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“I am-mm,” his voice jumps as the elevator jerks suddenly and stops. The lights flicker before going dark.
No. No. No. This can’t be happening.
A hot wave of fear rolls through my body. I feel sick. My legs begin to shake and my heartrate skyrockets in a matter of seconds. I may not have a fear of elevators, but small, dark spaces was another matter altogether. The lights flicker on before casting an eerie dim glow through the car. Emergency lights.
I cry out, fear making my knees weak and I press myself against the wall. The bite of the arm rail against my back helps connect me to the present but my brain is still spinning with what’s happening. And everything that could go wrong in this tiny box.
My throat has gone try and my lungs feel like they’re on fire. Slowly, I lower myself to the ground, sliding my back against the mirrored wall. I’m aware of the delivery boxes but my main priority now is breathing. Focusing on my next breath and the one after that. I’m on the verge of a panic attack, but I know these treats still have a destination at the end of this. A little voice in the back of my head calls out for me not to put food on the floor but I shove it away. The treats are protected by layers of cardboard and plastic. My knees were about to give out and if I didn’t put them down and out of my way I may have crushed them.
“Here, whoa” Grant says, stepping towards me. His hand grabs my elbow just as my body gives out and he helps guide me the rest of the way to the floor. “You’re okay. Everything is fine. I got you.” When I’m seated, he kneels down in front of me, one forearm resting on the top of his thigh and his hands interlocked. He stares me dead in the eye.
Is he watching me die,I think between ragged breaths. Is he just going to sit there and watch as I hyperventilate to death, my body left to the elevator rats?
“You’re not dying. Keep breathing.” Crap. I didn’t realize I’d said that out loud. “You’re still talking out loud.”
Double crap. “Well, why are you staring at me!” I yell at him, my hysteria kicking in as I struggle for air. “We’re running out of air. I can’t breathe.” Clawing at the neck of my t-shirt, I moan long and dramatic.
“Jesus, you’re nuts.”
“I’m allergic to nuts.”
“What?”
“Nothing.” I’m not paying attention to the handsome stranger anymore. I’m too busy saying goodbye to this cruel, cruel world. “I didn’t eat breakfast this morning, so I’ll be the first of us to die of starvation. I give you permission to eat me. And tell my sister to sue this company for negligence. Wait no, she’s the nice one. She’d never do that. Tell her I hate Jason, and that I was the one that ate the last Pop-Tart.” With that, I slump back, my butt sliding on the floor, allowing my body to hunch over even further.
“Who’s Jason?”
“I’m dying. We need to preserve air.”
“We’re not going to run out of air crazy girl. Now tell me who Jason is.”
We weren’t? Peeking open an eye, I see he’s now sitting to the side of me, as casual as can be. Sitting up straighter, I take a deep breath, happy that my lungs aren’t struggling to pull in something. Okay, cool. So we weren’t going to suffocate to death. We were just going to be trapped here for all of time.
The handsome semi-stranger snaps his fingers in front of my face to get my attention. Rude. “Who. Is. Jason.” The words are ripped from his plump lips.
“My sister’s boyfriend.”
“And why do you hate him?”
“Because he’s my sister’s boyfriend?” Duh. What a stupid question. But he doesn’t seem to get it. His lips crinkle down at the sides. “I hate himbecausehe’s my sister’s boyfriend and as the big sister I’m obligated to hate him until he’s proven himself to me. Which he won’t,” I snort. “The only thing he’s proven so far is that he can eat us out of house and home.”
Moving to the side of me from his kneeling position, he sits down, still eyeing me. “He hasn’t proven himself yet? Why does she keep him around?”
“Because he’s popular and pretty,” I say on a huff, pushing a strand of my purple hair back. “She’s popular and pretty too, not something I can relate to, but she likes him for all the vain reasons teenagers like each other. It’s high school hormones.”
He grunts, finally understanding. I’m feeling calmer now, talking to the big guy is helping me not think about plummeting to my death. Him sitting close to me also really helps. The heat his large frame gives off is soothing. Only the bags and boxes of treats separate us.
“What’s your name crazy girl?”
Not sure I liked that nickname but whatever, I’d probably never see this guy again after today. Because I’d be dead.
“Lexi. Lexi Lee-Anderson. Please put my full name on my urn.”
He mumbles my name to himself and I’m not gonna lie, itdoessounds amazingly good on his lips. “And you are…Grant, right?” I draw out the words, letting them fade into the air.
His head fully turns to me, that damn eyebrow raised again. “You don’t know who I am?”
“Well, I was calling you Captain in my head when I first saw you. Then I helped you with that schedule from Hell.” When he doesn’t laugh with me, I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.
