the strangers series. (mgk ; machine gun kelly)

21 • 𝖑𝖔𝖘𝖙

A/N: I'm all up in my feels rn and I hope u guys are too, by the end of this chapter ♡

"What do you mean they left two hours ago?"
I felt my anger start to switch gears and turn into a little bit of panic and fear as I registered Rook's words. I drilled a hole into the side of Rook's equally worried face, his nervousness evident in the tone of his voice,
"I don't know man, she said she needed to go to the store to pick some shit up and so-"
I rolled my eyes, startin' to feel a migraine building itself up in the front of my head. I sighed through gritted teeth as I sent daggers his way,
"And so you let them take one of the vehicles, nice."
I closed the sliding glass door behind me shut before I stepped further into the kitchen, Slim's, Rook's and everyone elses' wary eyes now trained on me. I knew I must look like a grenade, menacing and ready to explode, but I couldn't fuckin' help it. First havin' to deal with Nick's fucking bullshit and now this did nothing to help bring down my anger.
I rubbed either side of my temples with my fingers, slamming the now-empty beer bottle that was in my grip onto the granite countertop of the breakfast bar with mild anger and annoyance. The loud sound of the glass meeting the stone took the men by surprise but I didn't give a fuck, my hawk eyes travelin' over each and every one of their faces,
"Why didn't any of you come out and tell me this shit? I've been out there for hours,"
The sound of Slim clearing his throat caught my attention, my eyes immediately snapping over to Slim who was leaning against the steel doors of the fridge. He froze up for a second as he registered my full attention on him before he continued on, his eyes flickering over to Rook before meeting my stare,
"Well, we didn't wanna bother you- you seemed pretty pissed so if one of us went out there and told you the girls might've ran off with one of our suv's, well..."
He didnt have to finish the sentence for me to figure out where he was goin' with all this. He was hinting at the fact that I probably would've bitten the head off the messenger of the news, and honestly, I probably fuckin' would've. I sighed again for what seemed the millionth time, all the stress from Nick and now from Lola and Lillian startin' to pile up on one another.
I rubbed the growing scruff on my chin as I racked my brain for any thought or reason as to why they'd run off like that. It didn't seem like the both of them to scam us like that, knowin' very well that deceiving us wouldn't leave them in a good place, so it had to be somethin' else.
Besides, I trust Lillian and I knew the woman wouldn't do somethin' like that on purpose- she loved me, as hard as that was to believe, but I had to believe it.
If I didn't, i'd probably lose my shit and that's not what everyone, including me, needed right now. I felt my mind start to race as Baze sighed deeply, takin' a small sip from his drink before he met my hard stare with one of his own,
"Maybe we're overthinkin' this- they're probably just bein' girls and taking their sweet ass time shopping."
That was a possibility but it was still unnerving, even for me. I exchanged a quick, incredulous stare with Slim and Rook before I dug my hand into my jeans' pocket, feeling the smooth surface of my phone. Slim and Rook started muttering to each other as I whipped it out, all of their voices melding away as I unlocked it and started typing a message to Lillian,

You ok??

I bit my lip as I watched the message slide up to the empty white space of the conversation before a red exclamation mark appeared.
What the fuck...
My eyebrows involuntarily furrowed together as I kept resending the message but to no avail- the red exclamation mark appeared each and every time. I opened my mouth to make a remark about it, figuring it was just her phone's bad service, but was cut off from the noise of the front door openin'. As if on cue, all of the conversation in the kitchen came to a halt as we honed in on the footsteps approaching us through the living room.
I felt my heart beat start to ease up a bit as Lola and Lillian walked in, bags of In-N-Out and drinks in cup holders, in their hands. I don't know what it was but it was as if seeing her familiar blue-green eyes and comforting face was enough for me to push out the intense and angry thoughts that had been previously runnin' through my head.
I was so wrapped up on hatin' the man that tried to take her from me that I forgot to shut the fuck up and appreciate the fact that she was still here with me- that she was still mine. I felt a small smile grow on my lips as I watched her every move with keen eyes.
She kept hers down at all times, refusing to speak up or look at anyone in the eye, and that caught my attention. I stopped admirin' her as I walked up from behind her, completely ignoring Lola and the rest of them already digging into the bags, the boys' hungry eyes welcoming the sight of the burgers and fries.
I wrapped an arm around her waist which caused her to jump, a slight gasp escapin' her lips. I raised an eyebrow down at her as she glanced up at me, the blank expression on her face makin' alarms ring my head,
"Hey, you okay?"
All I got as an answer was a nod of her head as she stared down at the burger that Lola slid her way, her green eyes glancing up from Lillian to me. There was a certain look in 'em and I immediately knew somethin' was wrong. I earned a couple of glances from the boys as they passed us by but I ignored them, starin' down at the top of the head of the woman that I truly cared for- with all my heart.
Knowin' there was something wrong unnerved me and I needed to know what it was, before I lost my mind from being clueless. But even I knew that now wasn't the time or the place to keep buggin' her about it so I let it be, allowing Lillian to escape my grasp. She grabbed her burger and drink and quickly followed the boys into the living room, leaving just Lola and I in awkward silence.
I let the unspoken words and thoughts hang between us as I kept my firm stare on her the whole time. She cleared her throat as she placed the last burger and serving of fries, my food, in front of me on the granite countertop of the island.
She flashed a fake smile as she also handed me my ice cold drink, her eyes avoiding mine,
"Here ya go,"
I didn't make a move to grab the drink out of her outstretched hands which drove her to finally look up at me, the guilt clearly written all over her face. I felt my curiosity start to eat me up inside, slowly as ever, until I just had to ask her.
My patience was runnin' fairly thin and my big ass mouth just couldn't keep quiet any longer,
"Where the fuck did you guys go? What happened to her?"
I wasn't one to get nervous or jump to conclusions but by the way she evaded my stare once I spoke the questions I had been dyin' to ask, I felt as if something huge happened- something that could've possibly changed her.
Lola sighed as she set the drink down in front of me, picking up her own food with semi-shaky hands as she replied with an equally shaky voice,
"No where important, okay? Just eat the food and-"
I blocked her way with my body as she tried slipping past me, our drastic height difference makin' it easier for me to keep her back. She gasped sharply before backing up, her wide, green eyes finally meeting mine as we stared at each other. By the way she looked up at me with uncertainty in her eyes, I could tell they went somewhere that was important, contrary to what Lola had claimed.
I clenched my jaw as I tried to keep my voice low and contained without scarin' her,
"Lola, cut the bullshit and just tell me."
Her green eyes flickered down to my chest as she stuttered over her own words, my sudden action obviously taking her by surprise,
"Kells, please, just..."
Her hesitation to tell me the truth started to plant a seed of doubt and suspicion in my head- this was just all two weird and sketchy. I rolled my eyes as I crossed my arms against my chest, makin' Lola back up some more so that she could meet my stare without havin' to crane her neck.
I trained my eyes on her semi-blank face, a million and one questions barging into my head all at once,
"Why didn't you guys at least call or text one of us? And why's her phone not workin'?"
I could tell she was getting tired of my nosy ass but I couldn't help it- I wanted to get to the bottom of things before I drove myself crazy from being left in the dark.
Lola flipped her blonde hair over her shoulders as she gave up on the idea of ever gettin' past me, leaning up against the granite island as she started in on her fries right then 'n there,
"My phone died and we're pretty sure her dad cut her phone line off or somethin'."
That would explain why the message wouldn't go through and why she was visibly distant with me, but there was still somethin' off from all of this. Despite my sneaking suspicion, I knew just the mention of her father made her distant like that, understandably, so it would be more sensible to think that she was actin' this way because of his dumb ass.
I just felt so bad for her- I felt irritated that I couldn't make her feel better, couldn't make her forget about all the bad shit in her life so that she could enjoy herself for once. I sighed, runnin' my fingers through my hair as I stood my ground, staring at Lola eating her food. Despite her feeding me this new info, I was still disappointed with it- I knew there was still more to the story than what met the eye.
There was definitely more than she was lettin' on and I felt the urge to know every single detail. Lola kept her green, submissive eyes down on her food until she couldn't take the awkward silence between us. As if on cue, she rolled her eyes and huffed aggressively, her mild annoyance towards me starting to show the longer she spoke,
"If you wanna know so badly, just talk to her, herself. It's not my story to tell."
Her scared, doe-like eyes from before were now completely replaced with a hard, steely glare similar to mine, as if rethinking about the nights' events brought back emotions she wished she could forget.
I opened my mouth to retort, to say somethin' along the lines of "Stop bein' an uptight bitch." until I heard quiet footsteps approaching us from the living room. They were somehow audible, even from the loud chatter of the men in the other room, but the familiarity of the rhythmic noise was what caught my full attention.
I glanced behind my shoulder at the same time Lola did, my stare immediately landing on Lillian. I felt my furrowed eyebrows relax and my hard stare soften to a gaze as she made eye contact with me. Her miserable eyes flickered over to her best friend beside me before landin' back on me.
It was honestly as intense as it sounds. I felt my tense muscles start to relax as she managed to flash a small smile, a smile that was so filled with pain and longing that it almost pained me to keep looking at it. Both Lola and I smiled back at her, our eyes intently watching her every move as she slipped past us and threw the crumpled burger-wrapper in the trash.
She did all of this quietly, nothing but a small sigh comin' out of her. Not a single word escaped her beautiful lips, not even when she placed the remainder of her fries next to Lola's on the countertop.
The anger in Lola's eyes had diminished once they had seen her best friend, just leaving a sad and sympathetic look in 'em. Lilly flashed another small smile at Lola as her friend thanked her for the extra fries, not even botherin' to stick around after that. I felt the sudden urge to follow her, to make sure she was really okay, to comfort her until she felt capable of tellin' me what's on her mind.
All I wanted was for the woman to feel happy again, believe it or not. I didn't think twice about my decision as I made a move to follow Lillian out of the kitchen, Lola's abrupt voice from behind me snappin' me right out of my daze,
"Kells, your food-"
I muttered loud enough for her to hear as I kept my eyes trained on Lillian's receding back, making her way towards the foyer,
"Fuck the food."
I felt my friends' eyes on me as I passed them by, my full attention on the woman fleeing me instead of them.  My heart and mind started to race faster than my legs as I tried to keep pace with her up the stairs, the sound of her echoing footsteps being the only thing that told me where she was goin', where I had to go to find her. Her shorter legs had somehow carried her away from me faster than usual, which meant she was tryin' to get away for a reason.
I don't know whether she saw me chasin' after her but she definitely didn't wanna be downstairs, that's for sure.
I trained my eyes on the end of the empty hallway as I fast-walked towards my half-opened bedroom door, my breathing being the only noise in the hallway besides my heavy footsteps. My ears already registered the sound of quiet sobs and I felt my heart immediately break in half, and then into tinier pieces. I gulped down the panic and fear as I peeked through the open gap, my eyes takin' in the sight in an instant.
She was sittin' on my bed, silk sheets balled up into her fists as she squeezed for dear life and eyes tightly squeezed shut as she tried her hardest to contain herself and the tears rapidly falling.
It was hard for me to comprehend the fact that someone that brought smiles on to our lips could feel nothin' but sadness and wanna frown all the time- I couldn't come to terms with the fact that she was incapable of feeling joy the same way I could when I was in her presence and it made my heart ache.
I felt the familiar feeling of anger return back into my veins at the thought of everyone who did her wrong- absolutely everyone. My hands involuntarily pushed the door open even wider so I could step through, the noise of the door opening and my footsteps nearing her finally catchin' her attention. Her head whipped up at the noise, her red eyes growing wider than I've ever seen them. It was as if she was scared to let her guard down around me, let around anyone, and I wanted to change that.
Just seein' her teary eyes starin' up at mine made me wanna retreat and give her the space she probably wanted, knowing very well how irritating it was to have your personal space invaded in times you needed your privacy the most. But I felt my feet involuntarily carry me closer  to her, as if I was drawn to her.
I kneeled down in front of her, my body between he legs as she resumed her crying. At least I knew she wasn't afraid to show her feelings around me anymore- that was the only comforting thing about the situation. I felt myself losing control of the situation as I just studied her bent head and wet cheeks, my mind startin' to lose itself in the hateful and angry thoughts.
I sighed a little as I wrapped my hands around her tear-stained cheeks, forcin' her to look at me in the eyes,
"What happened, darlin'?"
I could tell she slightly melted in my hands when she heard the pet name but it didn't stop the sobs and tears that made her look like a distraught mess. I admired the fact that she could be bawling her eyes out but still manage to look like a queen- she was unique in more ways than one and she didn't deserve any of this pain. Lilly immediately shook her head at my words in response as she continued to let the sobs rack through her body, leaving her incapable of speaking.
She slid her shaky hands up my arms until her hands were resting upon mine still planted on her cheeks. Her cold fingers clasped together with mine, that small but affectionate action makin' my heart warm up in a million different ways that made me wanna just kiss her all over and give her some lovin' for an eternity.
It made my heart also twinge and twist as I thought back to the past- this scene seemed almost too familiar for comfort. Just seeing her this way brought back memories of other women in my life that couldn't deal with the pain that life dealt them- and I honestly hoped to God that she wouldn't end up like them, cold to the touch and six feet under.
The only difference between them and her was that I actually loved her- if I ever lost her, I would lose myself along with her. I felt tears of my own start to burn my eyes, threatening to spill the longer I stared at the woman in my arms. I bit my lip in an attempt to control myself but I felt myself slipping through the cracks of my walls, the walls I worked so hard to build up.
I cleared my throat as Lillian sighed one last time, rubbin' away the fresh tears from the corners of her eyes with the pads of my thumbs as I willed her to cooperate with me,
"Lilly, please,"
She shivered a little as I whispered her name, her shaky breath hittin' my lips in short bursts as she mustered up enough strength to speak without breaking down all over again. It took her awhile but she got the words out, her voice thick with a newfound sense of sorrow and grief that was strong enough to take me aback,
"We went... and saw Ni- Nick. I begged him to stop being difficult but- but.. he hurt m-"
She couldn't get the last word out but she didn't have to- I already knew what she was gonna say and it felt like a knife in my gut. He hurt her instead of taking her advice and doin' what's right- doin' what a best friend should  do.
My throat started to tighten up as I cooed a little, her words snatching mine straight out of my mouth. I detached my hands from her cheeks and wrapped my arms around her waist instead, so that she was pressed into me. Lilly didn't resist the hug one bit, her own arms immediately wrapping around my neck in a tight vise. She needed a best friend and I was gonna make sure she felt like she had one.
She sighed shakily into my neck, her tears wetting the side of my cheek but I honestly didn't give a fuck. All I felt was guilt, consuming me from the inside out until it felt like I was starting to suffocate from the strong feeling. It was literally consuming me alive the longer I held her in my arms but I never wanted to let go, so i'd have to suffer.
The only audible noise was Lilly's quiet sobs as she continued to cry over the man that she used to care for so much, the second man in her life that dropped her and left her to grasp onto anythin' for help and support.
If I had never entered her life, maybe she'd still have him in her life, and that's what ate me up inside. She would still have a best friend and an unbroken family, of sorts. If I had never told her to pick her poison, we wouldn't have gone on that midnight joyride and we would've never grown closer to each other with every passing day.
She took my advice and literally picked her poison- it's me, i'm her poison.
Lilly brought me out of my self-hating trance as her fingers ran through my hair, the same way she let her fingers roam when we laid together side by side in comfortable silence. She sighed a little as she took control of her body and feelings again, her shaky breaths starting to subside as she calmed down,
"I can't believe I lost him- I just can't. A friendship thrown away  with a few hurtful words, all because of his stubbornness... and pride."
I leaned my head back a bit so that we were starin' into each others' eyes again. There was definitely shock present in those green-blue eyes of hers and it broke my heart all over again as she fully took in the situation. I was the cause of all her pain and heartbreak and there was nothin' I could do to fix the shit I broke. I leaned my forehead against hers as I felt the weight on my shoulders grow heavier with each breath I took,
"I'm sorry I ever talked to you. I'm sorry I let us get this far-"
I was cut off from my apologies as Lillian pulled back in an instant, as if she was suddenly revolted by my words,
"What are you... what are you talking about? You have nothing to be sorry for- nothing."
She wiped the remaining tears away from her cheeks before meeting my gaze again, as if she was suddenly over her little spell of grief. There was a new sense of intensity in those beautiful, stormy eyes of hers and it fuckin' intrigued me the same time as it confused me,
"If it wasn't for me, you'd still have one of your best friends,"
Lillian visibly gulped at the mention of Nick, her eyes flickering away for a second. She shook her head straight after, a newfound determination instilled in her, as if she had a mission set in stone to get those thoughts out of my head,
"That's where you're wrong. He was never my best friend because if he was, he wouldn't do the shit he did or say the shit he did. Besides, he would've showed his true colors later than sooner if it wasn't for you. If anything, you've done more for me than he ever did,"
My heart involuntarily kickstarted against my ribcage as her hands wound up around my face, her sad gaze capturing mine. It felt as if the whole world came to a halt in that moment, her eyes locked with mine and her firm but soft hands on my bony cheeks- the tables have suddenly turned.
I clenched my jaw involuntarily as I tried to put all my thoughts into words that would make sense but I couldn't- everythin' in my head was now a jumbled mess of apologies and hatred towards myself and Nick. I could never have somethin' or someone in my life without it falling to shit- it always ended up like that.
I gulped down the anger towards myself as I met her gaze head-on, each word I spoke making Lillian tense up,
"That doesn't matter- I still had somethin' to do with this, whether you wanna believe it or not."
I could tell she was startin' to get irritated with my stubbornness, but she knew I was right- I shifted things into gear and started the chain of events that would end her up in this situation.
I might've not meant for this shit to happen but it still happened, and it now hung over my head like a storm cloud- a constant reminder that I caused this.
I bit my lip as I kept the rest of my self-hating thoughts to myself, knowin' this wasn't supposed to be about me- I was supposed to be comfortin' her, not the other way around. I let her hold on to me as I met her soft gaze with one of my own, not daring to break the eye contact as I felt the whispered words leave my lips,
"But either way, you still have me, you have Rook, you have Slim, you have Lola and Reece, and Camila- you don't need that asshole because you've got everyone you'll ever need. Right here."
I took ahold of one of her hands and brought them down to my chest, her fingertips leaving a hot trail down my skin as she obliged. She let out a shaky breath once I stopped her hand and let it lay pressed up against where my heart should be, the vibrations from my thudding heart probably sendin' sensations through her own fingertips.
My action drew the smile that I loved so much on to her lips, where it belonged. I felt one of my own start to grow as she blushed a little, my actions speaking louder to her than my words ever would- she knew she had a home now, family and friends that cared for her more than she knew, and that's all I could ever ask for.
I felt her start to relax into my body, her arms wrapping up and back around my neck as she engulfed me in a stronger hug. She exhaled shakily as she shivered in my arms, all of our worries melting away the longer we stayed in each others' grips,
"I love you."
Those three little words now held more meanin' in them than ever and it shocked me to the core- but in a good way. It was the kind of feeling where you felt relief, not panic or anything of the negative sort. It was an amazing feeling, even more amazing than the first time we said those words to each other. This time was different and somehow even better.
I felt my smile grow as she pulled back long enough to plant a slow kiss on my lips, her soft ones feelin' right at home on mine.
I didn't have a chance to escalate the situation since there was a knock at the door, causin' Lilly to pull away immediately. I mentally cussed out whoever dared to interrupt our moment but I turned around anyways, gettin' up off my knees to be face to face with Slim.
He had a slight smirk on his face but he seemed as if he was in awe- he probably saw me bein' all mushy and shit and I knew he'd never let that down.
Lillian sighed from behind me, a small smile in the tone of her voice as she acknowledged the man smirking at us,
"Hey, Slim,"
He nodded back in greeting, flashing a sympathetic smile as he glanced up at me,
"Hey, Lilly, is it okay if I talk to Kells for a sec?"
I rolled my eyes but glanced behind me to see Lilly with a wary look in her eyes.  I could tell she didn't wanna leave my side, not just yet, but she probably figured what Slim had in mind was serious. She glanced up at me momentarily, a slight bit of worry in her eyes, before nodding and getting up off the bed. I felt an involuntary smile make itself known as she squeezed my large hand with her petite one before walking past and leaving just the two of us in the room.
I shoved down the contentment I felt whenever I was around her and replaced it with my usual tough-guy routine, readying myself to tell Slim off for barging in and interrupting an important moment, but he beat me to it first,
"Listen, Lola told us what happened and man, that shit's fucked up- what he said to her."
I gritted my teeth as I felt the familiar annoyance flow right back through my veins at the thought of the man that hurt the woman I cared so much for. But I was also annoyed with Lola for tellin' them but not me.
It was better if you heard from Lilly anyways, chill.
I sighed as I ran my fingers through my hair, letting my eyes wander around the room so I could look at anything but my apprehensiveness mirrored in Slim's eyes,
"I don't even know if I wanna know what he said."
Slim scoffed in return which caught my attention. I glanced over at him to see his lips pursed up into a thin line, his eyebrows knitting together as he stared right back at me,
"Trust me- you don't wanna. But I was wonderin' if you were gonna do anything 'bout it or just... let it be."
I definitely wanted to do something about it but I knew, even as angry and hurt as Lillian was, she still wouldn't want me killin' the lame ass. But she never said anything about me not being able to teach him a few lessons, did she? I felt my evil alter-ego take control of my subconscious as I met Slim's serious stare with one of my own, except I added an evil smirk just as a finishin' touch.
My words brought an equally-evil smirk on to Slim's lips and it brought my heart up a little, the thought of being able to make his life even more miserable startin' to become too good to be true,
"Hell yeah, we are. We're gonna make his life a livin' hell."