Austin Mahone's California Love Story

Chapter 18: The Longest Five Minutes

Austin

I pull up to the warehouse where it looks extremely abandoned, but I see a flicker of a flashlight through one of the windows. I look at the Rosario that Camila had given to me for protection. I unhook it from the rearview mirror and place it around my neck. I kiss it then tuck it in my shirt. Hopefully it will give me a lot of protection tonight.

As soon as I get inside I see Alex waiting for me with a flashlight in his hand. He crosses his arms, "Are you sure you want to do this, man?" His voice has a slight sound of worry for me.

I nod my head, "Yeah," I'm not backing out now. This is all or nothing for me.

Alex leads me to a room with plenty of space to have a party in. I walk in to see Carlos standing in the middle of the room surrounded by his group. Once I'm face-to-face with him I'm enclosed in a circle.

"Can't believe you actually showed up, gringo." He says through a chuckle.

I cock my head to the side, "I said I would."

He looks at his watch, "It's midnight. Are you ready because there's still a chance to back out?"

"Five minutes, right?" Carlos nods, "Then let's make them count."

It begins with a punch to the ribs and all the air possible knocked out of my body. I collapse to my knees to catch my breath but it's like trying to breathe through your nose when you have bad sinus...impossible. I look up to see bare knuckles making impact to my jaw. I think I heard a crack from the connection. I begin to think at this point of the beating is she worth it? Am I really willing to get the crap beat out of me just to be with a girl? Would she even want me after the way I'm going to end up looking if I survive this? I ask these questions and I come back to the same answer...hell yeah she's worth it.

Besides it's only been a minute.

Camila

This can't be happening right now. I still have four blocks to go until I get to the warehouse and its 12:02. The beating has to have already started and it will not end until those five minutes are up. Why would Austin be so stupid to agree to this? I can't let this beating end in the full five minutes. I stand at a crosswalk for a few seconds but it feels like five minutes. I can't wait here while the man I love is getting the hell beat out of him and is possibly closed to death. I race across the lanes dodging cars as they honk at me to move. I hear one loud honk of a car.

Steering pain rushes through my side as I hit the windshield of the car and roll off the hood onto the road. I'm suddenly surrounded by pedestrians and people from the cars. I roll over to get to my hands and knees. I reach for my necklace and I stroke the sapphire stones outlining the cross. I can already feel that my left wrist is broken or at least fractured, but it doesn't stop me from getting to my feet. The woman who hit me with the car tries to hold me down until the paramedics arrive but I can't stay. I shake her off me and begin sprinting to the sidewalk. I'm running out of time and I'm so close to the place.

Nothing can keep me from getting to that warehouse within the five minutes I have. If I get hit by another car I'm going to get back up, broken bones and all. Austin wouldn't give up on me so I won't on him. If I die getting there then Carlos will know what he did to cause this and I can be with Austin forever. I'm almost there...two blocks left.

It's now 12:04.

Austin

I lost track of the time after the two punches to my eye and a kick in the ribs. I taste pennies in my mouth as I spit out the red colored saliva. The way the pain goes away is if I'm thinking about Camila. I think about the time we were at the beach together, her dark brown curls blowing past her shoulders and those bright brown eyes looking right at me. I can last this and I'll be with her.

"How long has it been?" I hear Carlos ask.

"Four minutes," Alex answers, "You still got a minute left."

Carlos doesn't say anything, he just nods and walks out of sights. I'm on my hands and knees trying to get up but the weight of my body feels heavier than it really is. My breathing has become much harder to do. My ribs crack just trying to expand my chest. I can't see my face but I know that my left eye is beginning to swell shut. I suddenly hear a sound I can't quite process what it is. It sounds like someone dragging a piece of metal across the concrete floor. I balance myself on my knees and look over my shoulder to see Carlos with a metallic baseball bat in his hand.

"Here's the last hit of the five minutes, gringo." He put the bat over his shoulder. With so much effort I lift my chin and I catch a glimpse of his eyes, they're brown just like his sister.

"Ten seconds, Carlos." Alex says.

Carlos doesn't respond. He grips the bat with both his hands and winds up his arms. This is it. This hit could possibly kill me, but I don't care. The only thing I see in my head is Camila's beautiful smile, a special kind of smile that she only gives to me and no one else. I crack a smile with blood dripping down the side of my lip as I wait for my end and my new beginning.

I see an angel, my angel, coming towards me.