𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 | 𝟏𝟖+

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝

-Antonio-

The drive to the hospital was awkward. After I told Valerie where were going, she suddenly went silent.
I park in the hospital parking lot and I turn off the engine. When I look towards Valerie, she seems to be in her own thoughts.

"Is everything okay?" I ask.
"Yeah I'm fine." Her voice sounds forced and fake. I take my hand and gently take hers. Her eyes quickly dart to our hands connected shocked.
"Are you sure?" I ask, caressing her palm.
It takes her a moment but she nods and we leave the car to head inside.

We walk inside the hospital side by side to the front desk. The entire walk towards the desk Valerie walked more tense and slower the closer we got.
"Valerie, you're back!" The front desk lady says. I turn to Valerie and she has a small smile on her face.
"Its good to see you again, Avery." She says.
"Its been years. What are you doing here now?"
"An investigation. I need to speak to Amanda Vasquez."
"Of course. Let me get the room number for you real quick."

While the front desk lady taps away on her computer, I turn back to Valerie.
"So, you've been here before?" I ask. "Just a few times." She responds.

"Valerie?" We both hear a male voice behind us.
I turn and see a tall average white man standing. I look to Valerie but her back is faced towards him.
"Hey Val." The man comes to her other side, almost invading her space which irritates me.

"Ever heard of personal space?" I spit out, catching his attention.
"I'm sorry?" He says.
"Apology accepted." I respond as I grab onto Valerie's waist and tug her closer to me.

Valerie quickly looks up at me, questioning my actions, and so am I.
"I found the patient!" Avery cuts through the heated conversation.
"Great. Which room?" Valerie asks.
"389."
"Thank you Avery." Valerie says and we make our way to the elevator.

"Wait!" The man calls, and for some reason we both stop.
"You can't see a random patient. You aren't any kind of relative." You've got to be kidding me, dude.
Valerie reaches into her pocket and takes out her police badge, holding it close to his face.
"This has no concern with you or your policy's."

I feel the corner or my lips lift as we both was into the elevator, watching as the doors close on the white man who is clearly defeated.

"So." I say to break the silence.
"So."
"Who was that?" Valerie takes a while to respond to my question.
"My ex. We didn't end on good conditions."
I nod. I think if I ask why I may invade a part of her she may not be ready to speak about.

We finally reach the 3rd floor, walking the halls until we reach the patients room.
"It's probably best if you want here. I can't give away too many details about the investigation just yet." She says.
"It's no problem, I'll keep watch." I stand outside the door as Valerie goes in and does her job.

*

Finally, the door behind me opens and Valerie steps out.
"So?" I ask. "I only got 1 good detail." She walks toward the elevators tired.
"And what is that?"
"A suitcase we found at the crime scene wasn't theirs. It was replaced with drugs. We found it and took it as evidence but the autopsy should no drug use in his body."

It's a good thing I payed attention in school because I could barely understand the things she said. But she does make them sound sexy.
"Anyways, I'm gonna bring this back to the station tomorrow. I'm done for the day." Valerie says as she leans against the wall of the elevator.

"Does that mean I can finally take you for myself?" I lean closer to her, trapping her against the wall. Her laugh has a shock wave rush through me.
"We'll see."

When we walk out the elevator, we're met with the same male from earlier, but this time there is a woman laughing beside him.
I don't think much of it but Valerie's sudden tense and frozen body is new.

My gaze switches between the couple and Valerie.
Her eyes suddenly become glossy and her nose has a pink rose shade, while her hands curl into a fist.

I quickly spot an empty hospital room and take her hand and drag her inside.
I close the door and lock it, hiding her from everyone.
"Hey, what's wrong?" I ask. She doesn't respond. She stares at the floor, concealing her face with her hair.

I push her hair behind her eyes and it reveals tears streaming down her face.
I don't ask questions.
I pull her close to me and let her cry into my chest.

Her cry's become more harsh and louder as time goes on. It makes me wonder what this man could've done. What did he do to her? How could someone hurt her to this point?
I brush her hair and she begins to slowly calm down.

"I'm sorry." She softly says against my chest.
"Don't apologize." I say stern. I don't mean to come off rude but my thoughts are invaded by pictures of this man, no, this boy hurting Valerie.

"This is so embarrassing." She says as she leans back into my arms and wipes her face.
"Its not. It's normal. Don't feel embarrassed to cry. It can be a bit hard to let others see you."

Valerie smiles at me, her body still leaning against my arms as my hands are on the small of her back.
I wrap myself tighter around her, bringing her closer again.
Her mouth parts and stares up at me. I lean down, and she closes her eyes.

I kiss the top of her forehead.
As I straight myself back up, Valerie stares at me confused.
Her lips part again, wanting to clearly say something but nothing leaves her mouth.

I decide to rest my forehead against hers, trying to reassure her.
"I'd rather take things slow. Let me actually take you out before things get too real."
I hear Valerie him in response.

It's true, things are becoming too real between us and I'm scared but excited.
I haven't been in a real relationship since high school, and it was just school love and that's it. I've had many woman in my life, but none that I've really wanted.

But then there's Valerie.
I'm here trying to know every piece of her. The good and the bad. The platonic and chaos parts. What she loves and hates.
I want to be the one she runs to in need, whether that's for pleasure or reassurance.
I don't know what's happening with me, but I'm willing to take the risk.

Thank you for reading today's chapter.

I apologize for the late response! I've been busy with sports and season starting but I'm back and excited!

A quick tip:
The next chapter will be mostly dialogue. There will be some inner thoughts but the chapter focuses more on the main character's interaction.

I hope you enjoyed today's chapter. Stay healthy and safe my loves!
-Rosie <3