Taylor

I didn't have a chance to call Jordan and tell her about the attack so I was glad that she wasn't going anywhere near the dorm room tonight. In the morning, I would tell her everything.

As we got to the top of the stairs, I wondered if they had a spare couch that I could use. I was surprised when he opened the door to his room and held it open for me. Nervously, I stepped inside as he switched the bedroom light on and he closed the door behind him.

He put my bag down beside the bed and then he turned to face me as he ran a hand through his hair. His tongue flicked against the one lip ring as he studied me for a moment.

The events that night had left me nervous and jittery. I knew I was safe with Sin, but I couldn't help feeling that deep-rooted fear that had been put there by the attack earlier. He walked up to me.

"How are you doing?" he asked softly as he cupped my face.

"I'm okay," I lied outright. I was anything but okay. I wasn't sure if I would ever feel safe again.

"Do you need to shower?" he asked as his hands dropped from my face to settle on my hips.

"Yes," I answered. It was hard to concentrate on my thoughts when he was so close to me.

"Get what you need together and I'll put a clean towel in the bathroom for you," he said as he released me and stepped back.

"Okay," I said as I walked over to my bag.

I heard the door open and then close. I was alone. I sat down on the bed for a moment and rubbed my hands over my face, trying to get it together. I didn't want to be an emotional mess that Sin would have to deal with.

After I got my stuff out of my bag, I went to the bathroom. There was a clean, dark blue towel neatly folded beside the sink. I stripped down and climbed into the shower. Once I'd started up the shower and adjusted the temperature, I leaned my head against the tiles.

Some bruises had started to develop where my attacker had grabbed me. A shiver of fear ran through my body at the physical evidence left by the horrifying encounter.

At the sight of the bruises, I showered quickly and got out. I dried off in record time and began to pull my clothes on. I began to feel better now that the bruises were hidden from my sight by my clothes.

When I stepped out of the bathroom, I noticed the party had stopped. It was quiet except for some voices. The party was over. I went back to Sin's room expecting him to be there, but he wasn't.

I knew I had to call Connor, but I really wasn't looking forward to it. I grabbed my phone from my discarded clothes and I sat down on the bed while I tried to contemplate how I was going to tell my brother what had happened tonight. There was no use delaying it, and it didn't matter how I told Connor, he was going to freak.

"Hi," I heard Connor answer my call.

"Hi," I replied.

"What's wrong?" he asked. I could hear the nervous fear in his voice. A phone call this late at night was never for good news.

"I don't want you to freak out," I said.

"Tell me what happened," he instructed firmly, but I could hear the rising panic in his voice.

"I was attacked tonight," I revealed softly as I closed my eyes and prepared for his reaction.

"What happened? Are you okay? Have you reported it to the police?" He screeched one question after the other. He was flipping out.

"Calm down," I instructed.

"How the fuck do you expect me to calm down!" he yelled. I bit down on my lip to keep from snapping back at him. I remained silent as I let what I said sink in.

"Tell me what happened," he requested tightly once he'd managed to calm himself down enough to talk further.

"I'd just gone out to get something to eat with a friend," I began to explain. There was no way I could tell him I'd gone out with the guy I'm casually screwing.

"I was in the stairwell of the dorm building when someone came up behind me and pushed me against the wall," I said. While I was talking, I was already sifting through the finer details, deciding what to tell him and what to leave out.

"Someone scared him off when they entered the stairwell," I said, leaving out what the attacker had said to me, and the fact that it had been Sin who had scared off my attacker. He would go ballistic if he knew the guy he'd warned me off and given me a folder full of reasons to stay away from him was the guy I'd gone out with. He didn't need to know everything.

"Are you okay?" was Connor's next question.

"Yes, I'm fine." I was a little shaken, but physically I was fine.

"I'll get the first flight in the morning," he said. If it hadn't been so late I know he'd been on the first flight to get to me as soon as he could. I wasn't surprised. I knew he would come out as soon as I told him.

"Where are you?" he asked.

"At a friend's place," I replied vaguely.

"What's the address?" he asked. I gave him the address.

"I'll meet you there as soon as my flight lands," he told me.

"Okay," I replied, not sure how I was going to be able to keep Sin a secret now that I'd given my brother his address. Feeling overwhelmed, I decided I would sort it out tomorrow. It was one of the reasons I hated lying. Lies always had a way of coming out.

"I'm so glad you're okay," my brother said, sounding a little hoarse. He was emotional and I couldn't blame him. Tonight had reminded him about the time he'd nearly lost me.

"Travel safe and I'll see you in the morning," I replied, trying to keep my emotions from bubbling over.

"I love you," my brother said.

The last time I'd spoken to him before the night that had changed our lives, he'd forgotten to tell me he loved me. So now every time I spoke to him—brief or not—he would always say those three little words to me. It was like he was scared if he didn't say them that something bad would happen to me.

"I love you too."

The call ended and I sat for a while after just staring down at my phone. I rubbed my forehead as I tried to think of a way to make sure Connor didn't see Sin. I let out a sigh when I realized that I couldn't let my brother control my life. I was old enough to make my own decisions and even if he didn't like the decisions I made, they were mine to make.

Feeling tired, I lay down on the bed as I waited for Sin to return. I curled up in a ball and held my phone to my chest as I let myself relax for the first time since the attack. I must have fallen asleep because the next time I opened my eyes, it was dark. The darkness reminded me of the darkness in the stairwell. I felt something touch me and I shot up in the bed.

The memories from my attack assaulted me and I found myself trembling as I remembered my assailant pushing me against the wall. The fear I'd felt at that moment returned. My heart pounded so fast I put my hand to my chest.

"Hey, it's just me," Sin said to me as he sat up beside me.

I put my hand to my head as I tried to breathe through my panic. Gently, Sin put an arm around me and pulled me against his bare chest.

One minute ticked into two. I began to relax and my heart began to slow down. It was the warmth from his embrace and the steady beating of his heart under my ear that soothed me. The fear began to disappear as I shoved the memory of the attack into the back of my mind.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, feeling like an emotional mess.

"It's okay," he soothed gently as he stroked my hair. I pulled back slightly and looked at him. The moonlight lit the room enough to see the outline of his features.

His fingers reached out and tucked my hair behind my ear. I ran my tongue across my bottom lip as I felt the soft touch of his fingers against my skin. Something sparked to life inside of me. Without even questioning it, I leaned forward and kissed him.