ɢʜᴏꜱᴛꜱ | ᴅ. ɢʀᴀʏꜱᴏɴ

chapter 7

07. arguments

•—✽—✽—✽—•

the next day

PAIGE MET UP WITH DICK AT A GAS STATION after she called to ask where he was. He told her about how he, Rachel, and his friends — Hank and Dawn — were attacked last night and Dawn ended up in the hospital with a coma. Now he was out looking for Rachel who had been taken by the attackers.

When she arrived, she noticed the fire truck as well as the cop cars that surrounded the small gas station. She also noticed Dick's car parked. Parking behind it, she got out looking for the man. "Hey, you're not supposed to be here," an officer said as he approached her.

Without saying anything, she pulled out her badge as the man quickly recoiled. "Sorry, Detective." Rolling her eyes, she walked past the man in annoyance.

"Asshat," she muttered.

Dick was examining the gaping hole in the bathroom wall that had burnt edges around it. Suddenly, he felt someone next to him. "So, you lost the kid?"

"I wouldn't exactly put it like that," he defended before fully looking towards her. His gaze softened as concern took over. "What happened to you?" he asked as he looked over the bruises on the visible parts of her skin. She lifted up her sweatshirt enough to show the bandage that was wrapped around her stomach before sighing.

"You're mystery attackers got to me first. I almost barely made it out of my apartment alive," she explained, not mentioning the incident from a couple of nights ago that also left her bruised in a lot of places.

"Why'd they go after you? It was Rachel they wanted. She wasn't with you," Dick asked trying to piece together whatever happened in the past twenty-four hours.

"Yeah, but guess who knew where you would be? Me. They tried to get me to spill but I wouldn't and I almost just fucking died cause of it," she spat, walking away from him.

Scoffing, he followed behind her. "You're saying that like it's my fault. I'm not the one to blame."

"You're not. But I was just almost murdered and I'm covered in my own fucking blood and I haven't been able to shower it off. So sorry if I'm not the most approachable person right now." Sighing, she closed her eyes, dragging her hands down her face. She didn't mean to yell at him. The woman had so much going on at once and she didn't know how to handle any of it. "You can check whatever the fuck this is out. I'm gonna go wait in my car."

"Paige, wait..." he said causing her to stop and turn towards him. "I'm sorry I got you hurt."

"Don't be. I could've ratted you out and have been perfectly fine without a scratch, but what's the fun in that?" she shrugged as she walked towards her car.

✄ ✄ ✄

"I never knew you were into roller skating," Paige said as the two walked into the building. The place was darkly lit with a purple LED as well as strobe lights and every neon color imaginable that glowed from the arcade games. "Let me rephrase that, I didn't know you were into fun." Dick gave her a side eye before walking ahead, his eyes trained in front of him as she forced herself to follow.

"Excuse me," he said to a woman with bright magenta colored hair. "Hey." Once she realized that she was being talked to, she turned to face him. "I gotta talk to you."