Kissing You

Kissing You (3)

Chapter 3

“And I wonder if I

ever cross your mind

for me it happens all the time”

-Need you now, Lady Antebellum

The days breezed past and I grew numb. The robbers spoke to me, and sometimes their voices were all that kept me from despairing. It was stupid, I know, but whenever I saw Will, back from a hunt or ready to join in their frequent card games, my heart would literally skip a beat and I’d feel less alone, somehow. There was something about the guy that intrigued me, and kept me from the edge of madness.

The caves weren’t a bad place to spend time in. It was cosily lit with numerous kerosene lamps, and it was cool, like the weather in spring. There was a simple wooden table in the middle of the small space, where the robbers ate their food or played cards. I was always given a share of everything they caught, be it meat or some wild mushrooms, which led me to think that I could have had worse. I had toilet breaks three times a day, always awkwardly accompanied by one of them. Of course I made them close their eyes when I peed!

But that still didn’t make it bearable.

I ached for home. But I didn’t know the way out of the caves anyway, and even if I got out, there was no way that I’d be able to navigate my way back to civilization.

There was only three days left before the deadline, and I had no idea what to do except wait. My wrists were raw and bleeding from being handcuffed so long.

One night, I was drifting in and out of sleep. The robbers were off in their separate caves, their rooms in a way. I could see faint flickers of light coming from Will’s private quarters which meant he was still up.

My eyes were closing. I could barely keep them open. Distantly, I saw a figure emerge from Will’s private quarters. The figure approached me and sudden adrenaline coursed through my veins. I scrambled to sit upright, and my eyes widened in shock. It was Will, and in his hand he held a box of first aid.

“What are you doing here?” I croaked, voice hoarse from lack of use.

“Helping you,” he murmured, bending down and handing me a glass of water. I drank it greedily, draining every drop down my parched throat. Will watched me, his blue-green eyes mysterious as the ocean.

“You’re gonna need this,” he said quietly, taking out some bandages and antiseptic from the box. “Those wounds get infected pretty easily around here.”

“Where did you get that from?” I asked, just as softly. He shrugged. “Stole it. Hospital security isn’t all that great.”

I didn’t really know quite what to say to that.

“Thanks,” I said gratefully, wincing a little as he dabbed some cream gently onto the vicious scores. The corners of his lips pulled up into a small smile as he continued dabbing. “It’s okay. The merchandise has to be kept in good condition, right?” He joked.

“That’s true,” I said, muffling a laugh and playing along. We fell into a comfortable silence as he carefully wrapped a bandage around my wrists. I sighed. He’d undoubtedly leave after ‘keeping the merchandise in good condition.’

“Why are you sighing?” he asked softly, eyes down on my wrists. He’d secured the bandages but his thumb rubbed soothing circles into my palms. I shrugged, sincerely hoping that my eyes didn’t betray the feelings I had for him.

“Nothing,” I said evasively. He looked at me so thoroughly I felt undressed.

“Rest well,” he told me quietly. He stood up and left, taking the first aid box with him.

The whole of the next day, Will did not emerge, not even to eat. I could sense the gang’s rising concern, only they covered it up with a hell lot of laughs and too many card games.

I was still chained to the rock, being bored. Chester was shouting and cursing- apparently he’d lost half of his dinner to a stupid ace.

“Lassie!” someone shouted. My head shot up instinctively. My eyes turned wary when I saw Pete, one of the tall, lanky ones, approaching me, a big grin on his face. He took off my cuffs and gripped my shoulder tightly, steering me to the table. He raised an eyebrow at the bandages on my hand but didn’t say a word.

The other robbers, on the other hand, were full of words to say.

“Pete!” Chester said, appalled. “What are you doing, uncuffing the lassie like that?” “Yeah, what are you doing?” demanded Davis. “Boss specifically said to leave her there till we got the money!” Pete shrugged.

“Boss ain’t here, innee’? Besides, ‘s just a card game. The little lass won’t be able escape with all of us here.” The other thugs looked convinced at his logic (which I rolled my eyes at) and they invited me to sit down with them.

“Know how to play blackjack?” One of them- Bennett, that was his name-, asked me kindly. I nodded.

“Sure. Play it all the time at home.” This was a complete lie, but hey, I knew how to play.

Davis at the head of the table began handing out the cards. I flipped mine over, and grinned. This was my lucky day.

“Blackjack,” I announced, spreading my cards on the table. My smile was as dazzling as the sun. The other robber’s eyes bulged in their sockets.

“Awesome,” whispered Doug, awestruck.

Davis collected all the cards again and shuffled them furiously. All the time, he glared at me, as if he was warning me not to get another blackjack or he’d rip my head off.

He handed out the cards again. I looked at mine. An ace and the 2 of spades. Davis went in a clockwise motion, asking who needed more cards. When it came to my turn, I took one. A four of diamonds. I shrugged, took one more. The 6 of clubs. So far I had a total of 13. I reached out for another one, hoping it wasn’t a 10…

It wasn’t. It was the 6 of spades.

“Dude,” Doug whispered again. “The lassie’s got 5 cards and she still hasn’t died.”

It was silence for a moment. Then Chester laid his cards on the table. “I’m busted.” I counted quickly- he’d gotten 23. Davis’s hand twitched like he longed to lob something at me. I grinned coolly back at him.

We played non-stop till the cards were sick of us. I lost my winning streak halfway through everything and started losing. It made me mad, but the bright side was that I was no longer in danger of having something thrown at my head by Davis.

Chester was drunk with success. He stood up and did a ridiculous victory jig when he won 3 times in a row, and then (in a moment of impulse) ran over to Will’s private quarters and shook the poor guy out of bed. He dragged Will to the table and pushed him down. “Play with us, Boss!”

Will ran a hand through his tousled blonde hair. “Chester, do not wake me up like that next time,” he grumbled, but he grinned good-naturedly. His oceanic eyes met my ordinary hazel ones from across the table, and he gave me a small smile. My heart jumped, and I smiled back.

“Deal out the cards,” Will told Davis, stifling a yawn. Davis did, and I took mine without hesitation. My face spread into a wide grin.

I was so looking forward to this.

~

The day passed in a breeze. Despite Pete’s earlier claim that I’d only play one game, I had to have played more than a hundred already. And I didn’t feel like escaping, through the haze in my brain. I just kept playing and playing and playing… Oh shit.

And I honestly found the robbers fun. And Will hot.

Dear God.

A/N Hello peeps!

I'm sorry if this is a bit short, but its only a filler. Don't worry, there will be loads more exciting stuff coming up soon! Please don't abandon this story!! 

Feel free to vote, comment and fan. And I totally accept criticism. (:

-Lots of love, Mel.