Trapped (Bullied Book 4) (Bullied Series) Vera Hollins (best large ereader txt) 📖

that underlined his words, and I got a strong urge to make out with him until we were both breathless and totally lost in each other.

“It doesn’t hurt to hear it again.” There was a knock at the door. “Hold on a sec,” I said to Blake and sat up. “Yes?”

My mom peered inside. “Can you come down? Dad and I want to talk to you.” She looked serious, with a hardly visible smile tugging at her lips.

“Sure. I’ll be there in a minute.” She nodded and closed the door. “Blake, I have to go. My parents want to talk to me about something.”

“Okay. We’ll talk later.”

My chest warmed. I was already looking forward to it. “I can’t wait.”

I stood up as soon as I disconnected and left my phone on my bed. I wondered what they wanted to talk about.

When I’d been discharged from the hospital, they had sat me down in the living room for a long talk about the kidnapping. Mom and I had broken into tears when she pulled me into a hug and held me as I shared the most horrifying details.

I’d never seen them more scared, and I wished they didn’t have to go through this. I didn’t want to think about how they would’ve felt if anything had happened to me. Maybe they were too strict and unrelenting when it came to some aspects of my upbringing, but they loved me the most in this world, and I knew no matter what, I was never alone. I would always have them.

They were seated on the couch when I stepped into the living room. “What’s up?”

They glanced at each other. “Last night, Dad and I talked about your college decision.”

I froze mid-step. “Okay.” I lowered myself into the armchair next to the couch and clasped my hands together in my lap. They didn’t look off the wall, but that didn’t alleviate my sudden anxiety. If they wanted to tell me they wouldn’t support me and help me with expenses…

Mom’s lips curled into a tiny smile. The worry lines seemed to have etched themselves into her forehead since Sunday, and it was like she had aged years in a matter of few days. “We support you.”

I was sure I must’ve heard her wrong. “What?”

Dad smiled at me. The dark circles under his eyes matched Mom’s. Both of them looked like they hadn’t slept a wink the night before. “We support your decision to go to a music college,” he said.

I gaped at them. “You do?”

Mom nodded. “Yes.” Her smile disappeared, giving way to pain. “We want only the best for you, but not at the expense of your happiness. What happened on Sunday…” She shuddered. “It opened our eyes. You were right. Life is too short and unpredictable for you to waste your opportunities. We’ve pressured you too much, without ever really asking you what you want.”

“We want you happy, Jess,” Dad said. “And if becoming a lawyer will make you unhappy, we won’t pressure you to do it. All that matters is that you’re safe, healthy, and happy.”

My heart danced madly in my chest as I looked between them. “Do you really mean that?”

Mom leaned toward me and placed her hand over mine on my lap. “Yes. And it’s high time we start believing everything is going to be all right no matter which path you choose, isn’t that right, Owen?” She looked at Dad with a smile.

“That’s right. You have an extraordinary talent, so prove us wrong. Prove you can make a future for yourself. Fight through good and bad.”

“And don’t worry about the money, because we’ll help you with it as much as we can,” Mom added, making my heart beat even faster. “Follow your dreams, honey. Make us proud.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I squealed in excitement and wound my arms around her tightly. “You’re the best!” I squealed even louder as I hugged Dad. “I’ll make you proud. You’ll see.”

I couldn’t stop grinning, jumping up and down like a little kid. They were letting me follow my dreams. I almost expected someone to tell me this was an early April Fools’ joke, but they were serious and it was real.

“I love you,” I told them.

Mom left a kiss on the top of my head. “We love you too.”

“But if you change your mind one day and decide to become a lawyer, you can come to work at my firm any time,” Dad added.

“Sure. Thanks,” I said, but I knew deep down that I would never stray from my path.

“And bring Blake to our house sometimes,” Mom said with a grin as she winked at me. “We would like to know your boyfriend better.”

I groaned. “Mom, no! It’s completely embarrassing.”

“That boy saved your life, Jess,” Dad said. “The least Julie and I can do is thank him in person.”

I sighed. “Fine. I’ll have him over one of these days. Just don’t interrogate him too much, okay?”

Mom feigned a shocked gasp. “We would never!” She chuckled.

Yeah, right. I acted annoyed, but in truth, I was happy. I had their support and approval.

Things were turning out well after all.

Blake and I returned to school right after spring break, on Monday, and it was like all eyes were only on us. Wherever I went, people were whispering and watching me, and even more so when I was with Blake. They wanted to know the details of our kidnapping, and some of them even asked Blake if he’d seen any lights or his body from above in some weird out-of-body experience when he died, looking at him like he was some mythical creature.

Like that wasn’t enough, the whole school knew Blake and I were dating, and it was a hot piece of gossip. Girls didn’t stop staring at me, and I felt more self-conscious as the day went on.

“Did you want to disappear when everyone found out you and Hayden were together?” I asked Sar on our way to the cafeteria,