His Scarred Mate

Chapter 4 - Uber Driver

"You again?" Freya asked, rolling her eyes, as she placed the tray of food on Zavian's table.

"Of course," he grinned cheekily, eyes twinkling with mischief.

"Are you following me or something?" She asked, folding her arms, and appearing to be confident, although the thought sent a chill down her spine.

"Woah, relax Cinderella. I've got other things to take care of," he replied, chuckling.

"Yeah, like what?" She asked him, her tone defiant.

Like fighting at the outskirts of the town, Zavian thought, but didn't say it aloud. "Like... Food," he pointed at the tray in front of him, staring at the food as if he was falling in love with it's appearance. Freya rolled her eyes once again, and was about to walk away, when Zavian did something that made her flinch and gasp.

Zavian frowned at her reaction, instantly letting go of her wrist, as the horror in her eyes bewildered him.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, his heart wrenching to see her so frightened.

"It's... It's okay," Freya managed to mumble, taking a few steps away from him as she avoided his eye, aware of Zavian's scrutinizing gaze directed at her face.

"What happened?" Zavian dared to ask, although a small part of him knew she wouldn't tell him; not the truth at least.

"Nothing," her reply was almost instant. "I'm - I'm just a very... Professional person, so please maintain your distance," she muttered, still not looking at him, before she quickly strode away, desperate to hide from his questioning eyes.

I can't keep doing this. She thought to herself.

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"Hey Frey-frey," said Chris, as Freya brought back the last of the dishes.

"Hey Chris," she smiled, feeling slightly uncomfortable when she noticed they were alone in the kitchen. It was already past eleven at night, and she wasn't used to working night shifts. But she needed the extra money if she was going to pay her electricity bills.

"Today was so tiring I swear," Chris said, tilting his head backwards, as he massaged the side of his neck.

"Yeah," Freya replied, speeding her work up, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

"So, you're new in town, aren't you?" He asked her, sitting on one of the counters.

"Hmm," she replied, not looking at him.

"And? What brought you here?" He pushed, the curiosity evident on his questioning face.

"Chance," Freya shrugged, keeping her replies short and unclear. Of course she wasn't going to tell him what she had been through in her past. According to Freya, it made her look vulnerable and weak.

"Wow, not vague at all," he muttered under his breath but she heard him. She rolled his eyes at his nosiness. Why can't he mind his own business?

"Anyway," he added, his tone even politer than it was, "Do you need a ride home? It's past eleven," he offered, checking the time in his phone.

That was a good question, Freya thought. She did need a ride home, but she wasn't going to go alone at night with some dude she barely new. 

"Nah, I'll go myself, thanks," Freya replied, as politely as she could.

"Are you sure? How are you gonna go?" He asked, pushing off the counter.

"I'll call an Uber," she stated, flashing him a smile that hardly reached her eyes.

"Do you think that's safe? I've heard a lot of cases of creepy Uber drivers lately," he said, taking a small step towards her, which was enough to make her back away. Chris noticed he was making her uncomfortable, and it made him frown, but he didn't say anything, just maintained his distance.

"I'll be fine," she replied, although what he said did spark a fear inside of her. Her Uber driver too would be a dude she barely knew. Would she be safe? Or would it be safer to go with her polite but annoyingly prying coworker?

"Okay, whatever. Bye bye," and with that, Chris grabbed his jacket and left her all alone, still contemplating on what to do.

Ugh.

Freya called an Uber, and made her way out of the safety of her cosy workplace. Surprisingly, her Uber arrived in a matter of minutes, and she frowned when she spotted her ride. She took a deep breath, and walked over to it, opening the door of the back seat and getting in. However, looking over at the driver left her eyes wide, and her mouth agape.

"You?!" Freya exclaimed, pointing a finger at him, shocked to see her mysterious customer on the driving seat.

"Good evening, Ma'am," Zavian said turning in his seat to look at her, a cheeky grin plastered on his face.

"What are you doing here?" Freya asked, her tone accusing. She had once again surprised herself with how confidently, and rather rudely, she was talking to this guy she knew nothing about. And that too, sitting in his car, late at night, in an almost empty street.

"I'm here to take you home," Zavian shrugged, his smile not faltering even the slightest.

"I am not going anywhere with you!" Freya announced, and reached for the door, when a click sounded and she realized that Zavian had locked the doors. She froze for a second, her eyes fixed on the door, not wanting to give away her fear by looking the man in the eye. "Unlock the door," her voice now sounded small, as Freya could feel goosebumps all over her skin.

"Oh come on, I can't possibly leave you here, Freya, think of my job at least!" He said, and she could hear the desperation clear in his voice. However, Freya knew things didn't add up. The events were too many to be called coincidences.

"Unlock the door," Freya repeated, ensuring that her voice wouldn't tremble.

"Okay," Zavian sighed, much to her surprise, and did as she had asked. She immediately stepped out of the car, starting to walk away, but Zavian wasn't going to leave her alone that easily.

"Hey, wait!" She heard him call out to her, and she increased her pace, trying to leave him behind.

Without looking right or left, Freya attempted to cross to the other side of the street, when a loud honk caught her attention. She snapped her head to the side, a scream escaping her lips as a black Audi zoomed towards her in full speed. She tightly closed her eyes, only being able to flinch a little in the minute number of seconds, when a hand firmly wrapped around her wrist, and jerked her backwards, pulling her into safety.

Her saviour wrapped his arms around her body, hugging her tightly, and to her shock, she immediately hugged him back. Maybe it was the fear pumping through her body that made her crave a warm, protective hug, or just the fact that for the first time in years, physical contact with a male was actually comforting her. She was shaking furiously, her face buried into the man's chest, as he soothingly rubbed his hand across the back of her head.

"Hey, you're safe. It's okay," he whispered to her, and his deep, velvety voice, calmed her down a considerable amount.

She finally pulled away from him, and tilted her head backwards to look up, into his beautiful gray eyes. Zavian stared down at her, with such an intense emotion and concern, it made Freya frown, and ignited something inside of her - something that she had not felt in years now.

"You're fine, love. I'm here," Zavian whispered to her, his large, warm hands cupping her cheeks. However, what she felt made her step away from him instantly, confusing Zavian. Freya had felt sparks, the exact kind of electricity that would rush down her body whenever he would touch her. She looked at Zavian in horror, not being able to comprehend what was happening, as bitter memories unknowingly started to infiltrate her thoughts.

"Freya? What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Zavian asked, puzzled.

"I-it's nothing," she replied quickly, wiping her tear away. "I just got a little scared, that's all."

Zavian looked at her suspiciously and she knew he didn't believe her, but he decided to let it go, much to her relief. 

"Anyway, I was about to convince you to allow me to take you home," Zavian said, changing the topic.

"Yeah, about that," Freya started, taking a deep breath, "No."

"Are you kidding me?" Zavian couldn't help but laugh at her response.

"No," Freya replied, hugging herself. A small smile made it's way across her face too.

"Come on, Freya. I'll drop you home safe and sound. Would you rather walk on the streets alone at night? Or maybe call another Uber driven by some complete stranger?" Zavian asked, and Freya realized his argument actually did make sense. She weighed her options for a moment, before finally letting out a heavy sigh. A cute grin spread across Zavian's face, and Freya unintentionally raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh, I figured you're saying yes," Zavian smiled.

"Yeah, whatever," Freya shrugged.

They walked back to Zavian's car and he held the door of the passenger seat open for her, but Freya just ignored him and sat in the backseat. Zavian rolled his eyes, and closed the door, before walking around to sit in the driving seat. He started to drive, his eyes switching from the road to the rear view mirror to look at Freya every few minutes.

Zavian observed how Freya sat in utter silence, her eyes fixed on the surroundings outside. He noticed the dark circles around her eyes, which she had tried hard to cover with make-up. He once again paid attention to her excessive clothing, and how properly every part of her skin was covered. It made him frown, and wonder, what exactly it was that she was hiding. However, he could not deny how beautiful she still managed to look. To him, she was the most beautiful girl in the entire world. His mate.

"Hey, you missed a cut!" Freya suddenly pointed out, her eyes wide and alert.

It made Zavian instantly shift his eyes to the road, and he smiled apologetically.

"Sorry," he muttered, hoping she didn't catch him staring.

"It's okay, just get me home now," Freya mumbled, taking deep breaths to calm herself down. He didn't mean it. He'll drop you home safely. Be calm Freya, she told herself, and her racing heart finally returned to it's normal pace when the car pulled into her street. "Third one on the left side," Freya pointed out her house, and Zavian pulled over in front of it.

"There, I didn't kidnap you, did I?" Zavian chuckled, but Freya ignored him, not finding him very amusing.

"How much?" Freya asked, fishing through her handbag for her wallet.

"Oh, don't worry about it," Zavian smiled.

"What?" Freya frowned.

"I give free rides to the people I know," Zavian lied.

"As if," Freya replied, rolling her eyes.

"What?" Zavian said dramatically, "You don't believe me?"

"Obviously not," Freya shrugged, "I'm not letting you pay from your own pocket. Why would you even wanna do that for me?" Freya asked him, her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized his expression.

"Because, I want to," Zavian said casually.

"No-"

"Either you get out of the car without paying me money, or I'll just drive you around the entire night," Zavian threatened, and although his face had a grin, that was Freya's cue to leave.

"O-okay, whatever," Freya pretended to be unfazed by his 'threat' and stepped out of the car. She walked to the door of her house and unlocked it, stepping inside. She noticed how Zavian didn't leave until she had shut the door, and she frowned, making her way to her room. 

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