❝ You make this messed-up world look so much more beautiful. ❞ Gathering me in his arms, he pulled me close -- his lips seeking mine hungrily.
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The only thing Summer Hale has ever wanted was to live peacefully away from her secrets...
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Grab my hand, I'm drowning I feel my heart pounding Why haven't you found me yet? — Trauma by NF
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Victoria dragged me to the soccer house, dressed in a maroon figure-hugging dress. I was in the game room with Jordan and Isaac, watching them play snooker. Isaac tried to coax me into playing, but I declined, not wanting to do anything else but to drown my sorrows in silence.
Fuck, I needed air.
I settled my empty cup on the coffee table and set off to the back of the house, wiggling my way through the crowd. I could feel eyes on me, some lingering and some glances. Victoria insisted that I wore this dress since Gray would be here, and it would surely capture his attention. But she was wrong, very wrong.
Gray wasn't here tonight. Again.
Stumbling into the back patio, I inhaled deeply and shut my eyes, upset at myself for missing Gray. Fuck it. I descended the steps and trudged forward to the group of people dancing. I pushed my way through to the middle, feeling the bass of the music tickling the soles of my feet.
I allowed my body to move with the flow of the music. There was a time in my life when I enjoyed dancing more than anything. I loved moving in sync to a melody, feeling the air caress my skin as I twirled. Dancing made me feel like I was liberated, set free from the cage I lived in. But I stopped when I turned fourteen, having succumbed to the possibility that I would never be able to live a life that wasn't tainted with secrets and lies.
A pair of strong arms wound around my waist, and I turned on my heel, stupidly hoping that it was Gray. I was met with an unfamiliar guy grinning down at me. He was tall and muscular, and I fought the urge not to wrinkle my nose at the unpleasant stench of sweat.
"Dance with me, gorgeous," he pulled me closer before I could respond, and I sucked in a breath.
"Get off, jerk!"
"I can show you a good time." He gripped my waist, his nails digging into the fabric of my dress.
I was about to shove him hard on the chest when his arms were ripped off me. I was barely able to comprehend the situation when I was pulled behind a large figure, the familiar musky perfume calming my nerves instantly.
