Between Us

Chapter 46

Instead of taking me to my house as I feared, he went straight to his, his footsteps thudding across the timber floors. The warmth of the house allowed me to relax against him; I wasn't shivering anymore.

I could hear the gentle pitter patter of Chunk's paws hitting the floor, his low panting. Where was I? In his room? I didn't ask. I let him gently sit me down on a soft mattress. He left me for a few minutes, making my breath hitch in panic. But it was short lived because he came back later with a large jug full of water and a glass.

He made me drink at least half of it before tucking me into bed, pulling the thick covers over me.

"I'm gonna go talk to your parents," I heard him whisper from above me, a whiff of coconut wafting through my nose. I breathed it in, but I was so tired. So unbelievably tired. I wanted to argue with him, tell him no, that they were going to get mad at him and that they probably wouldn't believe him.

I had no energy and laying there, atop the comfortable bed told me that I needed sleep. My eyes didn't want to stay open, even though all I wanted to do was clear the vision of any blurriness so I could properly see Caden's face looking down at me. I managed a small hum under my breath before I drifted off to deep sleep.

***

I stirred, staring at the navy blue painted walls, a guitar case resting near the empty table desk and a few posters of Guns N' Roses, AC/DC and others I didn't recognise. The house was silent, as if there was no life here apart from me. It wasn't a room I recognised.

The last thing I remembered was waking up outside the club, near the dumpster, crying like a little girl. My throat was dry, my lips were cracked and no amount of swallowing or licking was helping.

Then, as I pulled myself up against the headboard, my feet met with something slightly solid. Angling my head to the side, I saw Chunk nearby. His butt faced the pillow, his head on his arms where my feet were. I let my head rest against the headboard as I sighed.

I was at Caden's.

Everything came rushing back, then. So it hadn't been a dream. I really was drugged. And then Caden came and brought me to his house and made me drink so much water that I was spending time in the toilet more than I was sleeping. He was right about getting it out of my system though. I was feeling much better. How he knew all this stuff was beyond me.

The sound of the front door shutting close made my ears perk. Who was that? Caden? Someone else?
Stop being paranoid, I thought. If something were to happen, it would have already happened, right?

The tremors and the gross, heavy feeling that pulled me down since yesterday was gone. There was nothing to indicate to me that something had happened. But why that something happened in the first place...maybe I was a target of random sexual assault and I somehow lost them. I did end up outside, after all.

I shook my head and my eyes clenched shut. I didn't want to think about it. The door creaking open made me gasp a little, bringing the covers up to my chest even though I wasn't naked.

"You're up," said Caden, angling half his body in. "How're you feeling?"

"Much better," I managed to whisper, wincing at the croakiness of my voice.

"Good. I've bought breakfast." He bought breakfast? I didn't know how to act or what to say. It had been a while since we spoke. What did I say to him last night? Hopefully nothing embarrassing, considering I couldn't remember any of the specifics.

I chucked the covers off and sat up by the edge of the bed, letting my body get used to being moved around again. Then once I felt better, I pushed myself up and slowly inched toward the door. After washing my face and 'brushing' my teeth with toothpaste on a finger, I went to the living room. The closer I got, the more I could smell something sweet, like melted butter and caramelised sugar.