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Thunder distracts me, forcing me to close my eyes. When I open them, the man in front of me is gone.An imagination.I shake my head and take a step away from the wall. But lightning strikes a tree when I'm about to leave.
“Papa!” I call in panic before running in the opposite direction. Before I can get away from the tiny house, the door opens, and somebody grabs me inside. "Get off me!" I yell while throwing a random punch at whoever holds me.
Chapter Two
Sasha
I walk out of the small bathroom wearing one of the man's sweaters and sweatpants.Sasha!I berate myself after seeing the man holding some ice on his face. But it was his fault. He startled me, and I only protected myself. I gulp when Ethan Mullin looks in my direction and smirks.
“I’m really sorry about that.” How many times should I apologize?
Ethan is the new guard in Dahlia Hall. I heard some girls talking about the gorgeous younger guard. Well, they're not wrong. He looks different from the monster-like man I imagined through the window. Ethan actually looks gentle, though his eyes can pierce when they are sharp.
"It's my fault. I startled you," Ethan says while pushing a cup to the other end of the small table. "I made you some hot cocoa. A change of clothes will not wash out the cold."
I flash a timid smile and walk to the table. Ethan told me somebody called him about some crazy girl dancing in the rain. He was about to fetch me when he saw me through the window. Ethan thought I was crazy enough to play in the rain again when I ran away after the lightning. So, he grabbed me into the guard house.
“What exactly were you thinking?” Ethan throws the ice on the sink. “You haven’t gone crazy, have you?”
My eyebrows meet while I frown at him. I take a deep breath and calm myself. “I just thought of celebrating.”
“Celebrating what? Passing a test? Not getting pregnant?” My mouth drops at his last suggestion.
"I appreciate the warm drink and change of clothes, but I have to leave," I say before I can throw another punch at his face. No one has mocked my size right in my face. How dare he?Not getting pregnant?It's a lame joke pulled by many about fat girls. I push the mug away and head to the door. I don't care if I come back to the dorm soaked. I'm not going to stay with a bigot!
My feet stick to the floor, stopping me from moving away when Ethan blocks me. Is it my naivete or does he bloom like a flower boy the more he gets close to me? He looks so young compared to the guards I've seen on the campus. Ethan's probably just a few years older than me. His eyes are a little droopy, which makes him look like a sweet puppy. His sandy blond hair is shaved on the sides, allowing the curls in the middle to stand out a bit. He reminds me of a young Ryan Philippe in the movieCruel Intentions. Come to think of it, Ethan's face has a hint of the sinister look Sebastian Valmont has in that movie. It may appear weird, but I somehow desire a Sebastian Valmont. Nothing beats a story of a hateful man changed by love.
“I’m sorry for the lame joke,” Ethan reinforces his words with a dashing smile. It’s enough to stop my worries. “I’m not a people person, so I’m a little odd.”
I raise an eyebrow at him.Odd? Not a people person?It's unbelievable for somebody as gorgeous as him. Women of any age must be running after him. He was probably an athlete or a jock during high school. There's no way he was a loner.
Seeing my doubt, Ethan suddenly said, “I’m an ex-con, and most people have a problem with that. I try to make them comfortable, but I suck at it.”
“A-an ex-con?” My hands tighten into fists as I try not to show any fear toward him. Most of my father's men are ex-convicts. They don't scare me, but it's different now that I'm alone and only one arm-reach away from one.
I look at Ethan and shake off my worries. He's not a murderer or a rapist, is he? Ethan got a job as a security officer in Dahlia Hall, a dormitory for female students. It would be crazy if he's a sexual assault convict.
"I just made things more awkward, huh?" Ethan's lips twitch down with disappointment. I get startled when he suddenly opened the drawer. He chuckles at my reaction and shows me a small umbrella. "Would you rather dance in the rain again?" he jokes.
My face burns with embarrassment. I frown at the other girls for judging me because of my size, but I'm doing the same to Ethan. He is honest enough to tell me that he's an ex-con, but I still fail to see his intention to make me feel safe. "I'm sorry. Y-your confession scared me a bit. A lot."
I push the umbrella to him and sit back on the table. My heart stops for a moment when his face lights up. For a moment, I feel his joy. Are we the same? Hoping for people to accept our flaws? Ethan's conviction may appear to be a more complicated flaw than my size, but it's a lighter issue than my true identity. If people on this campus know who I am, they'll probably be terrified of me.
“Robbery,” Ethan tells me. "Ruined my college life because of stupidity."
He confessed to joining a Russian teenage gang that robs cars. One job got so messed up and ended in a robbery with murder. As an accomplice, he had to serve about ten years. Luckily, somebody showed him direction and encouraged him to take distance learning in prison. Two years ago, his sentence was commuted after graduating from his college course, and he got released.
"Despite living a clean life, people still choose to see my past," Ethan's voice contains loneliness that squeezes pity from my heart. He is as desperate for a friend as I am.
I must have lost my mind, but I suddenly hold his hand. Ethan raises his eyes and looks straight at me. When our eyes meet, fire erupts in my chest. My whole body shivers when his eyes move down to my lips and stay there for a while. I want to pull away my hand, but Ethan holds it tighter before tracing the other features of my face. My heart creates thunder of its own and covers my ear with it. My throat feels so dry, yet my drool floods my mouth. As if I'm anticipating a kiss from his shaking lips.
"A baby," he mutters softly before stepping away. Ethan looks down and becomes confused – like he's suddenly bothered by something and changes his mind. "T-the rain has stopped," he declares and hands me the umbrella back. "You better go before it pours down again."
His words sound like mumbles as weird things fill my head and my heart. Everything inside me flutters when he looks at me, but every thought makes my head dizzy. What just happened? Why did he look at me that way? Like I'm a woman – and yet he calls me a baby. Ethan looks at me like he desires me but steps away like I'll be the death of him.
“I-I’ll go and change first,” I tell him when he opens the door for me.
"No. You can keep it," Ethan still avoids my eyes when I give him a puzzled look. "I also have to leave."
