Go Down Swinging |Coco Cruz|

Chapter 13

I quietly sat across from Coco as he looked over the menu. I felt out of my element and played with a loose thread that had begun on my shirt. My mind drifted to worry over Joy and Leticia; were they safe? Were they in trouble?

"Izzy, are you alright," Coco softly asked, "you spaced out.".

I blinked gently and glanced to him, "I'm just thinking of Joy and Leticia.".

"They'll be alright," Coco assured me, "Angel and Ez will stop by if they're not busy.".

I smile a little and nod, then I hum, "If you're sure, then I trust you.".

My heart beat just a little faster when I realized what I had said. I bit my lower lip, my cheeks tinting a dark red.

"Would you wanna go to a haunted house," Coco asked, "You can say no if you want.".

"Where would we go," I asked softly, humming softly.

Coco gave a soft smile and said, "It's not far from here, just a few minutes drive. Just reiterating; we don't have to go if you don't want to.".

I blush a little bit and softly say, "I'd love to go; I mean if you don't mind. Halloween's just around the corner.".

Coco smiled softly and chuckled, "Sounds like a plan.".

~Coco's POV~

After Izzy and I had finished our meal we headed to the haunted house. She smiled and softly chuckled, yet I had a feeling she was nervous. I watch her from my mirror, feeling her chest slowly rising and falling against my back.

I pull into the parking lot and turn off my bike and wait for her to get off. Izzy smiled softly and dismounted the bike, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Izzy, are you okay? We don't have to do this if you don't want to," I tell her, knowing I possibly repeated myself for the third or fourth time.

Izzy shook her head and looked to the building the haunted house was in. Her hands were shaking gently as were her shoulders. She chewed on her lower lip and softly said, "I agreed to do it, so we're doing it. A Rodriguez doesn't back out on a deal.".

I gently took her hands in mine, a soft smile on my lips, "Ready?".

"As I'll ever be," Izzy whispered softly.

As the two of us walked to the door I felt her intertwine our fingers, the hand I was holding still shaking gently. If this was a coping mechanism for her then I wasn't going to say anything about it. Once inside the building I felt Izzy jump a little, then she mumbled, 'none of this is real'.

I squeezed her hand, assuring her everything was alright. She seemed to relax a little bit, yet jumped again when the actors popped out. I barely noticed when she buried her face in the back of my shoulder.

I glanced back at her and felt my heart break as she jumped and squeaked in honest fear.

By the time we reached the exit Izzy was shivering like she had a bucket of ice cold water dumped on her head.

Can I make her feel safe again? Would she be able to sleep tonight? Would the visual effects of the haunted house give her nightmares?