NEVILLE The minute I enter my bedroom, I lock it behind me and make a beeline for the bookcase. My mind is sceptical of anyone entering the room in my absence, and those of Margarethe's former apprehensions when she handed me the letter make sense to me now. Something weird is happening inside this house, and the never-ending anxiety of not knowing what flows through our family makes me wary of everyone.Are they even my family anymore?I feel like I know no one.A sordid feeling in my chest tells me I need not trust anyone unless I want to be disappointed.After I put my ear to the back of my locked door to do a second check if anyone has followed me home or if someone is present outside in the hallway quietly waiting for me, I check for anything out of its initial place or order of housekeeping. When my mind is satisfied that no one has entered the room except me, I move toward the washroom to take a quick shower.I need to wash off all the gunk from the long, harrowing day I have

AMELIANeville opens the front door for me and steps to the side of the door, so I can enter the massive foyer my eyes have never seen. As I walk inside, I wonder why I have followed him to his home like a clueless deer waiting for someone to save her? Not more than a mere moment ago, the giant iron-wrought gates at the front opened up slowly when Arnold punched a series of numbers on the monitor's display set on the side wall. That little action reminded me of all those old late-night movies I had seen as a young kid where a kid's parents died in a tragic accident, and then the kid gets transferred with a neutral party to their legal guardian's home. Even though, in this case, the roles are reversed. Neither am I an orphan yet, nor Neville is my guardian by any means. Even playing that scenario in my head sounds extra funny to me.Am I just a stupid girl relying on somebody?Arnold takes off with the car once I'm inside the house to who knows where, and he doesn't follow us behind. I

NEVILLE"We should first finish our food." Her lips curve into a fantastic smile. "Then we can go somewhere."I nod my head."We can go wherever you want to go." "And you won't ask me another question about where we are going?" Her eyes hold me with a steady gaze, weighing her words before she opens her mouth. "Do you trust me that much?""Yeah." I bring the spoon with the soup next to my lips. "I said I trusted you, so that's what it means when I say 'we can go wherever you want to go.'"She chows down her noodles quickly over the next several minutes. Her eyes challenge me to finish mine as soon as I can too. So, I follow suit to her fancy, completing my food not long after she does. Then she wipes her fingers against her jeans, offering me her hand."This is your last chance. You can back out if you want to." Her eyes glimmer under the light from the chandeliers in the kitchen. "Let me make this extremely clear. Here, I offer you this brilliant opportunity to cop out so that I don

AMELIA"Thank you for driving me home." I exchange a look with Neville. "It was kind of you to take time to sober up before driving us here.""That long walk was good, wasn't it?" He laughs, checking the time on his phone's screen. "Though I got swayed by the idea of crashing on Ella's and Mason's couch. It was a good decision to drive you home because I didn't drink much. Normally, I can let myself go in social situations, but since you were there, I tried my best to practise self-discipline." He eyes me. "Well, that walk was more for you than for me.""It was good." I massage my fingers against my forehead. "My head is not spinning as badly as it was before.""I'm happy to hear that." He unlocks the car door on his side before glancing at me as I shuffle my legs in my seat. His car sits on the side road in front of my home. Neville gets out of the driver's seat to move towards my side as he helps me through the door. My feet are a bit unsteady from feeling the full effects of the bi

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