Mrs. Pine gave us the promised tour and handed us our uniforms after we handed her our signed contracts. The uniforms were black slacks, a crisp white shirt, black bow tie and vest for men, and a knee-length flowy black skirt and white blouse for women. Men had to wear black shoes while women had to wear black flats.

Finally, Mrs. Pine left us in front of the women's locker rooms. I turned toward Eleanor. "You will be okay?" I asked a bit concerned as I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. I didn't want to leave her alone.

Eleanor chuckled sweetly at me. "I'm familiar with this stuff, Chris." she answered with a sweet smile. "What about you? Are you nervous?"

"huh," I scoffed. "Honey, my brother, and father own this whole building. Nothing will happen even if I break all of those fine chinas or spill drinks on fine ladies and gentlemen. I'm not nervous."

"You are right." she giggled and glanced at her old wristwatch. "I should get ready. It's almost five."

I stared into her eyes. They were soft, showing she was at ease. But I could see how exhausted she was from her eyes and the dark bags under her eyes. What could someone expect from a teenager who had worked nonstop for a long to fend for herself and her family?

Somehow it was so hard for me to see her like this. I wanted to see her carefree, eyes shining with happiness and free from any exhaustion. Surprisingly I was ready to do anything to see her as I wanted.

But of course, she wouldn't accept any help like the stubborn girl she was. Who was I to her?

"Chris?" she called concerned and waved her hand in front of my eyes, bringing me out of my thoughts. "Are you fine?"

"Yes." I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. "I will come at the end of your shift to pick you up."

"No you wouldn't." she gasped and took a step back. "Please don't embarrass me more. You have done so much for me. I don't want to be a burden."

"Will you stop saying this same reasoning every time I want to do something for you?" I whined. "For the last time, Eleanor. I want to. Get it through that thick skull of yours. You can't stop me."

"But it will be too late." she objected. "You need to rest and we have school tomorrow."

I rolled my eyes and instead of answering her, I snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her to my chest. She let out a gasp of surprise and put both of her delicate hands on my chest to keep some distance between us.

Her wide eyes become wider when she saw me leaning down. I knew she could have felt my heart that was beating ten times faster. I wanted badly to taste her lips, but I knew she was nowhere near ready. She didn't trust me fully. That much was evident from her frantic eyes.

The thought hurt my heart. She was so relaxed when Miller did the same. I couldn't help but be jealous of that idiot again. But I wouldn't back away. I pressed my lips to her forehead gently, savoring the fantastic calmness that surged through my veins.

The beast inside of me was finally at ease to be able to kiss the exact spot that Miller had kissed earlier. Her scent filled my nostrils and made me enthusiastic and calm at the same time. The feeling was overwhelming.

What was happening to me?

Her body was tensed at first but relaxed after a second and I was delighted to hear her sigh of relief. I slowly dragged my lips to the side of her face and hovered my mouth above her ear. "I will wait for you in the lobby at 11." I whispered in her ear, feeling her shiver in my arms.

I pulled away and walked down the corridor before she can protest or I can lose my last bit of control and do something that neither of us was ready for, or at least she was not ready for.

I sighed as I sat in my car.

I leaned my head on the headrest and tried to control my emotions and thoughts. Unconsciously, my tongue darted out of my mouth and licked my lips, trying desperately to feel a bit of her taste.

My racing mind didn't spare me for a moment as it filled my thoughts with the images of her lips. I groaned and rubbed my face forcefully as the desire to devour her lips surged through my body like a wave of electricity.

I groaned again and leaned forward, pressing my forehead to the steering wheel. "Calm down, man." I mumbled to myself. "I need to control myself if I want her. I need her to trust and know me well before taking our relationship further."

If she wants to go further with you, with her tormentor.

My damn conscious reminded me, filling me with utter discomfort. I held the wheel tightly as I thought about it. It was right. As much as I was playing the role of the saint now, I was her tormentor and bully before. She had every right to not want to go any further.

But these feelings were new to me. This possessiveness, protectiveness, comfort, and happiness, were all new and all because of having her around. All these new feelings had given another meaning to my life. A meaning so sweet and I wanted to drown myself in this new world. I wasn't ready to let them go, I wasn't ready to let her go.

And I was ready to fight for her.

With new determination, I raised my head and ignited the engine. I needed to go to the mall.

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I'm sure all throughout my shift my face was flushed. My last interaction with Chris was playing over and over in my mind, although I was doing my best to stay focused on my first day. But after working for a long as a waiter, it was so easy for me to get along with the new environment.

Back to the subject,

Was he going to kiss me????????

The look in his eyes and how they suddenly turned a shade darker was what gave me the idea. His heart was beating so fast under my palm, matching my own frantic one. More importantly:

WHY MY FREAKING BODY WAS RESPONDING TO HIM EAGERLY?

For God's sake, he had only changed his previous attitude for two days. I should have hated him basically. But why I was feeling safe with him? When he had leaned down, or when he had whispered in my ear, making me shiver, my mind was screaming at me to pull away, while my heart was leaping with joy, begging him to kiss me on the lips.

When his lips touched my forehead, I felt waves upon waves of comfort running through my body, making me relax and lean more into him. God! that was embarrassing. One thing was so obvious to me:

Chris Harrington for sure knew how to make my emotions a mess, for good and for bad.

It was half past ten and I was so tired. The events of that day had left me yearning for a good rest. I have done great that day at the restaurant and I could see the hint of satisfaction in Mrs. Pine's eyes. She had even complimented me.

I was the youngest member of our group, but everyone was so friendly to me and had done their best to help me and I was grateful for that.

I was changing in the locker room to my clothes, secretly thanking Chris for offering to pick me up. It felt so good to not have to go home alone at this time of night although I was a bit nervous to meet Chris again. What were his intentions? Did he really like me as Mia had told me? Did I like him as well?

Sure he was so handsome and had shown he could be a reliable and honest person. But could I ever forget what he had done to me in the past two years? Could I ever forget the pain I went through because of him?

Suddenly my phone beeped, startling me a bit and taking me out of my thoughts. I grabbed my phone and a small smile unknowingly crept into my lips when I saw a text from him.

Who knew? Maybe I could.

***********************************************************************************************

I was a bit nervous. How would she react? I had this thought that maybe I had gone a bit far this afternoon and scared her for good. I was hoping she won't hate my guts and I had not lost that little trust she had in me.

My heartbeat increased when I saw her walking into the lobby looking around. But all of that insecurity went out of the window when her eyes fell on me and a smile graced her lips. I sighed in relief and smiled back when I saw her eyes tired but soft.

I meet her halfway. "Hey, beautiful." I said and grabbed her backpack slinging it over my shoulder before she can protest.

"Chris, I can carry it myself!" she squealed and tried to grab it back, but I grabbed her outstretched hand in mine and dragged her to the sliding doors.

"Where are my greetings?" I asked and nudged her playfully. All my cells calmed down when she didn't pull her hand away.

"Hello to you too." she answered with a smile. "And thank you for picking me up."

"Pleasure, beautiful." I said earning a beautiful smile from her. "Are you hungry? We can stop by a diner and buy something to eat."

"I had dinner. Thank you." she answered as we reached the car and I opened the door for her. She blushed adoringly and slid in while mumbling a thank you, making me grin from ear to ear.

I quickly put her bag in the back seat, took the present I had gotten her, and jogged to the driver seat, hopping inside as well.

"Here." I said and held the neatly wrapped present in front of her. "This is for you."

Her eyes widened and she stared at the present and then at me. "Chris!" she said shocked as she timidly grabbed the present.

"I hope you like it." I said and scratched the back of my neck. "Please, open it. You will understand."

She stared at me for a few more seconds before gingerly opening the wrapping. "Oh my God." she gasped as she pulled out a thin gray cardigan with pink edges. "This is so beautiful."

She then turned to me with a beautiful smile adorning her lips. "But you didn't have to." she said softly.

"This is the replacement for the one that Lara ruined." I said and the car fell silent. I dropped my head embarrassed as I saw a shadow of hurt passing her eyes and her smile vanished. Instantly, heat rushed to my ears and neck. God! I was a disgusting piss of shit.

Taking a deep breath I raised my head and saw her looking down at the cardigan with sad eyes, certainly replaying the event in her mind. I gently grabbed her hands and held them in mine. She raised her head and we stared into each other's eyes.

"I can't say how much I'm sorry and embarrassed for what I have done to you all these years, Eleanor." I began, my tone firm but laced with depression. "But I want you to know that I have changed. I promise to never be that disgusting boy I was. I promise to make amends for everything that I have done. If you let me of course. If you trust me."

"I don't want you to bother yourself for me." she whispered and I felt a painful tug in my heart when I saw her eyes well up. "I don't want to become a burden for you just because you feel guilty. Please stop all of this if that's the case. I have told you before. You are forgiven and had done already so much for me. I'm grateful."

"No! No!" I cried desperately, tightening my hold on her hands, afraid that she leave any second. "I swear that it's not just because of that. Since two days ago my world has changed. I have gotten to know what a wonderful and great girl you are. It's an honor for me to help you. I want to be your friend, Eleanor. Believe me, you are helping me more than what I'm doing for you."

She sniffled a few times but didn't say a word and only stared at me. I let go of one of her hands and gently wiped her now fallen tears. "It's so hard for me to explain," I said, trying to be honest. "I love these new feelings that I feel. I love how I have changed and feel worthy for the first time. I feel so good when I'm around you, Eleanor."

She dropped her head and bit her bottom lip. I sighed and put a finger under her chin and raised her face again to be able to look into her mesmerizing eyes. "I just want you to trust me and let me try for you and myself." I said softly. "Will you? Will you trust me?"

She stared at me for a few agonizing seconds before nodding her head. "I do." she whispered.

I smiled wildly and put my hands on either side of her head. I pulled her closer to me and kissed her forehead. "Thank you so much, angel." I said when I pulled away and felt happy in my heart when I saw her beautiful smile return to her face. "You won't regret your decision. I promise."

"I'm tired." that was the only thing that she said in return.

I nodded furiously and turned on the engine. "Of course you are." I said. "We will be at your house in less than 10 minutes."

There was a party inside of my heart and mind as I drove away toward her house. We were silent, but it was comfortable. I would glance at her from time to time and was thrilled to see a small smile lingering on her lips as she was staring outside.

"Thank you." she said as I parked the car in front of her house. "For bringing me home."

"You're welcome, beautiful." I answered with a smile as I watched her unbuckle and open her door. "I will pick you up tomorrow morning."

"Oh no," she objected quickly. "I will go so soon tomorrow so i can do my homework. And please don't insist this time."

I opened my mouth to protest, but shut it, thinking that maybe she needed a bit of space. I was suffocating her. She smiled when I nodded.

"Good night, Chris." she said softly. "See you tomorrow at school."

I mumbled a goodbye and watched her close the door and walk to her house. There was still something that I had not told her yet. If she wanted space, I needed her to promise me something.

I quickly get out of the car and called out for her. "Eleanor!" I called and saw her turn to me confused.

I jogged and stood in front of her. "I want you to promise me one thing." I stated seriously.

She frowned and tilted her head to a side. "Promise what?" she asked.

"What happened today with that boy in the hotel." I began. "It was not right. It was not your fault at all, Eleanor. If anyone should have apologized, it should have been that boy."

She dropped her head and fidget with the hem of her jacket. "Maybe he had a bad day." she talked and looked up at me then. "He seemed to be in rush and he said he may lose his job. I didn't want to add to his misery by acting like a bitch. I didn't want to make his day worse."

"But that doesn't mean you have to sacrifice yourself." I reasoned and grabbed her shoulders. "You let him say whatever he wanted and you were about to pass out because of guilt. You should have at least didn't let him yell at you. It was not your fault."

"Chris, I can't yell at anyone." she said desperately. "The guilt will not leave me if I know that I have made someone more sad. I want to help people feel better, not worse."

"Okay! Continue to be kind to others like you want," I insisted. "But don't let others abuse this kindness of yours. Don't let them use it against you and hurt you."

She opened and closed her mouth like a fish for a second before sighing and dropping her head. "It's hard." she mumbled. "You know that I'm shy."

"It's okay to be shy, angel." I answered kindly. "So many people are shy, but that doesn't mean to let others hurt you. Please promise me if you ever again faced shitheads like me, Lara, or anyone else who tried to hurt you emotionally or physically, don't just stand there and let them. Fight back the best you can and defend yourself."

"Don't call yourself that." she said quietly and looked up at me determined. Her words and the fire in her eyes took me by surprise. "You are not one of those. You said you are trying to change. Don't call yourself bad names again."

I stared at her stunned while my insides were bursting with happiness and shits like that. She cared for me. I took a deep breath and controlled myself to not fucking squeal like a baby girl.

"Only if you promise me what I want." I said back sternly. "Only if you promise to not let others abuse your kindness and you will fight back if they tried to hurt you."

"I promise to work on it." she said. "I will do my best."

I smiled like a fool. "I will help you too," I answered and tucked a strand of her behind her ear. "We will work on it together. You are not alone in it."

She didn't thank me like she always does. She didn't say anything in fact. But what she did was stronger than any words and made me stunned to the core.

She took a small step forward so there was hardly a space between us. She stood on her tiptoes and leaned to my face and placed a gentle kiss on my right cheek. It was just a second, but the time stopped for me. I can swear to God that my heart stopped and my breath stuck to my throat in that second that felt like years for me.

My heart was bursting with an emotion that was unknown to me, but it was so delicious and so good that I didn't want it to end. I was ready to give my life just to cling to that feeling and that heavenly second.

"Good night, Chris."

I heard her mumble and then she was gone while I stood in my place unable to even utter a word. I slowly reached my hand up and my fingertips touched the place where her lips had landed. It was as if my cheek was on fire and was sending waves of blissful feeling through my whole body.

And I fucking love it

Eleanor James was going to be a death of me sure. She was a candle and I was a butterfly who was attracted to her and was ready to burn.

I fucking wanted her more than anything and I would do my best to have her.

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A/N: Hi, guys. I'm excited to hear what you think about these two chapters. please vote and also write a comment for me if you liked the chapters.

Thank you so much

Ela :)))))