Samuel's POV
I search for a sign, any sign, of recognition in Lucien's expression, yet all I notice is the sharp point he flexes his jaw into. We're still sitting at neighboring tables inside the café, with Brooke sitting at Lucien's table and Olivia preparing Brooke's order behind the counter.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Lucien shrugs. "As Guardians we can't remember our past human lives. You should know that by now."
An itch shoots up my arm, telling me to smash my fist against Lucien's dull face, but I fight against it. The last thing I can afford right now is to be forced to leave Olivia's side.
As if sensing my thoughts, Olivia returns to our two tables. She carries over a cup of coffee, but just when she's about to set it onto the table in front of Brooke, she freezes. The sudden action causes the brown liquid to spill over the edge of the cup. The coffee slides down Olivia's hands until drop after drop it stains the top of the table. Olivia, however, doesn't move a single muscle. Instead, she continues to stare at Brooke with wide-open eyes.
I jump to my feet and begin to reach for her, but one raised eyebrow from Lucien forces me to slump back into the wooden chair. His observant eyes tell me the chance of Olivia and me not being caught would be minimal if I went over to help her. This is why despite my instincts, I force myself to remain seated and passively watch Olivia's every move.
"Are you insane?" Brooke yanks her hands away from the growing puddle of spilled coffee and narrows her eyes at Olivia.
My charge, however, blinks a couple of times and then sets the cup onto the table. She ignores the drops still sliding down her hands and instead props her hands against the edge of the table.
"I remember you," Olivia says. "You were part of that night."
"What are you talking about?" Brooke asks, still eyeing the spilled coffee with an upturned nose.
"The night of the car accident. You called me. You invited me out for coffee."
"I..." Brooke snaps her eyes up to Olivia's but then averts them a second later. I also don't miss the way she grips her side of the table; squeezing it as if she's holding on for dear life. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Yes, you do. We hadn't talked for the last few months of the school yearâalmost since the date I set you up onâso there must be a reason why you called me that night."
"That's... That's because I... I felt sorry for you."
"What?" Olivia pulls back from the table, straightening her back.
"I felt bad because I know you think I'm your closest friend. I called you to take pity on you, but you never showed up." Without another word, Brooke jumps to her feet, ignores the half-spilled cup of coffee she hasn't paid for, and storms out of the café.
"This is getting more and more interesting," Lucien muses as he slowly rises from his chair and turns to follow his new charge. "I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again. I can't wait until then, Olivia dear."
With a backward wave, he follows Brooke out of the café, which leaves Olivia and me wordlessly staring after them. While I hadn't managed to convince Lucien that Olivia isn't able to see him, I learned something else. Brooke's defensive reaction when Olivia mentioned the night of the accident tells me there's something more behind it than the simple call Olivia seems to remember.
*
Olivia's POV
Samuel glances at his pocket watch for the fifth time and then snaps it close with a loud groan. "What's taking him so long?" He peers up and down the road.
"Aren't I supposed to be the impatient one?" I snort from where I'm leaning against the café's outer wall.
We're standing beside the still open café, waiting for Nick. A few hours ago Nick barged into the café, informed me that he'll be escorting me home, and then disappeared just as quickly as he appeared.
"That's it," Samuel detaches himself from the wall beside me. "I'm going over to him to see what's taking him so long. Don't you dare move from this spot."
Before I can respond, Samuel closes his eyes and vanishes into the darkening evening air. I shake my head. For a guy who keeps telling me how I need to control my impulsive nature, he's being way too irritable just because Nick is running a little late.
With a sigh, I rest the back of my head against the wall and close my eyes. Now, that I'm on my own again, I can already feel the urge to move multiply all over my body. I've never been one to idly stand around and do nothing.
Before the urge can grow too tempting, a by now familiar shuddering sensation runs down the side of my neck. I snap my eyes open and push away from the wall. I glance to my left and right, but there isn't anything that would explain the feeling of being watchedâthe same sensation I have been feeling ever since I recovered my first memory of the accident.
Just when I'm about to disregard the feeling, someone darts around the café's corner. I sprint after the figure. The moment I round the corner into the side alley beside the café, I catch sight of the fleeing figure. I flex my muscles and slam my body into the stalker's back. We tumble to the ground, but while the stalker lands on his stomach, I land right on top of him.
"Got you." I grin at the hood-covered back of his head.
Before I can do anything else, two pairs of strong arms haul me off the stalker's back. The two sets of hands lower me feet-first onto the ground, and I find myself squished between Samuel and Nick. But while the former continues to keep his hold on my upper arm, the latter lets go of me and grabs the stalker instead.
"You okay?" Samuel nudges my chin so that I turn my eyes to him. "I told you not to move."
"I couldn't help it." With a step back I pull out of his hold. "I felt like I was being watched again, and then I finally saw him."
"You're lucky Nick and I saw you round the corner. Otherwise, youâ"
"Liv!" a familiar voice calls out. "A little help here."
I snap my head in Nick's direction, but even before I turn, I know that the voice doesn't belong to Samuel's other charge. A couple of steps to my left stands Nick with his left hand wrapped around the front of the stalker's hoodie and his right hand squeezed in a pale fist, preparing for a punch. The stalker, on the other hand, isn't covered with the hood anymore. This gives me a clear view of the stubble tickling his chin and the underside of his nose, his usually sleek hair, which is now a wild mess; and his big pleading eyes focused straight on me.
"Dad?"
"What?" Nick snaps his head to me but doesn't let go of the hold he has on my dad's hoodie. "What'd you just call him?"
"He," I nod at the man I only moments ago thought to be a stalker, "is my father."
"Didn't you say you get along with your father?" Nick glances from me to my dad.
"Of course, we do," Dad answers instead of me. "Liv's my daughter."
Nick turns back to me and only after my nod in confirmation lets go of my father. Dad immediately scrambles a step back. He raises his hand to his red cheek and I realize that Nick must have punched him while I was focused on Samuel.
"What's going on?" Samuel asks. "I thought your father was still on his business trip."
"So did I." My voice draws both Nick's and Dad's eyes back to me. "What are you doing here, Dad?"
"Hi, sweetheart." Dad scratches the back of his head and shoots me a sheepish smile. "It's been a while."
"I thought you were still on your business trip." I take a step closer to him. "Isn't that the reason why you haven't returned any of my calls?"
"I'll explain everything, but can we first go somewhere where I can sit down?" Dad shifts his weight from one foot onto the other. "I've been standing for hours while observing you at work in the café, so I'm pretty worn out."
"Let's go inside the café," I suggest and then turn to Nick. "Thank you for your help, but I don't think I'll be needing you to escort me home today."
"Are you sure?" Nick glances from me to my father and then back at me. "Can I leave you alone with him? What if he does something?"
"He's my father. I may not live with him anymore, but he's still the man who helped raise me."
"I don't know," Nick muses.
"Now, listen here boy." Dad squares his shoulders, but even with his back straight Nick still towers over him by an inch and a half. "I'm Olivia's biological father, Peyton. So, who are you to decide if I can be alone with my daughter or not?"
"I'm Nick." He stuffs his hands into the pockets of his jeans but keeps his eyes narrowed at my dad.
"I know what your name is." Dad waves off his introduction. "What I mean to say is that I've seen you around our little Liv quite a few times while I was following her. So, what's your aim? Are you romantically interested in my daughter?"
"Dad." I facepalm myself.
"Yes, I am," Nick says, looking square into my father's eyes.
My jaw drops. I can't believe he just said that. And to my father no less.
***
I'm curious to know. Did any of you expect Olivia's father to be the one stalking her?
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Much love
- E