Chapter 25: Don't Let Me Go

There are some people that bring out the worst in you. Endlessly pushing your buttons just to see how you will react and rehashing painful memories to watch you cry. While others bring out the best, cheering you on when you need it most, supporting you during a crisis and being that shoulder you need to cry on. And then there are those remarkably rare people who bring out the best. The truly addictive ones that effectively seep beneath your skin becoming a part of you until you can never again breathe free of them. They are the reason the sun shines so bright and make life worth living.

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Chapter 24: Behind the Mask

Daybreak found Natalie outside in Blake’s backyard playing with Caesar as she walked the stones of his garden again. She seemed to have healed nicely and was finding herself growing comfortable again in his presence and it made him happy knowing that he hadn’t completely ruined things with his secrets. Yet he knew her time here was short lived. Natalie still had not contacted her parents to let them know she was safe. He figured she was too afraid of being thrown into a room and locked away again and wanted to enjoy her freedom while she could.

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Chapter 23: Pieces of Me

Bright sunlight shined directly into the bedroom and cascaded over a sleeping Natalie. It had been thirteen hours since the fight in the woods and still she hadn’t awakened. Blake was quickly growing panicked. The large bump on the back of her head had slowly started to diminish and yet she hadn’t so much as opened her eyes. He had been sitting up with her since getting her back to his place, watching her every second of the day.

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Chapter 19: Every Move You Make

Last night was almost perfect. I decided to go to Natalie’s gala after all and surprisingly I enjoyed myself. Well…to a degree. She was beyond beautiful dressed in a gorgeous lilac, silk gown that complimented her well. Watching her set up the event I could see how involved she was with everything trying to make it perfect but deep down I could also see she wasn’t really there. The Charity wasn’t something that interested her much but she did a great job hiding that from the people around her. Or they have just become so numb to her feelings they just don’t notice anymore.

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Chapter 16: Full Moon

Run! Faster! Blake kept telling himself as he found himself being chased by some unseen force. Darkness grew quickly encompassing the area throwing ominous shadows onto the ground he could see. The moon lit a path through the forest but it wasn’t necessary; he found he could see through even the darkest of nights. Trees broke somewhere behind him as he ducked beneath a low hanging branch to get free of the woods. He needed to get to the cabin, then it would all be ok.

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Chapter 05: One Fine Day

Stephen King once wrote:

‘True love, like any other strong and addicting drug, is boring — once the tale of encounter and discovery is told, kisses quickly grow stale and caresses tiresome… except, of course, to those who share the kisses, who give and take the caresses while every sound and color of the world seems to deepen and brighten around them. As with any other strong drug true first love is really only interesting to those who have become its prisoners. And, as is true of any other strong and addicting drug, true first love is dangerous.’

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Chapter 01: The Good Life

Natalie turned on the overhead speaker system in Branson Hall’s performing arts center. She had to rehearse for the upcoming Ballet and wanted to perfect her moves before she took center stage. It was her favorite piece by far and she was eager to perform whenever it came up in the rotation. Popping on Tchaikovsky’s opus #20, she placed herself beneath the spotlight and waited for the music to begin.

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