Aurora Collins

"I'm gonna tell him today," I speak with a deep breath and lay my hands on my lap.

"About time!" Charlotte exclaims and closes her eyes.

"Wait what are you gonna tell him?" She adds on. I roll my eyes and fidget around.

"I want to have another shot with him. Another chance to make things right. I'm going to tell him I still," I hesitatingly pause and look up at Char's eyes.

"..love him."

She looks over my face for a moment and grabs my hand. "You got this. And I'm sure he feels the same." She whispers and squeezes my hand.

"Thanks, Char. My father has to talk to him in a few hours and that's when I'll tell him." I breathe out and sit back into my couch.

Char and I just lounge around for about an hour. We watched a movie and played some monopoly, Charlotte went bankrupt.

Another half hour passed and my mother came into the room. "Hey," I respond with a grin.

She returns the gesture and Parker appears behind her. "It's report card night. I'll be back home in a few hours and your father might leave for golfing too." She says and disappointment fills my face.

That means he's not coming today. And I can't tell him. I guess that gives me more time to plan what I'll say because I've got no idea.

"Aaron's not coming?" Charlotte asks after fundamentally reading my mind.

"Not that I think." Mom responses and leaves after blowing me a kiss, one that I pretend catch and stick to my heart.

"Well, there's always tomorrow." I sigh and lay down. Charlotte slaps my hand and stands up.

"Let's go make some pizza bagels. I'm starving." She suggests and suddenly I forget all about Aaron. I jump up and follow her to the kitchen.

I open the freezer and search for the bagels. When I find them I take them out and throw the pack to Charlotte.

She catches it with her face.

"Aurora! You know I can't catch." She murmurs and rubs her nose annoyedly.

I was just about to play a song on Spotify when a knock on the door disrupts me.

"I'll get it!" I shout to the maids and trot towards the door with my phone in hand. I look in the peephole and all I see is black. That's uncanny. I hesitate on whether or not to open it but figure the persons just tall.

I open the door and when I see the persons face my phone hits the floor with a bang. My whole body goes rigid seeing the one person I thought I'd never see again.

"Aurora, please hear me out before closing the door," James urges and puts one palm on the door to refrain it from closing.

He's grown a beard and he looks much, much older. His hair is jet black and wildly untidy and he's wearing a rumpled shirt with dark baggy jeans.

I swallow multiple times trying to find my voice but I feel like someone just tore it out of my throat. "W-what are you doing here?" I say, my voice abruptly sounding hoarse.

"Do you know the hell I've been through? What he did to me?" James says slightly sharply. I look at him weirdly and he proceeds with a scoff.

"He got his people to kidnap me and take me to this village somewhere. There was nothing there, no transportation or phones or anything for at least a couple thousand miles." He shouts and pushes his way inside the house. My eyes go wide at the fact that he's indoors and there's no one home besides me, Char and the maids.

"Woah, get out-," I start but he turns around abruptly, overawing me.

"I had to live like a peasant for two years." He says through clenched teeth with a crazed look in his eyes. He looks like a madman. Terror shoots up my body and I feel my heart race.

My eyes travel to Charlotte in the back with a phone held to her ear. I quickly move my eyes from here not wanting James to see her. I sigh in comfort grasping the fact that she called the police.

"James. You need to leave." I say steadily and step back from him but he just stalks forward. I hear a car door slam outside and both of our eyes snap towards the window. James moves the shades and chuckles bitterly.

"Prince Charming is here."

Seconds later Aaron calmly walks through the door and holds it open. His face is neutral but I know he's seething inside. "Get the fuck out."

James' eyes turn to slits and he gazes at me. "Aurora come with me. We can live a happy life together. Just me and you and no one else." He says crazily like he has mental issues.

Staring at him now is so different from what he was before. He looks like he's gone completely insane.

I step back and looks at him confusedly. "W-what?" I stammer in a whisper and recoil at his harsh stare.

"I fucking love you, I always did. Seeing you with him made my insides rot. I couldn't stand it. Don't you get it? I've been trying to find ways to get closer to you and every time I did that, he got in the way." He glares at Aaron and steps closer to me.

"Your the one I want. In the end my life turned to shit because of you!" He roars maniacally and painfully grabs my shoulders, shaking them violently.

Charlotte gasps loudly and holds the phone to her ear, probably calling the police.

I trash around in his grasp and try to scratch his face and soon enough he is launched off me to the ground. Aaron stares down at him with such hostility and loathing that it shakes me to my core. James laughs and rises back up. He shakes himself off and in a glance, he fires a punch to Aarons jaw. I shriek in shock and cover my mouth.

James smirks and holds his fist with his other hand. Aaron stumbles back a few steps and holds his jaw. He scoffs lowly and shakes his head with a bitter smile. He turns his head slowly to look at James like a lion shadowing his prey. I was about to go to Aaron but Charlotte appears to my side and prevents me from moving.

Aarons bottom lip was bleeding and he raised his thumb and gently wiped off the trail of blood with blazing eyes.

"This is what happens to bastard best friends." Aaron whispered with furious eyes.

And it happened so fast but Aarons fist connected with James nose and a crack was heard throughout the entire house.

Blood spurted everywhere and I just had to look away. I shut my mouth tightly because I feel like I'll just start crying any second now. I hear police sirens and I strain my head to look at James figure laid out on the floor cradling his nose.

He's still very much awake just not able to move. Cops burst through the door and Aaron raises his hands but he doesn't look scared or fazed at all.

They take Aarons' hands and handcuff them, doing the same to James. They are escorted outside and get in the back of the police car another lady cop pulls us aside to answer some questions.

"Did that really just happen?" I hear myself mutter and I rub my temples with both hands.