Paths Collide

Chapter 8

Last Friday was interesting. First I was on a date with Charlie, he kept calling me babe, baby, Joey. I wasn't his babe or baby. My name was Jo! Not Joey. Yeah, Charlie was a nice guy, and everything. He was good looking. Wouldn't say hot. But there was something off about him. Like he was trying to act like someone he wasn't. Almost like he was hiding something. I knew enough about this type of thing to realize it first hand.

I pulled into the parking lot after I went to lunch with my mom. When I first pulled in it was normal. Cars pulling into the lot to go to class. A few kids walking into the building. Then on the other end of the parking lot there was a huge crowd of people. They formed a circle, around something I couldn't tell what. So I drove closer.

"Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!" I heard from the crowd as I stepped out of my car. I walked quickly over to them.

"What the hell is going on?" I heard Sarah yelled when I got closer. She was running over to. It was a good question, because I wasn't sure. I pushed through the crowd until I was at the front, and saw a clear view of what was going on.

"No Charlie! Don't do this!" I heard Jackie yell when I got to the front. I saw Charlie on one side of the circle surrounded by the swimming team. He looked pissed. He had that I'm-going-to-kill-someone look on his face. Then on the other side was Reece, surrounded by Jake, Trent, Andy, Colton and a lot of girls. Unlike Charlie,  Reece looked totally calm. Like he wasn't aware of the totally pissed off guy on the other side.

"I'm going to knock your face in. Pretty boy." Charlie snarled at Reece and he walked over to him. Reece turned to face him, and smirked.

"Sorry, bro. I don't roll that way. I'm more of a ladies' man."

"What?"

"Well, you just called my face pretty and your a dude. So obviously your gay."

"No. I'm not."

"Whatever stops the tears."

"Shut up." Charlie growled at Reece.

"Alright. Let's have it your way." Reece's smug smirk turned into a death glare. Ten times worse than the look Charlie had. "Let's dance."

Charlie came at Reece fast. Throwing a punch at his face. Reece easily blocked it with the back of his forearm. Then Reece threw a punch to Charlie's stomach. Followed by a knee to the chest. Charlie doubled over in pain, but he recovered quickly. He kept throwing punches at Reece, and then Reece would block them or get out of the way, and throw another punch at Charlie.

"Don't kill him Reece!" Trent chuckled.

"I'll try not to, but no promises." Reece flashed Trent a smile.

Watching Charlie and Reece fight brought back memories, I hoped to forget.

'Be careful.' I said as the boy I loved walked out to fight his rival, nicknamed Lightening. The nickname came from how fast he was at ending fights.

'Of course, babe." Alex smiled at me. Then he walked out to the middle of the circle where Lightening was waiting. Almost immediately he landed an upper cut on Lightening's jaw. Lightening came back fast. Punching Alex in the nose, and gut. Within second blood streamed from his nose.

'Does pretty boy need five minute?' Lightening smiled darkly at him. Alex nodded and limped over to where I was, and sat down in the chair.

'Thought I told you to be careful.' I teased him.

'Honey, this is street fighting there's no such think as careful. You out of anyone should know that.' He grinned at me and got up.

'Before I knock your lights out,' Lightening grinned. 'I just want you to know,' he glanced at me. 'Your girl is hot, and soon she'll be mine.' This caught Alex's attention and he charged Lightening. Lightening expected it and punched Alex on the right cheek, knocking him out.

 "Stop!" I yelled as I blocking Charlie's fist as he was going to hit Reece. Now I was standing in the middle of them. My forearm clocking Charlie's punch, just as Reece had done a couple times before.

"Move Jo!" Reece growled.

"No!" I yelled back to him. "Don't you all have anything better to do?" I snarled at the by standers. Looking hurt they slowly moved away.

"What are you doing babe?" Charlie asked.

"Don't call me that!" I snapped. "Here." I pulled out a tissue out of my bag and handed it to him. I turned to look back at Reece, but he wasn't where he stood before. Instead he was walking away on the other end of the parking lot.

"Reece!" I yelled, sprinting after him. He didn't stop or slow down, just keep walking. "Reece," I jumped in front of him. "What's wrong?"

"Go away."

"No! What's wrong?"

"I said. Go. Away."

"Not until you tell me what's wrong."

"Shouldn't you be back there with your boyfriend?"

"Boyfriend? What boyfriend?"

"Don't play stupid with me! I saw you two Friday night."

"That's what this is about? Nothing happened between me and Charlie!"

"Yeah. Sure." He snarled.

"Nothing happened between us, Reece. You're crazy if you think-"

"Think what?" He challenged me.

"Think that I like Charlie. Just because you're jealous-"

"Jealous? I'm not jealous. You don't know me!"

"Actually I know you very well." I growled. "I've known and dealt with guys like you my whole life."

"Guys like me?"

"Yes. The typical mysterious bad boy. The kind of guy who doesn't give a damn about anything. Or at least that's how he acts. When in all reality he does." I couldn't stop myself. The words just came out like word vomit. "The kind of guy who loves his mom, would do anything for her. but his dad. Doesn't care if he would've gotten hit by a bus. Probably because he beat his mom, got drunk or something. He never wants to see him again because of it. Then fights to try to beat the imagines out of his mind. Doesn't date because he's scared that deep down he'll be just like his dad."

"Just go away, Jo!" He snarled. "And don't ever speak to me again!"

"Fine." I turned on my heels and back to my car. I thought in the time that I'd been here that I changed, but there was one thing that was the same. I'm still falling for the bad boys.