Saving Hadley

Chapter fifteen.

Next Thursday...

As I make my way up Ryan's porch, I adjust my bag hanging off of my shoulder. I usually don't bring bags and stuff to parties but I sense this gig will be different.

I walk in and the house is kind of crowded, I push my way through, ignoring the tightness in my chest. I didn't know there would be something going on tonight.

I find Ryan in the kitchen so I walk up and throw my arm around his shoulders. He looks down at me and smiles.

"Hey, Hadley. You gonna give me a a repeat of last week?" He asks, smirking at me.

I roll my eyes, but I don't back away. "I don't know, will it be as bad as it was last time?" I tease, causing him to mock hurt.

"Ouch. I guess there's really only one way to find out though." He says and I shrug.

He starts to lean in so I tilt my head up some. Before his lips can reach mine, his phone rings and he sighs, pulling away.

He grabs it and answers. "Hello? Yeah, she just got here. We're gonna leave in about fifteen minutes. Okay. Okay. Yeah, bye." He says and hangs up.

"The gigs are starting a little later than expected, but we can still leave at the same time." He says and I nod, pulling away from him.

That causes him to pout. "No kiss?" He asks and I laugh.

"Not this time. The mood was killed." I say and he shrugs.

"Better luck next time." He mutters and digs into his jacket pocket.

He pulls out a blunt and my eyes light up. "Wanna share?" I ask, looking up at him.

"Duh. You're going to wanna get buzzed before we leave. So smoke up." He says and I take it from him, bringing it to my lips.

He brings the lighter up and lights it, I suck in and I start to feel lighter. I smile lazily at him and he reaches for it, but I pull back some.

He pouts again. "Oh come on Hadley. Sharing is caring." He laughs, so I pass it to him.

We finish the blunt and say goodbye to a few people, then we head out to his car. We get in and buckle up, pulling out onto the street. 

"So how far away are these gigs?" I ask.

"Only about twenty-five minutes." He says and I nod.

"So, what kind of songs will they be playing?" I ask, causing him to look at me weirdly.

"What are you talking about?" He asks, letting out an awkward laugh.

"The gigs, band gigs... right?" I ask and he looks surprised.

"You've never heard about the gigs before?" He asks and I shake my head.

"No, surprisingly not." I say.

"Well they're definitely not singing gigs." He says and I look at him.

"Well then what kind of gigs are they?"

He stops at a stop sign and looks at me. "They're fighting gigs."

^^^^^^

This place definitely does look like somewhere fights would be held. It's not really dingy, but the air smells like alcohol, smoke, and blood. The first two usually please me, but the third mixed with, gives me more of a queasy feeling.

The place is crowded, but it doesn't feel like it. It's an old warehouse type of place with high ceilings and dim lights. Until you get more towards the middle, where it looks like the ring is.