Chapter 20.|Lost Without A Clue|

h.a.r.p.e.r.’.s....p.o.v.

Who was I supposed to trust anymore?

First off, there was Toby, who claimed Justin had just come out of nowhere. Thinking about it now, I found it hard to believe to be possible. The idea of Justin being that aggressive, though, frightened me to no end. My thoughts of starting something bigger than just a friendship were halted dramatically when I realized I could be in danger.

Then, there was Justin’s side of the story, which made it sound like Toby was a psycho. Was there no in between? No story that actually made logical sense. Although, after taking a peek at the rusted cage in the back of the truck, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up at the thought of Justin not being there.

“Harp? You believe me, don’t you?” I pulled myself out of my thoughts to take in the handsome sight of Justin Copeland himself in front of me. I gulped, looking down. Did I? Did I truly think that Toby was a psychotic mess? I couldn’t find an answer. “What would I gain from lying to you?” He gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear before captivating my eyes once more.

He was right, though. Although it would get him out of trouble temporarily, it would only inflict conflict later on. Another benefit of knowing him for a long time was that I knew when he was lying, and this definitely wasn’t fabricated.

I stayed silent as he ran a hand through my hair, causing me to close my eyes at the feeling. His breath moved closer to my ear as he spoke. “Harp, I was only trying to protect you. I would never let someone lay a hand on you.”

And I knew it. All he had done, whether I liked it or not, was for my protection. It was crazy thinking he would ever harm me.

A frown grew on my face, however, as realization hit me. I hadn’t been around him a lot, and habits did change. So what if he was lying, just to protect his own skin? He did attack Toby quite aggressively, after all, something no one took too well.

“I-I don’t know.”

His eyebrows scrunched together. “You, you don’t know?”

I shook my head. Justin didn’t look to pleased, and before I knew it, my back was against the exterior wall of the building. I gasped in shock before he was in front of me, our bodies flush.

A blush lit up on my face as I realized our proximity before he began trailing hot kisses from my collarbone up to my jaw, making me moan. I tried to keep my mind straight, but I was failing terribly.

“Harp, I care about you, more than you know. I don’t get why you are even thinking of fighting for that scumbag’s side. All he says are lies,” he whispered in my ear, gently nibbling on the lobe.

If it weren’t for him holding me up, I would’ve been on the floor, melted into a puddle in seconds, no doubt. As he pulled away, I saw lust in his eyes, but not only that, but something else, something stronger, yet almost foreign to me. I had been seeing it for quite a while now.

Finally, I got level headed as I found the strength to push him off of me. “I don’t have a decision yet. And I’m going to think about this with a clear mind, thank you very much.”

With that, I stomped away to my car, hopping in and heading somewhere I knew would clear m mind.

I took a sip from the steaming mocha as Carmela chattered next to me. “Toby, he seems like the type of person to want revenge, don’t you think?”

“Sure,” I said halfheartedly. “But why?”

“Well,” she tapped her chin thinking about it for a minute, “maybe because he isn’t too happy that Justin was able to break the two of you up.”

“But do you really think that locking me in a cage so I could be his forever was his actual plan?” I asked, thinking of how crazy something like that was. You would think I would notice something like that from dating him.

“Yeah, it sounds possible. And it sounds like Justin is really into you, so he doesn’t want you mad at him. But honestly, I don’t really think he has anything to hide.” She took a sip of her frappachino before looking at me oddly. “So, why didn’t you believe him?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. I guess, I guess I just wanted a clear mind when I decided.”

“And it wasn’t clear because?” She smirked when she saw me blush.

“Oh shut up. It was nothing. But I do think I should give it more time for everything to calm down before I change my mind.”

“Fine,” Carmela huffed playfully, crossing her arms across her chest.

I let my eyes wander around the coffee shop. That was when they connected with the exact boy we had just been discussing: Justin. He gave me an innocent look, as he sipped his coffee, his eyes pleading for me to come over.

But before he could make a move, I was up and out of there.

I needed a clear mind.

And he clearly wasn’t helping.