Always With You - A Best Friends To Lovers Novel

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

River

I still had to tell Bowie something important. Since arriving at Blue Oak, I wanted to change something about me. I had anger inside of me I needed to get out, and with Bowie not around, I had no one to talk about my feelings and problems.

Dad had stopped beating me in my senior year of high school. I managed to get him to stop by raising my voice when he tried to punish me for what had happened years ago with Mom. I once even fought back, but that only caused Dad to go at it harder.

One day, he finally gave in, not raising his hands anymore whenever I walked inside the house, or before I left to go to Bowie's. I had dealt with the pain by keeping Bowie close, and with her listening to all my thoughts, she made it easy for me to calm down. I was angry a lot, but never really showed that emotion when I was with her or her parents. They were my safe place, and I didn't mean to disturb their happiness.

In college, I learned about underground fighting. I became good at it, with all the hate stacked up inside of me wanting to get out. Aiden was sort of my manager. He made sure I got to fight against other students who were brave enough to fight against me, and he tried to find fighters from out of town as often as he could.

I didn't do it for the money, although, I was finally able to pay for my apartment myself, so Bowie's parents wouldn't have to anymore. I told them I got a job, but I couldn't keep that a secret much longer.

Summer break was over, and after our first week back attending classes, I invited Bowie, Whitley, and Aiden to the 81, which was the closest bar from campus. Aiden and I were already sitting at a booth, waiting for the girls to walk in. It was a Friday night, and Bowie had promised me to come.

I was sipping a beer, and Aiden was looking around, eyeing girls who were sitting around either alone or in groups. "What's up with you and Whitley?" I asked, knowing that after that frat party, they spent time together whenever I was with Bowie, showing her around town.

Aiden shrugged, turning his head to look at me. "She's fun. But I'm not going to be one of the many guys she intends on fucking while she's here. Besides, I got my eyes on someone else lately." He nodded toward a booth where two girls were sitting, and one of them was immediately blushing as her gaze met Aiden's.

"Rayna Jenkins?" I asked, grinning at him. "How do you know her name?" He asked, wide-eyed.

"She's in some of my classes. Sweet girl. Had to do a presentation with her once," I explained. Rayna was nice, but you could tell how innocent she was the second she opened her mouth. She had a thick, southern accent, and I found out that she's from Alabama. "Her dad is a pastor. Very religious. But she's a smart girl," I pointed out, letting him know that he would probably wait until marriage to get into her panties. But then...I wasn't sure that was his main goal.

"I gotta talk to her," Aiden said, getting up and walking straight to Rayna's booth. Her flushed cheeks turned an even brighter red, and against that pale skin of hers, she looked like a cartoon character.

"Hey." Bowie crashed through my thoughts as she sat down next to me. I looked at her, smiling and leaning in to kiss her temple. "Hey, gorgeous. Where'd you leave Whitley?" I asked.

She sighed, pointing to the entrance where Whitley was talking to Lincoln Fraser. "Guys are already trying to get in her panties. The past week has been intense. I never had so many guys come ask me for Whitley's number," she told me, and I laughed.

"Jealous that none of them asked for yours?" I mocked, cringing on the inside. I hated the thought of other guys wanting to get to know her. She was my girl. My friend, I reminded myself.

"Oh, no. I received a lot of notes with random numbers and names on them," she said, reaching into the side pocket of her backpack, pulling out a bunch of notes.

I raised an eyebrow, hoping she had not saved any of those digits on her phone. "Damn," I mumbled, taking the notes into my hand, and looking through them. I recognized some of the names, and most of them were guys I considered nerds. Not nerds you'd see in movies, but those who never went out to party, instead stayed home to study every single night. But if even they tried to get to know Bowie, something was not right. She had sparked interest in guys that usually don't date. Shit.

"Anyway...I want a coke," she announced, and I pushed the notes back inside the side of her backpack. Frowning, I wondered why she even brought that to a bar.

"What's in here?" I asked, pointing at the bag.

"Clothes. I want you to take them home with you in case I need to flee the apartment. I don't intend on listening to Whitley have sex while I sit in my room and try to read or study. Or sleep."

I chuckled, being fine with her plan. I raised my hand to get the attention of the brunette wiping down the empty tables, and when she saw me, she immediately walked over. "Can I get you another beet?" she asked, obviously not noticing my almost full pint.

"A Coke for my girl here," I told her, pointing at Bowie. The girl nodded, taking a quick look at Bowie. "I didn't know you had a girlfriend, River." Although she knew my name, I had no idea who she was.

"I'm his friend," Bowie pointed out, cutting through my heart with a very sharp knife. Sure, we discussed that topic a week ago, but I wasn't handling it as well as Bowie was.

"Oh, that's great," the girl said, smiling at me sweetly, then walking back to the bar.

Bowie didn't seem bothered by the girl's flirting, and I had to keep myself under control not to start another one of our friendship-talks with her. Fuck me...Darryl was right. But what he said obviously only regarded me.