Miles Away (A Squad Fanfiction)

Chapter 8

The moment James was forced away from me, I fell against the dark concrete floor, panting loud and fast.

My heart was racing and my mind was a mess. Dimly, I was aware of someone fighting with James, someone kneeling down next to me with a damp towel against my forehead and another person standing beside me.

My hearing was blocked off, until...

"...chocolate. Breath in, breath out. Relax your body, focus on chocolate. Think of happy things."

How did James find me?

"Everything's alright now. You're safe with us now, Lexi." The person continued talking.

Must've been my Instagram, damnnit. I need to stop posting stories with the location tags.

"You're doing really well, Lexi. How are you now?" He asked finally, bringing my attention to him.

Oh, it was Ben. "Not good. Where did you get that towel?" I muttered. Ben laughed. "She's alive!" He announced dramatically, causing the dude next to us to look down.

I looked up at him. It was George, standing near the wrestling duo, his eyes narrowed with a glint, muscles tensed as if waiting to leap into the fray and punch someone. But there really wasn't anything to do. Ariel was doing a fine job, giving James a black eye.

"I heard her telling you to back away from her car." Ariel was challenging him. "Oh yeah? And when was that your business?" James fired back, aiming for his opponent's stomach.

Ariel dodged.

"When I became her friend." He responded with a growl, throwing in another punch, though missing.

My Lambo beeped and its lights flashed in response to my key as I reached in to grab my bottle of water, downing it in one go.

The water did its trick. My vision became clearer, my senses, sharper, and my mind... Well...

At least it's not on holiday mode now.

"Friend or boyfriend?" James sneered.

I marched up to them, gently placing a hand on Ariel's chest, keeping him back, and elbowing James so he stumbled a couple steps back.

He spat on the ground. "Is this your new boyfriend, Lexus?"

"You're not fit to speak her name." George responded with a dangerous edge to his voice. "Cheater." He added in disgust.

"Hello George, I didn't expect you to be her new dog." James jeered at him.

George looked at James with a mixture of cold fire and disgust.

A low growl rumbled in my throat, my lips curled into the beginning of a snarl.

I almost forgot how wolfish I could be when provoked. The main reason why I nicknamed myself as Alpha.

"Back off, James. They're a million times better than what you can ever be. Get lost." I growled, my confidence boosting a little now that my boys are standing with me.

"Don't think it's-" James began. "It is so over because the next time you do it, you'll be facing a couple cops." Ben yelled at his retreating back.

After we made sure he left, I half ran over to my car, examining the places where he touched the car and where I was forced against it, exhaling a breath I didn't know I was holding when I realised my Gallardo didn't bear a single scratch.

I unlocked my car and slumped inside the passenger seat next to the driver's seat.

Then, I passed my keys to Ariel. "Can you drive, please?" I murmured, my eyes half closed.

He took the keys from me and pocketed it. He turned to George and Ben, "You two go buy the stuff from Walmart. We're leaving in 20 minutes."

I felt Ariel take my bag from me. I heard the trunk slam shut as he presumably put my bag away. And then I felt a damp cloth on my face.

"Better?" He asked after a while. "Much." I replied. "I shouldn't have posted Instagram." He chuckled lightly.

After a bit of silence, I asked a question that caught him off guard.

"Why are you doing this for me, Ariel?" I asked, opening my eyes a little to look at the tall man in front of me.

He shrugged and looked away though I thought I saw a tint of pink on his cheeks.

I'm probably imagining things.

"Why not?" He answered. I fell silent at that.

I sat up a little taller, taking the cloth from him. He was now sitting on the foldable chair I usually keep in my trunk.

I looked at him, staring at the soft curls of his hair, then moving down to admire his dark brown eyes to his cheekbones. My eyes traced over his jawline. But just at that moment, my phone rang.

I dropped my gaze quickly and we both looked at my buzzing phone. It was a Skype call from Tessa back in UK.

We found each other's instagram a couple years back and we've been chatting and playing Minecraft together from time to time.

Did Ariel catch me staring?

I picked up the call and set it against my windshield. "Hey girl, wassup." I smiled crookedly, desperately fixing my hair. "Nothing much, I was just bored and stuff so I went onto Instagram and saw this."

My phone pinged as I received a photo from Tessa. A post of Ben and I, captioned: "Reunited with this dork."

"I can't believe you moved to Miami and didn't tell me about it!" She shrieked.

I chuckled. "Sorry, Tes. Miami's very captivating. I just got distracted." I told her with a soft smile.

"I would like to visit sometime..." Tessa trailed off, her eyes getting round as it moved over to Ariel who was sitting next to me. "Lexi, is that your boyfriend?!!"

I couldn't help but burst out laughing. "No, Ariel's not my boyfriend." I rolled my eyes, smiling amusedly when I caught sight of Ariel smothering down a laugh of his own.

Tes pouted at me. "You should really get yourself one soon. They protect you and everything and they make you feel happy, loved and safe. It's just amazing." She sighed.

I grinned. "I already feel loved and protected. I'm fine." I waved her off casually.

She smirked. "Oh, do you have a crush?"