Heart of a Ranger ((DO NOT READ GOING UNDER MAJOR EDITING))

5.

Okay, so I lied. This update took awhile because my life literally exploded in my face and then I had a serious case of writers block, but now my life is less chaotic and now my writers block is gone! Also, I want to thank all of you so much for reading this! I never imagined that one of my stories would get past 100 reads, but this one has surpassed 400! You guys have no idea how much that means to me :)

Now enough with my chatter, here is the chapter you guys have been waiting for.

I woke up the next morning feeling really sore and very drained. When I tried getting out of bed, my muscles ached and my arms felt like they were on fire. I was very puzzled. I didn't work that hard at training yesterday, did I?

I slowly got up, grabbed a change of clothes, and then made my way to my bathroom. I flicked on the lights and one look in the mirror reminded me of why I was so sore.

Bruises covered my arms and when I lifted up my shirt, I saw that the lower half of my torso was also covered in bruises. I looked up into the mirror and not only was a black eye forming over my left eye, but there was also a gash on my forehead. I groned a little and sighed, memories of last night starting to fill my head. After I had stopped texting Justin last night and gone down to do whatever my dad had wanted, one of my dad's friends, who was clearly drunk, pushed me up against the wall in the living room. I tried pushing him off, but his grip was hard and he punched me several times, keeping me against the wall. His hands started to fumble with the button of my jeans and at that point, something inside me snapped and I was able to flip him on to the ground. The friend was shocked, but it didn't last long. As I tried retreating, he grabbed my ankle and pulled me down, my head hitting the edge of coffee table on my way down. I assumed I blacked out from the hit, because the next thing I knew, I had woken up on the sofa with both my jeans and underweat missing.

I hadn't cried so much in life, not even when my mom had died.

I cringed a little at the memories and shoved them toward the back of my mind. I didn't need to think about that right now, I just needed to get ready for school and try to focus on the day ahead. I headed back out to my bedroom and swapped out the shirt I had initially grabbed for my long sleeve crimson shirt that I knew would cover my bruises and grabbed my grey beanie and morpher bracelet on the way back to the bathroom.

Once I had changed into my clothes and fixed my hair, I grabbed the make up that I rarely ever used and focused on using the foundation to cover up the black eye I had. Unfortunately, no amount of cosmetics in the world could cover up the black eye, but it wasn't completely noticeable, so I just left it at that. I put on my beanie, adjusted it so that it covered the gash, and then finally exited my bathroom. I slipped on my old Chuck Taylors and grabbed my school bag and phone before exiting my room out of the window. I didn't exactly like the idea of going downstairs, so I decided climbing down my tree might be a good idea.

I shut the window behind me and slowly climbed down the tree, being careful of my bruised body. Once I was a safe distance above the ground, I jumped down and landed on the balls of my feet. I readjusted the strap of my bag and then walked out to the front of my house where a familiar blue Camero waited. I smiled and shook my head, walking up to Camero. I see Justin lean over and look out the passenger window, smiling his signiature smile. "Hey Karen," he said. "Need a lift?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I guess I could use a lift," I say.

Justin smiled more and leaned over, opening up the passenger side door for me. I slide into the car and close the door behind me. "Thanks for the ride," I say, looking over at Justin.

Justin glanced over at me as he drove away. "You're welcome," he says. "And I have no problem giving you a ride."

I smiled and nod. "Still, thank you."