5
436words
Then, the unsettling woman charged straight at me.
By the way, her name is Isabella. No idea why she's named like that.
"How dare you kiss my fiancé?!"
Isabella shrieked, snatching a plate from the nearby table.
I just shoved Emma right into her path.
Crash.
The plate connected with Emma's head, shattering into pieces.
Emma screamed, clutching her now-bleeding forehead.
I pulled Julian behind me and said, flat as ever, "Julian and I have been together for a while. I sleep in his room. Go ask the staff if you don't believ."
"You…"
My father was speechless, purple with rage.
My mother, the drama queen, immediately burst into tears. "Such a disgrace to the family!"
Isabella's family, looking massively uncomfortable, left quickly.
The dining room was frozen in silence.
I held Julian's hand. He was trembling—whether from fear or something else, I couldn't tell.
My father finally found his voice, glaring daggers at me. "Do you have a death wish?"
"No,"
I replied in the same monotone. "But Julian's my boyfriend. Back off."
Then, I just led Julian away.
Emma came running after us. "Skylar, you can't do this! I won't let you destroy this family! I—"
Thump!
I kicked her squarely, and she stumbled back and hit the floor.
I shot a look at my parents. "The only reason I came back for anything except Julian."
I led Julian away without giving them a chance to respond.
Back in his room, Julian and I sat on the bed, staring at each other.
"I know you don't want that arranged marriage,"
I said after a long pause.
Julian pressed his lips together. God, he's so handsome, just like his name.
That simple gesture almost made me lean in again.
What did it feel like?
Soft. A little cool. Weirdly magnetic.
"Why did you help me?"
Julian finally asked.
"You have that OCD thing. Our parents look down on me, but you still let me ride in your car."
"Your room is spotless, and I'm a mess, but you let me sleep here."
"You notice things. Like me overworking my brain."
"You're decent to me, so I'm decent to you. That's what my parents taught me."
The parents I mentioned are my adoptive parents, not my biological ones.
"What do we do now?"
Julian asked, his voice low. "They control everything I have. I…"
"Screw them." I said firmly,"If you want, I'll take you somewhere nobody can control your life ever again."
Julian was quiet, hesitating.
I really wanted to know what he was thinking but I had no idea how to ask.
