The Gray City - Ryan Ross x Reader

Chapter Five

Had she really thought Ryan was uninjured, had she seriously thought that nothing could get in their way anymore if they both stuck to the plan? Tears ran down her cheeks into the pillow she had nuzzled her face against, as the memories of the night played over and over in her head.

The mark on Ryan's throat was well visible now, the clear pattern of five fingers wrapping around his neck. (Y/n) had gotten a little shock the moment she saw him like that. Her first impulse had been to run over to him, kiss the probably painful bruises and tell him they would fade soon, but she had to stay away, so she quickly concentrated on the conversation she was having with Carry.

On stage, Ryan had been stiff as a plank. Not once did he lean into her touch and she made sure to keep her fingers away from the angry blue bruise on his skin. She tried to focus on dancing, tried to ignore the bubbling feelings for Ryan in her stomach, tried to ignore the rage that boiled inside her every time she saw Hansen. Just two more shows, two more days, she kept telling herself, and all this would be over, all the terror would be left behind in the snowy, gray New York while they were going to the south. Like a mantra she kept repeating these words in her head over the course of the show. The break was spent as always, chatting to the other girls, her back turned to Ryan to avoid glances that might give her away. In the second half of the show, a feeling of excitement rushed over her. She kept picturing herself leaving the strip club tomorrow morning, wrapped in her coat, making her way to the Subway Station in peace, knowing that Ryan was just behind her. She would wait at the platform for him, reach for his hand and help him carry the bag he had packed for the two of them. They could walk through the still dark streets of Manhattan until they would reach the harbor and board the ship. This tiny movie played again and again in her head, keeping her spirit up until the last note sounded through the now empty room of the strip club.

She had hurried backstage with the other dancers, and just slipped on her dress, when the door to the changing room opened and Hansen entered, together with a man who was a stranger to (Y/n). They walked past the other girls who quickly tried to cover up their exposed figures, but the two men did not take a single look at them, their eyes fixed on (Y/n) entirely. The shadow of a premonition washed over her, but then they had already stopped in front of her.

"(Y/n), may I introduce-"

"George," the stranger smiled.

If possible, (Y/n) would have thrown up on the stranger's shoes. He was old enough to be easily her father, smelled of too much aftershave, his sparse, gray hair was almost dripping with wax, his voice was cunning and his eyes scrutinized her in the most arrogant way.

"Nice to meet you, sir," (Y/n) managed to reply with a forced smile.

"George here," Hansen patted the other man's shoulder, "is the customer I told you about."

"Of course," (Y/n) nodded. What the hell was she supposed to do?

"Well, since he hoped to spend Christmas night with you," Hansen threw a glance at George, "I suggested to him that you should accompany him home after the show tomorrow morning. This way you can get to know each other a little, celebrate Christmas Eve cozily and peaceful... What do you say?"

Say something, say something, the voice inside her head screamed while her thoughts were going haywire. If she had to go with the man after the show tomorrow, she would not get a chance to get to the train station. And she could not miss from the show, because then Hansen would know that she was planning on running away. Either he would hunt her down or he would make Ryan pay for it, or one of the other band members, or one of the girls. So how the hell should she get out after the show? Could she sneak away during the break? A well timed sprint from the club to the Subway, from Canal Station hiding somewhere in the city and hoping to be able to sneak into the harbor in case Hansen waited there for her? And Hansen was not alone, he had men with him. They usually guaranteed the safety of the girls dancing on the tables, but they were following him blindly, no doubt they would hunt her or Ryan down if they went missing.