Stargaze Lovers (Romance novel)

The haunting past

I finally reach outside the police station, I see the two little pillars upholding an ancient building that looked as if it were an ancient design. The paint looks withered, the place desolate and it reeks of broken spirits lying in the footsteps that I just begin to walk down. I head up the few tiny steps three at a time, rushing to save the only family I have left. I'm not willing to let the people around me get hurt anymore. I'm no longer that defenceless thirteen years old girl!

I rush inside the little, dusty place built for thief's, thugs and killers, a place that's definitely not for a 20 years old girl to be in. But it's for my sister. I head towards the big oak desk with a familiar face behind it, I see as the person I owe my life to gets up and meets me halfway.

"Amy, how are you!?" He asks in a serious tone but there's a joy in his smile at seeing me.

"Mr McCarthy I'm okay, how are you? I say in a firm, steady voice and a smile that I just cannot help appears on my face.

"Good. Good...unfortunately I cannot say the same about Alannah...she's pretty shaken up" he says with concern lining his voice.

"How bad was it? Can she leave Antony, whatever it was I promise she won't do it again...I take full responsibility..I-" I start to pile these questions upon him, but he stops me before I start panicking completely.

"- Don't worry Amy, she can go home, I just need you to fill in these papers first" he says as he hands me some legal documents. I stare at the bail papers as a memory smacks me round the face...

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"Sign here..." My mum signs the documents, forever sending Alannah to foster care. I stare up at her with pleading eyes, my throat hoarse from begging her not to, but she won't listen...

I see as Alannah begins to get dragged away as sobs tear from her tiny frame and she continues her mantra after she realises the futility of begging mum;

"Amy... amy please don't let them take me way. Amy....Aaaaaammmyyy....!" She screeches as the carer begins to drag her away.

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"Amy...Amy..Amy!" Andrew shouts at last to snap me out of my daydream. More like a nightmare.

"Yeh.., yeh..what, sorry?" I ask a bit bewildered to realise that's not my life anymore, and only because of this man that's standing in front of me.

He got me out of my house when mum overdosed, then out of my abusive foster parents home, let me live with him for a couple of days before I got new foster parents, one that ignored me, yet didn't abuse me. I guess that's what being an orphan meant. Nightmares and horrors that I wish not even upon my enemies. Speaking of enemy, I came across plenty, all teasing me about my plait, or my clothing, or the dirt under my nails. I'd always cringe away from those moments, until this one little boy stood up for me, facing off the bullies.

"Leave her alone Tania, I've been here longer than you, they'll kick you out before they ever kick me out" he said in a a strong, protective male voice. He wasn't joking, that was just the sad fact of life...

Tania turned around begrudgingly, all the while staring at me with disgust, then turned to him with a softness about her

"Come on Asher, don't be like that she said..." She said touching his arm in a more sexual way then any 16 years old should know...a real slut you could say.

"Get off me Tania" he grabbed her arm, forcefully sliding it off his arm.

"Fine! Gosh, you are such a jerk. I'll see how long you protect her!" She shouts as she moves away.

I finally heaved a sign of relief. He turns around to me, asking if I was okay, but all I could do was stare into his crystal blue eyes.

"Hey.. You okay?" He asks with worry lacing his eye.

"Mhmhm...thank you..." I say with eyes that glisten with unshed tears and all the baseless fears. I really want to believe my life is better now, even with all the bullying, even with all the teasing, just because I wasn't in that hell. Isn't that sad? But it true, yet I want to cry; because I have no one who'd comfort me when I need them, no one who'd say it will all be okay, or to simply hold my hand and say they'll be there. No one will be there for me.

"Hey, don't cry, it's alright...I won't let any of them bully you.." He says with such sincerity that I almost want to believe it. That he'll be there, that I will no longer be alone. But I can't, because if I do...I just can't. Why would he want to anyways, who am I to him...I'm just some nobody, whose mother didn't even want her.

"Asher." our foster father shouts

"Wha-" he shouts back over his shoulder before turning back towards me.

"My names Asher, and you?" He asks

"Amelia Roberts" I say, I don't know why I say my surname, maybe I'm not yet ready to let it go of it, to let go of that last part of her, no matter how horrible she was to me. Does that make me a bad person? I can't let go of that little part of her, that last bit of my old identity, I just cling to it.

"Nice to meet you, Amelia Roberts" he says, giving me a extravagant bow, as if he were the long lost prince of a far away nation...it makes me smile, just that little bit. He takes my hand a presses a feather light kiss on it, and from that day onwards I've known i'd die for this boy here, what I didn't know yet was that he'd take multiple beatings so that he could no longer stand or that he'd beat multiple people for me....that he'd even die for me. I didn't know any of this at this point, I was just so happy that someone took my hand, that someone was there for me and that someone genuinely cared for me.

"Asher! Come here right now" My foster father screams, with loud impatience.

"Yes, I'm coming...!" He screams back, scuffling away from me, yet facing me.

"Meet me on the terrace in an hour..I'll help you survive this place!" He say, in his confident, commanding voice, with a softness in his voice that was evident even back then- even to a broken kid like me...

"Hmmm.." I say, nodding my head at his back since he's already turned around to leave, but then he does something that will forever be imprinted on my heart: he turns around and smiles. It was the first time someone didn't shout at me, scream at me and tell me I'm ugly and useless. For the first time in a long time, I no longer felt invisible. That was the first and last time that I felt butterflies in my stomach for someone, and my heart was racing (at that time I thought I was having a panic attack again). I don't remember if I smiled back, but I do remember that night on the terrace very clearly....

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