Compass - Banana Fish x Reader

CHAPTER THREE: Short Lived

I didn't know if I was hallucinating or not when a little boy walked into the room. He had bright eyes and a cheerful smile on his face.
"Wanna come for a walk with me?" He asked as he offered me a friendly wave.

What kind of fuckery..?

"No...You shouldn't be wandering around in a gang base either..." I narrowed my eyes.
"Hey, I'm just as tough as the others, lady! Come on, you need breakfast!" He waved for me to follow, and I spotted a small revolver tucked in his belt. I was flabbergasted that they'd allow such a young boy to join a gang, let alone carry a weapon.
"F..fine..." When I stood up, my legs cramped, but I didn't let it show as I slowly followed the boy.

He was smart. He made sure to walk to my right, so I couldn't make an easy grab for the gun on his left flank.
"You're lucky! Ash doesn't usually let hostages roam about!" The kid turned and grinned up at me. "I'm Skip, by the way!"
"Uh...(Y/N)..." I gave him a skeptical look as he led me towards a mess of voices. Through the next door was a bar, of sorts, and most of the men turned to look at me, some in curiosity, others with a look I would have preferred to ignore.

"Aw, who's a good girl?" My teeth ground together as I turned to acknowledge Ash, who was leaning against the bar with a sly smirk. "You are! Does the good girl want a treat?" Now that I was sure he wasn't going to kill me, I had my spunk back. I scanned him up and down, making sure to obviously linger around his crotch, before lifting my head and giving him an unimpressed look.
"Sorry, I'm not fond of chicken bones..."

I heard a few people snort, but most just gasped and looked at me as though I was insane. Ash, on the other hand, simply raised his brow.
"All bark and no bite. Housetrained, too." He joked, though there was a hint of agitation mixed in with it. "Sit, girl." He pointed to the stool beside him, but I stood my ground.

If dog jokes are what you want...

"Oh, deary me...I seem to have forgotten that command...Care to demonstrate for me, master?" I returned his earlier smirk, and I knew I was pissing him off. Once I knew I was out of harms way, I was fierce. No more petrified little girl to push around. Though, if he had a gun aimed to my head, that would be a different story altogether. The entire bar was silent now, waiting for their boss to make his move, and I was positive the majority thought he was going to blown my brains out.

No, instead, the bastard started cackling. Clutching his stomach, he had to grab hold of the edge of the bar to stop himself falling to the floor.
"G..God, you're a real piece of work! Fine...Do what you want...You have an hour. Any funny business and I won't hesitate to spay a bitch" He wiped a tear from his eye and turned away, leaving his crew speechless and me ticked.

Dammit...I wanted a rise out of him...

"Care for a drink?" I flinched and whipped my head around to see a brunet with thin brows standing beside me. He immediately held up his hands to show he wasn't any danger. "Easy, I'm just try'na be hospitable." I was suspicious, but I followed him to a table anyway, and was actually rather grateful that he handed me water instead of alcohol.
"Just to be clear, we didn't exactly know Ash was gonna bring you here. It seems like he and Shorter planned this on the down low..." He explained, and I slumped my shoulders, dropping my tough girl act.

"I just wanna go home..." I murmured after I took a small sip. "I have nothing to do with any of this...I'm just a college student..." I was probably missing class already, and I couldn't even imagine how scared my uncle must have been feeling by now.
"A normal girl mixed up with trouble, simply because of what blood runs through her veins...It's common, really...The name's Alex." He smiled slightly, but I couldn't muster up enough energy to return it.

He seems like a nice enough guy, but I can't trust him. I can't trust anybody that wants to hurt Papa...

"Alex...you do realise that they'll find me, right? He's already looking for me, I know it..." I dipped my fingertip into my water and swirled it around. Alex nodded, but then a wave of curiosity seemed to wash over him.
"Who's he..?" He questioned, and I peered up with suddenly confident (E/C) eyes.
"Frederick Arthur."

"Should've known that fucker would latch onto you..." I squeaked out as I was pulled up from the chair, and struggled against the grip of the man who had grabbed me. It was Ash, who had managed to creep up behind me. "I take it back. You're not allowed out of the room."

What th...Wait...He's scared..?

When he began to pull me back out of the bar and down the hall, I smacked at his back.
"What..? Scared of him..?! He's gonna find you!" I yelled out, but he didn't even bother to turn back and look at me.
"Obviously...and he'll shoot the damn place up without a second thought. If you're out in the open you'll just get a bullet between the eyes..." Ash muttered, as though I should have known.

"H..he wouldn't do that! He can't even shoot because some asshole messed up his fingers! He's not that careless!" I was struggling against him now, but he packed a lot of strength in that thin body of his. By the time we reached the room, I was sweating from exertion.
"I know. I'm the asshole." He released me once the door was closed and looked at me with cold, gemstone eyes.

You..? You?!

"He's got men, and they've got guns. You'll be thanking me later. He doesn't know where we are because we recently moved, but he'll be here eventually. Normally, I wouldn't give a shit if some stupid Golzine sympathiser got shot...but..." Ash trailed off, but I had already had enough.
"But what, you piece of shit?!" I lashed out, trying to land at least one solid hit on his pretty face, but by the time I realised what had happened, he had me pinned against the wall.

"But nothing. You're a valuable asset, nothing more, so sit down like the obedient little bitch you are..." His face was so close that I could smell the faint scent of rum on his breath, and the darker inflections in his striking irises. Now I was scared again. He was capable of doing whatever he wanted to me, and before I knew it, I felt my cheeks grow wet. It wasn't because I feared he would hurt me. No, it was because I could see something painful past the steel of his gaze.

"I..if...when Arthur comes for me...P..please...d..don't kill him..." I whispered as I shrunk down between his firmly planted arms. "I don't want him to die...P..please..." Ash stared at me for a few moments before he stepped back, turning away from me and opening the door.
"It would be so much easier if you remembered. If he tries to kill us, then I'll beat him to the punch..." With that, he left, and I sunk down to the floor and curled myself up in a ball.

Why did I open my mouth?! Now Arthur is in danger, along with Papa! I shouldn't have tried to act so tough! I don't even know what I'm supposed to remember! Now...now...

Now I knew I had fucked up.

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***Have a little rushed bullshit - I'm soft for Arthur, okay? I know he's an asshole and I also hate him but I think he had a rough life and he needs some love, too***