The Fast Life

Chapter 10

(Deckard's POV) (London, England)

(Flashback)

"Deckard! Deckard!" my six-year-old brother yelled.

I rush to my feet as I look across the yard. Three toad looking boys crowd him while throwing punches. Owen's crouched into a fetal position as he covers his head. I run over there as I pick up some random kid's baseball bat. I rush up to the overgrown creatures and hit the first boy upside the head. The bloke dropped to the group instantly unmoving, but sadly still breathing.

The other boys pause in shock. They look at their friend splayed out next to my whimpering brother. Their faces turn beet red as they look at me with murderous eyes. "Hey princess, what was that for?" The second oldest boy questioned. "That's for beating my brother, and this is for interrupting my day!" I exclaim as I swing the bat. One by one all three boys were out cold, I even gave em a good hard kick; for good measure.

I walk over to Owen and kneel next to him. "Owen...It's alright you're safe now." I comfort. Owen slowly loosens from his balled-up state. He looks at me with tears filling his eyes. I'm taken by surprise as he suddenly hugs me. "Thank you, for always being there for me." He ever so slightly grins full of gratitude. "Of course, brother. I will always be there to get you out of trouble, even if you make me want to kick your arse half the time." I state.

"Hey! It's not my fault you're annoying!" Owen defends. "Really? You want to say that a little louder. To my face perhaps." I warn. "You're an annoying arse-hole!" He yells. My mischievous smile drops from my face making Owen's eyes widen. Owen darts off running down the street in the direction of our house.

"Hey! Come back here ya bugger!" I yell and run after Owen.

(London, England; St. Paul's Cathedral) (Deckard's POV)

I walk around the ethereal halls of the cathedral. Gold shines brightly on every inch of the church. My mum and I would come here every Sunday for Mass. But now that she's wanted, we aren't able to go as often as I'd like. I sit in one of the pews as I watch the tourists. It's easy to spot those who aren't native to England. Especially since the tourists in front of me gawk and stare at their surroundings. They pose for unflattering pictures as they pass through the halls.

I have yet to meet a foreigner who genuinely cares about the history and artistic effort in front of them. It took 35 years to create such a meaningful place, while also being destroyed and rebuilt four times. The fourth build is the one I'm sitting in today. But most people skip over the pained effort to gawk at how pretty it is. Its history is brushed over by many foreigners' day in and day out.

But there is one foreigner who is looking past the façade, and paying attention to the heart of the church. Three pews in front of me a petite sized woman sits. Her hair is curled and pinned into a bun. She looks very poise in this moment, but her casual confidence juxtaposes her entire demeanor. I watch as she gets up to say a prayer at the altar. She gets up from the altar, bowing her head ever so slightly. As she turned around she looked up to catch me staring. She grinned as she walked teasingly in my direction. At that moment, I knew that I wanted her to be my entire world.

(Flashback End)

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(Deckard's POV)

We drove in silence as I weaved in and out of traffic. I just got a call from the hospital that Jai is finally out of surgery. They operated on her for 12 hours straight, even with her coding four times on the table. I wasn't sure she would make it. I would've stayed if my mum kept the kids a few hours longer. She all but cursed me out to get me out of the hospital. I didn't know what to tell the kids when I finally arrived home. But I knew there was a slim chance of her making it, so I told them anyway.