When the Tide Switches - Rafe Cameron

Chapter 4- Big Revelations

Trigger Warning: SA, Anxiety

I was struggling to breathe as I made my way to the bathroom, Rafe was holding onto my hand so I wouldn't get lost in the crowd. He opened the door for me, I passed by him and then he closed and locked it behind him.

"Ok, now Lillian you're going to have to listen to me for once." He said with a serious look on his face. He wasn't kidding.

I nodded and then he continued "You have to inhale for 5, hold for 3 and exhale for 3. Then repeat. I'll help you through it just copy me." I did what he said and felt it getting better.

"R-Rafe?" I stuttered.

"Yeah?" He replied.

"Can you give me a hug, it's what helps me most usually," I asked him still chasing for air with my breath. Looking back now I'm surprised at how nice and caring he was being, it doesn't completely match with his persona. I'm also surprised that I wasn't yelling at him for helping me.

He pulled me in in a hug, my head on his chest. One of his hands holding my head and the other my back. I was holding onto him tight. 

"You're good, you're safe, you're with me" He whispered in my ear to calm me down.

I noticed that my attack had stopped so I pulled away from the hug. "Are you okay?" He asked me with a concerned look on his face. 

"Yeah..." I answered vaguely processing what had just happened. 

"Do you want me to leave and call Kiara or Sarah? I know you don't really like me," 

"No I'm fine, but can you stay for a few minutes I don't want to be alone," I said quietly.

"Of course," He said with a slight smile appearing on his face. I was sitting on the bathroom counter when our eyes locked, we were both silent just looking into each other's eyes. We didn't break the eye contact or the silence so we were both just there staring at each other.

Rafe had the most beautiful blue eyes, I felt like I could dive into them and swim like in the ocean. He was so handsome and in what he wearing tonight he genuinely looked hot.

I felt weird thinking of him as that but it was the way I felt and for once I wasn't afraid to admit that.

After a while Rafe broke the silence "You don't have to answer but what exactly happened with Dylan? I just heard you say that he was hurting you so I came", he looked at me softly, he knew that he was touching a soft spot so he wanted to do that carefully.

"Well, we danced together for a while, he introduced himself and stuff, then we kissed and once we were done he asked me if I wanted to go to an empty room with him, to you know. He mentioned something about me having to obey him in there and that was like really weird of him to say so I told him things weren't going to work. Then he grabbed my wrist and tried to make me come in there with him and lastly, he called me a slut." I said with a sarcastic smile. To be honest I had already forgotten about it, he was so unattractive to me now so I didn't really care about his opinion of me. It's so fucking weird how an ick can be a deal breaker, but any girl will understand.

"Lillian, you aren't a slut. Dylan is just a little bitch who wants to get in everyone's pants. Just let him fuck off" Rafe said abruptly, he meant what he said, it was clear.

"Thanks, Rafe, that means a lot to me actually." I said and chuckled, and Rafe smiled softly at me.

"Rafe?" I said catching his attention.

"Yeah?"

"Why are you being so nice to me? I don't know if you remember but we kind of hate each other." I asked him. He looked surprised and took a moment to think. I thought of the label that we had put on one another over the years. "Enemy", were we enemies? Could we be friends? I realized how stupid it was, to think of a person in black and white, to not want to know more about them rather than what's clear to the eye.