he quietly asked my roommate. “I’m going to take her home with me.”
My roommate quickly nodded her head and grabbed one of my small duffels, quickly shoving random items of clothing into it. “I’m sorry I’m fucked up,” I apologized again, my words sounding strangled.
“Never fucked up, beautiful.” My phone rang on the floor next to me. “Your brother is calling you.”
My tears came harder. “He can’t—I don’t want them to know,” I cried.
Christian leaned forward, grabbing my phone off the floor. “They have to know, Ally.” A pathetic whimper fell past my lips. “I’m here, beautiful. You’re not alone. Not ever again,” he promised.
He pulled my phone up to his ear. “Axel? Hey, it’s Christian.” Christian tightened his arm around me. “I’m going to text you my address. You might want to come to my place in about an hour.” Christian grunted. “Yes, an hour, Axel. I just need a moment with your sister.” He sighed. “She’s going to be. Trust me with her.”