16

❦𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓮❦

stand on the curb patiently as a midnight blue Subaru WRX pulls up beside me.

When we got back to our cars at the falls parking lot it was decided that Isaiah would pick me up at my 'house' since they didn't want me wandering around looking for them on my own.

Blake and Ace are already at the venue, Ace told me it's because Blake wanted to make sure I would be let in no hassle tonight.

"Jump in, Cupcake!" The passenger window of the sporty Subaru is rolled down to reveal the one and only Isaiah.

Not to toot my own horn, but when they all insisted he pick me up, I flawlessly came up with the idea of telling them to pick me up at apartments across from the supermarket parking lot I sleep in sometimes.

That way I could wait out front like I'm just excited or whatnot, instead of putting it out there that I actually live in my car.

I still haven't been able to fix Jack, and I'm getting worried because the noises he's making are starting to sound like the motor is about to go out, and no way can I afford to fix that.

I open the passenger door and hop into the shiny leather seats. "Thanks for picking me up." I smile over at Isaiah who then winks at me.

"No problem, Cupcake. Nice apartments, do you have one of the ones on the top floor with a balcony?" He nods up to the fancy balconies covered in plants and seating arrangements I could only dream of ever having.

"No." I simply state.

I'm trying my very hardest to not lie to him. I never said I live here, just for him to pick me up here.

"You should upgrade, those balconies look incredible." He shrugs.

I gaze up to them again, I'd seriously take just living on the balcony, forget the apartment that's connected.

"Yeah, maybe one day." I smile over at him. He shifts the car into first gear and speeds off down the road.

We make it to the venue outrageously fast, Isaiah has a lead foot. I thought we were going to die a few times, but everyone is still alive as we pull into a parking place along the road.

"Remember to stay close. If anything happens to you, Blake will kill me." Isaiah says seriously.

"Why does he care so much?" I ask one of the many questions that have been running around my brain. Why do any of them care? But Blake seems to take it a step farther than the rest and it confuses me to no end.

Isaiah snorts, "You're cute, Cupcake. And blind." He unbuckles his seatbelt and hops out of the car.

Well, that answer left me more confused than I already was. I do the same and step out of the car meeting Isaiah on the sidewalk.

"Shoot, there are already a bunch of people here. Give me your wrist." He holds his hand out towards me.

"My wrist?" What the heck does he want with my wrist?

"Yeah, so we don't get separated." He says in a duh tone.

"Don't most people hold hands?" I question, but place my wrist in his open palm anyway.

"Yeah, but I'm not trying to upset the beast tonight." I give him a questioning look but he just turns around and starts heading along the side of the building.

He was right, there are a lot of people here already. More than last time but I'm not uncomfortable in the slightest this time.

"Fucking hell, not you lot again." The guard mumbles.

He looks familiar, maybe one of the guards from last time?

"Hi Cash. How lovely to see you again. Names on the list this time, I can guarantee it. Also Rose is on there, Blake made sure of it." Isaiah arrogantly says as he taps his finger on Cash's clipboard.

Cash swats Isaiah's hand away before angrily flipping through the list.

"Oh how amazing. Looks like you're on the list tonight." He says with a forced smile.

Cash unclips the chain letting us through, Isaiah's face showing way too much happiness for simply being on a list.

"Ok, so Blake's and Ace's locker room is the one closest to the main door, the one we just came in. Blake requests it every time so he can get out of here fast or something like that." He says as we step foot into a dingy room with multiple doors on the right side, I'm assuming thay are all locker rooms.

At the end of this room it opens up into the standing and seating area next to the fighting cage. You can see people walking around and mingling out there but no one is in this room, I understand why though. It's very badly lit and there isn't anything back here other than the doors that are all closed.

"That's the guard that is watching over the locker rooms tonight." He says pointing to a guard who is positioned right inside this room, he's looking out into the main area though so he doesn't notice us.

"Some guards are better than others, obviously. They switch posts every event and I actually don't know who that is so he's probably new. Just wait, if Cash catches him like that he'll get his ass chewed." He laughs as we stop in front of the closest door, Blake's door.

"Go ahead." I feel my palms start to sweat a little, why am I getting nervous? It's just Blake.

Sucking in a breath I yank the door open.

There he stands, shirtless and shining as sweat drips down his body. A towel is draped over his shoulders as he chugs water from a bottle.

Holy cow, he looks stunning. Snap out of it Rose, you just made friends, don't ruin it by being weird.

He lowers the bottle as he looks over at the open door with me frozen in it. "Are you going to come in?" He smirks.

Stupid, stupid freaking thoughts, it's just a chest, I have one too. But mine isn't so incredible, and I definitely don't have those abs. I should get some, where the heck am I supposed to train to get them though? The supermarket parking lot? No thanks.

I quickly walk into the room, trying to act as casual as possible even though I'm mentally drooling over Blake for some stupid reason.

"The room guard is slacking. Didn't even see us come in." Isaiah informed Blake.

"You gotta be shitting me." His face morphs into one of pure anger as he tosses his bottle of water in his bag and turns to Ace. I didn't even see him standing in the far corner of the room. My stupid eyes wouldn't leave Blake's glistening body. Something has to be wrong with me.

"I did tell him to do his job right tonight, didn't I?" He grits out.

"Yes, mighty colorfully at that." Ace nods, also looking less than pleased.

"Thought so, I'll just have to remind him again on my way to the cage." He nods to himself.

"Did you guys warm up already?" Isaiah asks the two half naked boys in the room.

"Yeah, I'm on first and Blake right after me." Ace says nonchalantly. How can he be so casual, he's about to get locked in a cage with a guy and fight, I'd be peeing myself.

"You doing ok, Rose?" Blake questions, his eyes scan my body. Probably terrified that I'm going to freak out like last time, but this is nothing like last time.

"I'm good." I give him a thumbs up and a smile to prove it.

"If at any point you need a break when the fights start you can come in here. Isaiah can take you home too, just let him know." He looks slightly uneasy and that worries me, is he nervous for the fight?

"Got it. I'll be fine though." I haven't felt uncomfortable or in danger at all tonight. Unless almost being blinded by the site of his unbelievably stunning chest counts. For fricks sake, stop it brain!

A knock on the door startles me. "First fight in five." A voice yells.

"That's me. You guys all coming?" Ace grabs his bag off of the chair next to him, gets a few things out of it and sets it back down.

Everyone turns to me, like I'm the one who's calling the shots. I nod my head and we all start to head out to the main area.

Everything is the same as last time but it all looks so different in VIP. I only got a small glimpse in here when Isaiah was trying to sneak me in last time, it's much nicer than I would have expected.

Even though the area is small there is a section for sitting and a separate one for standing, also there is a small bar with a lady behind it serving drinks.

I had to do a double take, at first I thought she was naked, but she just has on a shirt that is way too similar to her skin color. Thought this place was a strip club for a second.

Blake stopped to talk to the room guard as the rest of us went into the standing area. "Wish me luck." Ace says to me, getting ready to head into the cage.

"I don't think you need it. With those muscles you could probably just fall on top of the other guy and knock him out." I joke. "But good luck. Don't get hurt, I only have two bandages and they're pretty small."

The rest of the box got stolen by the people who broke into Jack. Who the heck steals an open box of bandages, I hope they use them and don't just toss them in the trash.

"I'll try not to." He smiles.

"Knock em out." Blake walks back over to us leaving a scared guard behind.

He slaps Ace on the back, hard enough that if it was done to me I'd probably go flying across the room, but of course Ace and all his muscles don't seem phased by it at all.

Isaiah and him do a nod thing that I only see guys do, and then me turns and heads down the walkway to the cage.

"He'll be ok, right?" I ask no one in particular, suddenly getting nervous for the two boys who are about to willingly set foot in a ring with someone who wants to hurt them.

"He usually is." Blake shrugs. "We are the best fighters here." he adds like it's no big deal.

Of course they are, I should have guessed by the way the guard reacted to a second warning from Blake.

The fight starts moments later, and ends within seconds. Ace was fighting a guy a few inches shorter than him, but he was also really jacked. Ace knocked him out within two punches though, looked really pissed when they guy hit the floor.

He comes stomping out of the cage and over to us. "Did you see that shit? When the hell are they going to give me someone who can actually fight? I only got to hit him twice!" He bellows.

"I'm going to go find Dean and tell him to get his shit together." He smacks Blake on the back like he did to him earlier. "Knock em out." Then walks off.

Huh. must be their pre fight ritual or something. Blake turns to me. "My turn, stay close to Isaish, alright?" He almost sounds like he's pleading, probably just something wrong with my ears though.

"I will. Good luck." I give him my signature thumbs up and a smile. Blake climbs into the cage, his opponent right after and then the fight begins.

As soon as the first punch is thrown the standing area we are in gets crowded, people must really want to see this fight because elbows are being rammed into me as people desperately try to make it to the front so they can see.

Major problem though, almost everyone is taller than me so now I can't see. I spot an opening and lung for it, unfortunately someone else made it there before me.

I try again and again, but everyone is faster and more aggressive than me.

I love being short, but sometimes I would like to be taller so I could see over people in situations like this.

I turn to Isaiah to see if he has any ideas of what we should do, only he's not there.

I lost him already? How do I lose humans so fast?

Blake's gonna be mad at me, I should get to the locker room like he said or he'll never put me on VIP again.

I squeeze my way through the crowd, the guard nods at me when I pass him and head to the room.

When I opened the door I'm met with an empty room. I was kind of hoping Isaiah would be here already and we could head back out. I plop myself down into a chair and pull out my phone.

To: My Best Friend

I'm In the locker room.

A minute later the phone dings.

From: My Best Friend

Trying to get to you but this jackass of a guard won't let me through. You ok?

Man the guards here really like to give Isaiah a hard time don't they.

To: My Best Friend

Yeah, I'll come out there and meet you.

I bet that guard will never let him in, and then Isaiah might throw a bouncy ball and get kicked out again.

I can't believe he thought that would work in the first place.

My head snaps up at the sound of the door opening. That was fast, how did he get past the guard?

When I set eyes on the person I expect to see Isaiah, or maybe even Ace.

The last thing I expected was to see a skinny lady with long black hair walk in, her face one of shock when she spots me.

"Can I help you?" I ask, I take a step back so the chair is between us. Girls can be crazy sometimes, I'm not taking any chances.

I'll smack her with the chair if need be.

My phone dings in my hand but I don't look, not wanting to take my eyes off of the stranger. The door shuts behind her.

"I saw you with Blake." She says. What is she interested in Blake or something, she looks to be in her late forties so I hope not, that would be weird.

"Ok, and?" I draw out. The door clicks shut behind her, leaving just the two of us in the surprisingly decent smelling locker room.

"I want to talk to him." She's fidgeting and is giving off really bad vibes.

"So go talk to him. Why are you approaching me?" Does she think I'm his gate keeper? What's the point of seeking me out if she saw us earlier.

"He won't want to talk to me." She picks at her nails aggressively. "Can you make him talk to me? I just need a minute." She's pleading now and takes a step towards me reaching for my hands.

I take a step back, not in fear this time. I just don't want her to touch me, something is wrong with her.

"If he doesn't want to talk to you then he doesn't have to. And I can't make him do anything, even if I could I wouldn't manipulate him like that." I've seen a lot of girls use their flirtatious ways to get guys to do whatever they want, and get them whatever their heart desires.

I'm not like that, I don't even know how to flirt. "Please, you don't understand! I need to talk to him." She's becoming desperate. "I'm his mother." She whispers.

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. This is Blake's mom?

"It's none of my business." I say as I try to move around her to the door.

Whatever family drama Blake has with his mother is between them, not me.

"Please, I know he won't give me the time of day if I try to talk to him." Her boney hands grip my elbow as I pass her, stopping me from going any farther.

"I need money, he owes me that much. You have no idea how much he ruined my life." She continues, each word she speaks making me feel sick.

The area her hands touch burns, but I'm too shocked to move. I see it now, the resemblance between them. He has her nose.

But it ends there, Blake is nothing like this woman who claims to be his mother by blood.

Blood is where it would end though, I don't see an ounce of love for her son in her dull eyes.

"I've heard he makes good money now. He owes me for all the years of torment he's caused me." Her voice is screeching, nails digging into my flesh. I notice her eyes are bloodshot and even though she's looking at me it's like she's not really there.

"You need to leave."I order.

I yank my arm away from her, I know her kind. The people who use their kids, run them dry of everything they were born with and everything they managed to get on their own.

They make me sick.

Maybe more so because of the stuff I've dealt with in my life. Family can be so much more dangerous than any stranger ever could be. They use love and blood relations in the most despicable ways.

Expecting us to just take it, and most of us do. Because you're taught to protect your family, no matter what they do to you, or anyone else.

I chose differently, and that cost me everyone and everything I ever knew. But that was a price I was willing to pay, did Blake pay the same price?

"I won't leave until I get my money." Her money? Fire rages within me. "You don't have any money here. I suggest you leave on your own, or I'll drag you out of here." My palms itch with the need to remove her from Blake's locker room.

I'll tell him she was here, but if I can stop her from blindsiding him like this, I will. If he doesn't want to see her then he shouldn't have to, and from the words she was speaking, I don't think he wants to see her.

She doesn't move, I'm sure the fight will be over soon and Blake will step through that door. I grab her arm, just like she did to me earlier and pull her out of the room, and then outside.

She tried to fight me, but she's weak, probably from whatever made her eyes bloodshot. And compared to most girls I'm actually quite strong, so her attempt was futile.

"I'll tell him you were here. If he wants to speak with you he will find you. But like you said, he probably won't. Go. Before I call security, I know that one over there." I point to Cash who is arguing with two girls trying to get in.

I want her gone quickly and quietly, so if getting him involved does the trick, I'll do it.

"You pay me then." She isn't fazed by my threat. I should have known, people like her will cause a huge scene for the sake of money.

"I won't pay you a penny." I declare, getting sick of her game.

"You care for him." She laughs. "Well guess what darling? You either pay me, or I'll make sure you never have a chance with him." She sneers.

I think she's watched too many movies, her threats are empty and we both know it. She's grasping at any little thread she can get, hoping one will pull me over the edge. But I'm having none of it.

"Try me." I've heard worse threats from the toddlers at the playground who want the other kids' toys.

"I'll ruin you! Just wait and see." She's losing it, I hate seeing people like this. So desperate that they will hurt anyone to get what they want.

"No. You won't, mother." A deep angry voice speaks up from behind me.

Blake's hand gently grabs my arm and guides me behind him, placing himself between his mother and I.