Handcuffs

Chapter Eleven - Stars

So I was planning on putting more detail into Ashley and Hayes' relationship, but I ship Ashley and Ryder too much to write it. Like, honestly. So this chapter is short, and Ashley and Hayes' relationship will probably end in the next chapter. 

But anyway, enjoy!

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Things had been tense in the Halley household since I had gone on my date with Hayes. It almost seemed as if they were all trying to hide something from me, but I knew that couldn’t be the case. Or at least, I hoped so. I hoped they trusted me with their secrets, but something told me there were some secrets about the Halley boys that I would just never know.

It was about two weeks since my date with Hayes, and the day before Thanksgiving break, when the fights started.

Ryder was terrifying when he fought, and he had been getting increasingly agitated. It was only a matter of time until he blew up. Part of me just didn’t expect him to blow up at Hayes. They seemed to almost hate each other, of course, but it was still completely a shock to me when Kade came running up to me, saying that Ryder was fighting with Hayes and that I was the only one who could stop it. I was small and weak, and both boys were huge compared to me - there was no possible way I could stop it.

“Ash, please, I know you can. You just have to try,” Kade begged, a desperate look in his eye, and I guessed that was what convinced me. For as long as I had known him, Kade had never looked desperate. He always had everything under control.

I followed him quickly through the hallways, until finally the chants of, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” reached my ears. Kade shoved his way through the circle that had surrounded the two boys, and tugged me along with him closely. The sight in front of me absolutely terrified me.

Ryder was holding back.

He had Hayes pinned to the wall of lockers, and he was beating on him viciously, and I knew he had to be holding back because Hayes was conscious. Ryder wanted him to feel every bit of pain that every blow caused.

Ryder was torturing him.

Hayes’ face was bloodied, his eye swelling up slightly, and his lip was split.

“Stop!” I screamed, unconscious of my actions as I raced toward Ryder and grabbed his arm. Despite the dangers to myself, I did it without hesitation, and that scared me.

Not because I did it to save Hayes.

But because I did it so Ryder wouldn’t have a murder on his hands.

He froze instantly as soon as my hands wrapped around his bicep, but he refused to let Hayes fall to the floor. Which he would do, undoubtedly, because he was struggling to hold his head up. There was no way he’d be able to support his entire body.

My fingers began stroking small circles on Ryder’s bicep, in an attempt to calm him down. He relaxed slowly, until he wasn’t holding Hayes with any pressure, his grip only holding loosely onto his collar. Tugging his arm away, I was just barely able to catch Hayes from slumping to the floor - I was struggling to hold him up. My eyes searched the crowd until I landed on a pissed off looking Hunter and Diesel, though their glares were trained on Hayes, and not Ryder like I expected them to be.

With labored breathing, I called out to both of them, “Hunter? Diesel? Could you take Hayes to the nurse, please?” I asked.

A frown spread across my lips as they didn’t react immediately, but at the struggling and pleading look on my face, Hunter sighed and nudged his brother. Hunter nodded towards me and mumbled something, but I couldn’t quite make out what it was. I only faintly heard something like, “She doesn’t know,” but I was too focused on Ryder’s once again tensed form beside me to really pay much attention.