Halfway There | COMPLETE ✔ + Sequel

Chapter 23 - Together

I followed the street lamps with my eyes as Nova drove down the road. The tension in the air around us was almost suffocating but I didn't care. I wanted him to feel every last bit of my anger.

After Nova and Bradley made their deal, as soon as we were out of hearing distance I demanded he take me home. He didn't argue and as we drove back, my heart felt as if it were shattered. Nova and I were in this together, we were supposed to both get our freedom in the end.

Instead, if he won the final fight, I was given my freedom in exchange for Nova's. How could he do that to me? How did he expect me to live with myself, knowing he was completely tied to that place with absolutely no way out? Everything he had planned for him and Stella, everything he wanted to do, they were all thrown out the window now.

"Dani, I-" Tears slowly flowed out my eyes,

"Don't." I nearly shouted, "Just don't, Nova."

"Don't? What do you mean don't? Don't what?!" He sounded as angry as I felt.

"Don't try to say anything to fix this. You can't fix this! You lied." He looked away from the road to glare at me. I watched him floor the gas pedal and go past the campus entirely. I didn't argue, I didn't say another word as we raced past our surroundings. He made a sharp unexpected turn into a parking lot. It took only a moment after he parked to realize that we were actually at a park. He turned in his seat to face me after taking off his seatbelt, obviously angry.

"To protect you! To save you!" He shouted, matching my tone. I reached for the handle of the door and burst out. I would walk home if I needed to but I couldn't be around him anymore. I could hear him climb out of the truck after me. After a moment to catch up to me he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back so that I would stay.

"Dani-" I whipped around much faster than I thought I was capable of, shoving him away from me as hard as I could.

"No! You promised that we wouldn't make any deal unless both of us are given the option of an out. But now if you win there is no way out for you for another five years. How do you expect me to sleep at night knowing that I'm the reason you're trapped in that awful place? If he didn't accept our original deal I could have waited! We could have waited for another opportunity!" Angry tears flowed past my cheeks like waterfalls.

"Do you have any idea how difficult it was to see you down there? Do you have any idea how hard it was to see you in the crowd watching me like that?" He grabbed me by the arms so that I was looking at him, "I wasn't able to save my mom, I was barely able to save Stella, I'll be damned if I can't save you!" I shoved him away again.

"We were supposed to find a way out of this together, Nova! Together!" I lifted my finger to point it at him. "Stop acting like I'm someone that you love enough to save. I'm the one who put us in this situation. I'm the one who stepped foot into that place when I shouldn't have. You don't owe me anything! So stop making me think I'm someone you care enough to save."

Nova stood there looking at me as if I had just slapped him in the face. I stood still with him, hot tears streaming down mine, and a heaving chest.

"What did you say?" He asked in a soft, shocked voice.

"You don't owe me anything." I repeated. He shook his head.

"No. You think I don't care about you enough to save you?" I shook my head, refusing to let myself believe his words. He stepped forward, grabbing me again by the arms, only gentler.

"Damn it, Dani." He gripped harder onto my arms but quickly loosened them, "What have I done to make you believe that I don't care about you enough to do whatever I have to, to make you're safe again?" I shook my head harder, not letting his words reach my heart.