Elena
Bitch.
My fingers gingerly brush over the bruised areas littered over my face, a quiet hiss leaving my mouth from the pain. If I'd known that bitch would cheat, I would've definitely made sure she doesn't stand up after I'd pinned her to the ground. Because of her stunt, I had to spend the night in the hospital wing since Ethan wanted to make sure I don't have any brain damage from the harsh blow.
"Oh, shit, your face." Jess gapes as I enter the gym. "I mean. . . wow. Not that it's bad, just. . . so, who did that?"
"Smooth," I reply flatly. "Trust me, when you see her, you'll know."
"I always sleep through everything," Jess sighs. "Do you have a schedule when you're making a show, so I can make sure to be there?"
"Oh, sure, I'm working Monday to Friday, 24/7. Being a bitch, fighting with people and throwing sharp objects at them are my special talents," I say jokingly.
She laughs, pointing a finger at me. "I like you."
"Are you sure?" I ask. "I'm crazy, trust me, plus I tend to piss people off and sometimes I don't even know how or why, and--"
"Crazy people are my favourite," she interrupts my rambling, grinning.
I give her a smile, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion as I see Alex and Louis lying on the ground, Louis in a fetal position, and Alex on his back, his legs sprawled in front of him while his hands cover his face. Tori and Niall are standing beside them, wheezing from laughter.
I walk toward them, looking down at my brother. "What on Earth happened to you two?"
"H ordered Alex to have a combat and Louis volunteered to fight with him," Tori informs me. "They've both lost." She starts laughing again.
"This halfwit hit me in the balls when I strictly said Louis the magnificent is off limits," Louis snaps, glaring at Alex.
"And I said my face is off limits," Alex retaliates, flipping him off. "For someone so tiny, you sure can give a punch."
I snort when I see two bruises already forming around his eyes, making him look like a racoon. "I'm gonna have so much fun with creating nicknames for you now."
"It's not like you look any better, purple face," Alex mutters, glaring at me.
"Settle down, nicknaming is my thing," a deep voice says behind me. H stands beside me, his eyebrows raised as a playful smile graces his dark pink lips. "Alright ladies, rise and shine." He claps, looking down at Alex and Louis.
"Can't move, it hurts," Louis whines, clutching his crotch.
"And these strong and fine men belong to my army," H says sarcastically. "If you two don't get up now, I'll force you to train all day."
Both of them slowly stand up, releasing pained grunts, glaring at each other. "If I won't be able to have kids, I'm blaming you," Louis snaps at Alex. "Well, now that I think about it, maybe it's not such a bad thing, I mean no protection and all--"
H sighs in exasperation. "It's too early for your blabbering, Tomlinson, go and busy yourself with the trainees."
Louis grumbles something incoherent and turns, dramatically limping out of the gym while the rest of us laugh quietly.
"Sir, I'd like to know when will I get my first assignment?" I ask H, his gaze shifting on me now. I feel useless doing nothing but training when I could at least contribute with guarding the base or something similar while I'm here. I miss the adrenaline.
He raises his eyebrow and I swear I see the corners of his lips twitch. "You'd like an assignment, huh? Not yet, panda, be patient."
Yet another nickname he's used to describe me makes me laugh. "Panda? Really?"
"I guess you know why." He motions toward my face, his index finger circling in the air under my eyes. "As to the assignment, your brother and you still need to train and observe how things work here. I'll decide at the end of next week."
I simply nod in response, respecting his decision. I've learned H responds to obedience the best, especially when I show him I understand he's in charge. As much as I don't like it, I do acknowledge his authority, and that will make my stay here a lot more pleasant. I watch him leave before my eyes survey the room, trying to find Tori, who is in charge of my training for whatever reason. I figure it has something to do with H, he probably wants her to keep an eye on me. I wouldn't be surprised.
"Horan is staring at you," Jess comments amusedly as she approaches me.
"Who's Horan?" I ask, raising my eyebrow.
"Niall," Tori cuts in. "Five foot eight of walking pick up lines."
"Oh yeah, I can tell he's a player," I reply, glancing at him, our eyes meeting. He winks at me and smiles, continuing with his training. "I was onto him since the moment I first saw him. Uses his big blue eyes and innocent face to his advantage. No tattoos or piercings unlike most of the soldiers here. Smart and efficient."
"Nice observation, the description is spot on," Jess compliments. "He's not that bad, he's just a big flirt. His adorable looks are definitely helpful, I mean look at those baby blue eyes, aww. He also has the cutest little bum."
"Yesterday you were saying what you'd like to do to Liam, today is Niall's turn, and whose turn is tomorrow?" Tori remarks.
"Well sue me, everyone is so fuckable in here, this shouldn't be allowed," Jess says, her hand waving in the air as she motions around the gym.
"I know the struggle," I comment, H's beautiful face flashing before my eyes, green eyes bright and intense, brown curls thick and messy. Now, that face shouldn't be allowed. But I'm glad it exists.
The three of us begin to chat as we do warm up exercises. As I laugh at Jess' and Tori's banter about boys, I realise I'm pleased I've managed to find people I can connect with so fast. For the past three years my brother has been the closest thing I've had to a friend. When war is a part of your every day life, you can't allow yourself to get too attached to anyone since there's always a chance you won't see them ever again when they walk out.
"Oh, you're still alive," a female accented voice says. The same voice that taunted me to return the punch yesterday. "How are your wounds?"
I turn my head and look up at her from my mat, my eyes narrowing to slits as I glare at her bruised face and fake smile. "I'd ask the same, but I don't care."
"This is merely a souvenir." She points to her wound.
"Want another one?" I challenge, prepared to fight her.
"I would love to see you try," she spits.
"Lia, don't," Tori warns her. "Leave."
"You don't know who are you sitting with," Lia tells her bitterly, looking at me.
The fuck is her problem? I should be the pissed one here considering she cheated and beat the shit out of me. Instead of starting a fight, I stand up and smile as politely as I can before walking past her. Kill them with kindness, right?
"Hey!" She calls after me.
Don't think about knives, don't think about knives, I think to myself, not trusting my temper.
But when I feel her fingers curl around my forearm and tug my sleeve, I react instinctively and turn, punching her straight in the face. A faint crack is heard, her hand immediately releasing me as she clamps her nose, a loud screech leaving her lips.
"Don't touch me," I say calmly, adjusting my collar. My hand is slightly sore, but I barely feel it since satisfaction of seeing her bleeding is stronger.
Take that souvenir, bitch.
Jess snorts and covers her mouth, looking at me. "You're my hero."
"Bitch!" Lia yells, looking down at her bloody hands. She tries to launch herself at me, but Jess drags her back. "She's not who you all think she is! She's an insider from Vortex!"
My blood runs cold at her words, colour draining from my face. How could she possibly know that? Did she see my tattoo? Impossible. The whole room goes silent and all eyes are now on me, widened and filled with shock. I open my mouth then close it, unsure how to react or what to say.
Well, shit, busted.
"Look at her arm if you don't believe me," Lia spits, glaring at me with hatred. "Or her brother's."
"El, is that true?" Tori asks me, her eyebrows wrinkled in confusion.
"It's not like that," I defend. "I'm not an insider."
I hear shouts behind me and my body quickly turns, seeing my brother on his knees as three soldiers hold him down, pulling the sleeve of his sweatshirt down and uncovering his tattoo. Anger soars through me and I run toward them. "Let him go!"
However, multiple hands grip my shoulders and arms, pulling me back abruptly, almost making me lose my balance. I react immediately, stomping on the foot of one of the female soldiers holding me back while elbowing the other girl in the gut. Their grip on me loosens and I free myself, beginning to run toward my brother when another soldier grabs my forearm; male this time; yanking me toward him. Panic slowly starts kicking in, unwanted flashbacks flashing before my eyes as I tear myself from his grip.
I manage to push him away, but before I realise it, his strong fist collides with my jaw, my head whipping to the side while I barely manage to keep myself on my feet. I gasp in shock as pain washes over me, my first instinct being to pull a pocket knife from the pocket of my sweatshirt. He tries to punch me again, but I'm faster than him, ducking down and avoiding the punch.
I quickly unfold the knife, holding it in front of me. "Touch me again and I'll cut you."
"Oi, calm down!" Louis shouts, entering the circle formed around me and my brother. "You three, let him go, we don't know what's behind all this," he orders the soldiers holding Alex.
"They're from Vortex, there's nothing else to know," one of them speaks. "We know what are the rules."
"We don't decide what happens, David and H do," Louis tells him harshly. "Let him go right now or you'll face the consequences."
After a few moments, they hesitantly release him and I exhale in relief. I haven't even realised how fast my heart is beating until now, a slight sheen of sweat covering my forehead. My free palm presses to my already bruised jaw, trying to estimate the damage. I wince slightly from the pain and feel a liquid on my fingers, realising the wound on my busted lip has reopened, bleeding again. But that's least of my concerns at the moment.
"What's going on here?!" H's deep voice bounces of the walls. A few soldiers step aside, letting him and Niall walk inside the circle. I watch as his pale green eyes scan the scene, estimating the situation. "You two. Come with me," he orders Alex and me. "And you," he looks at Lia then the soldiers who attacked us, "we'll talk more later."
Without another word, he turns around and starts walking toward the exit. Alex and I hesitantly follow him as I decide to look ahead and hold my head high, aware of the people's stares on the two of us. We've been exposed and I can only pray we won't get kicked out of the base. It wasn't our fault, I'm certain both of us were careful, so I have no idea how did Lia find out. The only ones who knew are David and H.
"Lenny, you okay?" Alex asks me, his warm brown eyes showing concern.
"I'm fine," I answer quietly. Adrenaline is still running through my system, subsiding the pain. When I look down at my sore knuckles, I realise I'm gripping the handle of my knife. I discreetly fold it again and push it inside the pocket of my sweatshirt.
H is walking quietly in front of us as we follow him outside the warehouse. I'm surprised he's not yelling or screaming at us, but then again, he might be saving it for later, when we reach David's office where I assume he's taking us.
"Pack your shit and leave," H suddenly says as he stops abruptly, turning to face us.
"Wait, wha-- why?" Alex asks, his eyes widening. "What happened wasn't our fault, they attacked us."
"Yes, because they realised who you are," H retorts. "This will only bring more fights and problems, and I don't want that in my base. So get out."
"No," I say. "David allowed us to stay and until he says we have to leave, we're staying. As far as I'm concerned, he's the leader, not you."
H glares at me, his fists clenching. "Don't start with me, tiger. This is a battle you can't win."
"I don't have to win anything. I just have to talk to David."
"No, I'll talk to him," he argues. "And when I'm done, I'll make sure to blow you a kiss on your way out of this base."
"A real charmer," I mumble angrily under my breath, barely stopping myself from flipping him off.
He makes a hand gesture to a few soldiers on the guarding duty, signalling them to approach. When they do, he says, "make sure they stay here. They're not allowed to move, much less talk." He gives me a harsh look. "When I come back, we'll escort them outside together." With that, he turns around and leaves.