The Author and Her Bodyguard

Chapter 33

Have you ever forgotten how loud the sound of silence could be? Like when the world finally shuts up, the silence feels incredibly loud? That was what it felt like walking through the museum with Aiden. The sounds of steps and breathing were the only thing to interrupt the moments of silence that filled each room. 

I had missed quiet. The kind of quiet that cleared your head and left no room for anything other than bare, vulnerable honesty. The world filled us with distractions. With noise. And normally I leaned into the noise, not wishing to hear my own thoughts. Afraid of what they would say. But with silence, I felt a new type of peace wash over me as I walked in silence with Aiden, soaking in the beauty that had been brought in from around the world. 

It was a comfortable silence that fell between us as we moved from room to room. Taking in all the pieces. Statues, paintings, and pieces of history covered every inch of free space, throwing us into different parts of the world.

"Have you always lived in Los Angeles?" Aiden asked, surprising me as we walked up to a large Sauropod dinosaur skeleton.

I stared up at the overwhelmingly large dinosaur skeleton on display, taking a beat to organize my words. The personal question felt out of character for him. "No."

I paused, trying to decide how much to share. "I lived in LA until my parents died." I traced the nameplate below the dinosaur, deep in thought. "I moved in with my aunt in Newport Beach after that. She wasn't very... maternal. So when the school year ended, and it was time to go into my senior year, she sent me off to boarding school in Northern California in the middle of the woods."

I moved to stare up at a skeleton of a Theropod, thinking about how if it came to life, it would look just like a zombie dinosaur straight out of Night at the Museum. "I wrote a lot while I was there. Everyone had been there for years, so..." Flashes of sitting alone in the forest, writing a very messy first draft of Seapunk Princess filled my mind. "I got a lot of writing done."

I continued to one end of the display room, taking in a large Jurrasic period tapestry. Angry dinosaurs fought, each baring teeth and claws, desperate to become the dominant ruler of them all. 

A small animal stood in the center of the image, terrified. "Some of the students from my previous school sent my short story assignment into a magazine... and they published it. That's how Sanders found me. So I had something to focus on. It kept me focused and helped me get through that final year of school."

I turned and offered up an awkward shrug to Aiden who stood watching me. "When I graduated I moved back to Los Angeles and got four roommates. Three of them were some of the girls from my first high school who moved in together, hoping to make it as actresses." 

I laughed, remembering how loud, boisterous and nosey they were. "It was hard to get anything done so once my book was out and the publisher wanted to buy the second two books, I got my own place. I needed room to write and the rest is history. Being back in Los Angeles made me feel close to my parents. So I've been there ever since..." 

I suddenly stopped talking, realizing he had asked a very simple question and I had just talked for the past five minutes without taking a breath. "Um... so no, I haven't always lived in Los Angeles." Great job Laliana, gold star. 

"Tell me about your parents," Aiden replied, unfazed by my monologue.

We moved into an observatory. Stars were painted on the ceiling, glistening brightly in the otherwise dim room. A large display of planets filled the room, giving the illusion of walking across the galaxy. Twinkle lights and mirrors filled the walls, making the room feel vast and endless.