Chapter 2

Isabella

Time passed faster than I expected, and it was a year since I left my country.

"Take it as a sabbatical, honey."

My father suggested it at the time, and it kept me traveling.

I visited Italy, England, France, Spain, and many other countries, all in Europe; my traveling companions were people Dad would put into looking after me. In one or another of the trips, he joined me. Maybe my father didn't spend as much time with me as I required, but he gave me what he could, the best of his version after losing my mother. He always told me that he avoided being near me for my protection, although he never gave me more explanations than he wanted to.

With Elliot, I only had contact by phone, and in the last few months, not even that. Since I left California, I assumed that nothing would be as we planned, but living it was worse. Dad explained that my boyfriend was still looking out for me, and if I didn't hear from him, it was because they thought it was better for my safety.

"Miss, tomorrow we will be traveling to Tokyo," reported Ella, my bodyguard in Austria, which was where I was staying.

My orbs almost bulged out of my eye sockets when I heard such a thing.

"You're kidding, right?" She denied a little chagrined. "Call Dad. I need to talk to him," I asked louder than I intended.

I was staying in the most incredible hotel, it was almost dreamlike, and Austria was one of the few countries I really enjoyed; I had been there for two weeks, the same two weeks in which everyone taking care of me was acting weird. They got rid of my cell phone on dad's orders, and I could only communicate with him through them. Fuck! They wouldn't even let me use the internet, and if my dad intended for me to enjoy my gap year, he was screwing it up.

Nothing was the same without social media, outings with friends, evenings with my boyfriend. Shit! I missed even the complicated math exercises or the boring history class at my posh school.

Ugh! And the delicious games with Elliot, not to mention.

I blushed at the thought of that.

"I can't, miss. Communication with him will be suspended until further notice." I opened my mouth in surprise, unable to believe she actually said that. "I advise you to pack your bags because we will be leaving before the sun comes up."

"I haven't even learned to speak Japanese properly!" I shouted when I saw her leave.

I imagine that Dad, from the beginning, had plans to send me to Tokyo since he always had a Japanese language teacher with me, apart from the private teacher who helped me continue my basic studies, a martial arts instructor, and a weapons expert. At first, I thought he did it so I wouldn't get bored and spend too much time on the trips, but knowing my destination, I sensed that it was all planned.

What if he was really preparing us for something?

It was possible.

But at that moment, the rage for not understanding anything that was happening around me did not let me see beyond my nose.

"Everything would be different if you were here, mommy," I whispered, looking at the sky through the window.

My heart was still rebuilding after her loss. It still hurt, I wished I had made all those trips with her by my side, but nothing I did was for pleasure; instead, it was an escape. Daddy was afraid that his enemies would find me, which was why I train and learn to defend myself. And yes, I was aware that if one day those bastards found me, I would not make it easy for them.

____****____

A year and a half later, I was fully settled in Tokyo. After six months of traveling around Europe, I could finally see a city as a temporary home.

I resumed my high school years there and joined a martial arts academy, where I spent most of my time. My teacher Baek Cho became my second father "actually. He played his role better than my own father" and his daughter Lee-Ang Cho, my best friend and sister. Elliot finally kept his promise and traveled to spend all the summer vacations with me, dad joined us for a few days, and I'm sure that after my mother, that was the first time I felt like a family and happy.

"You look so much different, more handsome," I said to Elliot when we were in my room that summer.

He had completely lost his teenage image. By now, he looked like a nineteen-year-old boy. His body had more muscles, and he already had to shave every day.

"You too, you look more beautiful, and I like the shape your ass has taken," I blushed when he pointed that out. "Those jeans you wear make it impossible for me not to get my gaze glued to your ass. I think even your dad noticed as he smacked my head as I watched you walk up the steps."

"OMG, Elliot!" I exclaimed in embarrassment and made him laugh out loud.

And he wasn't wrong. Dad noticed his stare on my ass so much. He even ended up talking to me that night.

Too awkward of a conversation.

Fuck! More than too awkward.

Telling him I was still a virgin since my relationship with Elliot wasn't entirely innocent, we weren't taking that big step yet, was easier for me than his advice on birth control.

Elliot spent the whole month of August with me. Dad, on the other hand, was with us for three weeks. I said goodbye to them at the beginning of September and sadly continued with my life. Things were more relaxed, and my father no longer showed the fear of before. I felt that everything was getting back on track, and one night I found myself begging him to let me go back to California. I only got only a "we'll see" from him, and that gave me a little bit of hope.

The following month, just as I turned one and a half years living in Tokyo, he gave me the most anticipated news of my life: he would let me come back. But it was not as good as I imagined because although I would return to the United States, I would not return to my hometown. I had no choice but to accept since that was his only condition, and I couldn't wait to be back in my country.

Although I had to wait two and a half more months for the long-awaited day to arrive, Dad wanted to prepare everything well before setting foot in my new city: Richmond, Virginia.

I would be away from him and Elliot by a little over four thousand two hundred and twenty-two miles, but worse was the distance between the United States and Japan.

That was a huge and good point.

Agreed my conscience.

Just a week after the second anniversary of my mother's death, I was at the Tokyo airport; January undoubtedly became the worst month of the year for me, and my mourning was still mostly intact. The color black became part of my closet after that fateful day, and my cheerful and spontaneous attitude was like a blurred version of the old Isabella.

But it was not for less, that horrible death I received my most significant example of life, marked my damn existence, changed me from the tip of my toes to the last hair on my head, and I would never forget it.

I would come back a different Isabella, a girl who wouldn't let herself be fucked so quickly by anyone.

We would fight to the death.

And I agreed with my conscience.

I would travel from Tokyo and stop in different countries until I got to Richmond, Virginia. The trip would be long, but I was excited to get back, to resume my life and try to start over, trying to forget the pain a little bit or at least know how to deal with it and learn from it.

Lee-Ang and the girls I was with all the time in Tokyo made sure to give me a friendly farewell a day before, my classmates from the martial arts academy became part of my family, and I was sure I would miss them a lot.

"I will miss you very much, American Girl," Lee-Ang said in her thick Asian accent before leaving my apartment the day of my trip.

American Girl was the nickname I was baptized with by her father.

"And I to you, thank you for everything," I replied sincerely, and then we hugged goodbye.

My teacher was waiting for me in his car, and during the whole trip to the airport, he dedicated himself to advising me and thanked me from the bottom of my heart for everything he did for me.

You were grateful for all the times he got your ass kicked.

Yes, I learned a lot from that.

Poof! I felt so sorry for you in those moments.

I smiled unconsciously at the crazy things my crazy conscience whispered to me. I suffered a lot, the learning was not easy, but I was very proud of everything I accomplished.

"Well, American Girl, here ends the journey of one of the many trips you will get to make in life," spoke Master Cho when the call to board the plane was made.

"I'm not good at goodbyes, so please don't do that," I asked with a rare gesture somewhere between laughter and tears. He smiled at the sight of me.

Did you know he was making fun of you, right?

I ignored such foolishness.

"I'm not going to say goodbye because this won't be the last time, we see each other," he assured. The final call to board my plane came. "Live your life to the fullest and take advantage of the opportunities life gives you, and don't forget that learning is a treasure..."

"That it will follow its owner everywhere," I finished for him, the motto of his academy. The words with which he trained my classmates and me.

He smiled in satisfaction as he heard me.

I gave him a short hug, and after that, I left for the plane, the nerves were present again, and from my heart, I wished that the decision I made to return would mark me for good in my life.

And that at last, a good shag with Elliot would come!

Thinking about the words of my subconscious made my nerves worse, and with them as my companions, I began my long journey, my return to my country and a new home.

The trip was longer than I expected, but I finally finished it. I took a deep breath when I was already in my new house. Since I saw it, I loved it both inside and out, and I was shocked that my father chose an ordinary house with only one level. It had four bedrooms with its bathroom, besides the living room, dining room, kitchen, back garden, and shed in front.

It was nothing like the ostentatious mansions I was used to, although it had its luxuries. Dad was like that, and I did not criticize him. It is logical that working hard as he did, he indulged in everything he wanted. When I asked him why he changed the mansions, he gave me a reason that did not please me much: he did not want his enemies to find me, and according to his words and thought, "there was nothing better than to go unnoticed in a normal house." No one would ever imagine that he could find the daughter of the most influential businessman in the construction industry, far from the life of luxury and without being surrounded by bodyguards.

That was what he believed.

And what I expected.

My father had come to pick me up at the airport, and for a week, he accompanied me in my new life. Those days with him were the best days after our stay in Tokyo, and we tried to make up for some lost time and enjoy each other as father and daughter. He accompanied me to the University of Richmond to enroll in a photography course since I didn't want to take a full degree at that time. After doing that, we got to know the city a bit.

It was nothing compared to Newport Beach, lacking in luxuries, but it was noticeably quieter and had better air as trees and dense woods surrounded it. Unfortunately, the day my father had to leave came, and goodbye was inevitable.

How much I missed mom.

I sighed wistfully at the thought.

The only thing that kept me somewhat excited and made me forget my sadness was that the start of school would be the day after he left. So, after dropping him off at the airport, I went to bed early, after picking out the clothes I would wear on my first day. It had been a long time since I had felt like I did in those moments. I was finally back to being like another girl of my age, an almost eighteen-year-old wanting to eat the world in one night.

But when you had your world in front of you, you didn't eat it.

Elliot came into my head at that moment.

As was customary since he visited me in Tokyo, I reached out to him every night by calling or texting. It was complicated for both of us to maintain a long-distance relationship, although we managed it up to that point.

"You'll be eighteen soon, baby, and I want to be there with you," said the owner of my world, reminding me of the approaching date.

That was still three months away, but I guess it was already good to remember.

"I want it too, honey. You'll be my best gift," I expressed sincerely and excitedly.

Ewww, can you be more cheesy?

I laughed to hear such an inner whisper as I accepted that I was getting the cotton candy queen thing with Elliot.

"I love you, Isa. Don't ever forget that," he pleaded, making my heart race at his words.

"Me too, and you know it," I reminded him, a little tired and not from him, but from everything, I did all day. "Honey, I have to leave you, classes start tomorrow, and I want to try to get some sleep." A yawn escaped me unintentionally.

"I hope you can. Have a good night, babe, kisses," he wished and said goodbye.

After ending the call, I lay tossing and turning in bed for a while, thinking and remembering when mom was alive and her peculiar way of waking me up whenever it was my birthday. I couldn't help but shed a few tears, I missed her so much, and I knew I could never get over her loss.

But I would try to live the best I could since I was sure that was something she would have wanted from me.

____****____

The alarm went off at six-thirty in the morning. Typical that after not sleeping, the time to wake up came to like it was nothing.

I pulled my hand out from under the covers and groped my way to my cell phone. It was official! As much as I loved a song, it wouldn't change the outcome if I set it as my alarm tone. I hated that stupid sound and would hate the song if I didn't change it soon.

After turning off the annoying sound, I got out of bed with all my hair messy and went to take a shower; it took me half an hour, not counting the time I took to brush and do all my business. I came out of the bathroom, and my heart was hammering in my chest as if I was about to meet Elliot. Maybe that was the typical reaction in a girl my age about to start a new stage in her life.

The clothes I chose to wear that day included black, as I still didn't feel able to stop wearing it; being almost ready, I went to the kitchen, and after greeting Charlotte, I had some of the breakfast she prepared for me.

"Nervous?" she questioned as she watched me eat impatiently.

I hadn't noticed that I was moving my legs as if I had a tremendous urge to go to the bathroom and at times let my gaze linger on a single point, albeit wholly gone.

"Very much," I spoke with the truth, it was easy for me to be honest with her, "I don't know if it's how I must be actually, since even when I started my classes at school in Tokyo, I didn't feel like this. And this that there I had to speak a different language and wear a uniform with weird shoes." Charlotte smiled, amused to hear me.

"It's normal, honey. You'll start a new life again," she blurted out wryly, and I laughed, "but this time, you're where you belong. Your destiny was here all along." I noticed a hint of malice in her voice and looked at her with a frown.

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing," he replied immediately. "Don't mind me. I think I'm being affected by the change too. Better hurry up because you're running late." I looked at the clock on my cell phone when she pointed that out.

I ran to the bathroom to brush and applied some pink lipstick as I finished, grabbed my bag with all my stuff in it, and said goodbye to Charlotte. I heard her yell a "Go beautiful!" as I walked out the front door and replied with, "Thank you."

Being late for the first day of school did not look good.

True, you had to hurry.

I thanked the heavens because Dad took care to leave me a vehicle, that time, he chose a Honda Fit of the year in orange. It was not to my taste, but still, a car was a car, and I was never one of those who gave importance to that. I drove fifteen minutes to get to the university. I had enough time to look for the room where I would have classes, and I was happy to find a free parking lot near the main entrance.

Although I was about to back into the free space, another car pulled out in front of me, immediately gaining the spot.

"Are you fucking me!" I shouted and blew my horn sharply.

That was a tremendous lack of politeness.

The car was an Aston Martin sports car in black. I didn't know much about cars, but that was one of Dad's favorites, and I recognized it in the soup; it had tinted windows and didn't let me see inside. However, the driver responded by honking his horn at me three times, and without thinking, I took out my middle finger looking in the rearview mirror, and then I beeped my way out of there to find another free parking space.

"Imbecile!" I mumbled, whether female or male.

I wasn't supposed to let myself go on first impressions, but that first day wasn't going as I planned the night before.

I just hoped the rest of the day would get better.

So do I, partner. So, do I.

____________________________________________________

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