The Rockstar's Redemption

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next day, when I wake up, there is no sign of Reid in the room. For a moment I am alarmed, but when I hear noise in the living room I know he is there. I immediately relax, enjoying this moment alone. Really, it's not as if Reid's presence is to my displeasure-at least not now-but I missed this, a moment alone in my own bedroom.

Taking my time, I get ready for a shower, my longest in weeks. When I get out, I feel so relaxed that I don't even mind the fact that Reid doesn't seem to notice my presence. In fact, as soon as I start moving around the kitchen, he grabs my computer and moves into my room, locking himself away to continue doing whatever it is he does.

The day passes slowly and quietly. Reid doesn't talk to me and I don't talk to him. The next few days are more of the same. We both fall into a new pattern that works for us. When my shift at work is at night, Reid goes and waits for me outside the hospital to walk me back home, as always, no word without leaving his lips. Every night, too, I lie down to sleep on the couch only to have Reid pick me up short seconds later and carry me to my bed, where he clings to me tightly. In the daytime, he doesn't even notice my presence, which is no longer a surprise. But at night he holds me as if that's all I need to get to sleep.

Then one day he finally speaks to me.

I'm sitting on the couch, my fingers concentrating as I make the attempt to knit with the thin, slippery needles.

"Ouch" I complain when I poke the wrong place. I bring my finger to my mouth, wiping away the small drop of blood. Just then, a hard, thin body obscures my spot a little. I slowly raise my eyes, looking at him beyond surprised that he has approached me. "Is something wrong?" I ask still with my finger in my mouth. From my seated position on the couch and him standing in front of me, Reid looks incredibly tall, so much so that almost my entire head is tilted back so I can look at him. I must admit, he's also a little intimidating.

"I got money" he says casually.

Uh.

"Great" I lower my face and continue my difficult task of knitting a wool beanie.

"Blue" he calls to me.

I raise my face again to look at him, confused that he's still there. I'm so used to living with him and not hearing his voice, it's really strange to have him talking to me.

"Yes?"

"The money was consigned to your bank account."

Oh, wait a minute.

"But I don't have a bank account."

"Now you do."

I blink my eyes at him, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I contacted someone I trust, she consigned money to your account. I couldn't use mine for obvious reasons."

"But I don't have an account..."

"She created one for you."

"Who?"

"Katarina."

I furrow my eyebrows, recognizing that name.

"Your girlfriend?"

He c***s his head to the side, looking at me curiously.

"Being an internet stalker again, Blue?"

I open my mouth, then close it, devoid of words. His lips don't smile, but his eyes look so obnoxiously amused. I want to hit him, so I do. I ball my future cap into a ball of wool and throw it at his head.

Reid looks at me stoically, his eyes intimidating me.

I can't stand him!

"You want me to go withdraw the money, don't you?" I ask, quickly changing the subject.

He nods.

"Write down what I'm going to tell you."

I stand up and reach for a pen and paper. I write down every single thing he tells me, amazingly Reid even learned the bank account number by heart, as he recites it to me in monotone. I stop to look at him, surely with my face in shock.

What? - He asks me with his eyes.

You're crazy - I say back, also with my eyes.

Reid rolls his eyes and continues, telling me what I should do.

As I bundle up to leave, I notice he's bundling up too, as if he's planning to go with me. I stop with my woolen cap halfway on. I look at him. He continues to bundle up and then walks to the door. As he's about to open it, I reach out and grab his jacket from behind, stopping him.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

He points to the door with a subtle nod of his head.

I shake my head.

"You're not going out in broad daylight, Reid Colleman, have you lost your mind?"

His eyes shine in a strange way when I call him by his full name.

"I go out almost every night to..."

I interrupt his words: "Yes, almost every night, exactly at midnight, where no one can see you. In broad daylight, everyone would recognize you, rock star."

Suddenly, as soon as I finish my words, I understand what I did.

I interrupted him! I interrupted his words just like he always does with me.

Smiling smugly, I look at him with a raised eyebrow. I really put my all into putting on the most obnoxious smile of all, bragging about my exploits. Reid folds his arms and looks at me, his eyes questioning my actions.

"A taste of your own medicine" I mutter, rising up on the tips of my toes to be on his level.

He raises an eyebrow at me too, almost as if he's daring me to continue. I'm not even bothered by his lack of words, not when I just did what I did. I feel too proud of myself for returning the treatment he gives me.

"I, Willa O'Neill, returned your moves," I say to his face, even burying my finger briefly in his chest. "I interrupted your words. I interrupted you when you were talking to me, you rude rock star."

I clap a single hand in front of his face and bow, so proud of my actions.

Reid shakes his head, looking at me with humor in his eyes. He even looks amused. At another time, that would have bothered me. But not now.

"Next time, I'll answer one of your questions without words, just with mysterious looks," I tell him.

Not wanting to wait for him to answer something clever and ruin my triumph, I take material from his jacket again and pull him back, pulling him further into the house.

He stays there.

I'll go outside.

I look at him with narrowed eyes, point to the couch and walk out, I think making it clear to him what he was supposed to do. I stand for a few short minutes in front of the door, waiting to see if he has obeyed me. When the time passes and he doesn't come out, I smile in triumph and walk toward the bench.

Reid Colleman, little by little, I will master you.

|...|

As soon as I enter the house, I notice that Reid is exactly where I asked him to be; sitting on the couch, right in front of the TV on. However, his eyes don't seem to be paying attention to the talking screen, they look far away. When the front door closes behind me, his dark gaze falls on me.

I toss him the small wallet I bought to carry his money. Reid looks at me with confusion, then at the colorful wallet resting in his lap.

"Your money" I tell him the obvious.

Slowly, he shakes his head and looks at me as if I don't understand anything.

Well, I don't.

Why is he looking at me like that?

"It's your money, Blue."

"What?"

"It's yours" he says as if it's obvious, when it's not.

"It's yours" I repeat to him.

"That money is yours, I asked for it for you."

Call me crazy, but the only way I see this situation is....

"You asked your girlfriend for money to give to the girl you sleep with every night?"

His eyes narrow, his lips tighten as if he wants to suppress a smile.

We stare at each other. I feel angry, I'm not quite sure why. And seeing the amusement in his eyes is definitely not helping.

"I got that money to pay you back for everything you've spent on me" he finally speaks.

"And you couldn't ask someone else?" I ask softly, feeling uncomfortable with this situation.

"Katarina is the only person I trust."

Oh no.

I look away, shocked that his words hurt.

Why does it hurt?

I instinctively bring my hand to my chest and stroke a little, trying to soothe the sudden pain.

"It's okay," I murmur, feeling weak, confused and uneasy about my strange reaction to his words.

I don't understand myself.

Reid has been living with me for practically two months and is gaining too much power over me, and I don't even have his trust.

"What do you have in there?" He asks, pointing to the bag in my hand.

I look at him, trying to figure out what he'll think if I tell him what I did. Will he think it's dumb? Will he let me do it? Will he get mad?

"I..." I swallow my breath, "I had an idea."

He slowly stands up and walks towards me, a growing curiosity shining in his eyes.

I continue: "I know the lady at the hairdresser's in town, so I thought..." I bite my lip, nervous. "You must get bored of being cooped up here all day. So... I... I... thought... could a makeover fix that? Your beard hides a bit of who you are, but your long hair is never going to go unnoticed. Your hair screams Reid Colleman all over the place, so..."

"Do you want to cut my hair?"

I nod carefully, gauging his reaction.

"I mean, if you want" I pull out the hair clipper and show it to him. "I got this, in case you say yes."

Reid looks at the device in my hand and then back at me with his completely serious eyes.

With a small nod, he relents.

Oh God, why didn't I tell him I've never done this before?