Jaycee's POV Continued:
My heart stopped beating.
What. The. Actual. Hell.
I was frozen right in my place, my eyes wide open.
"Dude. What's wrong?" Asked Ashton, as he took my phone from my shaking hand.
Who the hell is this?? Why are they after my gi.... Alexis?
You know what? She is MY girl, no matter how hard I try to deny it. No matter how hard I say she isn't, she always is. Always will be and no way in hell, heck, or heaven am I letting anything happening to her; not when I can protect her!
"How much do you want to bet that this is Giovanni and the Black Phoenix dirtbags?" Said Ashton in exasperation.
"But what does Alexis have to do with this?? She has nothing to do with anything!" I replied as I paced around the terrace, hands over my head.
"Do you want me to remind you with what they said? They said they will hurt us AND everyone we care about!! It takes no genius to see that Alexis means more than the galaxy to you. We all saw that since grade nine, no matter how hard you tried to play it off. Maybe they saw that too..." he trailed, as he appeared to be deep in thought.
"What's on your mind Ash?" I say as I returned to the sofa next to him.
"We know exactly how they look like, so I highly doubt that they would be in our plain sight."
"What's on your mind buddy?"
"I think that they have a member of their jerk-tourage spying on us. Think of it Jaycee, they will never intentionally put themselves in our line of sight, or anywhere near us for that matter. What if they have a new recruit spying on us? I mean how else would they know about everyone? They're not God."
"I think you're right! But what can we do? We have no clue where Alexis is and Annabelle would never tell us..." I said, my head pounding like crazy.
Whoever that person is, they know where she is and I don't. They have the ability to hurt her or kidnap her again and there's nothing I can do about it! I can't let anything happen to her again! I will find her even if that means putting my own life in danger.
"What are we supposed to do then?" Said Ashton, brining me out of my daze, but before I could answer he interrupted me with another statement; one I was forever dreading.
"Actually wait. Sit your butt down because you have a story to tell. I need to know what exactly happened to Giovanni's brother and who the hell he is to begin with!"
"Not now Ash. I need to find a way..." was all I got out before he lashed out at me.
"No! Now Jaycee! This explanation is seven months overdue!" He yelled. Then, even louder, added, "I lost her... my friend! Does it not bother you that you were partially to blame for her death! How many more people are going to get hurt because of you before you start caring for them?! You're telling me what I need to know, and I'm not taking no for an answer!"
I was in a daze just staring at him because I wasn't used to seeing him like this. So mad. So frustrated. So enraged. So......why in the world is he yelling at me for?
"Now Royce! Or I walk." He said slowly but surely; standing up to prove his point.
I sighed, motioned to the chair then walked over and sat on the chair opposite to him.
"Fine. What I'm about to tell cannot be told to anyone else because what I'm about to reveal could put more lives in danger."
I could see that he was contemplating an answer; anxiety apparent on his face.
"Go ahead." He said after a while.
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
ALEXI'S POV:
"Do you ever feel like breaking down?
Do you ever feel out of place?
Like somehow you just don't belong
And no one understands you.
Do you ever want to run away?
Do you lock yourself in your room?
With the radio on turned up so loud
That no one hears you screaming
No you don't know what it's like
Welcome to my life"
Every word that blared out of my headphones left a painful stain on my heart. I felt as though they took a three point five second look at my life and thought "Hey! This chick's life looks like a good inspiration for a depressing song!" and BAM, "Welcome to My Life" was written. Nothing ever seems to go right for me even when I'm optimistic. Even when I don't expect anything I'm still let down.
I moved countries just so I don't get killed. Then, when I've fully adapted to where I was, I was re-located to a new place where I became the joke of the entire school.
I found out I had a twin brother, and soon after I learn that he is in on a plot to annihilate my parents and I. Oh, and let's not forget that he is now captured and on the run with my fugitive, evil children of the devil himself; my uncles.
I had the most amazing group of friends who were my family and now I can't even contact them or else I'll risk having their blood on my hands.
And Jaycee. My dear Jaycee. A guy whose only intention was to protect me and keep me safe, whose only intention was to love me right and make me happy. How did I repay him? I left without as much as a "screw you". I think he hates me now. I think that he'll never, ever forgive me for the pain I caused, because Lord knows I caused a lot of that for everyone.
I put everyone's lives at risk and changed their plans. I made them more susceptible to danger. I really miss them and I really hope they forgive me. What am I in this world alone? Who am I in this world without them around me? If only I could take away the pain I caused everyone. If only....
"Hey darling. Do you mind sparing a few dollars to an old lady?" Asked someone. I looked to my right and there stood a really old and frail lady with tattered clothes and worn out shoes. Her eyes looked warm and welcoming against a face that withstood the severe weather changes. Her clothes were definitely no match to the freezing December night.
What if...
"How about I do you one better?" I ask. Maybe it isn't too late to make up for all the heartbreak I caused. Maybe one good deed would overpower the countless other bad things I did.
After I took her to the nearest mall to buy her a few warm ensembles, some warm shoes and a winter jacket, I invited her over for a warm meal.
" I really don't know how to thank you young lady. No one has ever been this kind to me before." She said, her hazel eyes tearing up.
"It's the last I could do ma'am..." I trailed off, looking at the traffic of New York.
"Is everything okay sweetheart? You look pretty tired and exhausted."
"I've been through a lot, I think that's why."
"You can tell me sweetheart. Maybe my wisdom could help you in some way." She said ever so caringly.
"I don't know. I really don't want to bother you with my weird life." I replied, taking a sip from my nutella milkshake.
Yes, I know it's like minus five-hundred degrees on a New York winter, but come on; who doesn't like a little chocolate heaven.
I think I'm going to regret that in the morning when I wake up with a permanent brain freeze and a sore throat.
Oh well.
"Oh it's alright, it's not a bother. I just feel like I might relate. I haven't spoken to someone in such a long time because for some reason people find me repulsive. You know, the person your parents tell you to stay away from because they look like they might hold the diseases of the world." Her voice reflected the years of humiliation she endured on these merciless streets.
"How about I start? Maybe then you'll feel comfortable sharing. After all, who are we without the people around us? My name is Ruby Grace, I've lived in New York for all of my life. I had a loving husband and four beautiful children; Rosanna, Silas, George and Charlotte. We were a happy middle class family. My eldest child - Silas- owns a few malls and hotels in the area and my youngest child, my baby Charlie is a Harvard law graduate; who is also an amazing singer. I think you'd love her! Everything was going perfectly, all my children are married with beautiful children I rarely get to see.
Everything was going great until the day they told me my husband, Edward, was diagnosed with brain cancer three years ago. Instead of bringing us together as a family, the whole situation broke us apart. At first he would forget minor things, then it went on to forgetting who we were. He would have difficulty holding something and sometimes even getting out a fully formed word. The surgeries alone cost us our entire life savings and retirement money. I was forced to take a loan from the bank and when I couldn't repay them, they took our house. Despite all the money that was spent and the house that was lost, he still....." she trailed, stifling tears. I held her shaking hands to give her at least some sort of comfort.
I could tell that her husband meant a lot to her. The way she smiled when she mentioned him or how dark her eyes became when she remembered his diagnosis. I gave her a tissue to wipe her tears and she gladly took it.
She took one sip from her hot coco then continued, sniffing away her sorrow.
"Despite all the doctors' effort he still died. At that point, my children were out of the picture, and they didn't even come to his funeral. So I lost my husband, lost contact with my children, lost my house and savings and retirement money; money we were supposed to spend together. I never felt more alone that I did back then. Never felt more abandoned and unloved. My kids never reached out and they all stopped answering their phones. I couldn't even afford to live in a seniors' home so I started living on the streets and fending for myself and getting the occasional change from people. This has been my life for the past two years, yet I still have some hope that it will get better someday. God never puts us on trial like this unless there is something better waiting for us ahead." She finished, smiling at me through the tears.
I felt my own tears falling down my face; tears I never even noticed. I realized that the restaurant grew quite and when I looked around, everyone was looking at us with tears in their eyes and sympathy evident in their face.
One by one, they came to our table to express their condolences and tell her how sorry they are for what happened to her. and her husband. An elderly couple gave her a $2500 cheque, while a younger couple gave her $500 dollars. Another man, who turned out to be a housing representative, gave her his card and told her to see him about free, government funded housing first thing in the morning. A little six year old offered her a blueberry muffin, while her younger sister gave her a small stuffed animal. Even the manager heard what happened and offered her free meals for a whole month.
Seeing this out pour of emotions caused everyone to take countless pictures and videos of us. They all wanted to take pictures of the sweet, old lady with a broken heart and the little weird kid who helped her. Even the staff came and the manager and we all took a beautiful group photo.
When everyone sat back down, she was more than speechless. She started crying and thanking God for all the blessings he bestowed upon her in one night.
"I really don't know how to thank you darling. This wouldn't have been ever possible without you!" She said, patting my hands.
"I'm more than happy to help. And I think maybe I'm ready to tell you my story."
And so I did. I told her about my past. About my parents. About my beautiful friends. About Jaycee. About CJ and the off springs of the devil. I told her so much that my soul felt empty afterwards. I never cried like I did that night, but I also never felt more relieved; more at peace.
After we said our goodbyes and her thanking me for the millionth time, we both parted ways. She told me that she'll be just fine but I insisted that she take my number and call me anytime. She promised she would and she hugged me one last time.
"You are a beautiful and pure soul Alexis Pierce, and remember that good people always win in the end. Always"
On my way back to the hospital, I realized it was still 9.30, so I decided to take the longer route. I kept going back to our conversation and what she told me about letting go.
"In this life darling, I learned that we can love something so much and need it so much without it being the right thing for us, that no matter ho hard we want it or crave it, it just isn't meant to be ours. But from what you told me, this boy seems to really care for you and wants nothing more than to keep you safe and make you happy. Guys like that don't come around that often, if rarely. We are living in a society where people always seem to have sinister intentions, so finding someone who loves you and cares for you like that is a gift from the God above. MY advice? Never let him go. Hold on to him with everything you got and trust me that when you come out of this whole situation, you'll find that you've done the right thing. Just listen to your heart."
I will. That's what I'll do. I'll fight for us even if it's the last thing I'll do.
I took out my phone to check the news since I was getting a little bored and a little article caught my eye.
"A Small Act of Kindness By a young New York Girl Gets the Happy Ending it Deserves."
Right there, with the article was the group picture we took with my smack dab in the middle of it, along with the name of the restaurant.
It took a while for my brain to analyze the situation. MY picture. Online.
Since these reporters got a hold of it so easily that means... that means everyone else could!
Including my uncles...
****************************************************************************************
AN: HOOOLLLLLAAAA! It's been a while I know xD My phone stopped working about 3 weeks ago and I'm not used to writing on my laptop!!!
ANYWAAAYYYSSSS the next chapter holds many more surprises to come!! hope you liked this update and don't forget to comment and vote!!
TIL NEXT TIME!!!!