A single bullet // M.C ✔️

64

"Do you think these will make me look fat?"

"You're shitting me right?" I looked up from my rack of clothes and connected eyes with Kensie a few racks down holding up a pair of neon pink patterned trousers frowning at them making me frown back at her "you gotta be." I left the array of browns and creams tops and walked over to her inspecting the trousers.

"No," she tilted her head to the side before placing them in her basket shrugging "can always return if they do,"

"Kens even a bin bag wouldn't make you look fat shut up," I scoffed looking at the jeans behind her. They were all the same old same old, black, black, blue, brown, black... Nothing was jumping out. "I'm glad we did this," I spun and rested against the rack crossing my arms just letting her shuffle through the other ones near us.

"Me to, I'm glad Michael loosened the leash," she joked,

"Ha very funny," I rolled my eyes keeping a permanent smile on my face happy to just be joking around with my best friend; feels like it's been forever. "You're ridiculous,"

"And I just missed my friend, I hated how we argued," she whispered leaning forward so no one else was at risk of hearing our conversation "Michael told us how you pretend shot him the other day," I smiled at the memory of our date swaying slightly in place "I will admit that does take balls to aim at gun at Michael and pull the trigger,"

"Keep it down will you," I hissed leaning forward before grabbing her arm and leading her to a more secluded place "god I'm hungry,"

"No one's listening to us Nic, these are all the rubbish clothes," she pouted just resting her hand on the top of the metal

"There's cosy clothes over there," I pointed over my shoulder absentmindedly as I flicked through the skirts trying to find ones that got my attention.

"But I don't want to go alone," she whined making me laugh

"You're an adult you can go alone,"

"But I want my bestie..." she whined again before standing fully up and just walking over, that's the person that will lead before me. "So are you going to tell me or do I have to pry it out of you?" She smirked clothes long forgotten causing me to look over my shoulder at her,

"What you on about now?" It's one of the things I really appreciated about Kensie, I could always figure out what she was on about, and I definitely knew what she was on about; just didn't want to say it.

"You had sex!" I audibly gasped and spun around chucking the skirt her way ignoring the glare sent to me from the sales assistant.

"Shut up!" I yelled back turning bright red and hurrying over to her, one to pick up the skirt. Two to slap the shit out of her for announcing that to everyone. "We.... Didn't?" She raised her lips giving me a knowing look and crossed her arms just staring me down slowly blinking. "Fine we did," I broke sounding weak and letting my body fold a bit before standing up straight. "It was... an experience."

"I can see from your neck," She grabbed her basket before signalling she was going to checkout making me follow with my own supply. "Word of advice, a high pony and concealer does not hide them hickeys babes." My hand slapped up to cover the left side of my neck intimately hiding them from viewing eyes.

"Michael said they were hidden, and it's too hot to have my hair down."

"Michael just likes to see you parade them around to the world. Show people you're taken," she smiled softly at the sales assistant as they scanned her clothes and checked her out before moving onto my small haul.

"That he does." I muttered not wanting her to hear any more of the conversation she has.

"Coffee?"

"Of freaking course,"

"So were you going to tell me you had sex with the bad boy? Or leave me to guess?" She took a sip of her hot chocolate; the one thing that's never changed.

"Again it's not something I just announce Kensie," I stirred my coffee take a sip of the warm caffeinated drink letting it sooth my nerves glancing down at my new clothes "think Michael will like the outfits?"

"Since when do you give a fuck?" She laughed softly looking down at the collection of bags "I think he will yeah, he'll like anything you wear."

"Don't over exaggerate,"

"It's the truth," she pointed at my current clothes,

"Whoa I'm offended," I placed my hand over my heart taking another sip of liquid letting the smile creep back onto my face,

"Oh come off it, I know that shirts Michael's," I gave her a small knowing look before looking around the food court "everyone's always so busy here..." Kensie muttered looking at what I was watching.

A young happy couple just sitting around by the fountain talking, not one of them looked on edge or scared.

"Must be nice..." secretly I envied the people walking around without a care in the world. Without the feeling of death looming over their body everyday. The feeling of someone close is going to be next when you're running out of people to begin with.

"Nic I'm sure Michael will-,"

"Michael's only just started showing me he fully cares Kensie. I can't ask him to act like that in public," I broke a chunk off cookie of a big one and slid it into my mouth slowly chewing "if I'm being honest I don't know if I want it." It was the truth. From a young age I had never really been the lovey dovey teen or child constantly doing PDA on the bus or in public, I was always reserved. Letting only my partner see the real me and vice versa. It was a nice way to live.

"Trust me it's not all sunshine and rainbows," I placed my hand on top of Kensies on the table knowing what she meant. We were in this together, dragged into a life neither of us really wanted but live with for our loved ones, our partners.

She opened her mouth to elaborate what she meant before she froze and squinted looking behind me "Nic, don't make it obvious but there's a guy staring at us." She whispered leaning forward closer to the table pretending that she was adjusting our bags on the floor.

Confusion was clear on my face as I nodded once and stood up, "I'm going to grab more sugar, the taste is getting to me," I spoke at a normal tone turning around and instantly seeing who she meant as I walked over to the coffee station. I looked out the corner of my eye and just watched him as I grabbed way too many sachets of sugar before heading back to Kensie. "Who is that?" I hissed creeped out entirely.

"I don't know," she muttered already pulling her phone out "I saw him in the clothes shop earlier but he left, he must of been waiting for us to leave and followed us here."

"Message Luke," my hands started to shake as panic kicked in,

"What do you think I'm doing?" Her voice stayed calm and glancing at her you wouldn't notice the nerves filling her body, unless you knew her.

"Why don't we have a normal life?"

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