The Aces

4 - Adrenaline Rush

Lucie Blanc

I softly groan as I open my eyes, looking around the unfamiliar bedroom. The walls are painted a white which is almost gray.

The room is basically empty, only consisting a bed, closet, bathroom, and a leather sofa with a huge tv. It did not look as if anyone lived in it.

"Morning." The familiar husky voice greets me. "Hi." I greet back as Kai walks towards me, sitting on the edge of the bed.

He's wearing sweatpants and a black and red T-shirt that just perfectly hugs his muscles. "How are you feeling?" he asks. I look into his ocean eyes as I internally wish that he wouldn't ever stop talking. His voice was addicting. Like music to my ears.

"Okay." I simply reply as a smirk creeps up his lips. It's the first time I see him do anything close to a smile and fuck is it the hottest thing I've ever seen a male do.

"He didn't stab you properly. It's just a graze," Kai says as he runs his hand across his long muscular torso. "Fucking pussy. Try to get up," he says and I shyly stand up, immediately wincing. Before I can fall, I feel Kai's fingers wrap around my waist. He holds onto my waist as he leads me out of the room.

"Yo, boss! She your girlfriend?" Mark asks as he sits on the sofa, his hands over the shoulders of his girlfriend, Hannah.

"Friend." He corrects as he motions for me to sit down. "Hey. I'm Mark." the blonde introduces himself as I smile. "Hi, I'm Lucie." I say, sitting on the couch beside Hannah.

"Helloo! I'm Hannah," she greets. She has beautiful long pink hair and a pair of forest eyes. "I love your sweatshirt," Hannah compliments as I blush. "Thanks. I love your eyes. They're really pretty." I reciprocate.

Before I know it, a few hours have passed, and to say the least, Hannah and I just click. We even exchange numbers and promise to meet up sometime.

"And ever since then, I have been whipped for NCT," Hannah says, ranting about her favorite boy band to me. I find it quite ironic that her boyfriend just happens to be named Mark.

I feel the presence of someone behind me causing me to look back and find Kai staring at me with a cigarette in his hand. "C'mon," he says, and I nod.

We go outside. He walks to his car, and I follow him. He opens the passenger seat for me, and I sit inside, blushing. We wear our seatbelts before taking off. "Thank you," I start as I fumble with my hoodie strings. "For what?" Kai asks, not removing his gaze from the road.

"For saving me," I say shyly. "....cool," Kai says, not knowing how to reply to that.

~

"What's up with the long expression?" Jake asks as he munches on a packet of gummies. "I'm just tired of school," I say as I lean my head on the wall next to the staircase. "Then... wanna skip?" Jake asks as I look at him. "I thought you were a straight-A student," I say. "So what?"

...

The whole day, we go to an arcade, amusement park, and a fast food place. It feels like whenever I'm with Jake, hours fly by without me even realizing it. Right now, we're sucking on our respective lollipops as we sit on a bridge, our legs dangling in the air.

"So? Did you have fun?" Jake asks. "A lot," I say, smiling. "Hey... I wanna ask you something," Jake says as he fiddles with his fingers. "Yeah?" I reply. "Are you like dating the leader of Aces...?" Jake asks nervously and I blush. "N-no, we're just friends," I stutter out. As much as I'm happy that I finally befriended him, I might have the tiniest bit of a crush on him. "Oh. Okay..." Jake replies awkwardly.

~

I lay on my bedroom floor, Wuzzy clutched tightly in my hands as I listen to light music coming out of the speakers. Just as I'm about to fall asleep, someone barges into my room, startling me.

"Mom! What's up?" I let out as I rub my tired eyes. "Your friends are here. They said they want to talk about something urgent," my mom says with a spatula in her hands, dripping with cinnamon syrup. "Who?" I ask because the last time I checked, I didn't have any friends.

I look down from my window, and my eyes immediately widen. It's Mia. She's alone with one of her lackeys, which is kinda suspicious. "Fuck," I mutter under my breath.

"What was that?" my mom asks as I turn around to face her, sweat forming on my forehead. "I can't go," I say as my mom frowns. "Why not?" she asks. "Um, I'm tired..." I lie as my mom rolls her eyes. "You can't just leave your friends like that. Go and talk to them for a minute at least. It's not like they're bullies or something," my mom says. Oh mom, they are, I think before sighing. "Fine," I say, slipping into some slippers and going down.

God, pray for me, I think as I leave my house, immediately meeting those familiar vicious eyes. "Heyy," Mia says, a little too sweetly. "Come! Let's have something to drink," Mia says, clicking her tongue as she links her arm with mine, dragging me with her in an unsuspecting way.

I let out a wince as I'm thrown against the wall. "What's up, bitch? I heard you're being a little slut to the leader of Aces," Mia says, scoffing as her boyfriend and his friends laugh behind her. "You really went big, huh?" She huffs, harshly grabbing my hair and pushing me to the ground.

"How much you got?" She asks, bending to my level as she searches my hoodie. "Nothing?" She says in annoyance.

"Leave me alone," I say, trying to be brave for once in my pathetic life. "No thanks! Oh, and the next time we meet, make sure to get your dollars, okay? 'Cause if you don't, I'll have no choice but to do this," Mia says as she kicks me in the ribs.

"S-stop," I say as I feel a throbbing sensation in my ribs. "Will you get the dollars next time?" Mis asks as she wipes her sneakers with her hands. At that moment, my stomach is twisting and turning, and I feel my whole body heating up. I feel angry. Angry at myself for letting these stupid bullies walk all over me.

Invisible fire seethes through my hazel eyes as I clutch my hands tightly, causing my nails to dig into my skin, making blood draw. "I didn't hear you saying yes, you whore," Mia asks as she takes a puff of her cigarette, blowing it out in my face. "Leave me alone," I say, clenching my teeth. "Huh?! What did you just say? I'm gonna fucking kill you," Mia lets out as she slaps me.

"You think you can talk back to me-" I cut her off by landing a harsh slap on her left cheek.

The loser has punched her.

My punch is weak yet powerful. "I said leave me the fuck alone!" I cry out as I punch Mia in the same spot again.

The next thing I know, I'm on top of her, punching her face. I can't see or hear my surroundings as flashbacks of all the times Mia and her group harassed me come to mind. Everyone is pushed away until police sirens are heard, and now, I'm being pulled off the bloodied body of Mia.

I finally come to my senses, and it hits me hard. Regret fills my system as tears form in my eyes. Did I do that? Why did I feel good? I feel my heart beating loudly in a way foreign to me. Adrenaline rush? Do I like the feeling?

After a blink of an eye, I find myself in the police station, Mia sitting beside me with her whole body bruised. I feel a stinging sensation everywhere on my body because as much as I hit Mia, I got hit less but much harder. I was lucky that Mia slipped and fell, giving me a chance to hit her

I can hear my mom screaming at the police officer how I didn't mean it. Oh, I did. I fucking enjoyed it. The police officer sighs as he begins, "Since it's the first time she has ever done anything illegal, we will let her go with a warning," he says, standing up. "Are you serious?! That bitch beat me up and started a fight with me for no reason, and you'll let her go?! What if she hits me again?!" Mia screams as she slams her fists on the table, standing up.