Page 78 of Fall

“I’m not a goddamn princess.” I cross my arms, gripping my biceps, trying to ease the desire to rip his clothes off and punch him in the balls at the same time.

I’ve had enough to deal with today and I just want to go inside, take a shower, and go to sleep.

He tilts head, scanning every inch of my body until he reaches my face.

“Well, you had to be rescued, didn’t you?”

I squeeze my arms tighter at his smug smile.

“So Micah’s a princess too, then?” I challenge.

Elijah’s melodic laughter echoes in the hallway.

“No. He’s an idiot,” he deadpans.

Elijah steps around me, unlocks my door, and just walks inside like he’s coming home from a long day at work, tossing the bags and keys on the counter.

What the fuck?

How many people have copies of my fucking keys! I storm inside, about to tell him off, when I notice that we’re not the only ones in the room. Taylor is tending to Micah, who is currently sitting on my floor. Celeste is balled up on the sofa, her eyes red and puffy. And Caleb is pacing the room. Everyone turns in my direction and anxiety starts crawling up my neck.

“Why—” I start but cut myself off.

The anxiety is too much. I hurry to the kitchen sink to scrub my face.And hide.

The next thing I know, Celeste is wrapping her shaky arms around my waist.

“Oh, Evie, thank God! They told me what happened… You were taking forever to get back… And I thought… I thought…” Celeste starts to sob on my back. She mumbles undecipherable words and squeezes me tighter.

I grab her wrists to loosen her hold and turn around.

“It’s okay, Cele. I’m okay.” I try to reassure her, but she just continues to cry.

I look over at Taylor for some assistance. He helps Micah to his feet before rushing over to help me with Celeste.

“It’s okay, Cele. Let her breathe. She’s fine,” Taylor assures her and then nods to me. “Right?”

I nod, and he lifts her to take her back to the couch.

“Took you long enough, asshole. Answer your phone when I call.” Caleb’s voice booms at Elijah. “For all we knew—”

“We were fine,” Elijah snaps, his voice low. “I know what the fuck I’m doing.”

I stare at Micah, momentarily ignoring everyone else in the room.

“You okay?” I question.

His left eye is swollen shut, his lip is busted, and he’s favoring his left side, but he manages to give me an assuring nod. His jewel blue eyes appraise my body with a grimace on his face.

“Are you?” He mouths the words silently, and I look away from his invasive stare, unable to speak as images of the warehouse dance in my head. It’s certainly not the worst I’ve ever had to endure, but in some ways, it was. It’s easy to fight for yourself. It’s harder when your choices impact others you care about.

Damn. I care about him.

I don’t know how he knows to do it, but Taylor decides to take control of the room. He claps his hands to bring everyone’s attention to him.

“All right. I think it’s time for us to head out. I think the girls have had enough theatrics for the day, and Micah needs his bed."

I collapse in relief at the idea of being left alone and away from prying eyes. I also need to talk with Celeste, and we don’t need a show for that discussion.