Riley Andrews returns home after living in Chicago for a few years. She finds herself attracted to the same man she's been crushing on since she was a kid, her dad's best friend from high school and the father of her brother's best friend. FP Jones...
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Chapter Thirteen: Falling Apart
"What do you do when you're in pain and you don't have your painkiller?"
• • •
When Riley started waking up she couldn't remember where she was. She was laying on something comfortable, the smell of alcohol and lingering sent of cigarettes surrounded her. Her eyes slowly opened and adjusted to the light.
She saw a white roof and as she turned her head to the side she saw that she was laying in FP's office at the Wyrm. She had a massive head ache and felt extremely nauseous.
She sat up slowly and made her way down stairs where a guy in a serpent jacket was wiping down tables. He had long blond hair and she saw his piercing blue eyes when he looked up at her.
"Morning, sleeping beauty" he chuckled.
"What happened last night?" she asked.
"You drank so much, you passed out. I took you upstairs, figured it was better then leaving you down here."
"What's your name?" she asked when she realized she didn't know who he was.
"Jax" he smiled. "I'm Riley" she smiled back.
"I know, you're FP's girl."
Riley cringed as she felt a sting. "Actually...we broke up" she told him.
"Oh, is that why you were.."
"Attempting to drink the whole bar? Yeah, sorry about that" she laughed "anyway I should get going I have a major hangover to cure."
"Okay, I'll see you around Riley."
~
Riley groaned as her phone rang, she rolled over in her bed and grabbed it off her night stand. "Hello" she said as she pressed it to her ear.
"She woke up" Dylan told her. She quickly said she would be right there before running out to her car and driving as fast as she could to the hospital.
She sprinted down the hall and skidded into Emily's room. Her best friend smiled at her. Riley sat on the bed and threw her arms around her.
"I thought I lost you too" she mumbled into Emily's shoulder. Riley felt relieved as she squeezed her. The pair had been best friends for as long as they both could remember, she didn't know what she'd do if she lost her.
"Who else did you lose?" Emily asked.
"FP...he got arrested and we broke up."
"Ry, I'm so sorry."
~
Riley took Emily to the trailer and lay with her in her bed. After telling her all about her relationship and how it ended she starred at the ceiling, sadness washed over her. Tears slowly slid down her cheeks.
"I don't know what to do" she said looking over at her best friend.
"What do you mean?"
"My life is a mess. What do you do when your in pain and you don't have your painkiller?"
Riley felt hopeless. She was broken and she hated it. She hated that she fell apart because of some stupid guy. But he wasn't just a stupid guy. She loved him. Even after he broke her heart, she still loved him and she probably always would.
"You be your own painkiller."
~
"Arch?" Riley said as she answered her phone.
"Riley" Archie cried.
"What's wrong? What happened?" She asked worriedly.
"Dad got shot."
Riley was silent as she tried processing what he just said.
"Please come to the hospital" her brother pleaded.
"On my way."
Her heart raced as she ran to her car and drove to the hospital.
~
When Riley got to the hospital she found her brother, his bloody hands were pressed against a set of double doors and he was starring through a small window.
She walked over to him and looked through the window as well, she saw her dad. He was laying on an operating table and the doctors were cutting open his shirt.
He was covered in blood, and more was pouring out from a small whole in his abdomen. A sob escaped her lips as she thought about losing him.
All of Archie's life Riley had been there for him, comforting him. Now it was his turn to comfort her. He pulled her into a hug and she cried into her brother's chest.
In that moment, as she fell apart in her brother's arms, Riley didn't think her life could get any worse. But her life could indeed get worse. What had happened was just the beginning: the murder, the arrest, the breakup and lastly her father being shot. She had no idea what was about to happen. She had no idea who was coming.
