Bella figured the man probably left, after there were several minutes of silence.

Until there was suddenly another knock at the door, a bit softer, but still urgent. Cole slammed the phone down into the receiver and swore again, his chest heaving as he pressed his elbows against the counter and put his head in his hands.

As the knocking persisted, Bella watched while Cole flung one of the kitchen drawers open and pulled a knife out of it. Her widened eyes followed Cole towards the door as he pressed his forehead against the wood, the knife at his side.

"If you don't leave right now, you're going to regret it," he told the man through the door.

"Cole, please put the knife down," Bella whispered as she rubbed her temples, the corners of her head throbbing with unbearable pain. "Please."

Cole looked over at her, before he looked back down at the knife. He then walked over and put it back in the drawer.

"Sorry," he apologized to her.

There was another knock at the door.

"It's James!" the muffled voice called through the door. "I promise, just open the door."

Cole walked over to the door and opened it, and James stood there with panic in his expression.

"What's wron-" Cole started, before James grabbed onto his arm and pulled him out into the hallway, shutting the door behind them.

Bella immediately stood up and walked quietly over to the door. It must be bad if he didn't want Bella hearing it. She pressed her ear against the door, and heard light, muffled whispering.

"Elliot's missing?" she heard Cole ask in disbelief.

Immediately, Bella froze in utter shock and fear. Elliot was missing? She couldn't believe her ears - images of the young, innocent boy flashed through her mind. The tears he cried in Rose's house, the way he stared up at Bella after she found out Rose punched him, the innocence that filled his large, dark eyes.

She thought about his large, dark eyes when she saw Elliot at James and Liv's wedding reception. They hadn't changed - they were still just as innocent, just as big, just as gentle. Bella felt true sorrow at the fact that she was jealous of Elliot forgetting what happened to them. Now, he was missing. She almost felt like it was her fault.

Bella couldn't handle it anymore. She couldn't stand it. They didn't deserve any of this, especially not Elliot. The strong urge to protect that boy from everything resurfaced in that moment. But she couldn't, and she knew that. She couldn't protect him now, just like she couldn't protect him from Rose before.

Bella started to feel nauseous. Her heart was racing, and the edges of her vision were tinted with a dream-like, faded blur. Her fingers were shaking as she reached up to chew on her nails. She looked over at the open window in the living room, where the maroon curtains blew towards her from the heavy wind that whistled through.

She walked over towards that window as quickly as she could, and stepped out of it, landing onto the cold grass. She looked back at the brick apartment building, as the wind bit at her nose and cheeks. She couldn't tell if the tears in her eyes were from the bitter cold or the fact that she was just so incredibly done.

"It's really one thing after another, isn't it," she laughed to herself as she cut through the yard of the apartment complex. It was dimly lit with orange-hued streetlights, which barely illuminated the area.

She continued walking - quite honestly - not caring in the slightest about how dangerous it was.

James and Liv thought that having Cole come back would help her, but it only worsened things. They all viewed her as weak, and perhaps she was - but could anyone blame her? She was haunted constantly by intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, nightmares, flashbacks - you name it. The terror would never subside. She was suffering.

She hit the street and walked down the sidewalk, towards the lights of the small strip of stores beside the apartment complex. She had her hood up so she couldn't be seen, but no cars were even passing by.

She couldn't believe her luck as she walked up to a 24 hour liquor store. It seemed like it was meant to be. She stepped through the automatic doors and welcomed the heat and fluorescent lighting. Her mouth practically salivated at all of the alcohol options in front of her.

She was ready to be numb.

She looked over at the man who was working at the front counter and gave him a smile. He was middle aged, with salt and pepper hair and a hat on. He gave her a nod of acknowledgement.

Her fingers gripped the neck of the first bottle of vodka she could find as she confidently strolled over to the man, placing the vodka on the counter. He shifted his position as he prepared to ring her up.

"I.D. please," the man requested.

Bella looked at the man's name tag, and saw that his name was Ron.

She pretended to dig into the pockets of her sweatpants, before sighing and pulling out the only money she had - a twenty dollar bill. "I'm so dumb, I forgot my I.D. at home," she said.

Ron's mouth slanted as he shook his head. "I can't sell it to you, I'm sorry."

"But I'm twenty-one," Bella lied. "I just forgot my I.D.."

"Sorry, hun," Ron shook his head again. "You know the rules."

Bella looked around at the empty liquor store, before she looked back at Ron. "Come on, Ron, nobody's even here."

"Doesn't matter," Ron retaliated. "You are welcome to come back with I.D. and then you can purchase this," his hand tapped the cap of the vodka bottle.

Bella took a deep breath before she narrowed her eyes flirtatiously towards him. "Please?" she begged, before she reached over and touched his fingers.

He allowed her to touch his hand for a few seconds before he pulled away. "No," he stated, his voice firm.

She gripped the bottom of her sweatshirt and pulled her top up. Ron's eyes widened as he grinned. She put her shirt back down and smiled at him. "What about now?"

Ron looked around the store, before he pushed the bottle of vodka closer to her. "Just this once," he said, and she nearly squealed with excitement.

"Thank you!" she said, handing him the money and grabbing the bottle.

She immediately twisted the cap off and took a long sip of it, the relief of the burning liquid sending a rush of adrenaline through her body.

"Be careful out there, young lady. All right? You're gonna run into the wrong person doin' those things," he said with a chuckle.

"Ron," Bella said with a laugh. "I've been through shit that you can't even imagine. Nothing can hurt me now."

She walked out the door and continued taking long sips of the liquor, standing on the side of the store where she couldn't be seen. She sat in the grass and rested her head against the building, enjoying her disorientation. Nothing could hurt her while she was drunk.

An hour went by, and she watched as people, mainly men, went in and out of the liquor store. One man walked out with a brown paper bag in his hands, starting towards his truck.

Bella closed the now half-empty bottle of liquor and grabbed it, before walking up to the tall man getting in his truck.

"Excuse me, sir," Bella said, her legs wobbling as she rested her hand on the black truck for support. "May I have a ride, please?"

He stopped and looked at her. "What's a young girl like you doing out here alone?"

Bella giggled. "Oh, you're silly. Please just give me a ride."

"Where to?" he asked, leaning against his truck and crossing his arms.

Bella tried to rearrange the scrambled thoughts to figure out where she wanted to go. Daniel's apartment.

"Eighty-two Longhorn Drive," she blurted out.

The man sucked air through his teeth, before he shook his head. "Too far, sorry honey," he said, turning to open his passenger side door to put his alcohol in the car.

"It's only like, twenty minutes from here," Bella continued to plead.

"No can do, sweetie."

"Please, you don't want to leave a drunk girl all by herself, do you?" she whispered, stepping closer to the man. "I mean, it's night time. You never know what could happen... what if I get kidnapped?" she bursted into laughter.

"Damn, you're a weird one," the man pointed out.

Bella saw headlights pull into the parking lot through her peripheral vision. She took another step towards the man.

"So, is that a yes?" she asked, before the man's eyes widened and looked behind her as if someone was there.

Bella's arm was grabbed, and she was pulled back so fast that she nearly lost her balance. She pressed her hand against the chest of whoever grabbed her for balance, before she looked up and noticed it was Cole.

"No, no - how did you find me?" Bella asked, trying to pull her arm away from him.

"What are you, a fucking creep? Talking to her? She's young enough to be your kid. Get the fuck out of here. Maiale disgustoso," Cole spat at the man, his accent thick. The man backed up and raised both of his hands in defense.

"Listen, I wasn't going to-" the man tried.

Cole turned away before he could finish what he was saying, and held onto Bella's arm tightly as he walked her back to the car.

"Ow, Cole, you're hurting me," Bella said, continuing to try to rip her arm away from him. He loosened his grip but not enough for her to break free.

"What is wrong with you?" Cole asked, his light eyes filled to the brim with a mixture of worry and anger.

"Want a sip?" she asked Cole, holding the bottle up to him.

"Sure," he answered, before he grabbed the bottle from her and threw it as hard as he could at the concrete. The bottle shattered into pieces on the ground beside James' car.

Bella's mouth fell open in shock. "Wha- what... why did you just do that?" Bella screamed, her words slurring as Cole opened the backdoor of the car.

"Get in," he told her.

"You can't make me," she retaliated, before he ran his hands through his hair and groaned.

"Bella, fuck!" he slammed his hand against the car in anger. "Get in the fucking car," he begged, his voice hoarse as she stared up at him.

"Okay, fine. But because I'm cold, not because I'm listening to you," she told him, before she sat in the back.

Cole got in beside her, and Bella noticed that James was driving. James was looking back into the backseat at Bella.

"How did she get alcohol? What's the drinking age here?" Cole asked James. Bella looked up at him and saw veins protruding from his neck, as he ran his hand through his hair again.

All she could think about was how she wanted to touch his hair. It looked like obsidian silk.

"It's twenty-one," James replied, before looking at Bella. "So, do you want to answer how you got that?"

"I showed him my tits," Bella slurred, before laughing and laying her head against Cole's shoulder. "It's easy."

"Jesus Christ," Cole said under his breath, and James shook his head.

"Bella, I don't have time to be worrying about you. Do you understand?" James said, his voice stern with frustration. "We were worried sick. I'm going to have you put in rehab," he threatened. James rarely got this way with her, only if she really pushed him.

"Why?" Bella asked, her eyes beginning to pierce with tears. "Why don't you have time to worry about me? Huh?"

James looked at the road and began to pull out of the parking lot, ignoring her.

"Why?" Bella pressed. "Tell me what happened."

"I'm not telling you, especially not in this state," James said, and Bella leaned closer to James from the backset.

"I already know. I heard you guys talking about it. Elliot's missing," Bella laughed, her eyes filling with tears. She couldn't see past them, they were completely blurring her vision. "Elliot's missing."

The car was silent for a moment, before she spoke up again.

"James, do you think living this way is normal?" Bella asked him. "Do you? Do you think it's okay for us to live in fear?"

"Bella, please just relax," Cole whispered, though she could tell that he was moving away from her. His light eyes held a certain discomfort, one she hadn't seen in a long time. He almost seemed afraid.

"Why are you moving away from me, Cole? Are you scared?" Bella asked with a big smile, tears flying down her cheeks. "Do I remind you of someone?" she couldn't help but laugh, as she gently slid her hand against his arm.

"Stop," Cole warned.

"I remind myself of her, and sometimes I like it," Bella admitted with a shrug. "I like pretending that I'm the one in control. I'm the one who did all this. I'm not a victim, I'm a-"

"Bella, enough!" James yelled out, slamming his fist against the steering wheel. "I don't even know what to do with you right now."

"Take me to eighty-two Long... wait, Longhorn roa-" Bella started, but James cut her off.

"I'm not taking you to Daniel's," James said.

"She can come back with me," Cole said, his voice exhausted.

"Can you handle her for tonight?" James asked. "Liv and I are going to be out, probably all night, searching. You have to make sure she doesn't run off."

"Why are you here instead of Italy, Cole? You're here not even one day and you're already being harassed," Bella asked him, tilting her head. "I think you should go back."

"Look at you," Cole responded. "You think I can leave you here alone like this?"

"Just because we were both kidnapped... by... by the same person, doesn't mean that we are friends," Bella told him, her words stringing together. "I don't like you," she lied.

"I'm not too crazy about you right now either, Bella," Cole answered.

The car was silent. When Bella moved to rest her head on Cole's chest again, he allowed it. He moved his arm around her and gently rubbed her shoulder.

"Don't do that again," Cole whispered to her, and she looked up at him.

There was relief in his tone, and Bella felt comforted by the way he stroked her skin. Pressing her head against his chest gave her a familiar warmth and sense of safety that confused her.

When James pulled up to the apartment complex, James got out and helped Cole get Bella out of the car. Bella held onto both of them, as they both held her up as they walked through the door.

"All right, just lay her down and keep her on her side. Once it gets too late, I'll be back here," James told Cole, as Cole went to open the door of his apartment.

He jiggled the doorknob and recoiled in surprise.

"That's weird... it's locked," Cole spoke, before he reached into the pocket of his pants and grabbed the key.

"You didn't lock it?" Bella heard James ask.

"No," Cole responded.

As Bella heard the jingling of Cole's keys in the doorknob, she looked over down the hallway and saw the man from before sitting on the staircase, staring at them.