Awakened (3 page)

Stefan was pacing back and forth,
sucking down his cigarette. Kennedy and Ayden came running out the
door, making a beeline directly for me. I knew I was going to have
to endure her questions and looks.

“
What the fuck Jennifer?
What the hell happened?” She stopped in front of me and held me at
arm’s length, examining every inch of my body. Ayden went over to
Stefan and started asking him questions about what
happened.

“
Ken, please stop, I’m
okay. Some drunk guy was trying to kiss me and Stefan pulled him
off me. Plain and simple, nothing more. I’m okay, really. We just
came outside to get some fresh air, but I’m starting to get tired
so I think I am ready to call it a night.”

We walked to our cars.
Stefan was close behind me; he seemed ready to pounce if any danger
came near. Ayden grabbed Stefan’s keys and jogged over to his car
to pull it next to Kennedy’s. As Ayden got out, the door flew up.
H
ow much money does he
have
? I was too fogged, partly from the
alcohol and partly because of the attack, to start asking questions
about who he was. I slipped into Kennedy’s Audi, leaned my head
back, and closed my eyes. Stefan grabbed my face; he looked deep
into my eyes like I was a precious jewel that he saved and kissed
my forehead, “Get home safe and take some Tylenol before going to
bed. It will help with the fogginess.” I smiled and laid my head
back.

As soon as we got home I went straight
for my bed. I took off my clothes and put on an oversized shirt and
climbed into bed.

“
Hey,” Kennedy whispered as
she opened the door letting the light from the hallway stream into
my room. “I brought you some water and Tylenol,” she stepped into
my room walking to my bed. I wanted to hug her and start crying. I
was so shaken up from earlier and just completely
exhausted.

“
Thank you,” I grabbed the
glass of water and 2 pills out of her hand. I took the pills and
put the water down on my nightstand.

“
You wanna talk?” She
asked.

“
No, I’m just really
tired.”

“
Okay, I’ll be right down
the hall if you change your mind. I’m glad you’re okay. Didn’t
wanna have to beat anyone’s ass tonight.”

I giggled as she stood up and walked
to the door. She smiled before closing the door. I could always
count on Kennedy to make me laugh. I laid my head back down; it
didn’t take long before I drifted off into a deep sleep.

Chapter Two

Kennedy had no classes today, so I was
forced to drive my old beat up Honda to class. Kennedy’s parents
were always trying to buy me a newer car, but that was the one
thing I couldn’t let them do. This car was only nice thing I had
ever received from my parents and parting with it was just
something I couldn’t do, it was all I had left that showed me my
parents actually cared, once.

At the end of the day, I went into the
library to have a moment alone before going home. I couldn’t stop
thinking about Stefan and everything that happened the night
before. Why was he being so protective over me; we had only just
met a couple of hours before the club. And that car! I had never
seen a car like that in Oklahoma. Was he a millionaire? I knew I
had to get my head back out of the fogginess.

My phone vibrated in my back pocket. I
pulled it out and looked down at the text from Kennedy.

*
Where r u? Starting dinner.*

I looked at my clock on my phone, it
was almost 5. I didn’t realize how long I had spent in the library
or that I was very hungry. I quickly replied.

*Heading to my car, sorry
I was in the library.*

I put my phone in my pocket and
hurried to my car.

I pulled up and immediately noticed
Stefan’s car in the driveway. My heart quickly fell into my
stomach. I didn’t know if I could face him after everything that
had happened last night. I pulled down my visor and flipped open
the cover to my mirror, I definitely looked like I had spent all
day in class with very little sleep. I hadn’t even bothered to do
my hair or make up after my shower this morning. I quickly snapped
myself back into the presence. Who was I trying to
impress?

I grabbed my back pack and went
inside. Kennedy was in the kitchen making chicken while Ayden and
Stefan were glued to the TV with a beer in their hands. Ayden
looked up at me from the TV and tried to stop his laughing long
enough to say hi. I smiled back at him and walked into the
kitchen.

Kennedy looked up at me and smiled,
taking a drink of her beer.

“
Why didn’t you tell me
Ayden and Stefan would be joining us for dinner tonight, Ken?” I
walked over to the fridge and grabbed a beer out for
myself.

“
I texted you right after
you told me you were heading home but you never responded so I
figured you didn’t mind. It’s not a big deal, is it?”

I huffed in annoyance,
grabbed my back pack and beer and went upstairs. I tossed my back
pack and phone onto my bed.
Why in the
hell did Kennedy think it was okay to invite Stefan after last
night?
I grabbed some comfy shorts and a T
shirt to change in to and pulled my hair up into a messy bun on top
of my head. I sighed at my image in the mirror; I knew I was going
to have to go back downstairs and face Stefan
eventually.

I grabbed my beer opened my bedroom
door; I could hear Stefan and Ayden laughing so hard I thought they
were going to fall off the couch. As I walked in to the living
room, I noticed they were watching a show about people doing stupid
things; one where you watch what they’re about to do and you think
to yourself, I know this is going to end badly. I walked over and
sat in the chair by the couch, closest to Stefan; I pulled my legs
up and tucked them under me.

I caught Stefan’s eyes and he smiled.
“Hey Jennifer, how are you? This show is hilarious.”

I smiled at him.
Why am I so nervous?
After a couple of moments Stefan got up and put his empty beer
bottle in the recycling. As he walked back into the room, he came
over to my chair and leaned down.
Breathe
Jennifer.

“
Will you come outside with
me for a moment, please?” He stood back up and put his hand out for
me.

I looked back up at Stefan, nodded my
head and grabbed his hand. We went out the back door and I sat down
in one of the lawn chairs. It was fairly cool outside, with a
little chill wind blowing. Stefan lit his cigarette and sat down in
the chair beside me, holding my gaze.

“
I wanted to apologize for
last night. I was out of line acting the way I did. I didn’t mean
to scare you and I don’t know what got into me.” He took another
drag of his cigarette, waiting for my reply.

Why was he
apologizing?

“
Stefan, you saved me from
someone who could’ve hurt me. God knows what would’ve happened had
you not been there. I should be thanking you.”

He got up off the chair and started
pacing.

“
Stefan, you didn’t kill
him; you helped me when I was in trouble. Everyone else in the club
just walked by, completely ignoring what was happening. I am very
thankful you stopped it.” I tried to judge his expression, waiting
for him to realize I was right, but he never did. He just kept
pacing and smoking his cigarette.

“
Jennifer, if you knew what
I wanted to do to him…”

“
Who cares? You didn’t do
anything wrong. You just scared the shit out of him and left. It’s
okay, really, Stefan.”

I got up, signaling I was ready to go
back inside. He noticed and put out his cigarette then walked to
the door, opening it for me. I smiled at him and walked inside.
Kennedy looked up at me and Stefan with a puzzled look on her face.
I flashed a smile and she stuck her head over the bar area that
separated the kitchen and living room to let Ayden know that dinner
was ready. I looked over at Stefan, “Do you need another
beer?”

“
Sure, if you don’t mind
grabbing me one?”

I smiled and grabbed two out of the
fridge.

“
Jen, while you’re in there
grab two more as well, please!”

I looked over to Kennedy, faking a big
smile. I grabbed two more and walked over to sit down at the table
by Stefan, passing out the beer bottles. We all filled our plates
with chicken, mashed potatoes and some vegetables and started
eating. Conversation was pretty light between us.

Throughout the meal, Stefan kept
brushing his arm against me. Each time his skin touched mine, I
felt my cheeks go red and I had to take an extra breath to calm my
heartbeat. Once the meal ended, I started collecting plates to take
to the sink so I could start cleaning up and Kennedy and Ayden went
to relax on the couch. Stefan started bringing over the remaining
dishes and sat them down beside the sink.

“
You can go sit down. I’ve
got this.” I smiled, hoping he would actually stay and help. I
don’t know what it was about Stefan that made me crave being in his
presence.

“
I don’t mind helping. It’s
the least I can do after eating a delicious meal.”

I smiled and continued
washing the dishes.
He’s actually staying
to help. Keep your feet on the ground.

“
So, Stefan, I forgot to
ask you last night, where are you from?” I tried filling the
silence that seemed to linger awkwardly in the room.

“
I’m from Dallas. I’m here
for about a week on business.”

He set the remaining dishes
next to the sink and grabbed a hand towel off of the stove so he
could start drying the one’s I had washed. As he passed me he
brushed my backside, sending pulses through my body. I was still
very upset with myself for feeling like this with a total stranger.
Well not a
complete
stranger, but I had barley even known him.
Get your shit under control.

Stefan smiled at me. “Are you from
Oklahoma or just here for college?”

“
Just here for college.
Kennedy really wanted to come here,” I hated lying to him, “We’ve
pretty much been inseparable since 3
^rd
grade. Plates go over there,”
I said pointing to the cabinet beside him. He didn’t press the
conversation and I didn’t volunteer any more
information.

We finished putting up all the dishes
and cleaning off everything. He grabbed us both a beer and pulled
my arm to go outside with him; Stefan lit his cigarette and sat
down, beside me. We both looked up at the sunset. The one thing
about Oklahoma that I loved the most was the beautiful sunsets. The
sky lit up with pinks, oranges, and reds. It always took your hard
day away, sitting outside and admiring the sunset.

“
So, Stefan, here on
business? What kind of business?”

Stefan looked over to me and rubbed
his forehead like he was carefully choosing is next
words.

“
I own a small company in
Dallas and I’m looking to start up another business here in
Oklahoma.”

“
Well, how’s it going so
far?” I smiled.

“
Just making sure it’s in
my best interest. We’ll make the final decision later this month.”
He took another drink and finished off his cigarette but I didn’t
want to go inside yet.

“
Well besides owning a
small company, what else is there to know about you?” Stefan seemed
to become uneasy.

“
Well, I’m 24, almost 25,
I’m from Dallas, but I told you that already. Never been married,
no children. Ya know, just the usual.” I could tell he wasn’t ready
to put his cards out on the table.

“
There you two are! We were
wondering why it was so quiet in the house.” Kennedy plopped down
in the chair scaring me half to death. “Stefan, we were thinking of
going to the bar up the street and have a couple of drinks. What do
you think?”

I quickly eyed Kennedy who
gave me a smile and turned her attention back to Stefan waiting for
a response.
Did she miss last night? I
really don’t need another night like last night.

“
Sure, sounds good to me.
What do you think Jennifer?”

“
Okay, but only because I
don’t have class tomorrow.” As soon as the last word escaped my
lips, Kennedy was up, excited to get out of the house. If it were
up to her, we’d be out every single night. She was a social
butterfly, while I usually just stayed towards the back and did my
own thing. We were so different but all those differences are what
gave us that sisterly bond and that’s what kept us best friends
after all these years.

We both ran upstairs and changed into
something a little flirtier. I opted for my True Religion jeans and
a black V neck shirt with some chucks while Kennedy went for some
distressed shorts and a tank top with sandals. Even our styles were
very different.

We got into the car and waited for
Stefan to back out first so he could follow us. Kennedy looked over
at me and grabbed my hand. “Honey, what is going on with you and
Stefan? It seems like you can’t get enough of each
other.”