Chapter 66- Taunting Loves

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My heart stopped beating.

There was no other way to describe what I felt, except for pure anguish.

I felt as if someone had ripped my heart out and laughed at me as they did so.

I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see the scene before me. Everything around me slowed down and I couldn't muster enough strength to look up and see who was shot. Amelia's scream was enough to make me want to close my eyes and never open them again.

Then suddenly, I heard something that made me breathe again.

"Officers, we have secured the culprit, and Amelia Harrison is safe."

I whipped my eyes open to see who had spoken and turned to see an officer closeby who was speaking into his walkie-talkie. I quickly looked back to the scene, my breath returning to my lungs.

One officer was on the ground, holding his arm as blood poured out. Another officer held a taser to Jackson, and he lay on the ground helplessly as the officer continued to taser him.

The gun wasn't in sight anymore.

Two officers ran to Amelia to get her ropes off and another called for an ambulance, kneeling beside the officer who was shot.

And I sat there on my knees, watching everything play out. They didn't notice me yet, as I was still a few ways away from the scene, but I still saw all of it.

The officers finally freed Amelia. Medics had arrived to take Jackson, and the officer, away on a stretcher. I watched as they took Jackson by me, looking pale and sickly, but alive. I turned to look at Amelia again. An officer was talking to her now, and despite the commotion around me, I caught everything Amelia said in between.

"He called me here. He said he had something of mine here. I had to come."

She then proceeded to tell the officer every detail ever since she left the house. She told the officer what Jackson had said, and the officer took her statement. Then, the officers finally parted and Amelia stepped through. It was then that an officer had seen me. It was the same one who I had followed earlier. He came running to me and stopped right in front of me.

"Hey, I told you that you aren't allowed here!" He said loudly.

I barely paid attention to him. My eyes were solely trained on Amelia. She had finally looked over to me after hearing the noise and her eyes widened when she saw me.

'Leo,' she mouthed, her eyes watering.

I turned to the officer then and quickly stood up, ignoring the tingle in my legs.

"I was just leaving."

And with that, I turned around and walked out of the warehouse.

* * *

I was fuming by the time I got back to the car. I wanted to just punch something. But I held it in for now, seeing the crowd of officers everywhere.

Arrests were being made, as officers caught Jackson's men and tossed them into any available police car. Paramedics were trying to bring Jackson back to consciousness in the ambulance. They were shutting the doors to the vehicle when I got there, and I watched as four officers boarded the ambulance as well, probably to arrest Jackson as soon as he woke up. Another ambulance was helping the officer who was caught in shooting, and thankfulky, the bullet had only scraped his upper arm.

I finally made it to my car, surprised to see that Andre was no longer inside. I looked around, only to find my gaze landing on Jamal and John a few feet away, talking to a few officers. They were giving their statements too I presumed.

Just then, an officer stalked up to me, questioning me the same. I told them everything, about what I knew of Jackson and how I found Andre this morning when Jamal called. I told him everything regarding the incident, even going as far as to mention that I caught Jackson bullying Amelia a few times. And then, I waited.

A few minutes later, I saw that Jamal was wrapping up his interrogation. When he was done, he immediately jogged up to me and pulled me in for a much needed hug. I hugged him back, and after a few moments, he clamped me on the back and pulled back.

"You good?" He asked.

I sighed and nodded. He let out a breath and patted my shoulder.

"Andre went in an ambulance too. I told an officer about his condition and he insisted that I send him to the hospital to stabilize his condition. He said that they will keep this matter private, since Andre was basically forced into this by Jackson," Jamal explained.

I nodded, and just then, we heard another round of footsteps heading our way. A few officers were coming out from the woods, and that's when I saw Amelia peaking out from behind them all.

My heart ached as I saw her. All I wanted to do was run over to her and pull her into my arms.

But I refused to move.

I couldn't do it.

I clenched my jaw and looked away from her before she caught my eye. The officers in front of us spoke, gaining my attention.

"Alright gentlemen, you can go home. We will be dealing with the rest of this situation at the station," the officer said.

"What about her brother?" Jamal asked.

The officer sighed.

"I can't explain anything to people who are not a part of the family. All I can tell you is that further investigation is taking place right now."

Jamal and I nodded in understanding.

Just then, we heard soft footsteps behind the officers. The two officers parted ways, revealing Amelia to us. Jamal immediately ran over to hug her, and Amelia let out an 'oomph' when he pulled her into his arms. My teeth gritted together as I watched her.

She was in her pajamas, no jacket covering her, and I tensed when I saw a shiver rake through her. She must be freezing.

But I didn't do anything about it. I stayed still, my hands fisted by my sides.

She was still in Jamal's arms, a few sniffles leaving her as she hugged him. Jamal ruffled her hair and slowly pulled back. He held her at arms length and looked down at her.

"Good to have you back little one," he said.

"What are you doing here?" She asked breathlessly.

Jamal smiled down at her.

"We found out you were in trouble. So we came."

Fresh tears poured out of Amelia's eyes as she hugged Jamal again.

"That's crazy Jamal."

They pulled apart and he grinned down at her.

"What's life without a little crazy?"

She smiled up at him. And then her eyes fleeted to me, the smile diminishing. She slowly pulled out of Jamal's hold and turned towards me. She took a step forward, limping slightly as she did so.

I wanted to run over to her.

I wanted to hold her and never, ever let her go. But I held back.

Just as she took another step towards me, a figure came running towards us. Amelia and Jamal turned around, only to come face to face with John. Like Jamal, John also pulled Amelia into his arms, but it was bone-crushing this time. Amelia squeaked in surprise as John hugged the life out of her. My hand flew up on instinct, my mouth forming a small 'no,' but no words came out.

To my surprise, Amelia let out a soft laugh and returned John's hug.

"I'm okay," she mumbled into his shoulder.

John sagged in relief and hugged her impossibly close, a few tears falling down his face.

"I thought I lost you too," he said.

My hand fell back to my side at his words. I looked away from the intimate moment between the two and faced my car instead. After a few minutes, I heard shuffling behind me. I watched the reflection in my car window as Amelia and John pulled away fron each other. Both wiped at their own cheeks and smiled at each other. Finally, Jamal broke the silence.

"I think we should head home."

I saw as Amelia and John nodded in agreement.

They all stared at each other then, unsure of what to do.

"Actually... John, can you drive me to the hospital? I need to check up on Andre and Leo can Amelia home. Both of them need to rest," Jamal said stupidly.

They were silent for the next few moments, until I surprisingly heard John say, "Of course."

I gritted my teeth together and finally turned around. Amelia stood between the two boys, her head downcast, rubbing her arm in discomfort.

I looked up at Jamal in annoyance.

"I can't-"

"Leo," Jamal cut in.

I flicked my head to him in annoyance. To my surprise, his look was filled with a sternness I couldn't look away from.

"Take her home. She needs you there right now."

Yeah right.

I didn't say anything, and only let out an irritated nod in response.

In the blink of an eye, Jamal and John had zoomed off to John's car, leaving me and Amelia behind. All the police cars had cleared out by now too. So it was just the two of us.

Amelia and I.

Amelia was watching her feet nervously, a few tears escaping her every now and then. I growled frustratingly and stormed over to her. Her wild eyes met mine as I approached, and without a word, I shook off my jacket and slipped it around her shoulders roughly.

Her shoulders relaxed when I did that, her eyes softening. I found myself nearly caving, but I looked away from her before I could get lost in her gaze again.

I turned around quickly and stalked off my car again. Just as I got to the door, her voice called out to me, stopping me dead in my tracks.

"Leo?"

I froze, my hand stopping on the car door handle.

It felt like years since she called my name.

I didn't turn around, afraid that I would break down if I saw her now. But I couldn't.

Not when she put through all that she did.

I heard shuffling behind me, and it took every ounce of muscle in my body to not turn around at the sound.

"Leo... just... just hear me out please?"

I stayed silent, my eyes shutting close, my jaw clenching in frustration.

"Please Leo. Just let me explain. Everything you were thinking isn't true-"

That was it.

I slammed the roof of my car in a frenzy, wildly turning around to meet her gaze. Amelia took a small step back, her eyes widening in fear at the sound.

"Don't you fucking dare Amelia," I growled out.

She shrunk back at my tone.

"What the hell were you thinking? Do you have any idea what could have happened today? Amelia, he could've killed you! Does that not mean anything to you?" I yelled.

She took a step forward, holding her arms out in front of her.

"Just hear me out Leo-"

"Hell no, Amelia! You fucking listen to me," I yelled, angrily pointing a finger to my chest. "You want to leave me the night after I confess my love for you to come home? Fine. You don't care when I'm in the hospital? Okay. But you fucking come here, knowing he's going to hurt you?! That's not fucking okay Amelia! You said you realize now that what he was doing was wrong! I never thought you would lie to me about that of all things!"

She shook her head at me, her eyes watering once more. She took another step closer to me, now only a few feet away.

"I wasn't lying Leo-"

"Really?" I cut her off again. "Then how the fuck can you explain that you came here on your own Amelia? I heard you talking to the cops inside the warehouse. He called you, and you just came? Without any protection, without telling anyone? You knew what was going on. You knew it wasn't safe. How the fuck can you put yourself in danger like that?! Do you not fucking care about yourself?!" I yelled.

My voice echoed into the bright white snow around us, but I kept going, not caring about my volume. I took a step closer to her, making her slightly angle her head to face me.

"I thought after all this time, after all these months, I somehow showed you how to love yourself. I was stupid to think that every time you laughed, I might have had a hand in helping you with that. That the day you came to my house without your hood, that maybe you didn't let go of it just because John came. That maybe, with the help of us, you were able to do it. I thought I helped you see that no matter who thought you were to blame for Brittany's death, I could show you that you're not. I was stupid to think that I played a bigger role in your life than I thought. I was a fucking idiot to think that you loved me to-"

Suddenly, I felt a tug on my hoodie and soft lips meeting my own a moment later. My eyes widened in surprise as Amelia held my hoodie to pull me toward her, her lips meeting mine in a kiss.

I could barely function. My brain refused to work. My lips refused to kiss her back.

Before I knew it, she pulled back, not letting go of my hoodie yet. I let out a deep breath and watched her with an open mouth. She peered up at me, her eyes shining nervously.

"He called saying he had you. And Leo, I would die before I let him hurt the person I love most."

I sucked in a breath as she spoke those words.

"What?" I stupidly uttered.

"When he called me this morning, he said he had you. And I didn't think. I couldn't bear the thought of him getting to you again. So yes, I came Leo. I came to him because he said he had you."

Her hand softly reached up to caress my jaw. I flinched, forgetting that it was still bruised.

"I knew, Leo," she whispered.

I stared at her in confusion, still dizzy from the kiss.

"I pieced it together when Mom called me saying Brittany overdosed. I just couldn't tell you," she said with a sigh.

I watched her in disbelief.

"Everything I ever did, was because I love you. I left you because I couldn't let him hurt you. I thought that if I ignored you, he'd get the hint that I wasn't interested in you anymore, and he'd leave you alone. I wish I thought differently then, but I don't know if that would change anything. If leaving meant that there was a chance that you would be safe, I'd do it over and over again Leo. I would do anything for your safety because I love you."

Without thinking twice, I cupped her face and pulled her in for a scorching kiss. Her hands clutched tighter at my hoodie her body melting sweetly into mine. I groaned into the kiss and pulled her impossibly close, unable to comprehend that she just said those words.

The words I've been dying to hear since the moment I found out what she did for Clara all those years ago.

She was the  girl who made me believe in good when I didn't think it existed anymore. The girl who pulled me out of the void I had been living in all this time. She loved me back. Amelia, my Moonie, love me back.

We finally pulled away and I rested my head against her forehead, my hands still cupping her face.

"I love you too, Moonie. I love you with all I've got."