Toddlers Until Teenagers

Chapter 54

I smiled and left the car with Alex trailing right behind me. We saw families, couples, and much more. We trailed through and more closer to the sand. The yellow sand and my flip flops made friction to my ears. The water was so clear blue and a bunch of life guards sat on huge chairs, close to the water but a distance away to give people privacy.

He set down a light blanket and an umbrella a safe distance from the water, but farther from the people. The sound of waves and faint laughter echoed through my ears. Just then, a blonde man slapped Alex on the back. "Hey! What's going on?" Alex grinned and nodded.

"I'm great, but you f^cking tell me where you've been these past few days, Ben." Ben threw his head back and laughed hard. Then, his dark and dangerous eyes landed on me.

"Whose this?" He nodded towards me. I looked away, and Alex smiles warmly at Ben. "Damn, boy, ya got another gal already? Damn." He wiggled his eyebrows, while I couldn't fight the blush forming on my cheeks. Alex shook his head furiously.

"She's just My friend, idiot! She came from Canada." Alex laughed hard, looked at me, and then laughed again. Not a teasing or rude laugh. Just a calm and genuine one. Ben shook his head and chuckled. "This, is Jenna. And Jenna, this is Ben." Alex introduced.

And that's when the flashback ends, and realization hits me harder than a tidal wave.

"Fancy meeting you here," Ben says, his breath fanning on my neck. My body is stiff, yet my heartbeat is so fast I can hardly keep up with it. My breath is jagged, and I gulp, petrified, confused, and then, protective. I choose to protect my daughter, and, with a swift motion, I try to grab her, but, Ben catches me to it. Liane yelps as Ben grabs her arm, and, I spin around to face the man that stole my life, my love, my happiness, my youth.

Alex growls from behind me. "What the hell?" His voice is confused and angry, but he catches up faster than I catch up to things. Ben's hair is longer, slightly, and he's more tanned. He's smirking evilly, and there are slight crinkles at the edges of his eyes. But, other than that, his eyes are the same. Dark, dangerous, and mischievous.

"B-Ben. Let go of my daughter!" I snap into reality, grabbing confused Liane's arm. He lets me take her, but stays right in my face. Alex comes from behind me, and shoves Ben back into the shelf before I know it.

"Run!" Alex directs, but my feet stay planted where I am. Everything is a fast blur of noises and gasps, as the shelf tilts and smashes into our shopping cart. Two employers run towards us, and I rush towards their confused faces.

"Please, help me!" I croak. Flashbacks are clouding my mind, paralyzing me, while I also have to protect my daughter and keep an eye on Alex. I don't know why I'm also protective of him, but I'll deal with that later.

"What is going on here?!" The jet black haired on asks, helping Ben up. The other one shoves the cart from the weight of the shelf, and tries to align the bent shelf.

"He-He pushed me!" Ben points to Alex, and Alex raises his hands up.

"No, he threatened me! He threatened to take my daughter. Alex backed us up." I explain quickly, and the worker nods, taking our stories in.

"Yeah, that's right!" Alex witnesses, and liane edges closer to my legs. I cover her eyes with my palms. I don't want her to be seeing what she never should have seen. Possibilities and stories rack through my brain. How did Ben track me down? More importantly, What does he want, and why is he back?

Suddenly, I realize my cheeks are wet. I gasp, touching them, and feel the salty tears trickling down them like blood from a fresh wound. The employer sighs, and then instructs us to come with him while the other worker with his employees, tries to fix the damage. I've never seen this side of the superstore, but today I am. I've never been this scared, but at this second, I am.