48

"He doesn't have them all anymore," Kiyan hissed, almost yanking the door open for me to get in the car.

While I was glad he didn't think as much of Zayn's suggestion as I did, the anger in his voice was starting to scare me a little.

He got in and was about to start the car when I leaned over and held his hand. "You shouldn't drive if you're so upset," I said softly and he immediately took my hand and squeezed it lightly.

He didn't say anything, just looked lost out of the windshield and was breathing heavily while the whole situation was already pounding on my stomach.

"I never wanted to involve you in this," he whispered, turning to study me for a long time.

"It's just unfair," I breathed, letting my head fall onto his shoulder to close my eyes and consider a solution, but I couldn't think of anything that wouldn't weigh on him, Zayn, or Adam as well. It was hopeless, but I certainly wouldn't let Chloe continue to blackmail him.

After we sat there for an hour, he kept stroking my hand and the sun was slowly rising, we then decided to drive home. He had calmed down as best he could and so I trusted him to drive the short way to me.

As we then turned onto my street, Kiyan suddenly braked and my heart almost stopped.

Two police cars were parked right in front of our house and I wide-eyed at Kiyan, who was gripping the steering wheel tighter with his mouth open.

"Do you mean-" "I don't know," he whispered, his voice shaking, and I started to tremble slightly from excitement.

"Maybe my mother called her because of me," I said, still stunned, because I wanted to calm him down, but I couldn't.

"Mia," he turned to me and looked at me intently. "I can't go in there. Please go alone and see what's going on and as soon as you have clarity call me, okay babe?"

"Babe?" I smirked, but his expression remained serious. How stupid was I?

"Yes, of course," I nodded and was about to get out when he pulled my arm back and looked at me questioningly.

"What?"

He leaned over, cupped my side and gently placed his lips on mine. Such an intense kiss that seemed full of love, full of pain and full of devotion... It got me intoxicated and I even almost forgot what was happening around me until Kiyan slowly pulled away, stroked my cheek and back into dropped his seat.

"See you later," I murmured, still taken in by his touch, and then got out to watch him turn around and disappear around the next bend.

I then approached my house with slow, hesitant steps and suddenly felt completely alone and helpless. My heart was in my throat and the tremors increased as I got closer to the police cars.

I stopped for a moment in front of the front door and tried to collect myself, but it was all to no avail. I was constantly on the verge of a heart attack.

I waited with my finger on the bell and the door was quickly opened by Thomas, who looked at me with an expression I didn't recognize from him.

I nervously walked past him into the living room and then saw my mother crying with two police officers at the table, one of whom immediately got up, while my mother then noticed me too, jumped up and started to attack me.

"It's all your fault!!!!" she yelled hysterically and then collapsed back in her chair while I was addressed, heart racing, by one of the police officers.

"Are you Mia Callahn?" this big guy asked, looking me up and down.

"Yes," I breathed, trembling, and looked at Thomas, who avoided my gaze and ran to my mother.

What was going on here?

"There was a fatal accident," said the policeman and I gasped in shock. So you were here for Kiyan after all, but why did my mother blame me? Did she know I was covering for him?

"I don't know what you're talking about," I tried to say in a confident voice, but it was shaking just as badly as my hands.

"How do you want to know!!!!", my mother stood up screaming again and tore herself from Thomas' hand to stand next to the policeman in front of me with an angry look at me. "Your phone was off!!!"

"You hit me!" I hissed immediately. She didn't need to think that she could make me out to the police as the perpetrator.

"Calm down Mrs. Callahn," the rear policeman got up and turned to my mother, but she just cried again and was then taken into the bedroom by Thomas.

"Sit down, please," said the guy in front of me, and when it was quiet, I knew they were going to try to squeeze the truth out of me.

"Her mother told us that her father was on his way to look for her. It was a drunk driver who then hit him head-on...."

I sank into a darkness that made it impossible for me to continue listening to him. There was nothing. Not a clear thought, not a single breath, not a heartbeat... I died thousands of deaths in such a short moment and felt out of my body, trapped in a never-ending nightmare.

"Mia?" the cop addressed me and grabbed my hand, but I snatched it away and got up on unsteady legs to grab my phone, which I had left with Zayn.

Like underwater, like in a trance, like dead... I ran to the landline and trembling dialed the only number I knew by heart. "

Micah answered, but I couldn't get a word out. Felt the policemen's eyes on my back and the guilt deep in my heart. He had been looking for me, my father, and now he was....

"Micah..." I choked out through sobs before crying bitterly and unable to speak.

"I'll be with you in two minutes."

I put down the phone, closed my eyes and sank into the countless tears that ran down my cheeks incessantly.

"You can go," I subtly heard Thomas' voice behind me and when the door slammed shut, I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"Everything will be fine, Mia," he ran his hand down my back and stepped so close behind me that I could feel his breath on the back of my neck. "Now we're a real family."

I didn't move, didn't even dare to breathe anymore and it was only when I heard the knock on the front door that he walked away from me and ran into the hall while I ran out of breath to the door.

"What happened?" Micah asked wide-eyed at my crying face, causing him to pull me tightly into his arms.

"Take me away from here... please," I begged softly through my sobs, then winced violently against his chest when I heard my mother's voice behind me.

"You're not going anywhere! Didn't you do enough damage by running away!" she yelled, pulling me away from Micah by the sleeve of my jacket, who immediately grabbed my hand and had no intention of letting me down.

"Let her go immediately!" my mother warned him and at the same time called Thomas, who immediately came to the front door and took a look at the situation.

I felt like I wasn't really there anymore. I only felt that I was being held from two sides and wanted to vanish into thin air. I would have loved to fight back against my mother, yelled at her, but she was right. If my father hadn't been looking for me, then...

Crying bitterly, I looked into Micah's green eyes and gave him a silent cry for help with my gaze. I had to get out of here, could hardly breathe and threatened to collapse.

"Didn't you hear what she said?" Thomas then turned to Micah, grabbing his arm to free his hand from mine.

"Mia doesn't seem to want to stay here," Micah said, shaking off Thomas' arm.

"She doesn't want anything anymore!" my mom yelled hysterically, tugging at my sleeve over and over again until I got so angry I broke her grip and shoved her away from me with all her might. She staggered back a few steps, staring at me in disbelief, and just then Thomas grabbed my shirt collar, but before he could do whatever he was about to do, Micah pushed him away from me and pulled my arm outside with him , where I finally got my breath back.

"This will have consequences," I heard Thomas call after us, but Micah just waved it off.

"Whatever!" he shouted at Thomas and then turned to me on the street. "What's going on here?" he asked again more urgently, but I shook my head and let myself fall into his arms.

"I...I can't," I sobbed, and he immediately understood I couldn't talk about it.

"Do you want to go to my place? I don't know what to do, Mia. I was about to punch that idiot. Did he hurt you?"

Micah seemed overwhelmed and irritated, which was understandable, but I shook my head again and he put his arm around my waist, then used a skillful grab to haul me onto his arms.

"We'll go to my place first, then you can rest," he said softly and I clung to him for help and closed my weeping eyes. The sun blinded me slightly and made this whole shit even more real with its appearance. However, I was still full of hope that this was all just a bad nightmare, because in this reality, I couldn't go on living.

MICAH

I carried her carefully in my arms, tried to get home as quickly as I could, and kept going over the previous situation in my mind. What was her mother's problem and what was this obnoxious guy up to when he grabbed her by the t-shirt? I didn't want to imagine it at all, but one thing was for sure, if he had hurt her hair, I would have smashed his fucking mug.

I kept looking down at her face, how her eyes were closed and still I saw this pained expression. Was it Kiyan? Was it his fault? Where was he anyway? Shouldn't he be with her?

A thousand questions ran through my mind and when we finally got to my front door, I wanted to let her down, but she grabbed my t-shirt so tightly that it seemed impossible to pull her away from me.

"Mia, I have to get my key out," I explained softly, and it broke my heart when she opened her green eyes and tears ran down her pale cheeks.

I've known her for so long, but I'd never seen her like this before, which made my heart ache immediately.

She reluctantly let go and stood unsteadily next to me, and I quickly dug my key out of my pants to unlock the door and pull her inside with me by the hand.

As soon as I closed the door, I turned back to her, but she didn't really seem to be there. Lost, she stared into nothing. There was no expression in her swollen eyes and the tears were still streaming down her face.

What should I do? I was completely overwhelmed and didn't even want to ask if I should call Kiyan. If she was upset about him, it would only weigh her down even more.

I cleared my throat carefully and stood right in front of her, so that her green eyes immediately stared at me brokenly.

"What can I do?" I asked helplessly, causing her to take a deep breath and look up the stairs behind me.

"I just want to sleep," she breathed in a broken voice and I took her hand before accompanying her up to my room.

Her t-shirt still smelled of chlorine and when I noticed that it was still slightly wet, I got one of my thick sweaters out of the closet when I got to my room.

"Change your clothes in peace", I handed her the red sweater and wanted to leave her alone, but she grabbed my arm and looked at me.

"Don't leave me alone," she breathed and burst into tears again.

She shivered as she pulled off the white cardigan and then as she pulled up her t-shirt, I turned my head to the side and looked at my desk. I didn't want to take advantage of a situation like that. All I wanted was for her to get better.

When I turned back to her, she was wearing the red sweater and flopped down on my bed, exhausted.

"Can you hold me," she then pleaded and I just did as she asked. How could I ever turn down a wish from this woman?

I would have given anything, really anything, to see her smile, but now I lay there crying with her on my chest and didn't know how to help her or me.