Jaden's POV
He took me to a small quiet diner, that was hidden between two supermarkets and a pet store. I has never been to this side of town before. This was way out of my personal jurisdiction and I was starting to wonder, was I being to reckless?
On the outside of the diner, synthetic lanterns glowed dull light unto the porch illuminating two small windows with potted plants as decorations and a small sign outside. The evening sun made it look like some Magic Shop from a twisted version of Harry Potter.
Never judge a diner from the outside though. On the inside, it was like a whole other world. Deep velvety drapes hung at the entrance and tiny chandeliers hung above enclosed partitioned tables with fancy cutlery. The diner lights gave off pale shades of purple and the walls were painted in a black and indigo pattern. It was really a very unique spot and gave off an air of mystery much like the person who brought me.
I must've had a surprised look on my face because he gave me a teasing grin while he leading me to a high top table near the counter. " I've been to a couple of their other branches, and they all have really good food," he exclaimed chattily. "Either way, welcome to The Hideaway. This is a secret hideaway for those have said secrets to hideaway," he said over the soft alternative/dubstep music playing in the background. "
I lifted an eyebrow at him with a small laugh. "Woah. Did they pay you to say that or perhaps you also have a secret hidden away here?"
Flashing me a sheepish grin, dimples sinking into his cheeks, he said, "Everyone has a secret or two, don't they?"
Despite my reservations, he was a actually sort of... delightful. Just by talking to him, I felt a bit light on my feet. I've only ever been pining after Blake. I didn't think I'd find someone else a least bit as interesting.
In fact, I've tried dating other people under the radar but my haphephobia was literally stopping me from being with other people. In the end, I found it troublesome and unnecessary. The only reason I was trying so hard, was because I didn't want Blake to find out how I felt about him.
"Well, the cat always seems to find a way out of the bag. I'm actually... in love with my Dad. I tried hiding away that secret, but clearly it didn't work, " I pointed out coolly and unabashed. From the corner of my eye, I waited to see his reaction.
His smile dropped a little into more of an 'oh' and his eyebrows went up, shaking his head in disbelief. "Well I'll be damned... I might need a couple drinks for this and maybe orange juice for you?" he asked teasingly.
"Vodka and Cranberry," I said narrowing my eyes in a bossy way.
"Just Cranberry then," he chuckled as he waved the waiter over. Obviously he wasn't going to buy me alcohol, which I thought was strangely admiring, either that or he's going to drug me.
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He was surprisingly easy to talk to. I found myself talking and talking; I'm even embarrassed at myself. He just had this atmosphere about him that made me feel super relaxed and calming.
To think that not once did he stop me. Either way I felt like another weight had been lifted off of my chest. It was freeing to talk to someone who didn't know me.
He received a call about about an hour or so having reached the diner. He fumbled about check his jacket pockets for his ringing phone."Just a minute. My sister," Bax said looking at the caller ID and excusing himself from the table.
The waiter smiled at me and out down another cup of natural juice infront of me. Taking a sip from the drink, I took a look around. There were couple guys playing pool. Other people were in their private booths chatting intimately away.
Yet, here I was, sitting alone in an unknown bar, surrounded by unknown people, talking to a complete stranger, just because I was depressed. How childish was I?! I don't know why that sudden realization hit me. This is why Blake would never be interested in someone like me.
My impulsiveness made me feel like a total idiot.
I looked around again to find Bax still on the phone. A strong anxious feeling started to bombard me. They weren't coming from Bax, but from a couple of suspicious men playing pool on the opposite side of the room. The way their eyes lingered on me were making my skin crawl. It was the way they watched watched me; the men from my dirty past looked at me in the same way.
Something felt sickly in my stomach and I had the strange urge to vomit. I took a few quick drinks from the orange juice in order push it back down. My leg begun to shake as my nervousness emerged from the depths of my usually confident armour. Suddenly I felt like everyone was looking at me, and the place seemed as if it was slowly closing in on me.
The men's faces starting to blur into one, as one laughed, the other two suspiciously saying shit to each other; I felt like they were all talking about me. I gulped anxiously, because I don't know if it was them saying it or if the voices I heard, were just echoing in my head.
"I'm back. Sorry about that. She called to say that she's on her way. Um, are you okay?" Baz asked as he looked into my face.
"Y-yeah..."
Suddenly, one of the men drew near to our table. His greasy unkempt hair smelled like a wet dog's, and the beer lingered on breath along with the last meal he'd had. He drunkenly waved his hand between Bax and me, setting himself right in the middle of us, and leered at me disgustingly.
"Well hey there pretty boy, this monkey giving you a hard time?" he asked in his redneck accent.
"Getaway from me," I commanded suddenly. I didn't like this. Feeling like all eyes suddenly turned on me, I felt my blood pumping with a sickly nervousness of which I hadn't felt in along time. Even thw air smelled strange to me.
The atmosphere got tense when I saw the drunk's buddies staring over at our table. "You heard him. Step away," Bax repeated to the man.
I didn't trust my voice since I felt like I was on the verge of a panic attack. What was this? I felt a pressure building inside me. I knew what it was. The man tried to reach for me as he said, "Come on now. Don't be like that. I can show you a way better time."
"Don't you fucking touch me!" I screamed suddenly causing everyone to really start peering over at us. Even Bax jumped at the force in my voice. That only made the man face screw up into an ugly mask, and he kept trying to place his hand on my shoulder. "Don't touch me! Stop touching me!" I screamed and I felt him grip my wrist. Bax moved in trying to push the man off of me, only to have his friends from the opposite side start to move in on us.
My vision started to blur and I was thrown into a flashback state. My pulse started racing and I had difficulty even to breath. Don't forget to breath!! my brain screamed at me.
That only made my hysteria worst and I curled myself into a balled on the ground. I hadn't had a panic attack in years. The amount of stares and the men that kept advancing, made me have instant flashes of that hellish time alone, with those men that paid my mother to 'play' me. The faces of the people in the diner, were quickly replaced by the men in my nightmares and I screamed hoping that they wouldn't touch me.
Everything from the past played in my head like film, tugging me deeper into a hysteria. I wasn't aware that the drunk had gotten kicked out or who had done so. I wasn't aware that Bax took me outside of the diner. I had no knowledge of what was happening with all the shitty flashes that attacked my mental system.
"Shit... um... we're outside. Try to breath. Just focuse your mind on breathing in an out," I heard a man's deep voice say. Trying to focus my mind on the voice, I tried to stabilise my breathing; I didn't trust this voice. It wasn't familiar to me. "Come on. Relax. Just a little more. No one's gonna hurt you. I'm not gonna hurt you. Relax baby," the person chanted softly. My breath was ragged, but I just couldn't believe him. They all had said the same thing before proceeded to hurt me even worse.
"Shelby park the car over here," boomed the man's voice and it echoed in my shell-shocked state. I curled into a ball even more. What's happening?? Please. Please. I don't want to be used! Please don't use me! Don't touch me!
"What the fuck Bax?! What happened?" I heard a female say.
"I d-dont know. It's far-fetched but I think he's having a panic attack. Could it be that he has Haphephobia?"
"He does," the female confirmed. "But why the hell are you with Jaden? Where's Blake?"
"Wait, you know him?-W-wait, what does Blake Arons have to do with---Oh no... Oh for fuck's sake."
Upon hearing Blake's name being mentioned, I whimpered, "Please! Don't hurt me. Blake. Blake. Please don't let them hurt me." I wasn't sure I was crying or just talking jibberish by then.
With my mind being dragged back and fort by what's reality and what's not, in the shadows beside the diner, I saw someone standing. For a moment, I wondered why Uncle Brad was standing there. Before I could process any other thought, I felt my vision blissfully fading to black.
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