CHAPTER TWELVE

Hannah felt a little guilty about how she had ended that conversation for some reason. She hadn't said anything that warranted her guilt of course but rather, it was due to the way Rayne's hopeful expression just faded suddenly. 'Oh God, I'm going soft!' she thought with a wry smile, running her slender fingers through the dark waves of her hair. Who cares what some random guy thought of her? Not her, that's who. She was Hannah Adem for God's sake!

She sped her way home, trying not to let out a string of curse words when she realised she had missed her stop on the train. When she finally got near her road, she beamed as the sun began to shine down in a rare moment of British weather not freezing her to death during winter for a change. Waving at Mrs Woods from next door as she watered her rose bushes, Hannah unlocked her front door – a simple black in contrast to her neighbours bright purple one.

"Cam?" she called out, her voice sounding loud in the silence of the house. She was a little confused as she pushed open his bedroom door to find it open; he had specifically said he would be home all day today but had apparently disappeared once she'd left. Grimacing at the pile of dirty socks scattered on the floor, the condoms spilling onto his bedside cabinet and the duvet he had clearly thrown off when he woke, Hannah shut his door with a roll of her eyes.

She was somewhat disappointed; having been looking forward to eating a load of junk food and watching lame movies with him. Perhaps he was out with Catherine? Helena? Charmaine? Or whoever his latest girlfriend was.

Hannah sorted out her whole closet, hoovered the entire house, danced around their living room to old Spice Girls songs, organised her bookshelf by alphabetical order, did some yoga and ironed all her clothes including socks and underwear before she admitted to herself that she was bored to death.

It was nearing five and all her friends were probably getting ready to head of to Jakubs nineteenth birthday party. She could have called Ashlyn and convinced her to come do something with her but truth be told, she didn't really want to.

Hannah felt her ears burn in embarrassment as she remembered how she had felt the previous day when Ash had come over after their shopping trip. Ashlyn had looked around in disdain, clearly analysing every little thing with a critical eye. Although the house was tidy – thanks to Aunt Sara hiring a cleaning company to come once a week as she couldn't trust the two teenagers – it still seemed, well, mediocre. They had spent the day in the dining room, the largest and most fancy room of her home but it still couldn't possibly compare to Ash's seven bedroom, four bathroom detached house.

Instead of calling over Ashlyn and having a repeat of the previous day, Hannah looked through her newly organised wardrobe and carefully pulled out her newest dress: a beautiful teal blue patterned one with a corset-like shape. Slipping on her black Valentino shoes and a matching gold necklace, her outfit was ready. She may as well go to Jakubs party even if he was a complete wanker – he would be far too drunk to cause her any trouble. She spent some time on her hair, humming to herself as she emptied practically the whole bottle of hairspray on her elaborate updo. Finally satisfied, she got started on her makeup, taking special care to enhance her eyes as much as possible since they were her personal favourite feature. She blew herself a kiss in the reflection and giggled quietly before leaving the house, clutch in hand. 'Ready!' Hannah thought to herself.

She called up the cabwise people to order a taxi since Cameron had gone God knows where with their shared car leaving her stranded. Idiot. Quickly sending him a whatsapp message interrogating him of his whereabouts and telling him she'd be at Jakubs, she made her way there.

Before she even got out of the taxi, Hannah could feel the beat of the loud music causing the ground to tremble faintly. Having arrived later than others, the party was in full swing by the time she made her way inside, pushing past groups of half-naked teenagers staggering around drunk.

"Heeey Hannah! Oh you look gorgeous babe!"

She was fully expecting it to be someone she didn't know but to her relief, it was only Charmaine and Karishma waving at her eagerly. "Aww thanks girls!" she called out when she got close, leaning forward to give the air beside them a kiss in her usual posh manner.

The three of them talked for a while, temporarily pausing to greet those who stopped and said hi to them. Karishma was in the middle of telling her an amusing story about detention last Wednesday, when she remembered she needed to find Gabe. She had been a little distant with him recently and she wanted to ensure their relationship wouldn't be strained. He was her boyfriend after all! He loved her.

"Alright, see you later babes!" Karishma remarked as they parted, the two girls giggling about Patience, the guy Charmaine apparently liked.

Hannah beamed when she caught sight of Gabriel, standing back to admire his movements. He stood tall and proud: his broad shoulders complemented by the pale blue denim shirt he was wearing, his hair pushed back neatly. His eyes shone against the dull lighting as he was in the middle of an animated conversation with Ashlyn. The two of them were standing much closer than usual, her body arched upwards to face his but Hannah brushed it off. The music was far too loud and they could probably barely hear each other.

"Gabe!" she exclaimed when she had ventured close enough to her boyfriend and best friend. She pressed her lips against his softly in greeting before turning to hug her best friend. Ashlyn looked magnificent; there was something about her that could capture all attention. Her dress was a passionate red colour, pretty lace twisting and molding itself against the contours of her body. Her lips were matching, pure scarlet.

Kissable.

"I'll catch you two later," Ash voiced, her eyes glistening in the direction of the dance floor as she elegantly sipped from the glass in her hand. "Tobias and Kyla broke up and he may need a little consoling."

She sauntered towards the boy in question with all the confidence in the world, eyes riveted to her. Hannah grinned, Ashlyn was incredible at ensuring she was the focus of attention at any given time.

The sizzling of a beer can being opened brought Hannah's attention back to her boyfriend. His wide eyes and slightly flustered expression was enough to tell her he had already had a few but his tolerance was fairly high so she waved it off. "Want some babe?" he offered, holding it out under her nose.

Hannah didn't usually drink much unlike a lot of her friends – she much preferred being completely in control of her actions in public. Her image was everything to her. When she did drink however it was usually vodka, there was something almost poetic in forgetting yourself in the drink of the devil. There wasn't really anything around today other than different kinds of beer however; Jakub's parties weren't exactly what you would call classy but the attendance of The Elite was what always brought people to them.

Hannah smiled at her boyfriend and took the can, taking a small sip. Her face scrunched up at the bitter taste but once she had gotten used to it, it slipped down her throat without break. She loathed the taste but the atmosphere around her – the noise, the dancing, the flashing lights, the music – made her feel alive.

Hannah and Gabe stood there a while, wrapped in each other's embrace and occasionally turning to talk to all the random people who came up to them. Hannah's vision began to blur slightly although she hadn't had much and she could feel her heartbeat in her ears. Gabe had evidently drank a lot more than her but his tolerance was much higher. He rested one of his hands on her lower back, inching lower and lower as the minutes dragged on and her apprehension faded away. The other of his hands was grasping on to hers tightly, his fingers fitting between the groves of her own: a perfect picture of possession. They danced for a bit, swaying close together with a song that, thankfully, wasn't as loud as the previous ones.

Hannah was a little dizzy, her dress felt too constricting and the hot bodies surrounding her made her feel a little claustrophobic. "Wanna get out of here?" she murmured to her boyfriend, completely missing the way his eyes darkened in desire.

Without a word he pushed through the crowd to reach the front door, effectively dragging her along as her hand was still intertwined with his. She took a large gulp of fresh air once they had gotten outside, enjoying the feel of the cool wind against her flushed skin.

"C'mon honeybee," he whispered against the quiet of the night as they neared his house. He and Jakub lived in the same neighbourhood and he knew his parents would be busy tonight. Angelica's wedding was coming up and they were probably room fussing over something as lame as the exact shade of lilac for the flowers. It needed to be perfect; just like the rest of their lives.

With a strong arm still around his girlfriends waist, holding her steady, he unlocked the front door quietly and crept to his room. The lights were on downstairs in the conservatory so he knew his parents wouldn't disturb them but just in case, he flicked the lock on his bedroom door. The two of them sat on his bed for a while, talking and kissing and laughing quietly.

"I mean I know why he said that of course but it still was a bit of a dick move y'know? But anyway, then what happened was, um, she said that– Gabe? Gabe, are you listening?" Hannah asked him, still a little giggly from the alcohol. She was in the middle of telling him something Ash had told her the previous day but she had noticed he wasn't really paying attention, his eyes were focused on her lips.

"Hmm?" His voice hummed against the silence of his bedroom, the dark walls shining shadows on his face. "Sorry honeybee, you just look gorgeous."

Hannah smiled a little warily. Gabriel Slade wasn't really the kind of person to give out free compliments but she gave him the benefit of doubt and continued what she was saying. "Aw thanks Gabe!" she answered, about to push back a stray curl that had fallen in front of her face. She didn't get a chance however, as her boyfriend leaned forward and pushed it back for her, molding his sturdy lips against hers at the same time.

She lost herself in the kiss, her body responding to his. He groaned against her mouth and pushed himself closer, until there was no space left between them. Her reactions were a little slow, her mind cloudy with the events of the day so it took her a while to realise how far his hands had ventured. His fingers were desperately grasping at her body beneath her dress, causing her skin to burn. She tried to push him away but he was much stronger than she, his lust driving him more and more forward.

It didn't matter how uncool it was at her age, she was a virgin and didn't want to change that. Not yet anyway.

"Gabe stop!" she called out his name but before the syllables could leave her lips, his mouth was on hers again. His fingers were cold. It was only when he roughly pulled down her zip on the side, causing it to break and her dress to flutter off from her shoulders until her entire upper body was showing that she became scared. His eyes felt like they were burning a hole through her chest, his mouth falling open in desire. They had never gotten this far before but despite movies and books telling her she should feel beautiful under a mans gaze, Hannah only felt degraded.

"I'm– I'm not ready for– for this!" she stuttered. She felt embarrassed: her hair was a mess, her makeup was smudged, her purple bra was on show and her dress was crumpled around her hips. But more than embarrassment, she felt fear spreading through her veins like wildfire.

Gabriel snarled, pushing her body away in anger until she almost fell off his bed with the force. "Why the fuck are you leading me on then?" he almost growled and all Hannah could see was his rage flaring up.

"I– I only–," Hannah tried to speak but her voice was shaking. She hadn't done anything different to lead him on. She was dressed pretty much the same as usual, practically all the school dressed the way she did. Her body wasn't a commodity and it wasn't for his consumption. It didn't matter how long they had been dating, if she didn't want to have sex with him yet, she didn't have to!

With that in mind she jumped up, pulling her dress high in a feeble attempt to cover her almost-naked chest. His body tensed up, his golden eyebrows pressed together in clear anger. Gabriel was absolutely furious. How dare she leave? She was his girlfriend! It was her fucking job to have sex with him! He'd been patiently waiting all this time and when they finally got this far the stupid girl was going to run away?!

Hannah knew he was getting up and that he was going to stop her. Gabriel had always been stubborn and everything had to go his way but this wasn't going to. Her body belonged only to herself.

"No! It's happening whether you like it or not!" he barked. "I've been fucking waiting for months and months! You selfish bitch, get back here!"

She leaped across the floor, narrowly missing his outstretched arm. His fingernails managed to graze her shoulder until a trickle of blood ran down it but she didn't stop. She ran out of his house, her raging boyfriend on her tail ready to take what he determined as his own.

In hindsight, Hannah was lucky she had always enjoyed running as a child. If she wasn't as fast or her lung capacity as large, there was no doubt he would have caught her. She ran through the night, her hair freeing itself from all the twists and turns, her breathing ragged.

She blended into the night, leaping through alleyways he wouldn't ever dare to venture into until she concluded she was safe. With her heartbeat pounding and her eyes watering, she hid behind a closed corner shop and shakily unlocked her phone, which thankfully hadn't died yet.

"Hello?" Cam answered. She could hear laughter in the background and his voice was as care-free as ever. "Han I'm a bit busy right now and–."

Although she had her mouth tightly shut to prevent herself from crying, she couldn't help it. A heart-wrenching sob escaped and he stopped rambling.

"Hannah?!" he exclaimed, worry seeping into his voice. Cameron knew his cousin. Hannah was incredibly strong and it had been years since he had ever heard her make so much of a noise when she was sad. She wouldn't cry over nothing. "Hannah what's wrong?!"

She couldn't answer; what could she possibly say.

"Help," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Help me." She kept looking over her shoulder in fear her boyfriend would appear behind her menacingly. When had he become such a monster? Why didn't she see this before?

"Where are you?" Cameron asked, desperation in his voice. "I'm coming to get you!"

She squinted to read the closest road sign and recited it to him, all the while feeling as though she was going to throw up. She didn't so much as move, frozen in shock of what had transpired. She only went to Jakubs' party in the first place because she wanted to have fun. She had wanted to mend whatever was broken between her and Gabriel but now, there was no way she could so much as look at him again.

It was only when Cameron's car screeched to a halt beside her and he jumped out, not even bothering to turn off the engine, that she let herself fall apart. He took one look at her tearful face and ripped dress before rushing to hold her as tight as possible in his arms. She wasn't in any state to walk by herself so he half picked her up and drove her home, his protectiveness rising inside him like a wolf howling at the moon.

She was shivering despite it being quite warm in their house and Cameron carefully led her to her bedroom, concern rushing through him. She dropped her dress that she was holding up and let it flicker to the floor until she was left standing in only her underwear. He averted his eyes – he didn't need to see his cousin half naked and especially not when she was in such a bad state – and helped her pull on an old nightie.

"Hannah?" he whispered, a gentle hand running through her hair as they sat on his bed. "Hannah, what happened?"

She couldn't answer. She pushed her face against the groves of his collarbone and held on for dear life, her tears seeping through his grey t-shirt. He sighed, knowing he wasn't going to find out today but knowing he was going to murder someone once he did. Cameron wrapped his arms around his cousin protectively and whispered words of an unconditional love until she fell asleep against him.

Hannah had grown up feeling isolated and alone her entire life with nobody there for her other than Cameron. She had always longed for more when they were younger but her empty dreams were meaningless, she didn't need anyone else. She had him. He was the one who helped her with homework, taught her to swim, played dolls with her and looked out for her every day.

They had grown up and things had changed but there was no doubt about it, Cameron Adem would die before he ever let anyone hurt his cousin.

A/N: hannahs outfit at the party is on the right side as an external link! also this was such a depressing chapter to write omg D: