Over the next couple days, I hardly left my room.

Xepher had stuck around to make sure Colby was doing alright, and I figured she assumed that I had been taking pretty good care of him, seeing as she never came in my bedroom to find me.

I was wrong. Three days after Colby and I's argument, Xepher came knocking on my door. "Come in," I mumbled, not looking up from my notebook.

I was doodling, not really putting much thought into what I was doing. It soothed me, in a way. I was able to forget the rest of the world and get lost into one I could create on my own.

"Hey," Xepher greeted after poking her head through the door, "Devyn needs me for a meeting today with the big boys, can you make sure Colby does okay?"

She probably saw the dreadful look on my face, but didn't give me any sympathy, "I don't know what happened between the two of you, but if he said something he probably doesn't mean it. The medicine he's on makes him moody,"

"You're right," I closed the notebook, setting down my pencil as I sighed, "I just don't know what I did wrong. Is it wrong for me to miss my home?"

I realized that the girls didn't know why I was here, they just assumed I was replacing Ava as Colby's hookup girl. I didn't know how much Xepher knew about the topic but I didn't want to give her any information I wasn't supposed to.

"No," She gave me a small grin, running her fingers through her bleached blonde hair, "I understand. I think that Colby, and all the other boys, feel the same way as you. But they're used to it, you're not,"

"Why can nobody tell me what's going on?" I asked, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.

"Well, it's not my place to tell you but I can tell you one thing," Xepher offered, and my silence seemed to give her the encouragement she needed, "You aren't safe yet. If for whatever reason you get kidnapped by the people your grandfather worked with, they will torture information out of you. The less you know the better,"

"How can I be safe then?" I tried to think back to something that Mitch may have told me, because out of everyone here he gave me the most useful things I know.

"Marriage," She stated simply, looking down at her nails in disinterest. The both of us knew I already knew that.

"I have to marry my way out. Is that the only way? Because nobody is going to want this," I motioned down to my body, causing Xepher to chuckle.

"Look, I gotta go. Just know that you're thinking too hard about this. It's not as difficult as it seems, just open your eyes a little," She tapped her fingers rhythmically against the doorknob, motioning for me to exit before her.

I scooted away from my table, off the seat and to the door, "Thank you Xepher, for everything," I gave her an appreciative smile as we walked down the hallway together, being that the stairs and Colby's room were both in that direction.

"Of course. It's what I do," She gave me a quick hug as I reached Colby's room, "Remember what I said," She sang as she walked off, adding sway in her hips when she noticed I was still watching her.

I shook my head with a chuckle as I walked into Colby's bedroom and my mood changed completely.

As I figured, Colby had his laptop out and papers beside him, "I thought you weren't supposed to be working," I said quietly, testing his mood.

He didn't look up at me, but I thought I saw the tiniest shake of his head, "I'm slightly injured, not out of commission," He told me before dropping his voice so I hardly heard it, "Plus, something came up,"

I noted his greasy hair and shirtless body, "Have you showered today?" I asked, changing the subject. I knew better than to ask for more details being that we weren't necessarily on good terms.

His silence provided the answer I needed, "Should you?"

I glanced over at him, noticing that his fingers were no longer tapping keys and his eyes were no longer focused on the screen, but instead were searching my eyes.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked suddenly, completely ignoring the questions I'd asked him.

"Um, I-," I looked around the room, trying to grasp a believable answer, "You know, just be grateful I'm here, alright? Now please, shower," I pointed over to the hallway that most likely led to a shower.

Slowly, he set the laptop off to the side of the bed and pulled the blankets off of his lap, standing up easier than I thought he would.

He did most of his motions without struggle, only taking his time on standing up off the bed. If we were on better terms, I would go help him and I thought about doing it just to be nice.

I did, reaching over and grabbing his arm to help him up. Colby didn't argue or shove me away like I thought he would, but instead gave me a half grin once he was fully on his feet.

"Thank you," He seemed to notice my surprise at his kind words, and chuckled at me, "What? Am I not allowed to express my gratitude towards you?"

I stared at him for a moment, trying to see if there was any sort of sarcasm or joking look in his bright blue eyes. When I found nothing of the sorts, I responded honestly, "I just thought you'd be angry with me, you know? I crossed a line I shouldn't have,"

"You were curious," He stated simply, and I looked down to see his hands rested on my hips, "Can I-" Colby paused, clearing his throat, setting my stomach butterflies free from their cage, "Can I apologize, to you?"

I didn't respond to him, unsure of what I would say if I did. It seemed as if Colby didn't know where to start either, "I'm sorry," He began, not looking at me but directly over my head, "I'm sorry for taking you from your family. I'm sorry you can't go back to them. I'm sorry you can't live the life you really want to. I'm sorry that one day sooner than you think you're going to have to get married, and I'm sorry if he's not the guy you want. I'm sorry that you have to be stuck in this house, and I'm sorry you feel trapped here. But," He looked down at me, taking my face in his hands as he sounded more hopeful than before.

"I want to tell you that I hope one day you'll be happy. I hope one day you don't feel like this place is a cage but instead a home. I hope one day someone can look into your eyes and tell them they love you and you respond back without hesitation. I hope that one day there's someone who will respect you and hear your opinions and be there for you when you want to cry and when you want to laugh.

"But most importantly, Kiara. I want you to know that I want to be that person. And," He stopped me from going to speak by sliding his thumb over my mouth, "I want you to want me. I'm not going to force you into marrying me because I want you to be the happiest you can be under the circumstances,"

"What are you trying to say?" I spoke around his finger, my voice quieter and squeakier than I thought it would be.

He dodged the question, but answered it in its own way, "Can I take you out? Not on a date or to a movie or something like that. But, just out. Oh, I know," Colby's eyes lit up as he spoke, "The beach. Obviously we'd have to be careful but if we're in the ocean than no one will be able to see us that well,"

I hummed, considering the option. "Shower first?" I offered, raising my eyebrows up at him.

"Shower first," He agreed with a smile, leaning in to kiss my forehead before completely letting me go and walking towards what I assumed was the bathroom.

"I'll be done in twenty minutes," Colby informed, raising his voice as he walked away so I could hear, "Don't be late,"