Saving Me

by Scarlett Haven

  I live for moments like this with him.

  Stolen kisses.

  Butterflies.

  And nothing but love. Intense love for this beautiful boy who has somehow managed to completely steal my heart. And I don’t want it back.

  Eventually, we do pull away from each other. When we do, Sebastian rests his forehead against mine. And he is breathing just as heavily as I am.

  “Why did I wait so long to date you?” he asks.

  “That is all on you,” I say, grinning at him. “I wanted to date you sooner.”

  “You’re much smarter than I am.”

  “Glad you finally admit it.”

  “Don’t ever doubt that you are mine,” he says, kissing my forehead, then he backs away. “I’m going to need space, or I am going to break one of your dad’s rules.”

  I look at him, trying to figure out what he’s talking about.

  Break one of the rules?

  It takes me a solid five seconds to realize what he’s referring to.

  “Oh. Oh!”

  Sebastian laughs. “You are so cute.”

  I’m embarrassed and pretty sure my face is bright red.

  “You’re the first guy I’ve ever kissed,” I say, even though he already knows that. “Which means I’ve definitely never done anything else.”

  “Neither have I,” he says.

  “Really?”

  I don’t mean to sound shocked.

  I shouldn’t be.

  It’s just... Sebastian is a very good-looking guy. It seems like a lot of girls at Spy School would like him.

  “I didn’t want my first time to be with just anybody,” he says. “I wanted to be in love first.”

  “I want to wait until we’re married.”

  I immediately want the words back.

  Did I seriously just say that out loud?

  Didn’t I just tell my dad I was too young to talk about marriage? I mean, yes, we talk about forever. And we joke about the whole not running off to Vegas thing. But we don’t talk about marriage in a serious way.

  “Then we will wait,” he says, not thinking it’s weird at all that I said that.

  “You’re a good boyfriend,” I say.

  “You’re an okay girlfriend.”

  “Just okay?”

  He doesn’t reply. He just kisses my cheek.

  “You’re the best thing that has ever happened to me,” he says.

  Which is the best thing he could’ve said.

  I’ve never been so happy in my life.

  Tuesday, January 16

  I like chaos.

  I sleep in because Sebastian and I stayed up late. We turned on a movie, but we didn’t watch it. We just stayed up talking and kissing, until after midnight. It was the perfect night.

  I know we’re used to being in foreign countries and going to these amazing restaurants and having crazy adventures, but somehow, making out with him in the basement of my dad’s house is everything I’ve ever wanted. It makes me feel like a normal teenager. For the first time in my life, I am normal. It’s kind of cool.

  When I walk into the kitchen, it is loud. Dad, Gage, and Jaxon are all cooking—they’re definitely fighting over recipes more than cooking. Sander is standing in the corner of the room with his cellphone up to his ear, a goofy grin on his face, and Hunter is teasing him. Brett is sitting at the bar with his computer sitting in front of him. Sebastian is sitting beside him, but as soon as he sees me, he gets up and walks over to me. He has a big smile on his face.

  “Chaotic,” I say, motioning around the kitchen.

  “Very,” he says.

  “I’m pretty sure my life is always going to be like this,” I say.

  “I like chaos. Especially if the chaos is with you,” he says.

  “Okay, enough flirting!” Hunter says, now leaving his attempt at annoying Sander, and coming over to annoy us.

  “You’re just jealous Sebastian has better game than you,” I say.

  Everybody laughs.

  Except Hunter.

  “She got you, brother,” Jaxon says.

  Sander, who is on the phone with his girlfriend, repeats what I told Hunter.

  “Phoenix is laughing so hard I can’t understand what she’s saying,” Sander says to us.

  “Tell her I will have no mercy next time I see her,” Hunter says.

  “I’ll protect her,” Sander says, but repeats the words to her anyway.

  I want to hang out with Phoenix sometime. I’ve only met her once, but I’m jealous that Hunter knows her so well and I don’t. She’s important to Sander, which means she’s important to me, too. We’re a team—we’re family.

  “Why is everybody all in love but me?” Gage asks.

  “Sebastian, Serenity, and Sander are the only ones in love,” Jaxon says. “We don’t need girlfriends.”

  “Speak for yourself,” Gage says. “I need some arm candy.”

  “Just keep talking like that and all the girls will want to date you,” Brett says.

  “Speaking of dating, I noticed a certain somebody and her boyfriend was missing all last night,” Hunter says.

  “They were making out in the basement,” Gage says.

  My face warms.

  He knew that?

  “He’s just jealous,” Jaxon says. “Nobody wants to make out with him.”

  Gage sticks his tongue out at Jaxon. “I’m not jealous. I have no interest in making out with Sebastian.”

  I laugh, no longer feeling embarrassed.

  “If I wasn’t scared of Bass, I might want to make out with Serenity,” Gage says, winking at me. I know he’s joking. And from the way Sebastian laughs, I can tell he knows, too.

  “Can we not talk about kissing my daughter?” Dad says.

  Everybody stops laughing abruptly.

  He’s the boss.

  And everybody is scared of him.

  “Kissing is all that happened, right?”

  “Dad,” I say, lowering my head.

  “I’m just making sure,” he says.

  “Maybe you could not ask in front of everybody,” I say. “Or better yet, maybe you can just trust me.”

  I hate how quiet the room is now.

  Gosh, this is awkward.

  “Sorry, honey,” Dad says. “I do trust you. Now, who is ready for breakfast?”

  A few minutes later, eight of us sit around the dining room table with a ton of food spread out.

  “Where is Pops?” I ask, as I load my plate. I know if I don’t move fast, the guys will eat it all.

  “He’s staying at a nice hotel in town,” Dad answers.

  “He said it was too noisy here,” Sebastian says.

  I laugh.

  It is kind of loud.

  Though it does get pretty quiet while we’re eating.

  In the middle of breakfast, Dad gets a call. He gets up and leaves the room to answer it.

  Spy School secrets.

  Always.

  He’s only gone a couple of minutes, though, before he comes back in, but he doesn’t sit down. It’s then that I look up and see he’s not smiling, and he looks a little pale.

  “I just got word that Steven is on a plane, headed towards Switzerland,” Dad says. “I don’t know what is going to happen, but we need to be prepared. It’ll be a while before he gets here, but I thought you should all know. Things are going to change soon.”

  Sebastian’s hand touches mine under the table and he squeezes it.

  “You have all trained for this your entire life,” Dad says, now speaking to the guys. “I have no doubts that this battle will end in victory for us. We must stay strong. We have a lot of people on our side.”

  “We will end this,” Jaxon says, no hesitation in his voice. “We’re ready.”

  And I don’t doubt them.

  I just worry about me.

  I haven’t trained.

  I’m not ready.

  “Sebastian, keep my daughter close to you no matter what,” Da
d says. “She’s your responsibility.”

  “I will protect her with my life,” he says.

  “I know. And that is why I want her with you,” he says. “Everybody, finish eating. You’re going to need your strength. I have a lot of phone calls to make.”

  Dad leaves the room and all of us just sit there, not saying anything.

  “Don’t worry, Serenity,” Gage says. “I’m a ninja. I will lead us to victory.”

  His words bring a smile to my face.

  Gage, the ninja.

  “You are such a dork,” I tell him.

  “Yet, you love me,” he says.

  I do love him. I love all of my team. They’re so much more than just my friends. They truly are family.

  “All Steven wants is revenge,” I say. “Because he thinks that my dad stole his family, even though he is the one who pushed his family away. We actually have something worth fighting for. Each other. He will not win.”

  “No matter how powerful he thinks he is, we’re Spy School,” Jaxon says. “We’re stronger. Our numbers are larger. And Serenity is right, we have motivation. I don’t doubt us.”

  And I don’t either.

  We are ready.

  We got this.

  We’ve all been on edge all day.

  Mostly because we aren’t sure what is going to happen. We have no idea what to prepare for.

  Is Steven going to come straight in for the attack?

  He isn’t patient, but he is smart. So, is he going to wait until the middle of the night to attack?

  These thoughts run through my head, even when I try to push them away.

  While I am overthinking, I don’t notice when Jaxon sits down beside me.

  “Hey,” he says, getting my attention.

  “Hey,” I say.

  “How are you?”

  “I’m okay.”

  “Really?” he asks, calling my bluff.

  “I’m scared,” I say.

  “What are you scared of?” he asks.

  “Um... somebody getting hurt. Or worse,” I answer.

  “You know we’ve trained for this our whole life,” he says. “We’re not going into this fight with no knowledge or training.”

  “Yeah, I know,” I say. “But Steven has been trained, too. And whoever works for him has had just as much training. I mean, you saw how good Nolan is. And Nolan is on his side.”

  Just because Nolan helped me does not mean he’s on our side. I mean, Gage nearly died because of him.

  “What happened at the bowling alley wouldn’t have happened if we saw it coming,” Jaxon says. “Nolan was a really good double agent. He had us all fooled. But that will not happen again.”

  “I know,” I say. “I just worry somebody will get hurt.”

  “Your boyfriend can handle Nolan,” Jaxon says. “He would’ve taken Nolan on right then and there if you weren’t unconscious, and if Gage wasn’t bleeding out on the floor.”

  “I’m not strong,” I say. “What if Sebastian gets hurt trying to protect me?”

  “From what I’ve heard and seen, you’re not the weak girl you once were,” Jaxon says. “I think you’ll be able to put up quite a fight, yourself.”

  I hope so.

  “You look good,” he says. “Last time I saw you, you were pretty underweight.”

  “Sebastian and I have been eating healthy,” I say. “And working out. He won’t let me eat just cheeseburgers and Twinkies.”

  “Good,” Jaxon says. “I’ve been trying to get the rest of the guys to eat healthy. Maybe you can influence them, too.”

  “Them? Give up junk food and pizza? I think you expect a miracle.”

  He laughs. “Eh, maybe.”

  I feel the couch dip down on the other side of me.

  “Did you change your hair?”

  I look over and see Hunter sit down.

  He is grinning mischievously at me.

  Or maybe his grin is always mischievous.

  “It does look different,” Jaxon says.

  “I dyed it,” I say. “Bleached it. Which was a huge mistake. While Sebastian and I were running away from Steven in Seoul I might as well have had bright pink hair. I stood out so much.”

  “You were in South Korea? Cool,” Hunter says. “It’s nice there, right? They have the best food.”

  “Oh, my goodness, the food was amazing,” I say. “And everybody seemed really nice.”

  “We should go back when you’re not running for your life,” Jaxon says. “All of us.”

  “We can put it on the list,” I say.

  “List?”

  “Sebastian and I have kind of a bucket list,” I say. “Things we want to do after Steven is locked up. Disney World is first.”

  “Why Disney?” Hunter asks.

  I’m not sure how to answer him, because the answer is so personal. Instead I just say, “Because I’ve never been and I’ve always wanted to. I lived in Florida my whole life and never got to go.”

  “You’ll love it,” Jaxon says.

  I know I will love it. I will love it simply because Sebastian is going to be there with me.

  When I imagine what my life would’ve been like if Steven hadn’t turned into a crazy lunatic, I think about all the things Sebastian and I would’ve done as kids. Going to Disney World is definitely one of the things we would’ve done together. We probably would’ve been five. But I still want to go with him. I want to make up for the lost time—the lost memories.

  I wonder if Sebastian and I would be dating if we had grown up together. If we had seen each other go through puberty, would it be the same? I can’t imagine it any other way, but maybe we wouldn’t.

  Either way, I can’t regret the things that happened in our life that brought us together.

  “Are you going to wear a tiara?” Hunter asks.

  “Duh,” I say.

  “Does Sebastian still call you princess?” Jaxon asks.

  I shake my head. “Nah. He only did that to get under my skin.”

  “He did that to flirt with you,” Hunter says. “You two have been flirting with each other since the first day you met.”

  I roll my eyes. “He hated me at first.”

  I know it’s not true, but that is what I thought and I’m sticking to it.

  “The sexual chemistry was so thick it was hard to be around you,” Hunter says.

  Oh, my gosh.

  “Hunter, can you just not,” I say.

  “And he wonders why he’s single,” Jaxon says.

  “Oh, maybe I can set you up,” I say, looking at Hunter. “I don’t actually know any girls. But I’m sure I could find you one.”

  Hunter and Jaxon both laugh.

  “Don’t worry about it, Princess,” Hunter says. “I can find my own girlfriend if I wanted one. Which I don’t.”

  I pout.

  I would have fun setting him up.

  I’ve always wanted to play matchmaker.

  “You got my number. Call me if you change your mind,” I say.

  He laughs.

  My dad walks into the living room. It’s the first time he’s left his office since breakfast this morning. All the talking in the room immediately ceases and we give him our full attention, knowing he’s probably about to give us some kind of update.

  “Steven’s plane landed about an hour outside of here,” Dad says. “He isn’t making his move yet. From what I understand, he’s going to try and surprise us. Maybe early in the morning. So be prepared. But make sure you get plenty of sleep tonight. You’re going to need the rest.”

  With his update, he turns and walks back into his office and nobody says anything.

  I’m sitting there between Jaxon and Hunter, trying not to freak out. I look around the room until my eyes land on Sebastian. He’s sitting by Sander, but he’s watching me. When he sees me look at him, he walks over. Hunter scoots down, making room for Sebastian beside me.

  “Are you okay?” Sebastian asks me.

  I no
d. “I’m just... in shock. I mean, I knew he was coming, but it didn’t feel completely real, you know? But he’s here. This is almost over.”

  “It is,” he says.

  “Are you sure I didn’t make a mistake by staying? I mean, should we be running away right now?”

  “No. You made the right decision,” he says. “Even though I want to run away and take you with me, I know that this is right.”

  “Sebastian is right,” Jaxon says. “It’s time this comes to an end, once and for all. We’ve been dealing with Steven for far too long. It’s time he finally gets what’s coming to him.”

  Yeah, but at what price?

  He’s right, though.

  We can’t live our lives on the run. Not anymore. We need to end this now, in a situation where we actually have a shot at winning. If Sebastian and I keep running, he will eventually catch up with us and this is not a fight we can win on our own.

  “I wouldn’t blame you guys if you ran,” I say. “This isn’t your fight. Not really.”

  “Anybody who messes with you and Sebastian messes with us all,” Gage says. “We’re Spy School—we don’t run from anything. Especially not bullies.”

  “We’re good at our job, Serenity,” Jaxon says. “Trust us.”

  “He’s not the first bad guy we’ve fought,” Sander says.

  “And we haven’t lost yet,” Hunter says.

  “And I’ll be with you the entire time,” Sebastian says. “I’m not leaving your side.”

  I just have to trust my team.

  I have to trust Sebastian.

  And I do trust him.

  I trust him with everything.

  “We can do this,” I say, feeling confident for the first time.

  But I’m still scared.

  “Heck yeah, we can,” Gage says.

  Everything.

  All of us go to bed early, but I doubt any of us are sleeping. I’ve spent the last hour and a half tossing and turning.

  I’m scared. Not because I doubt my team. I don’t. I just worry that somebody is going to get hurt—or worse. Is it too much to want those I care about to come out of this alive? For me to get a happy ending?

  Steven has taken everything away from me—my mom and my dad. He almost took Sebastian. But that wasn’t enough for him. He had to put me in the hands of a monster. He had to ensure that I would never be happy. Ever.