MATE AND HIS LOVER 9

#44 Her story

"Daisy, stop!" Nate says, pulling her back by her hand. "Nothing happened. I—"

Daisy faces Nate. "It looks like she still thinks you two are a couple."

"That's not true. I turned her down. I told her I didn't like her. She even knows I like you!"

"What?! You told her about us?" Daisy asks, shocked.

"Not everything. But she figured I was into you."

"How could she possibly know something like that about you? Are you two that close?"

"No, fuck, no. Stop twisting everything. Frank said it must be how I'm always at home. Everyone fucking knows I like you. Except you who just keeps pushing me away, and finding excuses to run away!"

"Who's running away?"

"You!" Nate angrily says, startling Daisy before her face softens.

"Nate, it's not like that—"

"It's always like that!" Nate says, unable to calm down. "How come I have to explain everything to you, but when I ask about your past you just fucking get up and leave!"

"Nat—"

"Who was Ian to you?"

"God, Nate, I told you, there was nothing between us."

"I don't fucking believe you. I'm done with your lies. If you don't tell me everything, I'll fucking take you to in front of everyone and tell them you are my mate! I don't care if that hurts you, because I'm done feeling like this. I'm done seeing you walk away. You don't know how terrified I am that one day I'll wake up and you'll be gone. It fucking drives me insane!"

Daisy blinks away her tears. She didn't realize her silence had hurt Nate this much.

Nate starts dragging her to the drawing room where the guests are.

"Okay, fuck, stop it, we were friends!" Daisy says.

Nate stops and looks at her.

"We were friends. Not like best friends, but he was all I had. We had each other's back. I trusted him more than anything in this world," Daisy says, crying.

Nate swallows. "You loved him?"

"Not in the way you think. But, yes. Him, his father, and everyone who was close to me in the gang. They were my family, Nate. The only one I ever knew. And now... I really feel like an orphan," she says, covering her crying with her hands.

Nate hugs her. She hugs him back, letting it all out.

WHEN THEY RETURN home, Nate goes to her room after she had changed. Daisy sits on the edge of her bed and Nate pulls up a chair for himself next to her.

Daisy begins her story.

"The only thing I remember about my mom is the image of her back when she walked away from me for the last time. That, too, I'm starting to forget. I was four or five. After a few days on the street, which I don't remember how I survived, Thomas Stanton found me. I was standing on the roadside. It was raining. He took me in. I followed him without a second thought. I was tired. 

"He gave me warm food. Dry clothes. A nice room in his huge house. He sent me to school. Bought me everything I ever asked for. Took care of me when I was sick. Scolded me when I did something wrong. Praised me when I did something right. Just like a father would.

"When we were younger, Ian often picked fights with me. I think he was just jealous Thomas was paying me more attention. Little by little however Ian and I became friends. And it wasn't like I was very social, either. He and Liam were the only other kids around I often saw.

"Everything seemed to go fine, even more than fine, everything was great, until one day Ian said he liked me and that he wanted to make me his mate.

"I thought he was joking. I didn't take him serious. I just laughed off his attempts at getting me to date him.

"Then one day he tried to kiss me. When I pushed him away he... he was... raging. I've seen him angry, but not at me, and not like that.

"For a second, I was scared for my life.

"I told Thomas about it, and he told Ian to stay away from me. We still worked together but we were not close anymore. And I thought the distance might change Ian back.

"But then Thomas got sick. He couldn't run the gang anymore. Ian stepped in. Ian is not like his father. Thomas had principles. Ian only cared about the profits.

"Because of money, everyone just blindingly followed Ian. It's like, overnight, everyone I knew became different people. I was careful not to get in Ian's way. I often picked jobs that made me travel, so I didn't have to be in the Stantons House. But I couldn't stay out forever either.

"One night when I was in, Ian confronted me about taking outside jobs. He said I was running away from him, and he won't let me. He... he tried to mark me."

Nate's fists clench tighter as he continues to listen to Daisy.

"Fortunately, Thomas intervened on time. Even though Thomas was weak, he was still stronger than Ian. And, honestly, I think that's the only reason Ian backed off. Otherwise, the way he glared at his father and me, I'm sure things would've been the worst if Ian had the upper hand.

"The next day, Thomas called me in to his room. And..." Daisy starts sobbing. "H-He asked me to leave. To escape. He wanted me to take some money and just leave.

"I told him I won't. How could I? How could I leave him? He was my family. That was my home. Where will I go? But he still told me to leave, and find myself a new home, a new life.

"I still wouldn't have left, if it weren't for the fact that Thomas was getting sicker by the day and Ian's influence grew with it. I wasn't safe there anymore. So I did what Thomas told me to. I packed up my bags. I transferred some money to a few shell accounts. And I left. Just left."

While Daisy cries even more, Nate moves to her side and embraces her.

"I wanted to stay by Thomas' side until his last breath. He's the only one who had always been there for me."

Daisy wipes her face and looks at Nate. "When I left, I thought I really lost everything. But when I found you, it felt like I found everything back. I found my family. I found my safe haven. My home. You're everything to me, Nate, but... the fear I have of Ian, and the regret I have of leaving Thomas, it just sometimes becomes overwhelming, and it's like I stop breathing."

Nate takes Daisy face in his hands. "You don't have to feel like that anymore. You don't have to be scared of Ian. And I promise you, Daisy, I will take you to see Thomas. I just need you to trust me and show me everything, your fear, your anger, your love, everything."

With fresh tears streaming down her face, Daisy nods. They both kiss, and lie down. Later, in a long time, Daisy falls asleep in Nate's arms in peace.

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