Chapter 35

My legs hung down, being far from the ground. I leaned back, laying my back on the roof. The stars were so bright and beautiful in this darkness that they were truly mesmerizing. Somewhere in the distance, a small comet flew by and I quickly closed my eyes, making a wish. It may not come true, but faith is all that remains.

'Fuck,' a hoarse voice hisses in the courtyard, and I shudder in fear.

My eyelids open and I quickly tuck my legs under me, looking down slightly, trying to remain unnoticed. A guy in a white T-shirt and black skinny jeans walks towards the house, stumbling all the time and almost falling on his face into the ground.

'Yeah, fuck it,' he growls when he finally loses his balance and lands on his knees, holding on with his hands.

'Oh, fuck it,' he sighs, laying down on the ground with his whole body.

'Jay?' My voice echoed throughout the courtyard in the silence. The guy rolls onto his back, turning his head in my direction.

'Baby, help daddy,' the words indistinctly slipped out of his mouth.

His speech was too dirty and the way he gave us a nickname sounded vulgar. I went down from the roof into the house, going down the stairs. I have no idea why he got so drunk. As a matter of fact, I did not really want to go to him when he was in such a state. Cool air blew from the yard, throwing a fleeting shiver through the body.

'Why are you drunk?' I asked, keeping my distance from him.

'Oh, fuck, I got drunk, so I got drunk,' the guy growled, grabbing my leg. 'Go here.'

His rough grip grabbed my shin, starting to pull on him.

'What are you doing? Let me go!' I tried to wrest my leg from his arms, while trying to balance in the air so as not to fall.

Unable to resist, I flew down, falling to the ground. The guy laughed as if there was something funny about that.

'So, now we are both on the ground,' his tongue was confused in words, barely pronouncing them. 'Let's sleep under the stars.'

'Your romance is to hell, being here with you drunk and on this dirty earth is...'

'If you loved me, you wouldn’t care who I am or where we are.'

'Let go of me!' I protested, feeling his arms around my waist. 'What kind of love are you talking about?'

'Here, for example, I am. I love you.'

'You're drunk and not telling the truth, James. Tomorrow you won't even remember what you said to me or you'll just deny it.'

'Even if that’s the case, I’m being sincere with you right now. And tomorrow I will just be silent and keep my feelings in myself, not talking about them to you.'

'I want to get up, let me go!' I screamed at him, still feeling his arms around my body.

'I won't get,' he paused, sighing heavily. 'home.'

'I'll get the guards to carry you, okay?' I got up from the ground, brushing off the dirt from my clothes.

'I'm an asshole, today is the day off and I let them go,' he rolled onto his back, stopping looking, he simply closed his eyes.

'Will you help me carry you? You are heavy for me.'

'I will do my best.'

I bent down, grabbing his arms, but not calculating the strength, I again fell on the guy.

'I am sorry, just try to help me?' I asked, about to get up from his hips, but his strong hands abruptly seated me back.

'I like it when you are on top,' he whispered, holding me in place. 'Me too, but come on, can we get home?'

I began to rise to my feet, but before I had time to fully stand up, I heard the hoarse laugh of the guy reaching my ears.

'Damn you said 'me too',' he laughed as he lay on the ground. 'oh, baby.'

'No, stop,' I protested, pushing my hands forward. 'You misunderstood, damn. I meant that I like it when I can control you, and not you control me.'

'Baby, admit that you like to sit on my thighs, because I see how you blushed as hell.'

'Jay, stop it or I'll leave right now.'

The guy kept laughing at me, so I just turned around and walked towards the house. The light from the lanterns illuminated the area, allowing something to be seen in the darkness.

The sonorous laughter stopped and silence fell, but before it had time to drag on, a man's scream reached my ears. Worried, I turned back, noticing how the guy was sitting on the grass with his head in his hands and continuing to scream in fear of the unknown.

'Jay!' He did not react to my scream, the blond man did not even turn his head in my direction.

The guy was afraid of the unknown, his screams were all over the street, and his body was shaking because of fear. He was too vulnerable and weak at this time. I ran towards him, falling to my knees in front of him and grabbing his head in my hands so he could look at me.

'Please, calm down. I'm here,' his eyes were red, I guess from the effects of some drug he'd been given, because there was no other explanation. 'You are not in danger, James.'

He saw nothing in front of him, only hallucinations that his brain showed him. His blue eyes were clouded, and his gaze looked into the void, the thought of what was happening to him at the moment did not even enter my head.

'Go away, leave me!' He shouted, rudely grabbing his hair.

He hurt himself, trying to get rid of the demons in his head.

'No need!' He screamed so hard that he was hoarse. 'Don't touch me!'

James began to crawl back, trying to quickly hide from the one whom only he saw. I continued to sit still in confusion, thinking that if I did not touch him, he would calm down, because he saw in me the one he was afraid of, but it seemed that his anxiety had not gone away, because the guy was still terrified and asked someone will stop and not touch him.

'Get away from me! 'No, don't do it!' James began to wave his arms and close his eyes, defending himself from the non-existent.

I would like to know who hurt him so much that it completely changed the young guy. Because as much as I hate to deny it, I got to know the real Foster. He is not at all what he wants to appear to others. This guy is caring and able to give love, he is not cruel and not evil, as others see him.

'Jay, please don't be afraid. I'm here,' I began to try to sit closer to him, trying not to scare him even more.

Being next to him, I hugged him, hugging him tighter. His heart was beating wildly, beating hard against his chest. Breathing was ragged and unbalanced. He still stopped screaming, calming down in my arms. And no matter how much I understood James Foster, I would still like to escape from him in order to feel free again. I felt the guy's huge hands on my back, after which he pressed his head against my chest, sobbing softly.

'Don’t let fear take over you,' my whisper reached his consciousness and he abruptly raised his head, returning to reality.

'That's what my mother said, Hailey,' his gaze was on me and his eyes could again read emotion.

'What happened to you? Have you been on drugs?'

'It is a bad trip, that's why I saw horrors and this time Nick brought bad goods,' James barely got to his feet, looking me up and down. 'You were with me all this time. Why?'

He looked at me suspiciously, narrowing his eyebrows at the bridge of his nose.

'You needed support and help, and I think I gave you that.'

'Thanks, Hailey.'

He extended his hand to me and grabbed it, I rose to my feet, immediately feeling his strong embrace. The guy buried his face in my neck, and honestly, it was the best hug in my life.

'Let's go to the house,' he took my hand, trying to walk straight.

But his condition remained the same and his gait was still not sober.

'Put your hand on my shoulder, it will be easier.'

The guy accepted my help and we went into the house along the illuminated sidewalk along the street lamps. I helped him take off his shoes as soon as we entered the warm room.

Not with a sober gait, constantly grabbing for any objects in his house so as not to fall, he silently climbed to the second floor, disappearing from my sight. Sitting on the sofa, I relaxed, closing my eyes. The gentle sound of the water reached my ears, which meant that James must be in the shower right now.

The phone call stirred my relaxed mind, bringing me back to reality. I answered the phone, confused for a moment and not knowing what to say, because I was in a strange house and, in fact, did not even appear to James Foster.

'I'm listening to you,' I added a more confident tone to my voice.

'Oh, it's not James,' the man on the other side of the phone stated. 'You are Re-, Sta-, Hailey, right? Hailey Mackenzie?'

'Yes, sir,' I was surprised, not understanding how this man knew me.

'Where is my son now?'

'Son?' I asked again, after which I immediately answered the question posed. 'He's taking a shower, sir.'

'So, Hailey. I have one offer for you that is beneficial for you.'

'I'm listening, Mr. Foster.'

'I offer you to work for me, but,' the man slowed down, after which he said his condition. 'you will have to go against James, I hope you understand what I mean?'

'And how will it benefit me?'

'After you give me one document, I will give you freedom and send you home.'

'What kind of document?'

'It's just paper, give it to me and I'll give you a new life.'

'How do I know which document I need to take?'

'It will have the title 'Earth' on it, but you must understand that James must not know anything about it. When you have the document, just write down this number, call me and I will make an appointment for us.'

'Do you guarantee that I will be free?'

Doubts and excitement fought in my head, not allowing me to decide. On the one hand, I will be free, and on the other hand, I will betray James by hurting him and doing a huge meanness. But what if he deserved it? Nobody deserves meanness.

'I give my word. You agree?'

The noise of the water had ended, which meant that I had to quickly resolve this issue before James arrived. Making choices is always difficult, and often we make the wrong one. We make mistakes, and then we regret.

'I agree.'

And while I was saying these words, my heart treacherously pinched in my chest.

'Time, Hailey, time,' the man hung up the phone with these words.

'Who was that?' James asked, frightening me with his appearance.

The guy was standing on the stairs with a white terry towel around his hips. His wet hair was a mess, and water dripped from it, running down his torso. Jay raised his eyebrows, waiting for my answer.

'Just a wrong number.'