Promise Me You'll Never Feel Afraid

Cinder’s POV

I groaned and sat up, rubbing at my eyes. I had a major headache. I looked down at myself and noticed that I was wearing a GIANT misfits tee shirt, and a pair of men’s boxers. I frowned at my outfit and looked around, meeting a pair of green eyes.

“Oh good. You woke up.” He said, smiling. I bared my teeth at him, growling. He wasn’t fazed by it. Instead, he slid off the bed and held his hands in front of him, staring into my eyes.

He’s not going to hurt you. A voice whispered in my head. What the hell?

I must have looked confused, because Zacky chuckled and sat down on the bed again.

“That’s just your natural instinct talking. All werewolves have it.” He said, shrugging and leaning back against the headboard.

“Where the fuck is my sister?” I demanded, my anger flaring again. He grinned and put his hands on my shoulders. Something about the way he looked at me stopped me from shrugging them off.

“Chill out, she’s safe. She’s just having a meeting with Shadows.” He assured me. I glared at him suspiciously, but nodded, leaning against the headboard.

“If anyone hurts her, I swear to God…” I trailed off, my threat implied.

“No one will hurt her. Jimmy’s there.” He replied. I looked at him, confused.

“What’s that got to do with anything?” I asked. He shook his head.

“Nothing. I said too much.” He said, shaking his head. I pouted, crossing my arms over my chest.

“I’ll tell you everything when your sister is through with the meeting.” He said.

“Promise?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Promise.” He replied, laughing slightly. I smiled. I felt more at ease with Zacky than I ever had with anyone. Besides Lyric, of course. It was weird. He…calmed me down, I guess.

“Why didn’t I have to go to a meeting with him? I’m not complaining, obviously, but I’m just curious.” I said. He shrugged.

“All he’s doing is laying down the rules. Like how he can do whatever he wants with you,” He started, and my eyes narrowed.

“So…he could use me as like…a sex slave or something?” I asked. Zacky let a growl escape from his throat, but he quickly tried to mask it by clearing his throat loudly.

“Well, technically, yes, but since I’m here? No. It’s more of a threat to make you guys scared than anything he’d actually go through with. He’s really a nice guy, when he’s not focused on work.” Zacky replied. I frowned.

“Since you’re here? Why? You want me all to yourself?” I asked, half mocking him, half curious.

“Something like that…you have to wait until your sister is here too, like I said.” He said.

“So…wanna play twenty questions?” He asked. I grinned.

“Sure. What’s your favorite food?” I asked.

“Pretty much anything Italian, but especially pasta and pizza. What are your favorite colors?”

“Red and black,” I replied, pointing to my red and black dyed hair. “Yours?”

“Purple and green. How many boyfriends have you had?” He asked.

“One. I broke it off cause he cheated on me. Boxers or briefs?” I asked, wincing at the memory of my past boyfriend. I caught him in bed with the school whore, Amy, at a party. He was drunk, but I didn’t care. Cheating was cheating.

“Boxers.” He replied, pointing to the boxers I was wearing.

“These are yours?” I asked, feeling my cheeks get hot. He nodded, chuckling.

“How many times have you had sex?” He asked. I raised my eyebrow.

“Um…I haven’t. I’m still a virgin.” I muttered. He gawked at me.

“You…you are?” He asked incredulously.

“What? I won’t give it to just anyone, like some whore.” I spat. He shook his head vigorously.

“I didn’t mean it like that. I respect that.” He said. The door opened, revealing Johnny Christ.

“The meeting’s over. We’re leaving.” He said.

“Okay, thanks Johnny.” Zacky replied, standing up and holding out his hand. I took it and he helped me up, pulling me out of the room and down a few hallways. We arrived in a parking lot, and I saw Johnny Christ, Synyster Gates, and M. Shadows, but The Rev and my sister were gone.

“Okay, get the whore into the car and let’s go.” M. Shadows said. I shook off Zacky’s grip ignoring his shouts for me to stop.

“I’m. Not. A. Fucking. Whore.” I hissed in Shadows’ face. He growled.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” He spat. I snarled.

“I’m Cinder Amato-Crisi , and I’m not a goddamn whore!” I shouted. Synyster grabbed my arm and tried to pull me back. I turned around and punched him in the face before kicking him in the balls. I faced Shadows and pulled my arm back, ready to knock his lights out, but someone stopped me. I spun around and saw Zacky. He yanked me back into the circle of his arms, and for whatever reason, my anger disappeared.

“Vengeance, take her separately in case she throws another tantrum .” Shadows hissed. Zacky tugged me over to a Range Rover , and helped me into the passenger seat before climbing into the driver’s seat.

“Wait! My sister! I need to see my sister!” I shrieked. He put his hand on my arm, calming me down.

“She’s fine, don’t worry. Jimmy’s with her, and he won’t let anything happen to her.” Zacky assured me. I slowly settled back into my seat as he pulled out onto the road and turned the radio on low. I recognized the song as Teenagers From Mars by The Misfits. He hummed along with the song, and I smiled to myself.

“I’m sorry for throwing a fit. I don’t even know why I got so mad, it just…I just…” I trailed off.

“Shh, it’s okay. I used to get angry all the time, but I learned to control it. Even so, I still have outbursts every once in a while. Don’t worry. I’ll show you how to keep it contained.” He said, smiling at me. I smiled weakly back, glancing at him before looking at my hands. He stopped at the side of the road for a moment, grabbing my chin so I was forced to look at him.

“Cinder, I’m serious. Don’t beat yourself up over it. Shads will get used to it- it’s just been a while since he’s had to deal with newbies.” He said, staring into my eyes. I nodded and he cupped my cheek with his hand. Usually, I hate it when people touch me, but I found myself leaning into his touch. Much to my dismay, he pulled his hand back and started driving again.

Why do I trust him? I shouldn’t trust him. I thought.

“I promise, I’ll answer all your questions when we get there.” Zacky said, as if reading my mind. I nodded and settled back into my seat, closing my eyes. Before I knew it, I was in a deep sleep.