"I thought you didn't want me in here,"
"You're right, I don't," Valen hissed in a hushed whisper as she shoved Caspian further into her closet, "If Carl found out I have a boy over, he'd already be planning my funeral,"
Caspian smirked, his eyes darting towards Valen's muscular arms pushing him inside, veins running up and down her forearms. His smile widened in amusement.
"Damn girl, you work out?" He let out a hearty whistle.
Her eyes narrowed in annoyance, but a hint of pride slipped through her cold attitude. She couldn't help it. Valen loved to lift weights in her garage and go on lengthy runs after school. Whenever anyone noticed, it did nothing but inflate her stupid ego. Even at this moment, under this circumstance, Valen found herself growing flustered, unable to form coherent words. God, she was such a sucker for compliments.
"I do, now shut up before I bash your hollow skull into the ceiling," She spat back quietly.
"Oh please, I'd love that," Caspian looked down at her with a cheesy grin on his face.
BANG!
The front door slammed open with a sharp thud from downstairs. Valen heard a voice —no, two—wander through the living room, then the hallway, then the kitchen…
…then the stairs…
Valen's heart stopped for a split second. She recognized one of the voices as Carl's, but the other was hard to figure out. It had this deep rasp, with a slight growl at the end of his sentences…oh shit, was it who she thought it was?
Without hesitating further, Valen slammed the closet door shut. Her footsteps flooded out Carl's bedroom, landing in the narrow hallway that separated her bedroom from his. She was about to let out a plentiful sigh of relief when her face was met with an abundance of plaid. Valen's breath hitched.
"Watch where you're going, little lady," the gravelly voice spoke coldly.
Her head tilted upwards to be met with the presence of Nathaniel, her father's boyfriend. Or at least, the guy Carl has been seeing very often. She honestly had no damn clue what exactly they were. Nathaniel never struck Valen as the type to do relationships. So what the fuck was he doing with Carl…?
"My bad," She gritted her teeth.
He clicked his tongue in response. Valen could feel his eyes following her, observing every action. His state brought discomfort, but obviously she wouldn't say it to his face. He was nearly twice her size, and she didn't want to deal with broken bones today. Instead, she politely slid to the side, allowing him and Carl to walk by into his bedroom.
Nathaniel chuckled darkly at her attempt to avoid conflict. He could see the glare in her eyes, the way her fists clenched tightly whenever he was around her dad. She wasn't trying to save her dignity, she was trying to preserve her life.
"Lookin' good, doll. Better keep the boys away, huh?" Nathaniel's grip tightened on Carl's lean waist.
Valen's molars nearly snapped in half from how hard her jaw clenched at his words. What was this fucker doing, groping Carl like that while making suggestive remarks about his daughter's appearance? That was seriously fucked up, even from a dirt rag like himself.
She didn't have time to say something back. The door slammed shut, the friction causing the walls to shake from impact. Valen let out a pained sigh. She knew exactly what they were going to do there, and she'd left Caspian inside the closet.
"Crap, Caspian please forgive me…" She muttered to herself as she walked into her bedroom, shutting the door softly behind her.
"God, Valen, you idiot…"