Chapter 6 – Bad Girl Meets Not-So Bad Boy
There was a very particular feeling when I held hands with Zayn for the second time. I didn't know why but I was sure that Perrie was one factor for that unfamiliar feeling. "Are you sure you guys can go bowling?"
"Of course, love," Zayn answered as we were inside the van and left Zayn's car in Perrie's property. "We're five lads living the dream. We're not that superior to others so we can play anything that we want,"
"But you guys are famous," I pointed out. "So, it's like being superior to others,"
"All of us can have a normal life," Perrie interrupted whilst looking at the view outside of the window. There was a bitter tone in her voice. The others decided to step out of the conversation except for Harry, obviously.
Zayn, Perrie, and I, remained quiet all throughout the ride and the others were not oblivious about that but decided not to comment about it. Danielle and Liam were lost in their thoughts. Louis and Eleanor kept talking about university and the concerts. And lastly, Niall and Harry who were in the front seats were just babbling about things that didn't even make sense.
"But sometimes, you've got to admit, you can't have a normal life," I said. "Right, Zayn?"
"She's right," Zayn sided with me because even though I was not a celebrity, I was just speaking of the truth. By the looks of Perrie's face, she wasn't really happy about Zayn's remark. Did she expect him to side with her after what she did to him?
"How did the two of you meet?" everyone tensed at Perrie's question, including myself. But it was a good thing that Perrie was just looking outside the window and didn't even realize what just happened inside the van. When I didn't answer immediately, that was when she turned her head to look at me.
"We bumped into each other whilst he was wearing his disguise," I covered but Perrie just raised an eyebrow at me.
"I don't usually see Zayn walking alone," she looked at her ex-boyfriend. "Right, Zayn?"
"And I met him the same night that you dumped him," I based my story when I talked to her on the phone before.
"You just knew each other for a couple of days," she said rather harshly. "Do you plan on just using him because of his popularity and fame?"
"Perrie," Danielle said softly and Perrie was shocked of what she did.
"I'm sorry..." Perrie muttered as she stared outside of the window again. "I d-didn't mean to say that. It just came up,"
"It's fine," I said and I felt Zayn's hand squeezing mine. I looked at him and saw him looking at Perrie. I saw that familiar look in his eyes once again.
He really did miss her.
If pretending right in front of her was doing the right thing, why wasn't he happy? And ever since I was a child, everybody told me that revenge was sweet, but when I looked at Zayn, why did I feel the opposite way?
Was doing this really the right thing?
"We're here!" Niall tried to lighten up the atmosphere and Harry obviously wanted to help him.
"Let's go, guys!" Harry said as he hopped out of the van. "I'm so excited to see all of your faces once I beat you!"
"You wish!" Liam added.
Zayn and I were the last ones to go out of the car. We slowed down so we were a few steps away from the group. "You need to tell her," I told him.
"Why?" he immediately asked. "It's working,"
"And you're hurting," I finished. "You can just get this over with, Zayn. Just give her a second chance, she might deserve it,"
"What if she doesn't really deserve it?"
"Everybody deserves a second chance," I didn't know why I stepped towards him and hugged him. We weren't really friends to begin with but he hugged me back. And why did I have the urge to comfort and support him? "You need to go get your girl,"
"What about you?"
"Why do you worry about me?" I chuckled as I pulled away from him. Why I missed his touch? I didn't know. I didn't want to know. "I'm just a random girl who sneaked into your company. I'm not important to you at all,"
I didn't wait for his answer as I walked away from him but he stopped me. "Where are you going?"
"Bowling is not really my thing," I smiled at him but continued walking. I knew that he was aching to say something but was lost for words so he decided to just follow his friends inside the bowling arena.
***
With a couple of bucks given by the lads, I went to Starbucks, ordered a latte, and sat on one of the chairs all by myself. I looked at everyone inside the café. There was a group of friends chatting with each other, some people whose eyes were fixed on their laptops, people who were taking a sip of coffee whilst doing something with their phones. And lastly, me, the one who was watching them.
If I was this aware to my surroundings before, I wouldn't be in this place. I wouldn't just be that notorious girl from a gang. If I gave a thought about not leaving the orphanage before, maybe I would have had gotten a better life. Maybe some people would adopt me.
Maybe I wouldn't be this alone.
If I was feeling this way now, why did I leave the gang?
Was I talking about not having friends anymore?
Nope.
I was talking about falling in love.
All my life, I'd only dealt with one guy and it was Travis.
Travis was my first kiss, my first boyfriend, and my first crime. He introduced me to the ways that I never did want to do.
He took away my life and what sucked the most?
It was how I never did something immediately before. Eight years went by before I finally got the courage to stand up for myself.
I stood up from sitting and went out of Starbucks after finishing my drink. As I was walking my way back to the bowling arena, I heard a rattling sound right around the corner. I hid behind a wall before peeking at the scene that was unfolding right before my eyes.
Obviously, there was a hideout here. Ever since my gang was grouped, I knew of the ways of how to point out a gang's hide out. Gangs usually stayed in hidden places such as this one. "What the fuck?" I muttered once I saw a familiar brown-haired guy.
No, it wasn't Travis.
It was Greg.
If Greg was here, that also meant that someone I knew was also here. Greg's gang was the number one enemy of our gang. I already saw both gang leaders fight.
Wait, gang leader?
If Greg was here, it meant that his leader was also here. "What are you doing in a place like this, Avarielle?" someone whispered in my ear and before I could even punch him, he stopped my fist with the use of his own and it was a good two inch away from his face.
"Jake," I breathed out. "Why aren't you helping out your gang?"
"They can handle it," he said proudly. "That gang is just a new one. They're just trash compared to the capability of my gang and Travis's gang. What about you? I heard that you left your gang,"
I pulled my hand away from his grasp and looked at him. I didn't mind the fight that was now happening just a few steps away from me and Jake. "I did leave the gang so you obviously heard the news right,"
"I guess that Travis didn't let you off of the hook that easily, huh?" he asked. It kind of shocked me to know that he wasn't smirking at me. His smirk was a signatured one after all. He always used it whenever our gang crossed paths.
"I ran away," I explained. "Got a lot of bruises but still, here I am, alive,"
Between Jake's gang and mine, they were better. Jake could beat Travis in a fight between both leaders. Gang members didn't usually fight all at the same time unless we were calling for a gang war where a gang would attack off-handed.
On-hand fighting was different. Both gangs would be aware of the upcoming fight. Leader would fight the leader.
And as for the members, even though this method was a silly start, we tossed a coin to see who would win. If a gang chose tails and they won the coin toss, they would pick one fighter or member from the other gang to fight their own chosen member. That was the formal way of fighting. Three rounds and the winner would take the loser's hide-out. For the first two rounds, member vs. member, then for the third, leader vs. leader.
My former gang only had three hide-outs and as for Jake's gang, I believed that they already had eight or nine. They would always fight for our gang property and they would always win.
"You know," he then touched my face and looked at me straight into the eyes. "If I was Travis, I would have treated you better,"
Here was the thing, I was attracted to Jake.
And could you guess what?
He was a bad-boy.