THIRTEEN: THE PRICE OF FREEDOM.

THIRTEEN: THE PRICE OF FREEDOM.


Morning came too fast.

Juliet barely remembered falling asleep, and yet somehow she woke up feeling more exhausted than she had the night before. Her chest was heavy, her limbs numb, her mind suspiciously blank for someone who had been told she was “free” less than twelve hours ago.

Free.

Whatever that meant.

She got dressed slowly, taking her time—not because she was preparing for anything important, but because moving too quickly made her think, and she didn’t want that right now. She tied her shoes, grabbed her bag, and stepped outside before she could talk herself out of leaving the house.

Carlos wasn’t there.

No car idling in the driveway.
No black windows watching her.
No reminder of the world she had gotten dragged into.

She didn’t know if that made her feel better or worse.

The silence followed her all the way to school. Her morning class dragged on, each minute stretching longer than the last. She tried focusing but her mind kept circling back to the same unsteady question: What happens now?

Xavier had said she was free. But his idea of an explanation to what he actually meant was barely enough to get rid of the questions spiraling in her head. Free? She was free? If she was free, did that mean she had been discarded? Released? Or simply set aside?

She didn’t know which answer scared her more.

By the time she stepped out of her building between classes, she barely registered the people around her. She moved on autopilot, head low, backpack strap clutched in her fingers until a shadow fell across her path.

“Juliet Bailey.”

She immediately stopped her rehearsed steps, her heart dropping for a second as she heard her name in an unfamiliar voice.

Holding back a swallow, she raised her head to meet the owner of the unfamiliar voice. He stood tall a few feet away, dressed too sharply, too confidently, with eyes that lingered on her a little too long. His eyes were dark, his hair styled carefully just as dark.

Finally swallowing, she checked him out once again. He was unfamiliar. But the way the air shifted around him felt a bit too familiar.

“Who are-”

“I’ve been looking for you,” Damon said, his lips curling into a half smile. Biting his bottom lip, he took a step closer and slowly sent his hands down his pocket. “Hello. Nice to finally meet you. Properly.”

“I don’t know you,” Juliet blinked, trying to put any memory on his face but none came up. “I-“

“But I know you.”

That didn’t help.

“Have we met before?” she tilted her head trying to get a good look at him from a different angle. “How do you know me?”

“Yeah, we’ve met before,” he nodded, his lips twitching before he continued. “It’s not one of my favorite memories but you don’t remember? Xavier was there too.”

“What?” Juliet’s stomach immediately twisted. The mere mention of Xavier’s name was enough to make her uncomfortable. “Xavier?”

No wonder he had that familiar unsettling aura. No wonder she panicked even without knowing him.

“Fuck, I shouldn’t have said that,” he took his hand out of his pocket to run it through his hair. “I’m not- I’m nothing like Xavier. And if you don’t remember me, then it’s actually better that way. I’m just here to-”

“I don’t know you,” she cut him off before he could finish, taking a staggered step backwards. “Please just- excuse me. I have somewhere to be.”

“Juliet,” he reached for her arm as she tried to leave, her entire body immediately tensing up. She looked at his grip on her and then his eyes, his grip immediately loosening. “Sorry. I’m just- I just want to talk to you. Please just hear me out.”

“Not today,” she stepped back again, immediately regretting her choice of words. Her mind was still a mess from Xavier and the last thing she needed was a discussion with another variant of him. “Maybe some other time. I-”

“Okay, I’ll leave you alone,” he said, watching her closely. Watching her blink in response, he took a step backwards and returned his hands to his pocket. “Just for today. We’ll talk some other time, deal?”

The mention of another deal made her stomach churn. Her fingers curled, her nails digging into her palm as she tried to come up with a suitable answer.

But before she could, he turned around and walked away, leaving her standing alone in the middle of the walkway with her pulse racing in her ears. She didn’t wait for him to look back before taking to her heels, walking straight out of campus and not stopping until she reached her house.

She shut the door behind her and leaned against it for a long time. She looked around the cramped space she called a home, subconsciously comparing it to the room she had spent the past couple of nights in.

She let out a bitter chuckle, genuinely amazed at herself. It had been only a couple of days yet it suddenly felt odd to be back into that room. It was still filled with memories that haunted her. Memories of her life before a certain Xavier De Luca.

“Come back to your senses, Juliet,” she muttered to herself. “This is your life. Your house. Your reality.”

She crawled towards her bed and slumped on it. She shut her eyes, the silence almost swallowing her. She turned off the lights and allowed the darkness do the same. But despite it all, she couldn’t get herself to fall asleep.

She remained in that position for hours, her mind spiraling at the numerous thoughts of ‘what next’. And when it was almost, midnight, after giving up on sleep entirely, she slipped out of bed and walked to the front door, telling herself she just needed air. Just a breath. Just a moment outside.

She opened the door. And took only a few steps outside before she paused.

A car was parked across the street. A black unfamiliar car with tinted windows.

Her eyebrows climbed higher as she tried to figure out whose car it was. And almost coincidentally, the windows were winded down to immediately reveal the same man from earlier.

Juliet’s eyes widened as she turned around with a speed quicker than lightening. It was him. She didn’t need any more than a second to immediately recognize him.

Her throat tightened, breath catching painfully inside her chest. What was he doing in front of her house? How did he even know her address? Why was he in front of her house after he had promised to leave her alone.

Hoping he was yet to see her, she stepped back into the house instantly, shutting the door quietly. She pressed her back against the door, numerous sighs escaping her lips as she slid onto the floor.

Just why could she never have a single day of peace?

She reached for her phone, thumb hovering over the keypad.

Who was she supposed to call? What was she supposed to say to anyone? Was he a stalker? Or was he just someone working with Xavier?

“Xavier,” his name left her lips softly. “Should I just call him?”

The thought disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared, Juliet realizing she didn’t even have his number.

“Great,” she let out a sarcastic chuckle. “He paid my debts, housed me for days, almost slept with me and I do not even have his number. Way to go, Juliet.”

She dragged herself from the floor to fall onto her bed, her phone buzzing just as she was about to change positions.

“Xa-”

It wasn’t a miraculous text from Xavier. But one from Wale.

Wale:
Still awake? I wanted to check if you got home safe yesterday. Didn’t see you at school today too.

Her shoulders loosened just a little and she answered him before thinking too deeply about anything else.

Juliet:
Yes. I’m awake. I’m fine too. Thanks for checking.

His reply came almost immediately.

Wale:
It’s past midnight. Why are you still up? Can’t sleep?

She exhaled before replying.

Juliet:
Not really. Was just about to head to bed.

Wale:
Are you sure? Everything’s okay, right?

She walked towards the window and took a peek outside. The car was still there.

Juliet:
Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks.

Wale:
In that case, would you eat with me tomorrow?

Before she could reply, another message came in.

Wale:
We should hang out properly. Not halfway, not rushed. A real plan this time.

Wale:
Is tomorrow fine? Just lunch? Something simple.

Her fingers hesitated before she could come up with a response.

It was a normal plan to eat. Like every normal college student.

She had never given herself the chance to live a normal life so was that finally her chance? After all, she was now…free?

Juliet:
Yeah. Tomorrow is fine.

Wale:
Good. Then it’s a date.

“A da-”

The words had barely left her mouth when he sent another message.

Wale:
Now try to get some sleep, Juliet. Don’t think about anything else and just go to bed.

She stared at the message for an entire minute before deciding to heed to it. And without sparing the window or the black car parked outside another glance, she climbed her bed and shut her eyes.

And after another minute of thinking about nothing but Xavier, she finally drifted off to sleep.