Rylee and Lucas ^^
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Gray, Daphne, and I met up at school early on Thursday. Daphne sulked into the cafe area looking half asleep, and Gray was ten minutes late.
Sometimes they really irk me.
"Okay here's the deal" I started before Daphne butt in.
"Let me guess" she yawned "Don't tell Ava those guys were in your little gang or she'll be in trouble"
"Yes, but-"
Daphne groaned, throwing her head back "You seriously couldn't have texted that in a group chat?"
"Nope. I need you two to see how serious I am. I know I can't stop either of you from talking to her-"
"You got that right"
"Daphne if you don't stop interrupting, I'm going to cut off your tongue and feed it to you." Gray shot me a look of disapproval, smacking the back of my head. Okay, I deserved that.
"Daphne, you and Ava have been targeted by the Crimson Blaze twice now. The outdoor mall situation was pure coincidence, you two were in the wrong place at the wrong time. As for yesterday, those asswipes saw me with Ava and decided to follow you two to the bathroom. I wish you didn't know about the gang, but we can't change that now. However, when it comes to Ava, we need to make sure she never finds out. We should ghost her."
"I don't waaaant to ghost her" Daphne whined "She's one of my best friends. I don't understand why it's an issue if she knows. Wouldn't it be good to tell her about the gang? That way she could be more aware of her surroundings"
"You're missing the point" I sighed, leaning back in my chair. Gray had been awfully quiet this whole time. He was staring off at nothing, which I knew meant he was lost in thought.
"I don't want her involved in my life it's too dangerous. If Ava finds out about the gang, she'll be looking over her shoulder the rest of her life. On the flip side, if the gang finds out about her, she's a target. You and Gray, my brother, any family of mine, you're all targets. If I do anything wrong... if I piss off my boss, if I fail a mission, if I bomb a race, then I am susceptible to their torture. They're either going to hurt me, or they will hurt the people close to me. To them, it's all about sending a message. I've known you guys for years, and I couldn't get through life without you guys, but every time I go do my job all I can think about is being perfect because I need to protect you guys."
Daphne and Gray were silent. Another student walked into the cafeteria so I lowered my voice.
"We all like Ava. She's fun and caring, she's courageous and she is different than any girl i've met in this school. She doesn't care about petty shit, she works hard at school and at her job too." Should I mention she works for me? Nah, they don't look curious.
"She doesn't deserve a spot in my life, susceptible to danger that she didn't ask for. There are plenty of people in this school she can talk to, like that blonde dude and the redhead. I'm no good for her."
Daphne sighed, finally speaking up "We get it Jax. You want to protect her, and that's all fine and dandy, but when are you going to realize you can't push people away forever?"
"She's right man" Gray finally chimed in "I hear where you're coming from and I agree we shouldn't tell her, but that doesn't mean you can't be her friend. I know that shit is risky, but I haven't seen you have such a soft spot for someone in a long time."
They didn't understand. It's impossible for me to have friends, hell, I was lucky enough to have them in my life. Everyday I risk putting them in harms way. I couldn't do that to anyone else. No one deserves to live their life in fear like I do.
"Promise me she hears nothing of this" I muttered "I'm serious. If she asks who those guys were yesterday, I told them they are family friends who were just mad at me. It's a loose story, but it will have to do. She'll move on sooner or later."
They both nodded, and Daphne leaned over and hugged me. "We love you Jax, you deserve to open up a bit more, ya know?"
I didn't deserve shit. I was just doing what I had to do to survive in my life. I chose this life, and once you chose a gang, there's no turning back.
-Ava's P.O.V-
Thursday was one of the shittiest days i'd had in a long time.
For one, I got absolutely no sleep Wednesday night because I had a horrible nightmare. Those creeps were there, and...him. He was in my dreams again, the man who caused me so much pain, the man back in Detroit that I had escaped from. He was always in my nightmares in some form or another.
I woke up in a cold sweat with my heart beating out of my chest, so I got up, made tea, and read until I had to get ready for school.
First period math was hell because anxiety was kicking my ass. I could hardly pay attention, my heart was rapid firing, I was sweating, and my thoughts kept wandering. Is that all men see me for? They want to take advantage of me? Back home with him, here with all those creepy men... hell even Zane couldn't seem to leave me alone. Lucas tapped me on the arm a few times throughout class, mouthing "are you okay?" I just shook my head yes.
In second period I wasn't greeted by Daphne's screeching voice like normal. She was definitely not acting like herself. She hardly spoke, and when she did, it was about something our teacher had said that she didn't understand.
In third period Rylee was telling me about how she scored an invite to Payton's birthday party this Saturday, and how she didn't know if she should go or not because she felt like an outsider on the cheer team. I tried my hardest to listen, nod at the right times, throw in a few words, but my brain was not into our conversation at all.
It was very evident during lunch that both Lucas and Rylee knew I was off.
"What's wrong today? Did something happen last night? You seemed fine yesterday."
So many questions that I didn't know how to answer. All I wanted to do was... there he is.
Jaxon was making his way to his normal spot with Daphne and Gray in tow. This was my chance to talk to him; it's not like we would have time during fifth period, and I didn't want to wait until work because I couldn't make it the rest of the day with this much anxiety. I needed answers.
I stood up abruptly, my legs carrying me all the way over to Jaxon. My body stopped dead in front of him, and I couldn't care less that people were staring at us. "I need to talk to you" I told him confidently.
"Now's not a good time" he said monotone, refusing to look at me. He leaned against a table eating a sandwich and scrolling on his phone, basically acting like I wasn't even there.
"C'mon Marvel, I won't keep you long"
"I don't think so" he said, finally meeting my eyes. I felt a shiver run down my spine. His eyes looked cold, uncaring, bored. Nothing like the last couple of days.
"But-"
"Go on back to your table" he told me, glancing over my shoulder, probably at Lucas and Rylee "I won't tell you again." With that, he walked away from me and over to a group of guys.
Wow that went soooo well.
I sulked back to my table, where I was met with more questions. "Can we just eat?" I snapped at them. Lucas shrugged, and Rylee looked down at her food. She looked hurt, but I couldn't search for words to apologize. Instead, we finished lunch in silence.
Gray ignored me all of fourth period (not surprising with how my day is going), and fifth period was even worse. Neither of the boys looked at me, Daphne gave me a small smile but no words, and Zane could clearly sense something was going down, for he was gaining his assholeish confidence once again. "Trouble in paradise? " he smirked, nodding towards Jaxon.
I really despise him.
Sixth period flew by, we sang through the songs for our fall concert. Lucas was kind enough to give me a ride home despite how rude I had been to him earlier. I worked on homework until it was time to head to the Marvel's. Once I was there, I couldn't find Jaxon anywhere. He should be home from football practice by now...
"Hey Esther?" I asked, peaking into her office "Is Mr. Marvel home yet?"
"You mean Jaxon? He texted me he went to a friends. Why, was there something you needed?"
"Oh, no. I was just wondering." Damnit.
He didn't make an appearance all night. I thought about texting him, but what good would that do? He seemed to be completely avoiding me, which pissed me off, especially after what went down yesterday. It wasn't just him, it was Gray and Daphne too, who I thought I was becoming close with. I thought wrong apparently.
Friday was unfortunately not any better. Once again, I was exhausted. Another nightmare. Another night of staying up so the dream didn't continue. Another painstakingly long day of school where I was even more ignored even more than Thursday. What the hell is their problem? Are they ghosting me?
During sixth period we worked on sight reading in groups. Lucas and Rylee came up on either side of me, linked our arms, and dragged me into a practice room. Rylee closed the door behind us, turning to face me with her arms crossed. "Okay girl, start spilling the tea."
I raised an eyebrow at them "What tea?"
"We aren't stupid Ava, we can tell you were upset yesterday, and it seems even worse today. What's going on?" I could tell they weren't going to let up until I started talking. I sighed.
"First of all, I appreciate the concern, but i'm fine. A little annoyed, but nothing I can't get through. Second, could you lighten up, you guys look like you're interrogating me for a crime or something." At least that earned me a chuckle.
"Sorry" Lucas plopped down next to me "But don't lie to us. You aren't fine, and last time I checked we are all friends, so you can tell us anything."
He smiled softly and laid his hand on mine. They really are my best friends at this school, they made me feel cared for and supported, even if I wasn't ready to completely spill all of my feelings to them.
"Thank you Lucas, Rylee. I appreciate you guys. I'll be fine though, seriously. It's nothing I can't work through."
Rylee was still standing by the door, tapping her foot. "If you won't tell us what's up then at least let us distract you. You and Lucas better be at the football game tonight. I want to see you front and center so you can watch me cheer. I've been getting so much better lately!"
Oh yeah, Friday night football. As much as I didn't feel like going, I knew it would be good for me to get out with two people who didn't act like I was invisible. "Fine" I agreed "But i'm going home to watch Netflix afterwards."
She giggled "Can I join?"
"If you like watching anime, then sure. Lucas, you're invited too"
"Girl you know i'm down" he said, giving me a thumbs up.
Honestly, who needs Jaxon Marvel. Who needs Gray Forrest, or Daphne Thompson. I sure don't. If they're going to ignore me, then fine, I can fill my life with amazing people who actually care about me and want to talk and be around me.
As soon as we left choir I saw him walking down the hall with a bunch of cheerleaders in tow. Of course. We made eye contact, and he quickly looked away. Not surprised in the slightest. Stupid Jaxon.
[Hey guys! Sorry this chapter was a bit shorter than my previous one's. This was more of a filler chapter for upcoming plot. Thanks for reading and for the support for my first story!!]