Sang's Pov
After Jezebeth dropped that verbal bomb upon the Blackbourne team, I knew I had to clarify some things from the looks of almost betrayal I was getting from some of the boys. It was slightly reminiscent of my dream weeks ago, but I pushed those thoughts away for now.
I could already feel the accusatory glare burning into my back coming from North's direction.
"I knew it—"
Jezebeth held up a hand and North stopped, more out of shock than actually listening to her. "You knew nothing, North, so don't be cocky," she said with a cocked eyebrow, effectively coming to my rescue.
"What else am I supposed to assume? That even though you all act like you know each other and have been the best of friends for years, that you and Sang have not once worked together to try to take down the Academy?" He huffed out in one breath.
Jezebeth and I looked at one another.
"Yes," we said at the same time.
North just stared at us. "Unbelievable. You guy don't actually believe her, do you?" He looked in Gabriel and Luke's direction and he must not have gotten the response he wanted before he turned to look at Kota and Nathan. "Kota? Be logical. What are the odds that she's telling the truth?"
"Well..." Kota trailed off sheepishly.
North growled.
"She has you all wrapped around her finger and you don't even care!" He yelled, throwing his hands up in frustration.
"What crawled up his ass and died?" Jezebeth mock-whispered, which caused North to give her another harsh glare.
"North, we're telling the truth," I said, hoping to appease him. "Have we taught each other everything we've learned? Yes. Are we good friends? On most days. But our interests when it comes to the Academy have never quite lined up where we needed to work with the other. We call each other up every now and then to see what the other was up to, but other than that, I don't know what she does and she doesn't know what I do."
"The difference is this one..." she caught her arm around my shoulder, pulling me closer to her side as she ruffled my already messy hair. "...has too much compassion for her own good. Even for a killer, she thinks too much about her actions. Also, she has too much of a 'fix-it' attitude. Fixing this house up. Fixing herself up. Fixing her relationships with you all. Fixing the Academy."
"She'd rather see the Academy burn with everyone in it than to see it in better management," I said, speaking up again.
"You and I at one time would have loved to see the whole world burn if it meant getting out of this hellhole," she chuckled, squeezing my arm.
"You know I could never really live like you do," I said softly.
"No, you'd never do it if it meant leaving your boys behind," she said with a knowing smile, and I noticed that she didn't specify which boys she meant. "Now, where's the other one? Unless you traded him out for some of the other man candy." Her eyes started to roaming over the boys and I had to slap her arm lightly to make her focus again.
"Dexter is probably taking a minute to sleep. It's been a little crazy trying to get the chips out of the Toma team safely and Dexter's been up a lot when I couldn't be to help whoever we had over after removing them."
"Have you taken any out of this team?" She asked, flipping her own switch and getting down to business.
"I did Nathan's over two months ago...Wow, I can't believe it's been that long," I said with a laugh.
"So when do you want to start? I could get most of them out by today. I have all the supplies in my bags to make things a little easier."
"It's taken Sang almost a day to remove one safety and then there are three recovery days after. Is it really smart to do us all at once? What if something happens and we aren't recovered yet?" Victor asked, stepping forward in the crowd from the living room.
Jezebeth, Ryzix, and a few of the boys on my side laughed at what he said.
"Are you trying to imply something, Victor? Sorry to burst your bubble, sweetie, but we damsel in distresses could kick some ass and have the house painted in red faster than you could blink. If something happened, while all you big, strong men were out of commission," she said in a mocking voice, "We'd be quite alright to hold the fort down."
"Besides, Jezebeth knows what she's doing," I piped up.
"How can we trust her? She already admitted that she's Volto and she's already hurt Luke once. Are you just going to let her finish what she started with your golden boy?" North sneered and I had enough of him. My anger towards North had been building in ten-folds ever since he interrupted the rescue mission, and I'd finally hit my boiling point with him.
A tiny part of my mind couldn't help but reflect on what Silas said about North and his jealousy when it came to his brother. I wouldn't admit it aloud, but I'm sure that conversation affected how I handled North in this moment.
Stomping over to the living room doorway, the boys parted like the Red Sea until I was standing face to face with North. The cocky bastard had the nerve to cock his eyebrow at me and it took all my might and utilization of years of breathing techniques not to grab something and stab him repeatedly.
With barely-contained rage, I reached forward and grabbed his wrist.
"Wha—"
"Shut up before I do something I regret," I bit out between clenched teeth and he quieted as I pulled him behind me and into the kitchen. Dexter was standing there in nothing but flannel bottoms and his hair messy and his typical ponytail missing. He seemed to be fixing himself a coffee when I walked in.
"When did you get up?"
He laughed. "That implies that I've been asleep yet."
He suddenly looked between North and I. "Am I missing something?"
"If you could leave us alone for a while, I could try to figure out if it's something worth mentioning. Besides, Jezebeth is here, and we will be discussing when the hell you called her without telling me. She apparently hotwired a car to get here," I said, giving him a sweet smile.
"Again?" He groaned, setting his coffee down. "I better help her get her stuff inside then."
He pushed away from the counter and went to moved past us when he placed a hand on North's shoulder and I heard him say, "Good luck, man. You're going to need it."
If I was looking at them, I would have gotten the satisfaction of North gulping at Dexter's statement. Once it was just us again, I felt my anger rise again as I looked over at North's unworried stance.
I couldn't help but to want to change that as I grabbed his upper arm and whipped him around, slamming him into the counter where Dexter's coffee was resting.
"Jealousy isn't attractive, you know. Neither is pettiness, actually, but you seemed to be radiating both pretty strongly lately. Why?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he huffed, pushing away from the counter, but he didn't make it a step before I pushed him back.
"Lying isn't tolerated. You're jealous of your brother. Admit it. You want what your brother has... me," I said, lowering my voice to a whisper as I pressed my body flushed up against him.
"Well. Aren't you cocky," he said, his voice unwillingly dipping lower.
"No, just confident. I know what I want, and I know what you want."
"Like I said, you don't know what you're talking about."
"Then what was that 'golden boy' comment about? An alternative to saying 'love you, bro'? I don't think that's the case." I leaned even closer, if possible, making the space between us non-existent and his escape no longer an option.
"I know exactly what it was, North. It was a stab at him because right now, you want to be your brother. You want to be the one I'm focusing on. The one I come to the defense about. The one I protect. You want to be the golden boy, don't you?"
"Now, wait a min—"
"Shh. I'm talking right now," I said, lifting a finger to his lips, effectively shutting him up. "The problem is that you could never be my golden boy. You aren't good like Luke. You aren't innocent like Gabriel or tempting like Nathan. You aren't a blushing fool like Kota or genuine and understanding like Victor. You aren't even as confusing and practically maddening like Silas."
I lifted myself up on my tippy-toes until I was tall enough to whisper in his ear. I pulled his head closer, resting my arm on his shoulder as I cupped the back of his head at an angle as I leaned in. "But do you know what you are?"
I felt the shiver physically run down his body as he gave a barely noticeable shake of his head.
"A challenge. A sinful one at that," I growled in his ear.
Soon enough, I was the one pressed against something. A very hard something.
"You don't know what you're getting yourself into," he whispered in my ear, his hands falling on my hips as he pressed me further back into the island counter.
"I've got a pretty good feeling," I said, sliding my hands down his chest until I reached a certain part of him that was pressing into my hip.
Within seconds, he was devouring my lips like they were the last piece of candy on Earth and I couldn't help but cheer in victory in my head. Finally, I was getting somewhere with him. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him go to town.
His thumbs were pressing into my hips hard enough that I knew I'd find bruises later. It didn't take long before his lips roamed and before I knew it, he was wrapping his arms under my legs and lifting me on the counter, where he could have better access to me.
He started peppering little kisses down my neck the first chance.
"So. Frustrating. So. Beautiful," he said between kisses.
I couldn't help but groan as I carded my fingers through his silky hair. "Things are so much simpler when you stop acting like a little brat all the time."
"You started it," he said before attacking my lips again. His lips were as chapped as I'd remembered. He was never one to make sure he had Carmex on before kissing me; he always worried about finding the chance alone with me to remember to apply it.
"Do you even hear yourself talk?" I asked, pushing him back. "I wasn't a bitch until you started acting like a dick. I know it was all an act though, so you can't lie anymore."
"What was a lie? That I hated your guts?" He asked, moving his face away from mine so he could look me in the eye.
"That you aren't begging for my attention every day. All you had to do was ask, Brat, and I would have taken you in just as easily as the rest of the boys. Just as easily at Luke."
"I don't want you to do that," he said sternly, shaking his head.
"Now, don't start doubting yourself. You had no problem kissing me just then. What's the matter now?"
"I'm not like my brother. I'm not just going to let you go out and murder people and be okay with it. It's wrong, no matter the way you put it," he said sternly.
I grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him closer again so he was standing in front of my legs. Inching my hand downward, I placed it directly over his crotch.
"But doesn't it make me that much more tempting?" I whispered, pulling his face closer, and I shifted my hand to put more pressure on his nether region.
"S-Sang... What are you doing?" He groaned.
"Feels good, doesn't it, Brat?" I whispered in his ear and his breath hitched as I readjusted my hand, this time bringing up to his waistband and dipping inside, brushing along his length.
"God...Sang..." he hissed and I removed my hand. North let out a small groan of frustration, which caused me to smirk.
"I'm not good for you, North. I'm not the little, damsel in distress that you need. I admit it, I'm a bitch that knows what she wants and knows just how to get it. But, you wouldn't want me any other way, would you?" I asked, moving my legs to wrap around his midsection, pulling him closer and entrapping him slightly. "Secrets don't stay hidden in this house, Brat. Just fess up that you think about me more than you should, and I'll leave the subject alone."
He stared at me in silence.
"I'm only thankful that you got to the hospital in time and that I'm still breathing. That's it," he grumbled.
"You're lying," I hissed. "I hate liars."
"What do you want me to say?!" He yelled, slamming his hands on either side of me. I didn't flinch. Instead, I straightened my back and stared at him full-on, refusing to react negatively to his scare tactic.
"Do you want me to say that I've dreamed of this moment? That I've been dying to kiss you for even a second? That I could hold you for this long? That I wished you'd even want to be near me after I've been an asshole to you and almost get myself killed after being so fucking stupid?!" He asked, his face scrunched up.
"All that and more, North Star," I said, placing a hand on his cheek and I watched all the anger and frustration melt from his face. "That's all I needed to hear from you."
I leaned forward again, and he met me halfway as we battled for dominance in a searing kiss. I felt myself melting under his touch when he grasped my hips, which made me lose focus and allow him to slip his tongue past my lips.
I couldn't help but feel like I was falling fast for him again when I was in his arms, but I had to remind myself of where I was and who I was with. I couldn't let myself fall out of control again, no matter what. This was North, the father of my baby girl.
'No,' I reminded myself. 'Not the same North. A different North. A rougher North.'
But, he was one the ones that hurt me the most when he left.
I couldn't help but draw back to the conversation when I was helping Corey. North said that he wouldn't have just up and left. He would have checked up on the girl he loved. He would have checked up with me. He would have seen his baby Katherine grow up from a distance, but see her nonetheless.
I had to focus on the lifetime I was living now. I'll never know why the boys left and I'll never know if North was telling the truth. The boys were here now, and they weren't going anywhere.
Not now. Not when things were starting to go right.
"Are you okay? You zoned off," North whispered in my ear and sucking on my earlobe, causing me to shiver and come back to the present.
"Don't worry about it," I whispered back, putting more force into my movements as I stroked my hands down his chest, drawing them lower until they could slip under the end of his shirt. Lifting it up, I exposed his tone chest that I felt like I hadn't seen in ages. Eventually getting it up and over his head, I threw it away from us and I looked down, examining his chests. It felt almost weird and melancholy not to see the scars of bite marks along his skin from our many nights together.
I'd just have to work extra hard to change that.
He returned the favor as he hands went from grasping my hips to grabbing the edge of my shirt, lifting it upwards and ripping the shirt slightly. It was in that moment we both realized that I wasn't wearing anything under the shirt.
"Sorry about that," he panted, his eyes on my chest.
"It was a shitty shirt, anyway," I grinned, moving my mouth downwards to suck on the crook of his neck as I pressed myself against him. He arched his body into me, groaning as he gave into me. Once I sensed he was almost putty in my hands, I moved my mouth down his chest, peppering little kisses along the way. After every few kisses, I gently bit him, making him throw his head back in ecstasy.
"Damn, Sang. I didn't think..." He gasped as I bit just above his heart.
"If you don't like it rough, just let me know..." I said before I suddenly found myself with my back pressed against the island counter.
"I just didn't think..."
"Then don't think, just do," I smiled slyly.
He did just that, gripping my wrists roughly as he bent over me, kissing the side of my neck. I could feel his teeth scraping along my skin and I couldn't help but groan at the feeling, my body melting into his touch in more ways than one.
It felt like he was mapping out every inch of my skin with his lips as he moved away from my neck and down to my chest.
"Are some of these scars because of me?" He asked suddenly, looking up at me.
I took a deep breath. "They aren't your fault."
"But that's a yes. Because of me, you got hurt."
"Everything's that happened is in the past, now. We can't do anything about it anymore except live with the scars."
He suddenly got a determined look on his face before he bent his head down again and kiss a puckered scar on my chest.
"What are you doing?" I asked in wonder.
"Making good memories to go along with every scar you have," he said between peppered kisses.
"That's going to take a while, you know. I have a lot of scars," I whispered.
"According to you," he said, placing a particularly sweet kiss just above my belly button as he moved down my body, "I've got a lot of time to catch up with you. I can't become your golden boy overnight, now can I?" He grinned. "If kissing every, little scar to say I'm sorry for causing even one of them can get me closer to you, I'll spend every moment I have doing it."
I moved my arms from where I let them rest after North let go down to grasp his head. I pulled him upwards up I could give him a searing kiss.
"As much as I love to hear you say you'll worship my body at every chance you get, I don't want you to change. I don't want you to stop having your own opinion. I want you to argue with me until we're blue in the face. I want you to not fight who I am, but fight for who I am. For the girl with you right now, not for the girl out in the middle of the night doing vigilante things."
"Alright...but—"
"Sangie, your new boys won't listen t—Shit! Damn it, Sang! I've seen your tits enough for the both of us, and as much as I love the set you got, I don't need to see them on the kitchen counter!"
Jezebeth was standing in the doorway, her hands covering her eyes but they were fanned out, allowing her to see through the space between her fingers perfectly fine.
"Jezebeth, what's taking so lon—" Ryzix began to ask, walking up beside her before looking to where Jezebeth was staring.
"You are not laying on my island counter topless where I prepare food. Right, Sang? Please tell me I'm imagining things? With him?" He asked hysterically.
"I think I'm just going to... Uh... just going to cover up..." I trailed off, moving to slide off the counter myself but North came unfrozen enough to focus on helping me down.
"Oh, don't cover up on my account," Jezebeth chuckled.
I looked around for my shirt and found it on the floor beside us. Bending down, I picked up the shirt only to realize the shirt was more ripped than I thought. I held up the fabric in front of North and he had the decency to look sheepish. He seemed to be looking around for something, and once he spotted it he moved to grab it from across the room and came back over. He held something out to me and I looked down only to realize that he was holding the shirt I threw earlier.
"Take it. It's fine," he said.
"Are you sure?" I asked hesitantly but still reached a hand up to grab the piece of fabric.
He nodded and I moved to slip the shirt over my head. Although North's torso was bigger than mine, the shirt was tighter than I was expecting it to be and I was sure the outline of my nipples would have been obvious if not for the fact that the shirt was black.
"Thanks," I said softly, brushing my hair away from my face.
"Okay, kiddies. Time to clear out so the adults can talk."
"Again, not a kid," Ryzix grumbled, crossing his arms with a huff.
"Again, not listening," Jezebeth said sweetly, ruffling his blonde locks.
"Are you fine with her?" North asked softly, and before I could open my mouth, Jezebeth beat me to it.
"Is she fine with me? It's you she had to worry about on most days. Everyone knows what I do, and I have nothing to hide. Especially not with Sang. Don't think that just because you saw her tits that you have right to tell her what to do," she sneered. "Now get the fuck out of here. I've dealt with enough testosterone in the last hour, so give us some girl time."
North scowled, but with one last quick kiss to my lips, he exited the kitchen. Before he could leave though, Ryzix stuck his middle fingers between his lips and with a pop, shoved them in North's face. "Fuck you, asshole. Stay away from Sang, or you better watch out, prick."
North seemed to be revving up to say something to him, but with a glance at me, he blanched. With a loud huff, he stomped out of the room.
"I told him off," Ryzix hummed with a prideful smile before hopping out of the room.
I looked at Jezebeth, who was raising her eyebrow at me.
"Men, am I right?" I asked, sheepishly.
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A/N: For every torturous scene you come across between Chapter 25 and Chapter 33 (as of right now) blame leedlelawliet for inspiring me while sprinting!