When It Comes To You [√] BOOK TWO

23

Cyrus

I heard her leave. She wanted to be left alone. But I knew that if I did just that then she wouldn't come back.

I gave her a few minutes' lead and rushed down the stairs and out of the front door. She hadn't made it far though. In fact, she was standing still on the lawn in front of our house.

"Camila? Cam?" I called out but she didn't move.

I ran over to her and saw that she was crying silently while staring at something in the distance.

"It was them." She whispered.

"What?"

"I saw them. Ford and Gabbie. They were riding his bike."

I felt my heart breaking. I could see the hurt evident in her voice and I wanted nothing more than to hurt whoever it was that had done that to her. I could feel the rush of emotion and the troubled thoughts swimming in and around her head.

I stepped in front of her and lifted her chin up, forcing her to look me in the eye.

"Why did you leave?" I whispered.

"Because I wanted to be alone." She whispered back, another tear rolling down her face.

I wiped it away and kept my fingers on her face. I felt her cringe but I didn't pull away. "Let me take care of you, please? You don't have to say anything. You can just cry if you want to."

"But-but-"

"Shh. I know the perfect place. C'mon."

Before she could reply or protest, I lifted her into my arms and walked back into my house. She stayed silent as I carried her weightless body into my room and gently placed her on my bed.

I closed the door and sat down right next to her on the bed.

"Why did you bring me here?" she asked.

Her voice was husky from unshed tears.

"Because I want you to know that you can always come to me. Whether you're angry, or you feel like falling apart or even if you're just plain bored. I want you to trust me."

She kept silent and just put her head on my shoulder. I picked her up and put her onto my lap so I could cradle her in my arms.

"I don't think this is the normal way of gaining someone's trust."

"Yeah well I'm not normal." I whispered.

I felt her chuckle lightly before the sobs came.

I was terrified. Here was the girl I had irrationally fallen in love with: crying and seeking comfort.

I wasn't sure how to react but then I realised something.

This wasn't about me or my insecurities: this was about Camila. She needed me to just be there for her and so that's what I did.

For a good while, I just listened to her soft sobs and enjoyed the feel of her smooth skin on mine. Despite her being nearly as tall as me, she felt small and delicate in my arms.

It almost physically hurt me that she had so much pain inside her. I wanted to take away that pain. I wanted to bring back that beautiful smile of hers.

She thought of herself as broken but she wasn't. Not to me. She was a pure soul, tormented by pain and loneliness. All she needed was someone who would take care of her and be her shoulder to cry on when she desperately needed it.

"Who did this to you?" I asked after her sobs had ceased.

"I did this to myself. I made the mistake of trusting someone who wasn't my brother." She answered.

I felt goose bumps rise on my skin. "Why do you say that?"

"Because it's true. I thought Gabby was my friend but she wasn't really. She just stuck with me because I made her look better by comparison."

"Gabby? Was that the girl who made you cry so much?" I asked.

"Yes and no."

"Mind telling me about it?"

She raised her head from my chest and looked up at me with puffy eyes. She gave me a tired look but, after realising I wasn't going to give up, she let out a sigh.

"It all started in second grade. Gabby and I were close back then. She always made me laugh. Then a new boy moved here. Ford. He was a bit older than us because the school wanted him to repeat the grade so he could catch up with the class work.

Everyone liked him. He made silly jokes that made everyone laugh so hard. He played with all of us, including Gabbie and I. Soon, he became a part of our duo and we were best friends till sixth grade. I developed a little crush on him and only told Gabby. She didn't say anything but I could tell she liked him too and that was when the tension started.

Then Ford left. His parents divorced and he went to live in Texas with his mom. We thought he'd be gone forever so we were a bit shocked when he showed up freshman year at high school. He was still friends with us but he hung around with the other popular kids. My crush on him had only grown since we were kids and I made the mistake of telling Gabbie again.

She went behind my back and told him about my feelings. She said that she was trying to be a good friend but I always knew that she was just doing it to try and ruin my friendship with him. He admitted he liked me too and well, we started dating. He was adorable and sweet and we had great times but he didn't know about my parents. Only Gabbie did."

"Your parents?" I interrupted.

It was the first time she had ever mentioned her parents to me. I mean we hadn't really talked much before but it was still exciting that she trusted me enough with something as heartbreaking as her family history.

"I'll tell you about that another day. Now shut up and let me continue."

I suppressed a smile and let her continue.

"So we kept dating but we fought a lot. I couldn't ever really trust him. I don't know why but I deliberately kept secrets from him. Small things like where I had been the night before to big ones like why I lived with only my brother.

Maybe that's why he cheated on me with Gabbie. Maybe it was because I didn't give him what he so desperately wanted. The truth. Gabbie told him about my parents behind my back but he didn't tell me. They started a relationship a couple of months before Ford and I broke up.

I knew about it but I didn't say anything. Even though I knew the friendship Gabbie and I had was built on jealousy and lies, it was friendship, nonetheless. I would be one of those weird kids at school with no friends that always got picked on if I confronted her. The same thing with Ford.

I needed them to make my life more bearable even though I knew they would hurt me. In the end, I was proved right. They broke up with me the day after our last exam. At least they did it then so I wouldn't have to endure the pain of going to my classes everyday and seeing them together. I hope I never see them again." She finished off.

Her eyes had a faraway look, as if she was stuck in her own fantasy world: a place where jealousy, betrayal and heartbreak didn't exist.

I traced a finger down her drying cheek."You won't."

Her gaze turned to me and I realised with sadness that I had taken her out of her fantasy world. Earth was too cruel a place for her: she was too selfless and understanding.

"And what if they just show up out of nowhere and rub the fact that they are together in my face?" She asked me.

"You don't have to worry about them anymore." I assured her.

She snorted. The sound of someone who had been let down before and didn't believe in empty promises anymore.

"Oh really and why not ?" She asked.

"Because I'll always be here for you." I stated honestly.

I promise, I added silently.