by Jae
“Little Miss Daisy.” Liam whispers before tilting my head back and pressing a soft kiss to the base of my neck.
I let out an audible gasp when I feel him roll his hips into mine; reminding me of the first time we met. Tilting my head back into place, he presses his lips to mine again.
“Another time.” He tells me, sliding his thumb over my bottom lip.
I nod my head as I look out the window to see groups of people starting to walk back to their cars. I clearly didn’t think this through. I feel so silly now. Liam takes my diverted attention to his advantage by nuzzling his head into my neck. Eventually his long fingers turn my face back before his eager lips plant random kisses all over my cheeks, causing me to giggle and try to push him away. Liam rubs his nose against mine, reminding me of what my Mom used to call Eskimo kisses when I was younger, before helping me into the passenger seat beside him.
“No more weed or cotton candy for you.” Liam grins as he slides his hand onto my thigh after putting the car into drive.
“Little Miss Daisy.” Liam’s voice whispers before pressing a light kiss to my lips. “Wake up, sleepy head.”
I wrap my arms around Liam’s neck when he picks me up from my seat, shutting the door with his foot. “When did I fall asleep?”
“About five minutes after we left the carnival; you were talking about a mile a minute and then all of the sudden you just stopped. I looked over because it kind of freaked me out, but you’d just fallen asleep.”
I nod my head while running my fingers over the tattoos on his chest. Liam is about to open my front door when I remember I forgot my monkey in his Rover. Playfully sighing after I voiced my problem, Liam turns back around. He quickly opens the door and lets me climb into the backseat to retrieve my stuffed animal. When I appear back in the opening of the door, he picks me up like a baby, my arms going around his neck and my legs wrapping around his waist. I press my body firmly to his chest and rest my head against his shoulder while he retraces his steps back to my house.
“Hey, you two!” My Dad smiles when Liam walks into the kitchen with me still attached to him.
Liam answers with a smile and a hello while I mumble one into his neck, my body already beginning to shut down into sleep mode again. I press closer to Liam’s body for warmth when he opens the refrigerator, the cold air smacking against my back.
“Did you have fun at the carnival, then?” My Mom asks after Liam pulls out two bottles of water, handing one to my Dad.
“Yeah, it was a good time.” Liam smiles while leaning against the kitchen counter and poking my exposed cheek.
“Stop it.” I grumble, lazily swatting his hand away with my monkey.
“I think it’s past someone’s bed time.” My Dad jokes in a voice you would use to talk to a baby, causing my Mom and Liam to laugh while I let out a tired groan.
After saying goodnight to my parents, Liam carries me up to my room and sets me down in my bathroom. Once I finish my business in there and change into a t-shirt that I immediately recognize as Liam’s, I walk back into my room. My face scrunches up in confusion when I see Liam sitting on the edge of my bed, fully clothed, and doing something on his phone.
“You’re not staying with me tonight?” I ask.
“We both have work in the morning.” Liam responds, looking up at me. His eyes don’t stay on my face for long though, them easily trailing down my mid-thigh covered body. I can’t help the small blush that builds in my cheeks. Letting a shy smile form on my lips, I move to stand closer to him. Liam parts his legs so I can easily stand between them. I let out a content sigh when his large, warm hands slide under the shirt I’m wearing to rest on my lower back and then giggle a little bit when they move down to cup and gently squeeze my butt. I remove Liam’s hat and let my fingers slide through his soft curls while he rests his forehead against my stomach.
“You need to go to sleep.” Liam says suddenly, making me jump in surprise when he abruptly stands up.
I watch him pick his hat up from my bed and put it back on before pulling my comforter back and gesturing for me to get in. Not wanting to start any trouble, I do as he says.
“Don’t leave.” I whisper after he’s tucked me in. I watch him close his eyes, letting out a small sigh, before opening them again and looking down at me. After a few silent moments he kicks off his shoes and lies down on top of the covers beside me.
“You’ll stay, then?”
“I will until you fall asleep.”
“Well, I did sleep on the way here so I’m not that tired anymore.” I smirk.
“Daisy.” Liam warns, but I can tell he’s trying to fight the smile that wants to form on his lips.
I stare at his body laid next to me. He really is something beautiful.
“You have to close your eyes, silly.”
“I don’t want to.” I whine.
I move closer to Liam and rise up enough to give him what is meant to be an innocent goodnight kiss, but quickly turns into something much more. Our lips move easily together, like it’s something we’ve been doing with each other for years. When I try to move closer to deepen the kiss even more, Liam gently presses his hands against my shoulders.
“Daisy,” He whispers. “Not tonight.”
I roll my eyes while lying back down in my original space beside him, my feelings a tad hurt from being turned down. Though, that’s not really a big deal. Why won’t he stay with me? How is tonight different than any other night?
“Don’t be upset.” Liam sighs as he pushes my hair away from my face. “Go to sleep, baby.”
I reluctantly close my eyes when he leans forward and presses a kiss to my forehead. I quickly fall into a deep sleep to the sound of Liam softly singing to me and running his long fingers through my hair.
Chapter Nineteen
“Let’s go get something to eat before the game.” Taylor says after work on Friday.
“That sounds like a great idea!” Zoie exclaims while her and Taylor high five. “I’m starving!”
“Should we just go to Panera Bread down the street?” Ella asks and we all agree.
“I just have to finish putting a few things away, and then I’ll meet you guys down there.” I tell them, receiving ‘Okays’ while they file out of the store.
I move around the store, putting clothes from the dressing room rack back into their original place. I don’t really pay much attention when I hear the front door open, figuring it’s just one of the girls coming back for something they forgot. Just in case though, I let the person know we’re closed. My eyebrows come together when I don’t hear a response or the front door open again to signal the person left. Instead, I hear their heavy footsteps move farther into the shop. My eyes begin to widen in panic when the realization that this person isn’t planning on leaving any time soon runs through my mind.
“Hello, beautiful.”
My body instantly freezes. These words normally bring an eruption of butterflies and fireworks to my stomach when they come from the mouth of a certain curly haired boy. The clatter of the metal hanger I’d been holding falling to the ground by my feet makes me jump in surprise. I take my bottom lip between my teeth when it begins to tremble and then shakily raise my hand to my mouth, covering it, hoping to conceal the sounds of my heavy breathing. It isn’t long before I can feel a person standing behind me, their build much bigger than mine. My stomach completely drops. When I don’t move, my arm is painfully grabbed while spinning my body around in the process. My breath gets caught in my throat when my eyes connect with the guy Liam had beat the crap out of just weeks ago; the same guy who’s been stalking me.
“Aren’t you happy to see me, Daisy?” Colin asks, brushing the back of his hand down the side of my face. “I know you know I’ve been watching you from a distance. Aren’t you happy to finally be closer?”
The smug smile that sits on his face makes me want to puke.
“Get away from me!” I exclaim, yanking my arm away from him.
“I like feisty.” He taunts, stepping closer to me.
I watch his dirt brown eyes scan down to my chest, trying to peer through the v-neck of my shirt. Disgust fills me when the smirk on his lips deepens. My fearful eyes scan over to the front door, wishing someone to walk through the escape that seems so far away now. The girls are just down the block, if I make a run for it now, I would be free.
“You’re a little tease, aren’t you?” Colin questions, snapping my attention back to him. “I bet Liam likes that.”
I step back when he reaches out to touch me again, my body bumping into a rack of clothes. My heart starts to race in my chest while my mind begins to work in overdrive at the crushing realization that Colin isn’t here to pay me a friendly visit; he’s here to kill me. I have to give him some credit though; the timing couldn’t be more perfect with Liam being too far away at his game to save me and the girls nowhere in sight. He’s definitely been planning this. That’s why he’s been stalking me for so long. He’s been waiting for the perfect moment to get me alone.
Colin’s entire presence makes me feel sick. He’s enjoying this, taking pleasure in the fear he’s evoked in me. My jumbled thoughts jump back to the girls; haven’t they noticed I’m taking too long? Aren’t they wondering where I am? I decide to take my chances and try to escape. As soon as I turn to take my first few steps to freedom, Colin’s hand shoots out and snags the back of my shirt before grabbing onto my long hair and harshly tugging me back to him. I cry out in pain, begging for him to release his tight grip.
“That’s right, scream.” Colin says darkly, the smirk never leaving his face. “Now scream for him too. When this is all over, I want Liam to know you screamed for him to save you.”
Tears begin to slide down my cheeks while I claw at his wrists. I cry out again when he forcefully tilts my head to the side, his hand still firmly wrapped in my hair, and brushes his lips against my ear.
“Come on now, be a good girl and scream for Liam.” He encourages. “Do it! I want to hear you scream for him.”
I have no intention of complying with his sick demands. It’s now completely obvious to me that the power Colin craves is through fear and intimidation. No matter what happens, there is no way in hell I’m going to give him that satisfaction. Instead, I flash back to what I’ve learned in school about what you’re supposed to do when being attacked. Not wasting any more time, I grit my teeth and stomp on Colin’s foot. He grunts in annoyance while I struggle to get free, sacrificing some of my hair left between his fingers when I rip my head away from his grasp. I immediately whip around and put my full attention on the disgusting guy standing before me, never taking my eyes away from him in anticipation of his every move. The smirk on his face reappears, deeper than any of the ones before. It’s obvious he likes the way this is panning out.
“You are makingthis so fun for me. I wasn’t expecting you to put up a fight, but since you are, let’s kick things up a notch.” He snickers. “How about we start by messing up that pretty little face of yours?”
After his words leave his mouth, a wave of anger I’ve never felt before washes through me. I am so sick of people thinking they can overpower me just because I’m small. I quickly raise my arms in defense, just like Liam taught me, shielding myself. Colin’s shock mirrors mine when I manage to weakly block the first punch he throws that I know would’ve easily knocked me out. I stagger back from the force, but don’t let myself fall. No matter what, I still have to hold my ground. Even though my forearms throb from the contact of his heavy fist, it serves as enough of a distraction for me to make my first move. I plant my feet on the ground, trying to find some type of balance, when Colin’s intimidating frame moves closer to me. As soon as he’s within touching distance of me, I roughly force the heel of my palm upward to his face, catching his nose at an odd angle. My eyes widened when I withdraw my hand and see blood is now pouring from both of his nostrils; some of it dripping down the inside of my wrist.
“You little bitch!” He shouts.
I scream when the back of his hand smacks across my face with enough force to knock me to the floor. I don’t have enough time to move when his foot lands a solid kick in my stomach and I let out a grunt as my body slides across the floor. I hastily remove myself from my vulnerable position when I see his foot swing at me again, not wasting any time getting up this time and dashing for the registers. As I climb on top of the counter, I take note that Colin isn’t letting the bloody nose faze him. Searching around, I pick up the first heavy object I can find and throw it when he rushes towards me. I wasn’t aiming for any particular body part, but I can’t help feeling a little proud when it clips his right eyebrow. Blood from the gash begins to trickle down his face and he spats out a few more cuss words.
I quickly create a plan to escape out the back way and run down the alley to the back of Panera Bread. But before I can make a break for it, my arm is roughly yanked and my side collides with the counter as I topple over to the ground with a loud thud. I let out another groan when I feel his foot collide with my stomach again and then scream when he grabs me by the back of the hair and my arm and yanks me to my feet. I try to force away the pain surging through my body and focus on Colin when he finally lets go of my hair. I can tell he’s beyond irritated by the fight I’m putting up and becoming a complete mess when he spits out blood that runs into his mouth from his nose and the cut above his eyebrow. A part of me wishes Liam was here just for the soul purpose of seeing the damage I’ve done to Colin. It may not be a whole lot, but it’s enough for me to be more than proud of. Even though I look physically worse than him, I’m positive I’m in much better shape mentally than he is.
“Daisy!”
My head snaps over Colin’s shoulder to see Ella rushing through the front door with wide eyes. Her face turns terrified when she takes in the sight of Colin and me, him still gripping my arm. Everything turns into a blur as Ella storms towards us, demanding Colin to release me. In the back of my head I know Ella is an idiot in every sense of the word for coming in here like this instead of yelling for help and calling the police, but her fearlessness is inspiring and I’m really happy she’s here.
“Get the hell out of here!” She screams, moving between us and roughly shoving Colin’s chest. “I said get out! Get the hell out!”
I try to balance myself again before peering at Colin from around Ella’s shoulder. He’s wiping blood from under his nose with the back of his hand and his eyes are swarming with anger and annoyance from someone interrupting his murderous attack on me. My breath catches in my throat and I grab the back of Ella’s shirt when he takes a step towards us.
“You better keep both of your mouths shut, you hear me?” He threatens through gritted teeth. “Or, I swear, I won’t hesitate to kill both of your boyfriends.”
After Colin finishes talking, he turns on his heel and rushes out of the shop.
“What the hell just happened?” Ella exclaims, turning to face me.
I stay silent, not sure how to react as my overwhelming emotions that I pushed away finally catch up with me. Ella follows me into the break room and tries to grab a hold of my hand to stop me, but I quickly snatch it away from her. This only serves me a look of sympathy while she stares at me. I watch her scan over my body, taking in my beaten and disheveled appearance with terrified eyes.
“Daisy, is that your blood?” She asks with disbelief in her voice.
A feeling of disgust washes over my body when I look down at the dried blood on my arms and hands. It’s not my blood – it’s Colin’s from when I hit his nose. I suddenly feel dirty and nauseous.
“Help me wash it off!” I exclaim, rushing into the employee bathroom. “Ella, please! You have to help me get it off!”
She’s pushing through the door in seconds, turning on the water and guiding my arms under them. I stand there and let the sobs rack though my body while she lathers a handful of soap in her hands befo
re scrubbing the blood from my skin. I begin to cry even harder when the sink fills with red tinted water. When she finishes, she tugs a wad of paper towels from the dispenser by her head and gently wipes my arms down. She cautiously raises her hand to my chin, tilting it in the light to get a better look at the affected areas.
“Oh, Daisy.” Ella sighs and gently wraps me in her arms.
“You can’t tell anyone, Ella.” I continue to sob into her shoulder. “You can’t tell the girls or the guys; especially Liam.”
“You have to tell Liam, Daisy.” Ella says as she pulls away, holding me at arm’s length.
“No, I can’t.” I protest, shaking my head. “He can’t know.”
“You have to tell Liam and let him deal with it!” Ella shouts, causing me to jerk my body out of her grasp.
I shake my head again, refusing to listen to her words.
“Jesus Christ, Daisy! Look at your face! Look at what that guy did to you!”
I sharply inhale when Ella’s fingers grip my chin again, angling my face to the mirror. The image of the broken girl before me sends a shocking feeling through my body. My eyes are bloodshot and I desperately wish the tears that won’t quit falling down my face would stop. The spilt on my bottom lip is tender with dried blood smudged around the area and my cheek is pink with hints of darkness tinted into the skin.
“Daisy, please, you have to tell someone.” Ella presses, her eyes begging.
“I did.” I respond, pushing her fingers away from my face; not being able to stare at myself in the mirror any longer. “I told you.”
Ella’s eyes widen in shock.
“Ella, as my best friend and the only person I will ever consider my real sister, you have to promise me right now you won’t say anything.” I demand, narrowing my eyes on her.
I can tell she’s fighting some type of war inside herself before she nods her head in agreement. I let out a deep breath and wipe at my cheeks, clearing the tears away.