Chapter 10: Responsibility (Claire's POV)

The calmness and casualty in his voice when he said that gave me goosebumps everywhere. I stared at him, my mouth agape. "Have you killed someone before?" I asked. 

"Kind of," he nodded. 

"Kind of?!" I yelled. 

"Shh!" He clamped his hand over my mouth, "You yell so much," he hissed. 

I threw his hand off, "You've killed someone?" I whispered. 

"No, not directly. But I've caused injuries that went on to kill someone," he admitted. 

I stared at him. "Have you shot someone?" 

"Yes." 

"In the head?" 

"No." 

"In the leg?" 

"Yes." 

"Arm?" 

"Probably." 

"You've shot someone dead?" 

"Once." 

"How many people have you killed?" 

Silence. 

I glared at him and he sighed in defeat, running his hand through his, pushing it back. "A few." 

"More than ten?" 

"No."

"More than three?" 

"Yes." 

I gasped. "More than five?" 

He nodded. 

"Oh, my God." I put my head against the wall. It literally felt like the air was knocked out of my lungs. 

"Breathe." 

"Oh, really? That's what I have to do?" I asked sarcastically. I took a few deep breaths before finally looking at him. "I'm assuming the people you've killed were all bad guys." 

"Mm, give or take," he nodded. 

"Give or- Give or take?!" I whisper-yelled. 

"I'm kidding. Yeah, they were bad guys. In my opinion." 

He's kidding? We're talking about people's lives and he's kidding? 

"Leo," I said. He looked at me, a zap of something different in his eyes when I said his name but it was gone as soon as it came. "You've actually killed someone?" 

He nodded, "When I had to." 

"What qualifies as the need to kill someone?" I scoffed. 

"When they're trying to kill me." 

"I thought nobody messes with you," I sighed. 

"They don't. But when they do, they die. That's why nobody messes with me. You should know this," he said casually. 

"My dad didn't exactly give me a biography on you, sorry," I said sarcastically. "Oh, my god, you've killed someone. You've actually killed someone. You seriously-" I stopped rambling when he took another step closer, his body almost pressed against mine, his arms on either side of me, his face inches from mine. 

"Claire, you're my responsibility. I might have to kill for it," he said, his voice low. 

"Would you?" I asked hesitantly, forcing my eyes to stay with his rather than drift down to his lips. 

"Yeah. Yeah, I would." He nodded slightly. 

I'm confused. 

"You're not even getting paid," I frowned. 

"Your life's on the line and you're worried about me getting paid?" He lifted an amused eyebrow at me. 

"I trust you." 

Why did I just say that? 

His eyes trailed across my face and I felt extremely conscious under his gaze. "You didn't do anything to be hunted down like that, you shouldn't be at risk," he said before taking a step back. "You're innocent." 

Well... 

Yeah, no, no. I am, I am. 

In this sense yeah, in the other sense... 

Stop, Claire just- just no. It's not the time. No. 

"Aren't you?" His eyes snapped up to mine and I kid you not, I felt a jolt in my body when his eyes locked with mine. "You haven't done anything, have you? Aren't people after you because of your dad? Because you help him?" I asked. 

"Yes. So?" he asked. 

"So, that makes you innocent too, doesn't it?" 

"I wouldn't call someone who's killed people innocent," he replied. 

"You killed the bad guys. That doesn't make you much of a villain." 

"It doesn't make me a hero." 

"You don't have to be a hero," I frowned. 

"I'm not the good guy," he replied. 

"You are for me. You're keeping me alive." He didn't say anything. "And I've never been on the bad guy's team," I shrugged. 

"You wanna be on the team of the guy who kills people?" he scoffed. 

"Okay, you're not a murderer. You can stop trying to sound like one." I rolled my eyes. I don't know what he was trying to do. Scare me away maybe. But why? "And bad guy or not, I'm your responsibility." He opened his mouth to argue. "You just said that yourself," I said quickly. He sighed in defeat. "That puts me on your team," I grinned. 

Look at you. 

What? 

Look at you. You're on his side after he told you he's killed people. 

After he told me he's killed bad people. 

Do you believe him, Claire? 

I do, so shut the fuck up. 

I hate myself sometimes. I ruin things for myself. He's finally telling me something about himself, I'm not gonna judge and make him regret telling me anything. Even though I had to interrogate him to find out. I could get him to open up. I could make a friend. I think. 

He got out of the pool and grabbed his towel before holding mine out for me. "Get out." 

He's back, ladies and gentlemen. 

I sighed and followed him out, pulling my flip flops on this time so I wouldn't ruin the towel or the floor and even wiped my flip flops on the doormat. I shivered lightly as we stepped in. The house was colder. Like someone blasted the A/C. 

The front door beeped before opening and reveals Flynn bringing in Aesha. They were talking and she was smiling. She was smiling, you guys. Aww. They both stopped and looked at us, me still shivering under the towel, Leo perfectly fine with his towel on his shoulder. 

Luckily, he couldn't drop me this time. 

"Hi," I smiled at her. 

"What the hell are you guys doing?" she asked, giving me a pointed look. 

"We went swimming," I said, my teeth chattering. "Okay, bye." I ran upstairs and to my room. I went and showered and pulled on sweatpants with a full-sleeved shirt that I got from the men's section. I know I'm not the only one. I towel-dried my hair before going downstairs after pulling fuzzy socks on. I walked into the kitchen where Leo was cooking and the other two were sitting. 

"Why the hell are you dressed like it's Christmas?" Aesha asked. 

"I was cold," I shrugged before sitting down on the other side. I rocked my legs back and forth before I began spinning around in the barstool.

Flynn and Aesha were engrossed in their conversation, Leo was cooking, I was spinning around in a chair like an idiot. Sounds about right. 

"Stop," Leo demanded. 

"I didn't even touch you," I laughed. 

"Just stop," he repeated. 

"Why?" I pouted. 

"It's distracting and annoying." 

"How is it distracting? I'm literally spinning around in my own personal bubble," I said, still spinning around.He rolled his eyes before grabbing the leg of the barstool and pulling it closer to him. So close, that if I spun, I would kick his legs and that would probably hurt me more than him. "See, now you pulled me into your personal bubble, I didn't do that." 

"Now, you can't spin around like a child," he said, his gaze focused on the food. 

I rolled my eyes and sat there, watching him cook. "What are you making?" 

"Potions," he deadpanned. 

"I want one for immortality," I grinned. 

He didn't say anything and continued making the pasta before handing out a plate to everyone. He put mine on the counter before sitting on the barstool and pulling mine back to the counter beside his. I stared at him in shock, biting back a smile. 

I looked up at Aesha who was looking between Leo and I back and forth. She raised her eyebrows at me and I gave her a small shrug. She grinned at me but I rolled my eyes and slightly shook my head, starting to eat. 

"Is the food fine?" he asked. I looked up, assuming he was asking Aesha because this would be the first time she's eating something he made but when I looked at him, he was looking at me. 

"Me?" I pointed to myself. 

He snapped out of it and looked at the other two. "All of you," he shrugged. 

"Yeah," they said in sync and then he turned back to me because I was yet to answer. 

"Uh- yeah," I nodded, snapping myself out of it. 

"It's really good, who taught you?" Aesha asked bluntly. 

"My housemaid while growing up," he answered. 

I've never heard anyone around him mention his mother. I wonder what happened to her. After dinner, Aesha and I hung in the living room for a while and then Flynn went to drop her home, apparently for her safety but we all know that isn't really it. 

"Night," he said after loading up the dishwasher. He never says goodnight. 

"Night," I grinned before going upstairs and to my room. 

Something in the air had shifted. He changed. A lot. And I think he trusted me too.

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Chapter ten

someones opening up

about time honestly lmao

next chapter: titanic