Keeley's POV
After Ryder left, I didn't know what to do with myself. For once, I was actually flustered. He seemed normal and just... I don't know how to explain it. He made me feel something, and that wasn't okay. I'm not supposed to do relationships. I can't do relationships. But here I am three new friends and... whatever Ryder is.
I headed downstairs to find Gus, considering I hadn't seen him since I left this morning, and when I got to the bottom of the stairs, I could see him curled up on the sofa in the living room.
"Quid agis, Gus?" I cooed to my best boy. His head popped up when he heard my voice.
(How are you, Gus?)
I sat down and waited on the floor for him to come over so I could scratch his head. My Gus, the only constant in my life.
When he got to me, he plopped down and laid his head in my lap.
I heard loud thumps coming down the stairs, and as I turned my head, I saw Callan walking towards me quite sheepishly. He slowly sat down beside me and for a moment, neither of us spoke. Eventually, it was him to first speak up.
"I'm really sorry about losing my cool there, Keeley. I didn't want you to feel bad, I just freaked after hearing about you, ya know, giving a girl a bloody nose. I just worry." His eyes wouldn't meet mine, and I could tell he felt bad. To be honest, I was more upset at myself than him. I hate looking weak, and I directed all my feelings towards him.
"I'm sorry, too, Bubba. It's just... these past years have been difficult for me." His head turned to me and I looked away quickly before he could see the pain in my eyes. "Whenever something that even relates to it comes up, I lose my shit. I shouldn't have caused a scene."
I focused my eyes on Gus, but I could tell he was focused on me. "What happened, Keeley?" he asked in a way that sounded like it physically hurt him. I sat for a few seconds before deciding to answer him.
"I'm not ready for that talk yet, Cal. It's... it's just something I don't want to share." As I said the last part, I forced myself to look at him. He looked worried and like he wanted to push the questions further, but instead, he simply gave me a nod before pulling me into his bear-like frame.
"Did anyone tell our father?" I ask shyly, silently praying nobody did.
He lets out a light chuckle. "No, Munch. Nick told us that he would handle everything so Dad wouldn't get involved."
I feel relieved at his comment, but I feel even more relieved at the idea that Nick may not be out to get me after all.
***
I couldn't move, nor did I want to. My shoulders were sore from being chained above my head for so long. I could feel the blood trickling down my face and sides from the lashings and beatings they gave me, and any sort of breathing I did burned my body from my broken ribs.
My body couldn't take much more. I couldn't take much more, and by this point, I was sure I was going to die before I could get out of here.
The metal door to my cell opened from behind me, causing my eyes to squint and blink back the fluorescent light that was emitting from the hallway.
"Has my dear Kitten finally calmed down after yesterday?" he snickered while dragging a calloused hand over my body. Today there was a hunger in his devilish eyes I hadn't seen before, and if I'm being honest, it terrifies me.
"Because as much as I love you, my dear Keeley, I won't hesitate to hurt you."
I'm not even sure why he's here. He never comes two days in a row, and his presence, today, caused a whole new set of nerves to rake through my body.
"Now, Kitten, imagine this: you actually tell me who you work for, who you really are, and why you are here. Well, I know why you're here, per se, but rather the reason that got you here to this point." He grabbed one of the chairs from the corner of the room and dragged it to a stop in front of me. He sat down and crossed one of his legs over the other, never letting his eyes look anywhere but me.
"I have nothing to tell you," I croak out, each word was causing extreme pain to spread throughout my ribs.
"Well, funny story, Keeley, you do have "stuff " to tell me, and that I know for a damn fact." His voice was starting to get a slight edge to it and his head slightly cocked to the side. "So, I am giving you another choice, Darling. Tell me what I want to know, and this pain you feel can all go away."
"I will tell you nothing," I let out in a breathy voice as my head falls back in pain.
He stood up out of the chair quickly, successfully knocking it to the ground. He marched up to me and lowered his head until we were face to face, and only then did he speak: "I am not a patient man, Keeley. Yet for you, I give you chance and chance again instead of just shooting you right through that pretty little head of yours like I would anyone else."
His face had contorted to anger, causing his youthful side to be drowned out by pure madness. His hands made their way around my neck, and he began to squeeze ever so slightly."Your life has been in my hands, Darling, and I'm handing it back over to you for just one second to make this decision. Make. The Right. One." His voice goes into a breathy whisper with the last words, and I can see in his eyes that he is crazy, sick, and his actions are only supporting that. His hands continued to squeeze as my body withered back and forth, trying to escape his now tight hold on my neck.
I knew the next words I said were crucial to my well-being. It would be so easy right now to just give in, to tell him everything he wants to know, but I know I can't.
"N-no," I manage to spit out. His grip tightens, even more, causing black dots to fill my vision.
"One more chance, Kitten. That is all you will get," he warns. His voice is coming out in angry whispers. He has never sounded this hateful before.
I struggle to stay conscious as my airway is letting less and less air through. I have so much to say to him, so much hate to give.
"F-fuck you."
He suddenly lets go of my neck, causing me to cough and inhale as much air as possible. He gives me a second to catch my breath, and when I look up, I don't even recognize the now sinister look dancing in his eyes. A deep chuckle rumbles up from his chest as a vile smirk spreads its way across his face.
"Oh, sweet Keeley. Once again: the wrong choice." His hand comes up and slowly strokes the side of my bruised and bloody face.
"Vas zhdet mir boli."
(A world of pain awaits you)
***
I awoke from my dream grasping at my throat. Tears were pouring out of my eyes as I couldn't catch my breath and an uneasy feeling was starting to rise up my throat.
I jumped up out of my bed and ran to the bathroom, emptying everything in my stomach, which wasn't very much considering I had skipped dinner.
I sat on the cold bathroom floor while trying to calm myself down and wiped the tears from my eyes. The dreams are getting worse and I have no idea as to why. Even after I got out of there, the dreams were never this bad.
After about twenty minutes and after I could manage a few normal breaths, I walked back into my room and glanced at the clock: 4:30 AM. I sat on the edge of my bed and stared out the window to the still-dark sky. The sky was filled with stars that seemed to go on forever. It's been a while since I've seen them. You could never see them clearly at Mount Reform because the spotlight towers let off too much light. I remember the stars being one of the main things I missed when I was with him. Four months of the night sky I missed, four months of the night sky I'll never get back.
I sat on my bed and stared at the sea of stars till my clock said 5:15.
At that time, I got up off my bed and walked back to the bathroom to shower and brush my teeth. I let the hot water stream down my body and soothe my mind as I washed up and shaved.
Once I had finished, I entered my closet and threw on the first things I saw: ripped skinny jeans, black Doc Martens, and one of Callan's old band shirts that no longer fit him.
I slipped on a black zip-up jacket, then threw my hair into a messy bun on top of my head. When I walked back into my bedroom, Gus was awake and sitting by the door waiting to be let out. I grabbed my phone and backpack before making my way to the hallway.
Once I was downstairs, I let Gus into the backyard so he could do his business.
It was quiet downstairs and it was then I realized it was only 6:30. I looked around the empty house and eventually made it to the kitchen.
Back at Mount Reform, I would get put on kitchen duty, and I actually didn't mind it. I mostly just did the dishes, but it gave me time to think to myself. Maybe I needed that again after my...dream, this morning. I flicked on the lights and decided that I was going to make my brother's breakfast.
***
By 7:15, I had successfully made two packages of bacon, a loaf and a half of toast, two dozen eggs, and about plates full of pancakes. I looked at the kitchen where all of the food was laid and thought for a second it might be overboard. Then again, I do have five older brothers with huge appetites. I think it'll be okay.
"Damn, what smells so good?" Sam and Donnie both appeared in the kitchen sniffing the air.
"I made breakfast," I tell them, quieter than I normally speak, probably due to the fact I was still a bit shaken up and I hadn't spoken to anyone this morning, so my voice came out a little gravely than usual.
"Did someone make breakfast?" I heard Nick's voice before I saw him. Nick, Finn, and Callan came into the kitchen with curious faces and all dressed in suits. Finn and Callan were both wearing black, whereas Nick was wearing grey.
"Keels did," Sam said while shoving a piece of toast in his mouth.
"Well, eat up before it gets cold." I tried to make my voice strong, but it still came out hoarse and weak. I thought nobody had noticed, but while everyone was piling their plates up with food, Nick walked over to where I was standing in the corner of the kitchen.
"You alright, Munch?" His eyebrows furrowed together, creating little creases on his forehead. His eyes searched my face looking for an answer.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I said although my voice sounded different. "You should eat before it all gets cold."
"Are you sure? Your voice sounds terrible and your eyes look like you've been crying? They're a lot... a lot more golden than normal." He looked like he didn't believe me. Hell, I don't believe myself.
"I'm sure, Nick." I gave him what I hoped was a reassuring smile and gestured to the island. He finally looked away after a moment, quite reluctantly to my surprise.
After all of them had gotten their plates, I followed them to the dining room with my own bowl of eggs, although to be honest, I wasn't that hungry. I sat next to Callan, sitting crisscrossed in my chair. We had been sitting for a little bit and everyone was laughing at something, but we were interrupted by another voice coming down the hall.
"Nicholas, Callan, Finnegan," I could hear my father thumping down the hallway. When I turned in my chair, I saw that his hair and beard looked recently groomed, and he too was wearing one of his better suits.
I could tell he was a little startled to see us all around the table this early in the morning.
"Yes?" Nick asked while eating his sixth pancake.
"I didn't realize we were having breakfast this morning. Did you order in?" He looked at everyone's plates, or what was left, and his face filled with confusion.
"No, Keeley made breakfast. You're welcome to have some if you want," Nick continued.
My father's eyes turned to study me for a moment before returning his glance back to my older brothers.
"No, I'm fine. We have to get going if we don't want to be late for our meeting." He phrased this as a suggestion or statement, but he really meant they had to leave now.
"Of course, just give us a second," Nick told him. My father looked back at all of us, lingering on me for just a bit longer, before giving Nick a slight nod and walking back down the hallway.
"Well, I guess breakfast is over then," Finn sighs as he puts his fork down.
"Thank you for breakfast, Keeley. I'm sorry we can't help you clean up," Nick tells me as he stands up from his chair and smooths down his suit jacket. Finn and Callan follow his lead.
"It's fine, don't worry about it." Luckily this time my voice comes out a bit stronger. All three of them kissed my head on their way out the door.
I looked to Sam and Donnie who were both staring at the dishes that filled the table with dread in their eyes.
"Don't worry, I'll clean them up."
***
First period dragged on with Mr. Monroe's monotone voice talking about some graph. I looked beside me and Aubrey's red hair was splayed all over the desk and her mouth was slightly ajar as she continued to sleep.
The bell finally rang and I said bye to Aubrey, after waking her up, before making my way to the basement for art.
When I arrived at the classroom, Ryder was already at the table sketching away.
"What's up, P?" I say while sitting down and sketching in my own book.
"P?" he asked, obviously confused. His pen continued across the page as his eyebrows scrunched together.
"Yeah, ya know for Picasso... or Princess. Whichever you prefer really," I smirked.
I continued putting the finishing touches on my drawing of Ryder. It was quiet for a while before he spoke up again.
"I don't like it," he grumbled as he put down his pen looking over the portrait he had drawn.
"The nickname? Well too bad, it fits you," I turn to him to see him staring at me with an annoyed glint in his eyes. "Kinda. Anyway, let's show Ms. Caffeine-Overload our drawings so we can be done." I get up and start walking away, not caring if he's behind me.
"We finished," Ryder's giant frame grumbled as we got to the front of the classroom.
"Oh my, that's just wonderful! Let me just take a few quick pictures of these gorgeous drawings! My what talent you both have! You would have very artistic kids together!" she basically screamed. I kept my posture stiff and my eyes emotionless while Ryder started hacking up a storm.
I patted his back as Ms. Loren took photos of our drawings and printed them off. She gave me a picture of Ryder's sketch and a picture of mine to Ryder.
"Okay so you can keep your own sketches and the pictures, then the other two copies will go up on the board!" She quickly ran over to her board and pinned up the pictures while we made our way back to the table.
It was the first time I got to see Ryder's sketch in detail, and it was beautiful. It was a simple line drawing of me laughing, but instead of shading, it was just more singular lines.
I drew him with his head tilted back with his lips parted. I had drawn each of his tattoos from memory, and I think I did pretty good. I see where Ms. Loren was coming from, though: they really were pretty.
"This is really good," I tell him while carefully tucking the picture into my sketchbook.
"Thanks," he mumbled while his eyes scanned the portrait I had drawn of him. "How do you do this? Like, how do you make it look real?"
"Military school. My Staff Sergeant saw how angry I was and wanted to do something about it. So instead of fighting, he taught me piano and art," I explain with a content smile on my face. "How'd you learn to draw?"
It was like I had just pushed a button I wasn't supposed to. His whole mood and demeanor changed. Gone was the Ryder who was 'supposedly' my friend, and back was the distant bad boy.
"It's none of your damn business," he snarls while giving me a cold glare. His eyes were icy and held anger within them.
"Hey, no need to get upset. You don't have to answer if you don't want to," I tell him.
He didn't even respond as he shrugged on his backpack and left the classroom. The bell rang the moment he left.
***
Five minutes later, I was outside at the same picnic table that we were at yesterday. The sky looked endlessly blue with fluffy, white clouds scattered across it. A slight breeze was blowing and the air smelled fresh. Shades of red and orange were starting to appear on all of the surrounding trees.
"So TaterTot, you still coming to Blue's with us after school today?" Xavier asked from beside me as Alex and Aubrey were across from us.
"Yeah of course. And if you guys want, you can come to my house afterward and hang out," I tell them, knowing I can only have friends over at my house and not the mafia house, for obvious reasons.
"Really?!" Aubrey squealed causing the boys and me to flinch. I swear, I've only known her since yesterday, and I could tell this happened a lot.
"Yes...really," I told her while rubbing my right ear.
"I'll be there too, TaterTot," Xavier said while throwing his arm over my shoulder and rubbing his knuckles in my hair.
"I will hurt you, Xavier, if you don't let me go," I laughed while pulling away. "You're acting like one of my brothers." I redid my hair, considering Xavier had made me look like a fruitloop.
"Good, maybe people will decide to stay away from you," he spoke. "By the way, why is Ryder Bennett staring at me like he's planning my death?"
I looked over to see Ryder as a gust of wind blew through the air. He was sitting with the twins and some of their football goons at a long table. I didn't even know they had this free period, but it was true: Ryder was giving Xavier a death stare. And if I didn't do relationships or feelings, I would say he looks almost attractive.
"I'm not sure. He's probably in one of his typical bad-boy, sour moods," I commented, turning back to my friends.
"He looks jealous," Aubrey mentioned.
"I agree. If looks could kill, Xav would be six feet under right about now," Alex piped in. They both nodded their heads slightly while still looking at Ryder.
"Why would he even be jealous?" I ask genuinely confused. I mean, there is no reason to be... right?
"Are you serious?" Aubrey looks at me like I'm the dumbest bitch she's ever met just for asking that question. "Xavier threw his arm over your shoulder and made you laugh. Ryder smiled when he heard your laugh, but got all jealous and angry when he saw McFlirt over here."
"Okay, gross, Aubrey. Really, McFlirt? And Keeley is my friend, she's like a sister. No more than that." He looks mildly disgusted at this point.
"Hurtful, I'm not gross," I tell him while giving him a look I'm hoping looks like hurt and disgust.
"Well, I mean-," I was about to hit him. I really was.
"Children," Alex said while trying to hold back a laugh. "We know that Keeley is like a sister to us," I gave Alex a pointed look, "and that she's not gross. But he doesn't, that being Keeley is our friend. Not the gross part, well may-"
"Let's just talk about something else, yeah?" I interrupt, quite tired of the discussion of whether I'm gross or not.
I'm thankful when Aubrey starts talking about how her sister spilled her water all over the cat last night and the attention goes away from me, but for some reason, my mind could only focus on Ryder.
Was he actually jealous? I mean, I barely know him and the way he acted earlier, he has no right to act that way. He was probably just in a mood. Yeah, in a mood.
***
"So now, my aunt is in hysterics while yelling at my uncle to put out the fire," Alex tells us. Right now our group is sitting at our small, circle table during lunch. Alex is telling us about his family's Thanksgiving last year. It had to be one of the funniest stories I've ever heard. Aubrey and I are in tears laughing our asses off over this while Xavier is trying to hold in his laughs so he can eat.
"So my uncle grabs the fire extinguisher and tries to put the flames out in the oven, but he loses complete control over it and ends up spraying the entire kitchen with this foam. Everybody comes running into the kitchen just screaming. My little cousin slips on the foam, falls onto the folding table with all the food, and it goes everywhere. Now, all of us are covered head-to-toe in some food or another. But the best part is, my 95-year-old grandma, walks into the kitchen and just asks: "Is something burning?" "
By now I can't even breathe because I'm laughing so hard and Aubrey is the same way. Alex is laughing too, though his laughter is more of just his shoulders shaking. The funniest part of this, though, is the fact that Xavier is still trying to eat, and when he lifts his spoon of mashed potatoes to his mouth, a snort rakes through his body, and the potatoes go up his nose.
I don't think I could be laughing any harder at this moment, and people were turning to look.
But I couldn't care less. I look at the four of us: the new girl with tears running down her face that's slapping the table, Aubrey's face is brighter than her hair, Alex for once looking so carefree, and Xavier has mashed potatoes covering his nostrils, now in full-on laughter. As weird as this situation was, I've never felt like I fit in more and have never felt so happy. I can't believe that I've never had people in my life like this, and I couldn't be more grateful.
***
It was now after school and the four of us were sitting in a small booth at Blue's Diner. Aubrey was on my right with the boys across from us.
"Hi, my name is Luna, and I'll be your waitress today. Can I get you guys started with something to drink?" the waitress asked. She was really pretty with her light brown hair and eyes that matched. She was slim and about five inches taller than me if I were to guess.
Oh, and Alex couldn't take his eyes off of her.
"I'll have a chocolate milkshake, please," I tell her with a small smile.
"I'll take a large water, thanks," Xavier says.
"Oh, ummmm... well I'll have a cookie dough shake with extra whipped cream!" I flinch at the volume of Aubrey's voice, but that's just me.
We all looked to Alex, but he was gaping like a fish. I gently kicked him under the table with my boot as he snapped out of his trance.
"Oh, I-I'll have um... uh you, wait no I mean umm... uh." He stutters like a love-struck puppy, and it's actually cute to see his normal, confident self all flustered over a girl.
"He'll just have a large Coke," Xavier tells the waitress while holding back a laugh. She nods her head and speed-walks away, yet I can't help but notice the pink tint making its way up her neck.
"Aww, does Awex have a wittle cwush?" Xavier coos sending Aubrey and me into a fit of giggles.
"Shut up, man." At this point, Alex's face is covered in a deep red blush.
"You should get her number, Al," I tell him. "If you don't, I'll get it for you. You obviously like her."
"Guys, just leave-," Alex starts to say but is quickly interrupted.
"Here are your drinks," Luna says shyly. She places our drinks in front of us, lingering a bit longer in front of Alex.
"Ready to order?" I order the chicken strip basket with honey mustard, because why not? Aubrey orders the same but with ranch, and Xavier orders the largest burger they offer. I'm not surprised, though, because he seems to eat like that all the time.
"And for you...?" she turns to Alex.
"Alex. My name is Alex," he tells her. I can't help but let out a small laugh, as does Aubrey.
"Umm, I was asking for your order, but nice to meet you... Alex," I didn't think his face could get any redder, but oh how happy I was to be proven wrong.
"He'll take a cheeseburger basket, no mustard," Xavier once again orders. She gives us a small smile and walks off, Alex watching her the whole time.
"If you keep acting like a fool, you'll never get her or her number. Now straighten up, close your mouth because you're gaping like a fish, and put on your big-boy pants. You got this," I tell him. This finally seems to work and he looks more determined than he was before. Let's just hope this newfound confidence manages to stay.
***
"Let's go, Romeo!" Aubrey yells from the door of the diner while tugging on her sleeve. I give her a pointed look and she just shrugs.
Alex is currently talking the girl's ear off, her laughs ringing through the diner. After we had eaten and paid for our meal, he gathered up his courage and managed to speak a coherent sentence to her. They haven't stopped talking since, and that was about 20 minutes ago.
He tells Luna goodbye and makes his way over to us.
"Really, Aubrey, was that necessary?" he whisper-yells at her looking quite embarrassed.
"Yep," she told him, making sure to pop the 'p', and walks out the door. Alex looks to Xavier and me for help, but we both give him a shrug and an amused smile before following Aubrey to the parking lot.
***
The moment I stepped out of my car when we got to the house, I heard Aubrey gasp so loud, I'm surprised there's any air left to breathe.
"This is your house?" she gapes. I look at the house yet again, and it still amazes me. Especially with the grass freshly mowed and the color change in the trees, it almost looks picturesque.
"Yeah, wanna go inside?" I ask the three of them. I don't wait for an answer before I walk up to the front door and unlock it with the key I had been given.
"Holy shit," I think Aubrey muttered. They were still looking around the foyer and giant staircases when I a heard voice from the living room.
"Munch, is that you?" I started walking towards the living room, hoping that it was only Nick. When we passed the staircases, I saw, however, that luck wasn't on my side. Nick, Finn, Cal, and father dearest were all here.
"I didn't know you were having friends over," Nick told me while looking behind me. His eyes turned cold and icy-blue once he saw Alex and Xavier. I could hear Aubrey slightly gasp as she saw the mere size of my family.
"We're going to hang out in the basement," I tell him. My eyes go blank as I look at my father, who has a disparaging look on his face.
"Why don't introduce us, Keeley?" my father asks, but it comes off more as a demand. He tightens his tie slightly and squares his shoulder even more than they were.
I gesture to each of my friends as I introduced them. "This is Alex, Xavier, and Aubrey. Guys, these are my brothers: Nick, Finn, and Callan. That's my father."
Finn waves to them as Cal gives a slight nod. Nick gives off not even a hint of what he's thinking, which leaves one person.
"No training today, Keeley," my father tells me. His face shows nothing, but I can hear the warning in his voice. I don't know how to read him right now. I thought he wanted me to have a "normal" life, but the way he is looking at my friends makes me think otherwise.
Before I could respond to him, I heard the jingle of dog tags coming down the hall. I saw my best boy trotting towards me. "Hi, Baby," I cooed to him. When he finally got to me, I squatted down to scratch his head.
"Guys, this is Gus, my best boy." When I stood back up to face them, their faces were all a bit different. Alex looked the tiniest bit scared, Xavier looked a little shocked, and Aubrey looked like she was about to burst with excitement.
"That's...um- that's a big dog." I could see the hesitancy in Xavier's tea-colored eyes as he slightly shifted away from Gus. I let out a small laugh before standing back up. "No, he's a good boy. Anyway, you want to see the basement?"
I gave a slight nod to my brothers and my father before leading the four of us, and Gus, downstairs.
The moment we step off the stairs, we are in the movie room that has bean bags and a large, soft, brown L-shaped couch with a huge TV for movies and stuff like that on the wall across from the stairs. The little staircase to the left leads to the other rooms in the basement, but the stairs we came down are behind the couch.
"So this is the movie room, which just so happens to have the most comfortable sofa I've ever sat on," I tell them. I hear their murmurs of approval which makes me happy, but I continue with the tour by walking up the small set of stairs.
"This is the game room. So there's a pool table, arcade games, all that good stuff. Feel free to play anything." When I look back at my friends, all of their faces are in disbelief, and to be honest, I am too. This house and everything in it was a lot for a girl who had close to nothing these past years.
"Keeley, this place is huge," Xavier breathes out while still looking around.
"You haven't seen anything yet. Look through the window over there," I tell him knowing for a fact that he will freak out over the gym. He rushes over to the window and immediately freezes.
"You can go in if you want," I laugh. The boys fight each other into the gym while Aubrey and I follow behind.
There was a huge fighting ring in the middle of the industrial-looking room with a variety of workout and training equipment scattered about. The floors were half wooden and half concrete, but everything about this room screamed tough.
"Do you mind if Xavier and I, ya know, ever come and train here?" I found it funny that Alex was asking, yet it sounded more like a plea than anything.
"Go ahead," I tell him with a small laugh. "Now, who wants to watch a horror movie?"
***
The movie had only about twenty minutes left, and I couldn't wait for it to be over. Normally these types of movies don't scare me, but this one, however, was freaking me out.
I was squished between Aubrey and Xavier, and Alex was on the other side of Aubs. I had a bowl of popcorn on my lap and I was pressed into Xavier's side, and Aubrey was doing the same to Alex.
The basement was completely dark aside from the glow of the screen, and eerie music was coming from the TV, signaling a scare was about to happen. We were all squished together waiting for the next move.
I felt a warm breath on the base of my neck before I even heard the voice, "Waiting for someone?"
I immediately jumped, successfully throwing popcorn everywhere, and moved to attack the unknown voice while the boys flew off the couch, and poor Aubrey to the floor. Someone may have screamed.
I reached behind me and grabbed the persons' shoulders, throwing them over my head to the floor in front of me. I was on them in an instant throwing a punch to the face and pinning them down while taking my pocket knife out and pressing it against the person's neck.
"Keeley! Hold on, it's just Ryder!" came a voice that sounded an awful lot like Donnie's.
The lights were flipped on, and sure enough, I was straddling Ryder and pressing a knife to his throat.
"The fuck, Ryder?" I yelled at him, still not removing the knife. I could see everyone was staring and I know for a fact I look like a madwoman.
"What's wrong, Angel?" his amused voice asked as a small smirk grew on his face.
I pressed my knife a little harder and a few beads of blood appeared on his skin. "I would not mess with me right now, Ryder Bennett." My voice came out raspy and strained, almost as if I hadn't had anything to drink for days.
His eyes started to widen and he started to squirm from the blade against his throat.
Before I could cause any further harm, I felt giant, muscly arms wrap around my body and pull me off of him. I was going to put up a fight, then I realized it was only Cal.
"Relax, Keels. It was just a prank," Sam tried to reason, although I couldn't care less about what he thought as of this moment.
"Like hell it was!" Aubrey yelled, clearly not happy. She had stood back up off the floor and was picking popcorn out of her hair. "I almost peed myself and I'm pretty sure that Alex did!" Everyone looked at Alex as his face turned red and his eyes went wide.
He looked embarrassed.
"You can put me down now, Callan," I tell him while struggling to get out of his strong grip.
He lets me down before telling me to give him the knife.
"Not happening," I tell him while shoving it in my bra where I knew for a fact none of them would dare venture. "Now, would someone please explain to me why the hell you let Ryder, of all people, try to scare me?"
My father surprisingly speaks next.
When did he get down here? When did all my brothers get down here?
"Yes, Samuel, Donovan, why did you send someone she barely knows to come down here and try to scare her- a highly trained soldier?" For once, I had to actually go along with what he was saying.
"Umm... we didn't really think she would slice his neck like that," Sam said looking at his shoes.
"Or punch his face," Donnie quietly added.
"Yeah, while on that topic, does somebody have something to wipe off the blood with?" Ryder asked, now standing up. Some blood was coming out of his nose, and his neck wasn't bleeding too bad, but still bad enough to where he probably needed to get it cleaned up now.
"Boys, leave Keeley and her friends alone and fix up this idiot who was stupid enough to try something that idiotic," my father said with an amused smile on his face. After everyone had gone back upstairs, I turned to look at where Alex, Xavier, and Aubrey were standing. They all looked a little surprised and maybe a little...impressed?
"Um, Keeley, what the hell just happened?" Xavier questioned while looking around like he expected a camera crew to pop out somewhere as if he'd just been Punk'd.
"Yeah, not that that wasn't totally badass or anything, but how exactly did you do that, and would you mind teaching me?" Aubrey asked.
"Just practice, and yes, I'll teach you," I told Aubs with a small smile.
"Well, I'm glad I'm your friend and not an enemy," Alex piped in. I let out another small laugh, I've been doing that a lot lately.
I'm really happy to see how none of them are actually judging me for what just happened. They would rather still be my friends.
"So TaterTot, wanna train sometime?"
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Hey guys! That concludes chapter 4! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
If you liked this chapter, please vote!
See you in the next chapter and Happy Reading!
Final Word Count: 6480