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britney-gvf · 5 months

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Valor (Chapter 5 - Part 1)

Pairing: Jake x Reader, Daniel x Reader

Word Count: 12.5k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin'. Angst: Struggle and Poverty, Emotional Manipulation, Abandonment, Jealousy, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Physical Fighting, Blood, Mentions of Death, Mention of Suicide, Heavy Angst, Reckless Driving, Allusions to Shady Activities, Coercion, Gambling, Betting, Mentions of Vomit and Sickness. Smut: Kissing, Heavy Petting, Unprotected Sex, Public Sex, Consensual Sex Under the Influence, Face Sitting.

Valor Playlist: Apple Music | Spotify

A new project in collaboration with my talented co-writer @gretavanmoon.

HER POV

The first thing your glazed eyes focused on the next morning was that stupid pack of cinnamon gum Jake gave you sitting on Danny’s side table. It was flattened from the force of Jake putting it into your hand, a little bit of the foil pulled back from the gum revealing just a sliver of red. You could smell it, too. The spicy sweet notes setting off your craving for it as your morning stomach grumbled.

You rolled your eyes and turned over to lie on your back, finding a still-snoozing Danny next to you. His hair had formed little baby curls around his face, and his natural sleep sweat had made them stick to his face a little. You took a second to watch him sleep, admiring his long eyelashes and perfect cheekbones. His body jerked a little as he dreamed, and you decided to let him sleep in a bit, seeing as how Jake would probably not even be in the shop for a while yet, either.

The sleep you did manage to get last night wasn’t the best, given that all you could focus on were the hushed noises and light bangs coming from the wall that Danny’s room shared with Jake’s. Grunts, light moans…giggles… it almost made you sick. Each time you thought you had found the solace of sleep, there it was again, a noise that instantly put an image in your head of the foul acts being committed not twenty feet away. And it infuriated you.

'Because I see the way you look at me… I’m not stupid, Y/N.'

Jake’s words to you during Danny’s fight reverberated in your brain as you stood in front of the scratched and crooked mirror, brushing your teeth a little too roughly. So you were being too obvious…got it.

'There. Now everybody gets a piece, don’t they...'

You knew what he meant. You knew what he was insinuating. He wanted you just as bad as you wanted him. And you hated yourself for thinking that way. You’d just told Danny you were his girl. But were you? You shook all the messy thoughts from your mind as you attempted to fluff your flat hair, finally accepting that it wasn’t going to get much better than this today.

It was chilly in the house, so you decided to slip on a pair of old sweatpants and gray sweatshirt to calm your chill bumps, taking a glance in Danny’s tiny mirror on his door and finding yourself looking less-than-attractive.

As you entered the kitchen, the scene in front of you was the absolute last thing you thought you would find. Jake sitting at the table, kicked back with a mug of coffee in one hand and the paper in the other, watching as Suzanne stood at the stove in nothing but his white t-shirt. Her hair still looked as perfectly bleach blonde and blown-out as it did last night, her legs toned and tanned, toenails painted a bright pink, and the hem of the shirt barely covering her asscheeks. Fuck, she’s…cute.

“Jacob, how do you like your eggs, baby? I’ll make them however you— oh! Fuck, you scared me!” She said as she turned around to find you standing in the doorway. “Thought there was a ghost standing there…” your face turned up in disgust as her high-pitched laugh escaped from her nose.

You looked to Jake with an eyebrow cocked as he returned the look over his mug. His hair was a mess, and his long-John shirt looked like it had been ripped at the neck. “Over easy, baby. Thank you.” He replied, never breaking from your eyes.

You scoffed as you pulled another mug from the cabinet, ready to fill yourself with caffeine and retreat back to Danny’s room to change into something that wouldn’t make you look like a ghost.

“Oh, used the last of the eggs, sorry if you like, wanted some.” She said without looking at you, flipping a metal spatula in the air. Her accent was one of those forced-Valley girl ones, and most definitely fit the personality it looked like she was trying for.

“Not hungry, thanks.” You replied smugly, looking at the counter at the absolute spread of food she had prepared. A nice gesture, you guessed, but did she not know they were scraping pennies together before they won that fight? Truly struggling to make ends meet and living day to day off of barely one meal?

You shivered again as you felt a draft of cool air come through the shop door, and wondered why in the hell this girl didn’t have more clothing on. Even Jake had chosen to wear a shirt and socks. All for the visual, huh?

Just as you were turning to retreat, Danny burst through the door in nothing but his boxers, hair now in a high knot on top of his head. Just his large, overbearing presence in the room made your heart stop, not to mention how drop-dead fucking sexy he looked shirtless and still half-asleep.

“God damn, it’s cold in here.” He said through a fake teeth-chatter. In seconds he was wrapping his arms around you, fishing his hands up underneath your sweatshirt in search of some type of warmth. “Let me in there, baby, warm me up!”

You started laughing and fighting him off, his cold hands reaching under your armpits and across your tits, and finally into your pants between your legs. “Danny! Stopppp!” You giggled, his icy hands doing nothing but pissing you off as he searched for your body heat.

“Cold for May, huh?” Jake finally interrupted the scene, his voice loud and boisterous. The room went silent, save for the sizzling of the eggs and bacon in the skillet.

“Hey, Suzanne.” Danny greeted the unfamiliar body in the room.

“Hey there Danny. Nice to see you keeping your company around until the next morning. Outta character for you.” She squeaked, shifting from one foot to the other as she flipped the bacon. Hah, she’s cold. “Usually I catch them sneakin’ out in last night’s clothes before the sun’s even up. I’m prouda you.” She sent him a wink.

Usually? Ugh, Suzanne must be one of Jake’s repeat customers. It turned your stomach.

“Yep. Well, I actually like this one, for your information, Suzanne.” Danny grabbed your hips, pulling you toward him in a flash as you held your mug out to not spill. His eyes were bored deep, staring at you while he spoke to her. You heard Jake shifting uncomfortably in his seat behind you. “She’s the kind I could get used to waking up to every morning…”

His last sentence was more of a mumble as it escaped him, his lips brushing across yours on his last word. It brought a sweet warmth to your chest, hearing him talk openly about you making him happy. Like his own little public declaration. In a half second, his lips were sweetly attached to yours, his arms still wrapped around your waist as he gently swayed you. “Real used to it…” he whispered, making your belly flutter with butterflies.

Suddenly you heard Jake clear his throat a little too loudly, the scene obviously making him feel uneasy. Danny seemed to break away from that spell you had apparently just cast across him, stepping back to assess what Suzanne was doing at the stove.

“Didn’t have enough for everybody, sorry.” She quipped, her tone more rude than it needed to be in a home that wasn’t hers. She set Jake’s plate down in front of him, bending over at the waist to refill his coffee cup. She let her mouth drift across his ear as she did so, whispering something so quietly you couldn’t hear it.

Danny scoffed, probably feeling the same type of way you did. “No worries, Danny and I are going to the grocery store, aren’t we babe?” You snapped back. “Looks like we’re eatin' out of house and home anyway…”

Jake decided to finally speak. “We’re fine, Y/N, you don’t need to—“

“Oh I want to, Jake. ‘Least I could do after all the favors you’ve done for me the past week, hmm?” You shot him a wink, making Suzanne snarl her nose up as you spoke.

You grabbed Danny’s hand to go back to his room to change for the day, knowing after the morning dew rose it was actually going to be a hot one. As you slipped back through the door with Danny trailing happily behind you, you heard Suzanne’s snippy voice barking at Jake.

“What kinda favas you doing for her, huh?”

—

As the two of you slip through the shop door to leave, Daniel hops in front of you and leads the way, and you can’t help but let your eyes wander to the curve of his ass in his tight, faded Levi’s. You snicker at the rectangular outline on his back pocket, the perfect impression of his cigarette tin. You watch him walk over to his bike, dusting off the seat, and slinging his leg over the side.

“Wait!” you pause, letting a grin slip across your face. You snatch a pair of keys from the wall, spinning them on your index finger. “Let’s take Valor.” you urge, letting the silver snake keychain swing back and forth.

“Are you insane? Jake will kill us both for even looking at it.” he quips.

“No he won’t, come on.” you plead. “We can’t bring the groceries back on your bike, and he will need the truck to take Suzanne back wherever she came from.”

He lets out a laugh, and shakes his head. “If we go down for this, I’m telling him it was your idea.” He snatches the keys from your finger and you rush over to the passenger door, sliding in to the white leather bucket seat. He pulls the chain on the garage door, sending it flying up before joining you in the car and starting the engine. He revvs the engine as he pulls out of the garage, sending a cloud of dust flying as the wheels hit the gravel, and both of you laughed as you pulled away, knowing if you’d turned around you’d find a very angry Jake standing in the doorway.

“You know, I’m thinkin’ we might need to stretch her legs a bit now that she’s out from under Jake’s watchful eye.” he says, lifting a brow over the top of his aviators. He chews his gum through a smile, downshifting as he rounds the corner, sending the hot rod catapulting down the asphalt as the engine roars. The speedometer climbs rapidly, as does your heart rate.

You screech as you go flying past a few passing cars, just a blur of yellow and white paint. “Danny!”

He slows the car with a smile and a heaving chest, bringing your hand to rest with his on the shifter. “I’ve got you baby, swear. We didn’t even do nothin’ yet.” he winks.

He rounds the corner into the grocery store parking lot, parking in the very back, away from other cars. You laugh at the sentiment of not wanting any door dings, but driving as recklessly as humanly possible to get here.

You shut the car door behind you as you toss your purse over your shoulder, letting the cool late spring air blow your hair across your face. Danny meets your side, tossing his arm over your shoulder and pulling you into his side. “I hadn’t planned it all out, but since we’re going shopping anyway and we’re here, I was gonna take you on a picnic date.”

“What? Really?” you ask, leaning your head into his shoulder as you walk.

“Yeah, if you want to.” he responds nervously. “Can pick out your favorites. Pack a little lunch. I wanna take you to this spot, next county over. Show you a place I think you’ll like.”

“You really wanna go?” you ask with a shy smile.

“Yeah, why not? Jake’s gonna be occupied all day, figure we might as well.” he says, pulling the door to the grocery store open. He tips his head to a man walking out, ushering you in with his hand on the small of your back. You grab a shopping cart, its wheels squeaking as you roll it through the produce section.

“What about the groceries?” you ask.

“Fuck the groceries, they already ate, right?” he teases.

He’s right. You’re sure little miss Suzanne cooked up quite the morning after breakfast for Jake. What need would they have for groceries? You turn to look at Danny, his long dark hair hanging in waves around his face as he grabs a few apples, placing them into the thin plastic bag. Suddenly realizing that there’s nowhere you’d rather be, you turn to him and smirk, “So what should we bring on our picnic?”

—

It’s not long until you’re filling the trunk with paper bags full of various items the two of you thought appropriate for your impromptu picnic. As he loads the last bag in, you dig through the bags in search of your last minute item. Danny rolls the cart to the corral across the parking lot as your hand finds purchase on the small foil pack. You grin as you pull the pack of gum from the bag, quickly shoving it into your purse for safe keeping. You shut the trunk just as he reaches the car, the both of you quickly climbing inside and taking off to your unknown destination.

The car ride is filled with laughter as Danny sings nearly every word to every song that comes through over the static of the fading radio station. “God, you know like every single song!” you laugh.

“I listen to a lot of music while I work!” he offers, shrugging his shoulders, and letting his hand travel to rest on your bare thigh. His fingers move in circles, as they rub into the skin. You feel like you’re melting into his touch, until he suddenly pulls away to shift gears. “Almost there, baby.”

You nod and smile, watching the scenery out the window until you see the houses turn into woods, and the woods turn into farming fields. He slows the car to a crawl as he turns down a dirt path, kicking up dust as he travels the path. In the distance you see a large oak tree, seemingly alone in the tall grass.

“Danny, where in the world are we?” you ask, seeing nothing but grass and trees for miles.

“Hallie County. Abandoned mining town. Was real popular back about thirty years ‘er so. Tore everything down a few years ago now. Everything ‘cept this tree. Best one for thirty miles.” he says as he puts the car in park. “Shall we?”

The two of you exit the car, grabbing a few things from the paper bags and a small blanket from the trunk, as he grabs your hand leading you to the shady patch of grass beneath the towering oak.

“Danny, it's so pretty here. How did you find this?” you ask, spreading out the small blue blanket. He clears his throat as he arranges the food items on the blanket. He looks at you from his kneeling position with a sad look on his face.

“One of my foster families brought me here one day. Me, and their son. There used to be a few houses a couple hundred feet that way. Don’t remember what we were doing here, but I remember climbing this tree for hours and hours.” he says, pointing into the distance. “I think that was the best day I ever had, growing up. Never came back after that.”

His face fell a little as he sat down next to you, running his hand up and down your leg as you stretched out on the blanket. The wind blew the leaves on the tree, the rustling of the leaves providing a calming background noise. “Why not?”

“A few weeks after that I found myself back at the children’s home. I was…devastated to say the least. I thought they were the ones. I thought they wanted me.” he paused, opening a bottle of water and offering it to you. You took it from his hands, sipping the cold drink as he continued.

“I think that was when I started fighting. I was just so mad. I couldn’t understand why no one wanted me. So I fought everyone, and everything. Then I started to think that maybe that was the reason, which made me even more mad, because they did this to me. They made me this way. Anyways, it doesn’t really matter, Ace and Jake took me in, and I finally felt like I belonged somewhere. Everything worked out, and now look, I’m winning money for fighting. Guess everything shakes out how it’s supposed to.”

You lace your fingers with his, pulling his hand up to your lips and pressing a kiss to his warm skin. “Thank you for bringing me here. And for all of this.” you smile, gesturing to the spread of snacks in front of you.

“Of course, you’re my girl.” he answers, pressing a kiss to your cheek. His hand still lingered on your thigh, and as he kissed your cheek you felt him grip into your skin, sending a ripple of goosebumps through your system.

He pulls away before things get too heated, grabbing a few grapes from the vine and popping them into his mouth. You spend the next hour talking and laughing. He tells you about his life growing up with Jake and Ace until you’re both crying laughing.

As you lay with your head in his lap you let him run his fingers through your hair as he tells you of his love for guitar. There’s a sparkle in his eye you haven't seen before, and you find yourself completely enamored with the way he talks about his passion.

“So if you love it, why didn’t you pursue it?” you ask, turning your head in his lap.

“And leave Jake? I couldn’t. Especially not after…” he trails off, he doesn’t have to finish the sentence.

“I don’t know how he got through that.” you breathe, as he twists your hair around his finger.

“I don’t know that he did. He just kind of pushed it away and pushed it away until…” he paused taking a deep breath. “Jake is one of the strongest people I know. He would do anything for anyone. He will put everyone before himself, and never speak a word of it. He may present himself as this quiet, brooding asshole, but really he’s got one of the biggest hearts I've ever seen. We don’t talk about what happened, it’s better that way, but for some reason, since you came along, things have been easier. For both of us. I’ve seen him smile, hell I heard him laugh a real laugh the other day. Couldn’t tell ya how long it’s been.”

It’s then, at the mention of his name, that you realize you haven’t thought about him all day. You feel a pang in your chest at the thought of what he could be doing with Suzanne but you push it away and refocus on Danny.

“Well, glad I can help.” you smile, not wanting to delve too much further into the painful topic.

The wind blows, sending your hair flying across your face as both of you laugh. You grab his hand and pull him down next to you, rolling into him as you rest your chin on his chest.

“You’re so pretty, Y/N.” he breathes, running his knuckles along your cheeks.

“You’re pretty.” you giggle, feeling his stomach lurch as he laughs.

“I don’t think anyone has ever called me pretty before. That’s a first. A few first’s today.”

“Really? What’re others?” you ask, running your fingers along the sliver of skin peeking out above his jeans.

“Well, never brought anyone here before. Always been my place. Never wanted to share it.” he answers, moving his shirt up to give you more access to his stomach.

“And the other?” you question, letting your eyes meet his.

“This is the first time I have ever really…planned and went on a date.” he answers honestly.

“What?” you ask breathlessly.

“I know, I know. I just…never have, I–”

“But no, what about that girl that first day, I saw her, she…” you ramble.

“Oh, Tanya? No. I’ve never taken her on a date. I’ve never cared enough to take anyone on a date, Y/N. Only you.” he says sweetly.

“Well, you know… all good first dates end with a kiss…” you tease, moving to crawl on top of him, straddling his hips.

He places his hands on your hips as you cage his head in with your hands.

You watch his eyes as they take in your chest hanging directly in his face. “Fuck, Y/N… You know I– I’m trying to be a gentleman here.” he groans.

“Don’t be.” you challenge, letting your lips ghost against his.

“Y/N…” he warns, his hips jutting upward involuntarily.

“Do you want me, Danny?” you breathe against his mouth.

“Fuckin’ bad. Real bad.” he admits. You quickly stand up, smoothing your dress down as you offer your hand to him.

“Come with me.” you say, letting him take your fingers into his.

“Where?” he asks, standing to meet you and following behind as you pull him towards the dirt path. As if he can hear the gears spinning in your head, he stops, spinning you to meet him.

“Oh no. We can’t. We cannot fuck inside Jake’s car.” he says adamantly.

“Who said anything about getting inside…” you say, pulling him along again, and stopping as you reach the hood. He stands back, with his hands on his hips, as he watches you lean back onto the dusty black hood, resting on your elbows as you pull your skirt up around your waist. “Let’s make it a memorable first date, hm?”

You splay the blue floral skirt out around you, as you slide your panties down your legs, letting the sun shine onto your bare legs.

“Jesus Christ, Y/N…” he groans, stepping forward and placing his large hands on your thighs. He pushes them open, as you brace yourself against the hood of the car. “You want me to fuck you on the hood of this car? That what you want?”

“Yeah, I do.” you challenge.

His hands fumble with the button of his jeans, rapidly pulling down the zipper and pushing his boxers down just enough that his dick springs free, hard and waiting.

“Seems like maybe you want to, too.” you tease.

“Careful, baby.” he says, moving his hand to slide two fingers through your wetness, instantly disarming his commanding persona. “Goddamnit you are so wet, gonna feel so good wrapped around me, baby. Aren’t you? Perfect and wet for me?”

“So wet for you Danny, always.” you mewl.

“Yeah you fuckin’ are.” he says, stepping forward to run the tip of his dick through your folds. He holds the base in his fist, pumping his length a few times before pressing the tip to your entrance.

His eyes flick to yours as you nod eagerly, feeling him press forward until he is bottoming out inside of you. With nothing to grasp you toss your head back, feeling the sun hit the underside of your chin. Danny leans forward grabbing your hip with one hand and wrapping his other hand around your shoulder. His lips find your neck, sucking a harsh kiss into the thin skin.

His hips begin to move, as the wind blows over your exposed bodies. His jaw hangs slack as he watches the place where the two of you meet, seeing himself completely disappear inside of you. “Fuck…” he groans, his pleasure growing tenfold at the sight.

“You take my cock so fucking good baby…” he pauses, slamming his hips into your thighs.

“Danny…” you whine, feeling his tip nudge your g-spot.

“Yeah baby, say my name.” he demands, snapping his hips again.

“Fuck, Danny, harder!” you cry out, knowing there is no one around to hear you.

“You want it harder, I’ll give it to you fuckin’ harder.” he says, pulling out and pulling you off the hood. He spins you around and presses your chest to the hood, kicking your legs out and lifting your skirt.

His hands circle your ass, grabbing and kneading at the flesh as he aligns his dick with your center. “Hands on the hood.” he orders, and you comply, placing them flat on the black paint.

He thrusts into you with a grunt, and you feel his hands pulling your hips back to meet each pump. “Arch your back, wanna feel you.”

You do as your told, as he fucks into you much harder and much deeper, feeling yourself growing close to your release. “Danny…” you beg.

“Tell me you want me, baby…” he breathes into your neck.

“I want you, I fuckin’ want you. Please, Danny…”

“Yeah, tell me pretty baby. What is it?”

“Gonna cum…” you whine, feeling his cock jump inside of you.

“Gonna cum for me, right here where anyone could see?” he teases, letting his hand slip around your waist, his fingers flicking across your clit.

“Yes, yes please right there.” you beg, willing him to continue.

“Oh, my girl likes that, you’re squeezing me so hard baby. Gonna cum right here in your pretty pussy.” he growls.

“Yeah, please. Please…” you plead.

“Yeah? You want that? Want me to fuck you hard and fill you up on the first date? Such a bad girl…” he pauses, fucking into you at an unrelenting pace. “But you wanna know something?”

“Tell me…” you whine, feeling yourself on the precipice of your release.

“I fuckin’ love a bad girl.” he says, snapping his hips into you again and sending you barreling into your orgasm, your hands streaking through the dust covering the hood of the car. His name falls from your lips just as quickly as you’re freefalling in your pleasure.

You hear a grunt leave his chest as his grip on your hips tightens, pulling you tightly to his groin as you feel him paint your insides with his own release. The whisper of your name on his lips as he comes down from his high. He places a kiss to your bare shoulder, as he pulls out of you, his release dripping down the inside of your thigh as he steps away.

“Oh you’re a fucking beauty.” he pauses, admiring his handiwork. “Stay there, I’ll be right back.”

It feels like centuries before he comes back, an armful of picnic supplies, and the blanket thrown over his shoulder. He tosses it all in the trunk and returns with a few napkins, swiping up the release that's made its way down your leg, in one clean swipe. He places a soft kiss on the back of your thigh, before pulling your skirt down, and tapping your hip to stand.

“What took you so long?” you question.

“Nothin’, was just takin’ my time cleaning up our little date. Just really wanted you to savor the feeling of me running down your legs.”

“You’re an ass…” you gripe, pulling your panties over your hips.

“Yeah, and you fuckin’ love it.” he says, raising a brow and pushing his sunglasses over the bridge of his nose.

—

JAKE POV

The fuck are they? Your eyes flashing to the clock on the wall as you rolled out from underneath the old Cadillac. 5:42. Motherfucker taking my car like he has the fuckin’ right. You blew out a puff of air standing to make your way over to the shop sink, ready to call it quits for the day, Danny clearly deciding to take the day off. What a guy.

You watch the black soapy bubbles swirl down the drain, the GoJo making quick work of the grease coating your fingers. A rumble in the distance alerted you to their arrival, and you knew it wouldn’t be long until they were pulling into the garage. You dried your hands on the blue shop towel hanging from your pocket, as you crossed your arms and waited.

Right on cue you see Valor coasting into the garage, lurching into park as Danny throws his door open. You stood in your spot, arms across your chest chewing your gum as you watched the two of them appear. “Welcome back.” you said, spitting and watching it land right at Danny’s feet. He looked up at you, rolling his eyes as he stood in front of you.

“Have a good day, Jake?” he asks smugly, readjusting his dick in his jeans. Fuckin’ prick. He pushes past you with a brown paper bag in his hands, making his way to the kitchen before you can answer.

You see Y/N, with two bags in her hands, following behind Danny to deposit them in the kitchen. Her eyes meet yours, “Gonna make some dinner, ya hungry?” she asks nonchalantly, as if she wasn’t Danny’s accomplice to hijacking your car this morning.

“Mhmm…” you hum, watching her step inside the house. You don’t follow, knowing Daniel will be making his way back out momentarily. You turn your attention towards your tool box, cleaning up and organizing your sockets the best you could. You hear the shop door close and see Danny making his way over to you.

He claps his hand against your shoulder, “You finish that swap on the Caddy for me? Man, you shouldn’t have…” he says facetiously.

“Yeah, fuckin’ had to since you decided to take a little joy ride. Don’t know if you remember that I’m running a business.” you quip.

“Ahh, yeah, see it slipped my mind. Was plannin’ on comin’ right back, but, got a little caught up, ya know?” he grins.

“Yeah, fuck off, there better not be a single fuckin’ scratch on that car, so help me god.” you say, pushing past him to walk over to the car. Your eyes scanned the car for any obvious damage, but you knew Danny wouldn’t have done anything, you just needed to prove a point.

“Dirty as fuck.” you pause, swiping a finger through the layer of dust on the passenger door. “The fuck did you take it?”

“Out…” he shrugs dismissively. “You know…”

Your eyes continue over the car as you round the front, noticing the smudging of disturbed dust on the hood. You recoil as you see the perfect imprint of two small hands in the dust. No he fucking didn’t. “You know, I was willing to look past you taking V without my permission, I really was. But if you tell me that you fucked that woman on the hood of my car, we’re gonna have a fuckin’ problem.”

The more you looked, you saw the impression her ass made in the dust right over the center of the Chevy badge. That motherfucker.

He snickered as he looked down, seeing the same imprint you saw, sucking his teeth as he shrugged his shoulders. “Then I won’t tell ya. Filled up the tank for you though.” he smirks.

“Guess you filled up a couple things you fuckin’ asshole. Wash my damn car.” you scoffed, walking over to the clean microfiber towels, snatching one from the stack and throwing it at him.

“Shoulda seen ‘er all sprawled out… Like fuckin’ art. Fuckin’ beggin’ for it, too.” he continues, biting his lips together as he pulls the memory to his mind.

“Right, and where’s your little artwork now?” you ask, changing the subject before you pop a boner.

“Makin’ some dinner, I believe. And you know what? Might fuck her again after that.” he says, clapping your shoulder again.

“Right. I’m grabbing a shower, you two have fun.” you say, dismissing his comment and heading straight for the shower.

—

The three of you sat around the kitchen table as you ate, and you wondered the last time you had a plate of spaghetti. Y/N and Danny are lost in conversation, the two of them laughing and flirting throughout the entire meal was enough to turn your stomach. You hated seeing her smile by someone else’s hand. It should be you.

You didn’t plan to eat with them, but as you stepped out of the shower and smelled the food cooking, your stomach reminded you that you hadn’t eaten since Suzanne’s shit attempt at over-easy this morning. You quickly dressed and made your way to the kitchen, just in time to receive a plate from Y/N. Her eyes bored into yours as she took in your appearance, and you swore you almost saw a pink blush rise to her cheeks. You knew what she was thinking, she didn’t even have to say it. But fuck you wanted her to. It was short lived as Danny stepped in from the shop, appeasing your request to wash Valor.

So as you sat here listening to the two of them laugh, you weren’t sure you could stomach the food sitting in front of you. After shoving a few admittedly delicious forkfuls down, you pushed your plate to the center of the table. “Think I’m gonna hit Canaries.” you say, interrupting their conversation.

“Yeah?” Danny says, mulling over the idea in his head. He looks to Y/N, and smirks. “Whatcha think baby, you wanna go shoot some pool? Get a drink?”

She pulls her full pink lips between her teeth, and lets her eyes meet yours for seemingly the first time tonight. She runs her tongue over her bottom lip and you feel her barefoot graze your foot. “Yeah I could use a drink or two. Have a little fun…Get into a little trouble…”

“Alright then. It’s settled.” Danny smiles, rubbing his hands together.

Y/N’s eyes never broke away from yours, and as you moved your leg away from her accidental touch, hers followed. Your eyes flicked to hers and you suddenly found that it wasn’t so accidental afterall.

—

HER POV

“Jake, what're you drinkin’ tonight?” You asked him over the loud music from the back seat, leaning up across the shiny white leather. You smoothed the tight leather skirt that came down to your mid-thigh over your black hose, feeling particularly snarky and sexy tonight. No reason.

Or maybe it was because you’d fucked Danny on the hood of Jake’s car earlier while he called you a bad girl, maybe. Could be it.

You twiddled your fingers to his ear when he didn’t answer, breaking him away from the trance of the road in front of him. “Earth to Jake, hello?!”

“Fuck, ah. I don’t know. Whiskey, probably.” He finally answered. “Not much, I’ll be drivin’ you two home, apparently.”

“Oh ya, I forgot you were a whiskey guy.” You were riding the particularly chipper mood, bopping your head along to the music as you drove along. “Why didn’t you invite Sherry out tonight?”

“Suzanne?” He corrected you.

“Oh yeah, Suzanne. The blondie. How could I forget? Heard you sayin’ it over and over all night last night…” you clicked your tongue as Danny snickered out loud from the passenger seat.

“And that’s a bad thing…?” He quipped back, sitting forward in his seat. For some reason, you just wanted to pick on him tonight.

“No, it’s a great thing. I’m happy for you…didn’t realize you were a talker, though, Jake.” You could just feel his cheeks getting warm.

He puffed his cigarette and held it between his thumb and pointer finger. “And I guess you won’t ever find out, will you?”

The mother fucker.

The bar was small and covered in dark wooden paneling, with multiple neon signs adorning the entryway that was littered with guys standing around outside of it. Danny pulled his seat forward allowing you to get out, and you watched as his arms stretched underneath his old, worn leather jacket. He’d chosen to leave his hair down tonight, and you realized just how long it was when it almost hit the pockets of his jacket.

“You look really sexy tonight, Danny.” You told him as you stepped onto the dusty parking lot.

“Took the words right out of my mouth, baby. Where did you get that skirt?” He bit his bottom lip in as his eyes trailed up and down your body.

“At the mall back home in Iowa. Peter never let me wear it out.” You explained as you rounded the car, the memory of him laughing in your face when you emerged from the bedroom in it one night, shooing you back off to change out of it immediately.

“God, I wish you could wear it every day, baby.” You felt his hand lightly grip your ass as you met Jake at the nose of the car to make your way inside. You couldn’t help but let your eyes fall on him for a second, too.

Tight black jeans and scuffed black boots, an old black band t-shirt with an image you couldn’t make out, with a Levi’s jean jacket hanging on him so perfectly you’d think it was made for him. It was filthy, full of holes and burns and stains…another one of Ace’s hand me downs, you were sure.

He tossed his cigarette to the ground and stomped it, letting the smoke fall from his mouth as he asked, “Ready to go? That’s one of Teddy’s minions’ cars right there…” he glanced to the side lot as he shoved his hands in his pockets, walking closer to Danny.

“Good. Hope they fuckin’ recognize us.” Danny spat back as he held the door open for you.

“Oh my god! I love this song!” You exclaimed as ‘Start Me Up’ by the Stones came across the loud speakers of the bar.

“If you start me up…”

“If you start me up, I’ll never stop…”

You were on your second rum and Coke, only feeling your face get a little bit hot at this point. You were seated between Jake and Danny on the corner of the U-shaped bar, the smoke heavily-hanging in the top quarter of the dimly-lit room. You loved a good seedy dive, and felt more in your element at a place like this than you did in any of the upscale joints Peter used to drag you to.

“You make a grown man cryyyyyy!”

“You make a grown man cryyyy!”

You yelled, holding a fake microphone in your hand as you sang each piece to Danny and Jake, respectively. You had them both broken free of the bad moods from their little tiff earlier, and now had them smiling ear to ear watching you make a tipsy fool of yourself. Jake was just going to have to get over that he wasn’t the one to fuck you on Valor, first.

As you leaned harshly into Jake’s shoulder continuing to sing, he sucked his teeth as he swigged his whiskey, chuckling hard as he swallowed.

“What so funny, Jacob?” You asked, parroting Suzanne’s squeaky voice from this morning. You felt his deep eyes scan your face quickly before he answered, leaning into your ear so you could hear him.

“Irony, baby. Irony.” He muttered, his voice rasped from the smoke.

You pulled back, giving him a questioning look. “What, from the song?”

He nodded slowly, glancing at Danny to find his eyes fixed on the pool game beside you. “Yeah. But I think you already knew that.”

You threw your head back, letting a deep laugh hurdle through your chest as the out of season multicolored Christmas lights blurred across your vision. “Don’t want me to start you up, Jake? You sure about that?” You spoke quietly, watching again as his eyes flicked to Danny, and back to you.

All he did was puff his smoke, and squint one eye, giving you neither a yes or no. Instead, he shrugged one shoulder as the smoke slithered up and away, before dissipating to join the heavy cloud that hung above you.

“You’re a man of few words, you know that?” You pestered him, of which he responded, still, with the same exact look. His left arm was slung behind his barstool as he reclined comfortably, looking as if this bar was built around him. Suddenly you felt the need to pick on him some more, reaching your hand up to take the musty-smelling cigarette from his lips, twisting it nimbly in your fingers, and putting it between your own. You inhaled the smoke, which actually tasted better than it smelled, filling your lungs and tilting your head back to exhale.

“You smoke when you drink, baby?” Jake asked, still concreted in his position in the barstool.

“Used to smoke regularly, till I got with Peter. Then I switched to uhm, cinnamon candies, to curb the cravin’s. ‘Cause he ‘didn’t approve’.” You air quoted.

Jake brought his hand to rub over his mouth, twirling his mustache into place. He leaned up and put his elbows on the bar, pushing himself in toward you again.

“He must've never seen how sexy you look with it between your lips, then.”

He sat back in his old reclined position as you felt your skin get hot, flushing with a bright pink you knew had found your cheeks. You couldn’t help it. It was like his words, the sound of his voice could have pulled you across the ocean, through dry sandy valleys and up tall mountains…a siren song that drew the darkest parts of you out, just by uttering words.

You realized you were staring at him when he took another sip of his whiskey, snapping you from your feral thoughts. You took one last, long drag from the smoke, and moved to place it right back between his lips, your red lipstick coating the filter.

You leaned in, making sure he could hear you. “I like the way Danny’s tastes, better.” You quipped as his mouth opened slightly to take the cigarette back, flipping your hair sprayed locks as you turned to face forward again, catching the eye of the bartender for another drink.

Fuckin’ try again, lover boy.

“Danny, or his cigarettes?” He pressed again, really putting it on thick.

“Both.” You pulled your lips together.

“And how would you know that, having nothin’ to compare it to on my end? I could be the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted…”

Jesus Christ.

His mouth was so close to your ear you could feel his lips brushing your hair. You felt a chill shoot straight down your spine. You closed your eyes as you breathed, but all you could think about was actually finding out…

“Guess I’ll just have to keep using my imagination till then…” you said, clearing your throat.

“Oh, so you’ve thought about it before…” He pulled away, speaking plainly now.

You scoffed and smacked his arm, finally glancing at his face to find him smiling again. “I’ll never fuckin’ tell.” You motioned to zip your lips and throw away the key.

Before you knew it, Danny’s hand was on your thigh, squeezing the tips of his fingers where your legs crossed, inching them high and higher with no regard that Jake, and everyone nearby, could clearly see him do it. You shot your head in his direction, ready to playfully scold him before he spoke up first.

“You any good at pool, baby?” He was tapping one of his sweet-smelling prerolls out in the brown glass ashtray in front of you.

You shrugged. “M’alright, I guess.” Your eyes flicked to the group in the corner, recognizing a few of them to be Teddy’s minions, simply from the way they looked and presented themselves. Rowdy and clumped together like one big mass of leather, denim, muscle, and hair gel. They were loud, boisterous in their conversation, but you couldn’t make out any of the words they were saying. Their eyes darted constantly, just like Jake and Danny’s had done in the first couple of days you landed in Joslyn.

You watched as they shoved on one another like young school boys, shooting back shots of liquor and, every so often, glancing your way. “Are you?” You asked Danny.

“Yeah, I guess. Better at pool than I am poker.” He laughed, followed by an agreeing chuckle from Jake.

“Why don’t you go show them how it’s done, then?” You asked, stirring the skinny straw in your drink.

“We’ll wait ‘til a table opens, then see if we can jump on it.” Danny decided.

Just then, you heard the bell on the door behind you ring, and the three of you instinctively turned around to see who was coming through the door.

Oh god.

Suzanne…and Tanya.

They were a pair that didn’t seem to match in your mind, but seeing them together like this made tons of sense. Their hair was sprayed and sky-high, short tank tops and bright belts around their extremely short skirts, fishnets and heeled boots…they looked like a pair right out of a teen movie. Their makeup stood out brighter than the colored lights that hung above them, bright pink cheeks, red lips and blue eyeshadows…you could tell they did this often. For this little seedy bar full of drunk men…? Ok…go for it, sisters.

“Jacobbbbb!” Suzanne’s high-pitched voice screeched in your ears as she caught sight of him, shuffling her heels across the wooden floor with her arms wide open to hug his neck. “Babyyyy, I didn’t know you were, like, coming out tonight! You shoulda called me! You coulda picked me up in that car of yours…” She punched his shoulder after she let him free of the neck-hug, his eyes bulging out of his skull at the overwhelming wave of hellos.

When she stood back, her heavily-lined eyes scanned your outfit before they even looked at your face, her mouth snapping her gum as she placed both hands upside down on her hips. “Oh, hey.”

“Long time, no see.” You said flatly, turning back in your seat to retrieve your drink, which was getting upsettingly low again. You turned around to your left, finding Danny there with Tanya in his lap, her hair hitting you in the face as they spun in the barstool.

Her AquaNet covered hair brushed across your lips on accident, the stickiness making you want to spit immediately before even registering that Tanya had her ass in your man’s…er, Danny’s…lap.

After you recovered from the hair-to-the-face, you got your bearings again as Tanya wrapped her arms around Danny’s neck just as Suzanne had Jake, laying a giant, lipstick-stained kiss directly on his cheek. You watched Danny sit back a little bit in surprise as you felt something brewing in your stomach…what the feeling was, you weren’t quite sure.

“Danny, baby…you haven’t called in days, ain’t you missin’ me?” Tanya purred into Danny’s ear as her eyes flicked to you in a flash. “Is it because this little customer of yours is keepin’ you satisfied? ‘Cause I doubt that…”

Do these bitches not see who these grown men are here with?

Danny grabbed Tanya by the hips and sat her back down on the floor, stumbling a little bit as her half-drunk self got her footing in her high heeled boots.

“Tanya, that’s none of your business.” Danny confirmed, making the feeling in your stomach dissipate just a little. You tried to preoccupy yourself by watching the tiny television in the corner of the bar, some football game barely visible through the staticky picture.

Out of your periphery, you could see the two girls drunkenly stumbling into each other before laughing at absolutely nothing, and walking up to the bar. “Well, you know my number, Danny. You know how to reach me if you ever need me instead.” Tanya spat.

The girls ordered their drinks and sipped away at them, checking each others’ makeup and hair as they spoke quietly to one another, occasionally peeking back at you before laughing into their hands.

What is this, elementary school?

“Tanya! Baby! Come over here!” You heard one of the guys in the corner yell across the bar, signaling for the girls to join them.

“Son of a bitch, I can hardly stand her anymore.” Danny breathed a sigh when they finally were away from your bubble. “She’s like a fly that won’t leave the house.”

“Anymore? She’s intolerable to begin with, Danny.” Jake said out of the side of his mouth. “You’re the one that likes to fuck her…”

Danny reached his long arm behind your stool, hitting Jake right in the shoulder. “Liked. Past-tense.” Danny pulled out his tin of cigarettes, lighting up another. “And I didn’t even really like it, she could be too fuckin’ much sometimes…know what I mean?”

You shrugged, wondering what he even really meant. “Plus,” he went on, “When the fuck did those two start hanging out?”

Jake swirled his glass, nothing but watered-down ice now. “I dunno. But I ain’t fuckin’ invitin’ Suz over ever again now that I know that she also runs with a crew that wants to fuckin’ kill us. She probably ain’t nothin’ but a goddamned spy.” He shook his head, and you could tell that he was just a touch upset.

“I’m sorry, man.” Danny went on, the smell of his sweet smoke filling your nostrils. “I know you really like that girl. Cute little thing.”

Jake set his glass down on the bar with a little force.

“Liked. Past-tense.”

—-

After a couple more drinks, the three of you had found an empty pool table, unfortunately right beside the one the other crew was playing on. Your drunken haze allowed you to pretty much ignore them, and gave you confidence to focus in on Danny and this game. You really did enjoy pool, there were times when you and your mom would get a wild hair and go play before the bars got crowded, just you and her, in the middle of the day.

Jake took a stool on the outskirt, watching the two of you play with a fresh drink in his hand. He was stoically sober, having been babysitting his two drinks all evening. Danny, on the other hand, was slowly getting a little sloshy, but not nearly as much as you were.

“Six in the side pocket.” Danny said, leaning down to fulfill his call. He hit the ball with utmost precision, slowly covering a ton of green as it slipped perfectly into the pocket.

“Shit!” You yelled, bopping your pool stick off the floor. “You gonna let me hit anything at all?”

“Two in the corner, combo off the one…” he pointed again with the end of his stick.

At this point, you were leaned on the wall beside Jake, watching patiently as Danny kicked your ass.

“Oh, a combo, look at this guy…” you teased to Jake, earning you a sweet, full-tooth smile from him again. God, if only you could get him to do that day in and day out…

The ball ricocheted off the rail, bouncing around before rolling to a stop. “Fuck!” Danny exclaimed.

“Ha ha! Finally my turn.” You leaned down and lined up, taking the two easiest shots and sinking them right off the bat. You stood back up, rounding the table as you chalked your cue. “Nice leave on that ten-ball, Danny. Thank you.” You couldn’t reach the ball, so you sat your ass up on the side of the table, reaching over to gain some leverage over it. You concentrated, using plenty of bottom english to sink the ball, letting it spin backwards on itself so you didn’t scratch.

“Damn, girl! I thought you said you were just okay!” Danny exclaimed as he made his way toward you, pulling your chin up to lay a kiss to your lips. “You’re impressing the hell out of me, you know that?” His words made your insides churn again, and the closeness of him made your body feel like it was on fire. He had that power over you, the electricity between you taking hold of your entire being no matter what was happening, or where you were. You had found yourself in a constant state of want for him. And now, in later days, for the man in the barstool across the table…

After another game or two, you could feel the true intoxication setting into your bones, everything becoming blurrier and slower as the music got louder and louder. You, Jake, and Danny were sharing laughs, telling stories, dancing to bad radio pop-hits, and singing along to tear-in-my-beer country songs. You were truly letting loose, and for the first time in what you guessed was a while, so were they.

As you bent forward to line up for a particularly difficult shot, you felt your ass bump into someone behind you. You stood up to apologize and move out of their way, only to find Tanya’s frazzled, drunk and sunken eyes staring back at you with a fire blazing in them.

“Sorry, Tanya. My fault—”

“You BITCH! Watch where you’re going next time, huh?” She slurred, shoving your shoulder to inch past you.

You stood and looked her in the eyes, utterly surprised at her comment. “I said I was sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you…”

“Just leave her alone, Tan. She’s got a lot on her plate tonight, looks like.” Suzanne added from a barstool against the wall. You glanced to her, giving her a 'what the fuck is that supposed to mean' look.

“Yeah, you’re right Suz. Look at her, tryin’ to pull off that look for our boys…next time don’t try so hard, honey. You look like a trash bag.” Tanya spat, making the whole group laugh.

“I’m not tryin’ to impress anyone, Tanya. Can you leave me fuck alone? Or do you still have more to say?” You felt like the words were coming out strong, but you knew you were slurring a bit.

Suzanne popped herself onto the floor from her stool, her heels clicking against the sticky bar floor, moving to stand near Tanya as they prepared to lay into you again. “What actually is goin’ on over there, huh? You fuckin’ both of them? That’s a little slutty, seein’ as how you’ve seen Tanya and I both at the house now…” Suzanne added.

“Don’t worry, Suz. No one knows how to fuck’em like we do. Especially not this little skank from Iowa. There’s a reason they always call us over. ” She turned her nose up to you. “As if.”

Suzanne screeched a sarcastic laugh. “You’re so right, Tan. Hey, Y/N, tell us…what happened to your engagement back home? Couldn’t satisfy him? Failed marriages aren’t ever a good look, honey.”

You felt the blood boiling in your face, their words doing a great job of getting under your skin. How the fuck would they know about that? Unless one of the guys…fuck.

They laughed at your expense as Suzanne sat back down on her stool, but Tanya held steady. “You really think you can just show up here, and come in on our territory? It’s cute, actually…”

“They’re not your territory, you didn’t claim them…” you argued back, feeling Tanya’s hot, liquor filled breath on your face as you inched closer.

Her eyebrows raised. “Oh, that what they told you? I may not be as serious with Danny, but you should ask him to tell you who he woke up to in his bed almost every single mornin’ before your skank ass showed up in town. Yeah, me. You should think about that.”

You felt yourself swallow sharply, the realization of the fact that you might be in the dark with Danny and Jake hitting you like a freight train.

“Oh, and while you’re at it, you should also ask your little friend Jacob to go over the details of his on-going relationship with Suz again. Go ahead, ask him. Seems like he’s leaving out a few pieces of the puzzle, sweetheart.”

“Don’t even worry about it, Tan. She’ll be out of here soon and we can go back to spendin’ our nights goin’ round and round with them again.” Suzanne added.

You felt yourself getting enraged…not knowing whether or not to believe them, or take it as lies. All they were doing was insulting you over and over, and you felt like a pot about to boil over, the liquid courage rushing through your veins.

By this time, you could feel that Jake and Danny had come around the table and stood nearby behind you, noticing there was something brewing.

Tanya turned around with a dirty smirk on her face. “You’re right, Suz. She’s just the slut of the month. The new whore of Ace’s garage. Jake really must take after his daddy like that, huh? New women in and out of his bed every night just to appease how miserable his life really is. At least Jake is facing his problems instead of taking the easy way—”

Before she could even end her horrid, demeaning, absolutely disgusting sentence, you felt your left hand grab her arm, pulling her forward as your right hand flew up in a fist, landing a hit directly on Tanya’s nose. She immediately flew backward as the group stood to action, pushing barstools and chairs back as they did so. Tanya came hurling back at you with a vengeance, but you were prepared for it.

Your vision had blurred with rage, how dare she bring Ace’s name into this. You didn’t even know the man, but you had enough respect for him, and Jake, to not speak of him or the way he passed in a stupid bar argument. What a bitch.

You felt Tanya’s hands on you, pulling your hair while trying her best to land punches to your face. She yanked you around, pulling you across the floor as you twisted up and landed another hit to her side. You heard her scream out as chaos ensued, and you felt a swarm of people surrounding you. She had a tight grip on your hair, and had you bent over in such a way that you couldn’t see a thing. You felt her push you onto the pool table, your face buried into the green felt with force.

Stand up, Y/N, stand up.

JAKE POV

Everything was happening quickly. So quickly that everyone’s reaction times weren’t enough to get to them to pull them apart. You’d heard what Tanya said about you, and Danny…and Ace. You heard her insult your family, and your business and your choices. You’d heard her insult Y/N, and you’d watched as Y/N let her rage get the best of her, ending the conversation before it turned into something Tanya would truly, truly regret saying.

As you and Danny made the slow-motion attempt to round the table and pull the scuffle apart, Suzanne stepped in front of you, laying her hand across a shiny red pool ball and gripping it tightly in her hand. You watched as she made her way toward Y/N, Tanya holding her face-down on the pool table, ready to use the pool ball as a weapon.

You knew exactly what she was about to do, and you had to react. Fast. You instinctively lurched yourself forward, wrapping your arms around Suzanne as her hand raised in the air, ready to come down and bash Y/N’s head with the ball. What the fuck is she thinking?

You felt yourself rip her away as you spun her off her axis, the pool ball falling from her hand and loudly bouncing across the room as everyone else finally made it to them to pull them apart.

“What the fuck Jacob?!” Suzanne squealed. “Don’t defend this bitch! Get your hands off me!”

“Are you serious, Suz?!” You were blind with madness, you knew what she was going to do. She knew a pool ball to the skull could easily kill a person with enough force. “You want a fuckin’ murder charge tonight?!” You screamed at her as you watched Danny pull Y/N through the bar in a flurry of limbs and screaming.

You tossed your hold on Suzanne’s arms away as you caught the eyes of the other guys beginning to surround you. You held your arms up in surrender, not wanting anything to get more violent than it already had. You pushed through the heavy wooden door to find Danny trying to calm a flailing Y/N.

“Let me go back in'ther! Wann’ beat her fuckin’ ass!” She was pushing Daniel away as he stopped her from returning to Tanya.

“Y/N! Chill out! It’s over! You ain’t goin’ back in there!” Danny yelled in her face as he held her back.

“Get in the car.” You commanded her quietly, your finger first pointing to her face and then to V. “Get in the fuckin’ car, Y/N.”

She huffed a few puffs of air through her nose, her jaw clenched in madness, but when she saw that she wasn’t going to get what she wanted, she conceded. You pulled the door open and jerked the seat back so she could stumble into the back. “Daniel, the bar bill?”

He spit to the ground before he went back inside, hands in his pockets to pay the tab. “No fuckin’ funny business.” You yelled at his back, your words snipped.

You pulled the seat back and hopped inside, starting the engine and letting it roar to life while you waited for Danny to return. It was quiet for a few seconds, but you knew she would speak up soon. You could feel the tension still flowing from her, swirling in the air of the car. After a few beats, you proved yourself right.

“Why didn’t you let us finish the fight fair, huh? I woulda met that bitch in the parkin’ lot!” She howled, her voice shaking with nerves and alcohol.

“Because, Y/N! Just fuckin’ drop it!” You raised your voice as Danny entered the car.

“I’m not gonna fuckin’ drop it, Jake! I’m a grown ass woman! Bitch needed a reality check n’ I was gonna give it to her!” She argued as Danny settled in his seat. You heard him sigh hard, just like he does when he knows he’s too drunk. You backed the car out of the lot, trying not to kick up too much dust as you sped off.

“Oh so I guess you missed the part when I caught Suzanne’s hand about to bash your skull in with a pool ball, huh? Did you catch that part?” You spat as you sped down the road. She was quiet.

“They are not good people, Y/N. Danny and I learned that tonight. Fuck, we should've known all along…but now that we see who they’re running with…” you licked your lips as your mind rushed with thoughts. “Fuckin’ fightin’ someone in Teddy’s crew, what were you thinking, Y/N?! We’re already over here fightin’ for our lives, puttin’ literal fires out…and you just made it worse!” You felt bad blaming it on her, but, shit. The wrath of Teddy was really gonna come down, now.

“It’s not my fault you both chose to fuck people who run with Teddy! I didn’t ask for this, Jake!” You could tell she was near tears with fury. “And another thing, apparently neither of you have been telling me the fuckin’ truth about anything, anyway…”

“What the hell do you mean, Y/N?” Danny asked, turning himself to face her.

“Tanya told me y’all were in fairly serious relationships with her and Suzanne ‘fore I came along. Said you were leavin’ out details about how close you were with ‘em. You didn’t have to fuckin’ lie t’me…neither of you.” Her voice had quieted a bit.

Wait, what?

You were only a couple minutes from home, thank god, but you knew the night was far from being over.

“What do you mean, lie to you?” You asked, voice thick with accusation.

“If you guys were in relationships with them, you coulda told me insteada me makin’ me look so stupid and pathetic.” She relayed.

“No, god damnit, Y/N. After all the shit we’ve been through this past week, you think we would be the ones lyin’ to you? Are you serious? That’s a fuckin’ slap in the face, huh Danny?” You elbowed him.

“Yeah, no shit.” He agreed. “We aren’t in fuckin’ relationships with them, Y/N! They fuckin’ lied to you! To get under your skin!”

“Yeah and it worked, didn’t it?” You made eye contact with her in the rear view mirror, flashing her a look of displeasure. “Now Teddy’s gonna come down even fuckin’ harder, thanks to that stunt.”

“Oh fuck you, Jake! So it’s all my fault now, huh?” She started to raise her voice again. “I told you I felt like this was all my fault, and you reassured me that it wasn’t. Guess y’ didn’t hear her drag your dad’s name through the mud…and yours…fuck. And not to mention, how the fuck did they know about Peter? Huh? How did they know that? Jake…was it you?”

“I didn’t say fuckin shit to her, Y/N!” You felt accused.

“I’ll just keep my damn mouth shut from here on out. Matter of fact, maybe I’ll just go back to the motel, hm? Be out of both your hair so that way I don’t cause any more problems and you can screw whatever women you decide to bring back home. I’m done.”

Danny shot around again. “You’re kidding me, right Y/N? You’re jokin’ right now? …After everything we did today, after everything I said you wanna say some shit like that? That you’re just done?”

It was silent again as you pulled the car into park, her words and his running over and over in your mind. Danny really fuckin’ likes this girl… And yeah, you were mad at her for perpetuating the feud with Teddy. For jeopardizing your already shitty situation. But…she had…

“Yeah, hey, I caught the Ace part.” You sighed, trying to break up their tension. “Thank you…thank you for defendin’ Ace.” You relented, watching as Danny shook his head, his eyelids heavy with high intoxication and disappointment.

“Yeah. No problem. Will you let me out of this goddamned car?” She spat, hitting her hands against the back of your seat. You and Danny both opened the doors and you let her climb out, watching as she stomped her way off in a fury.

Danny unlocked and pulled the garage door up so you could pull Valor inside. He was already stumbling over his words and his feet, and you knew as soon as he settled down, the alcohol would hit him even harder. It always worked like that for him.

It was no use discussing anything more tonight. It would be pointless, they were going to be too drunk to remember, and you had just enough fire in the venom of your veins to say some shit you didn’t mean.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow you will make it right.

—

HER POV

You slammed Danny’s bedroom door shut so forcefully you felt the walls rattle. You huffed out an exasperated breath as the room spun around you. The blood was rushing through your veins faster than it had all night, and with the alcohol in your system the effects were only amplified.

“You done?” Danny asked, his face fallen a little bit.

“I needa ‘nother drink.” you groan, flopping down next to him on his bed, your body feels light as you stare up at the popcorn ceiling.

“You gonna tell me why you chose to b’lieve those girls over me ‘n Jake?” His jaw was clenched. “Tell me why you said you’re done after ev’rything I told you today?” He rolled to his side to face you head-on. “I wouldn’ say those things to just anybody, Y/N. N’case you haven’ noticed, I actually like you. A lot.”

You sighed, knowing you were letting your anger speak for you earlier. You couldn’t be done. You weren’t done.

“M’sorry, Danny. I am. I didn’t mean it…I…I really like you too.” And you meant it. You felt horribly about your outburst. On both of them. It wasn’t worth it. Tomorrow, you would talk it all out. But for now…

You leaned a hand up and cupped his cheek, running your thumb over his lip. He cocked a half-smile. “I think I hav-a flask…” he paused, opening his nightstand. “Yep, right here.”

“What is it? Wait, actually I don'care, just hand it over.” you demand, pulling it from his fingers and twisting the metal lid. You press the flask to your lips, swallowing down what you now know is gin, and wincing at the bitterness. “Fuckin’ gin? Who keeps a flask'a gin in their nightstand?”

He snatches it from your hands, taking his own nip to further his already drunken state. “Me, thank you vera'much.” a single drop rolls out of his mouth and down his neck as you watch, your eyes completely transfixed on its descent.

Your mouth waters as you watch it roll down his neck and beneath the collar of his shirt and suddenly you’re wondering if it would taste as bitter if you licked it from his skin.

“Well you can try an’see…” he says, and you realize you must have said that out loud.

You flash a guilty grin and he grabs your hand pulling you to rest on top of him. Your movements feel slow, and sluggish, and your hands feel numb as you reach for him. Straddling his waist has your head spinning, but you do your best to lower your lips to his throat. You can feel the warmth of his hands as they travel up underneath your shirt, skimming the band of your bra.

Your tongue licks a wet stripe up his neck, following the exact path the gin took and you feel his fingertips dig into your skin. “Baby, fuck…”

“Mhmm…” you hum, taking another long lick of his skin, musky and salty and everything Danny.

“You looked so fuckin’ hot tonight. Been thinkin’ ‘bout fuckin’ you all night.” he growls into your ear.

“Didn'like seeing Tanya on your lap…” you admit.

“Nah, m'either, baby. You know it’s yours'right?” his words slurring together as his eyes hung low.

“Yeah…” you breathe into his ear. “You still want me?”

“Fuckin’ yeah I do. You want me, baby?” he asks, his eyelids partially closed.

“Needyou…” you whine, grinding yourself down onto his lap.

His hands move slowly to begin working at his jeans, fumbling with the button and zipper, and pushing them down his hips. His cock is only semi hard, an unwanted effect from the liquor in his body.

“You aren’t hard for'me?” you say, grabbing him in your hand.

“Take yer shirt'off…need to see yer body…” he says, helping you pull your shirt off and tossing it to the floor. Your hands find the clasp of your bra, letting your tits fall perfectly against your chest.

His hands grab at the rounded flesh, squeezing as his eyes flutter closed again. You unzip the back of your tight leather skirt and lift up to your knees, stepping down off the bed to shimmy out of your skirt and hose.

“Didn’ tell me you had those little panties on under there baby, woulda spread you out on that pool table, told e'ryone in that fuckin’ place you’re mine…” he growls pulling you back on top of him. You grind yourself over him, hoping to arouse him further, but still he is mostly soft. You giggle as you realize that both of you are too far gone to even attempt fucking.

He lets out a pained groan,“‘M sorry, baby. Think I drank too much. Come sit on my face, lemme make you cum.”

You shuffle forward as he pulls your black satin panties to the side, his free hand guiding your hips over his head. You feel his nose brush against your clit eliciting a whine from your lips. As you settle over his face he pulls you down hard, letting his tongue lap at your center. Your hands grip his headboard, as you ride the pleasure coursing through you. Your mind is filled with nothing but him, his mouth, the way he feels beneath you. You’re completely consumed by him, him, him. His mouth works slowly as he savors you, and you feel an uneasy feeling in your stomach.

The pleasure that was growing was slipping away, the swirling in your stomach taking over. Danny slows his tongue as you pull away from him, and as you do the feeling starts to ease.

“Baby?” he whines, barely opening his eyes to look at you.

“I’m sorry, I– I don’t feel good all the sudden…”

“S’okay, jus lay down–” he breathes, the words coming out in a breath. You can tell he is seconds away from slipping under, so you let him. You fix your panties and climb off of the bed, grasping the walls and furniture to steady your wobbly legs. Your vision is still blurry as you make your way to his dresser, pulling out the first t-shirt you feel, and pulling it over your head. You hit the light switch and tumble back towards the bed, but as you reach for the sheets the sick feeling washes over you in a tidal wave. Your mouth starts to water and you know you’re going to be sick. You dash out of the bedroom, throwing the door open to the bathroom as you clutch your stomach.

You barely make it to the toilet before you spill your guts, gripping the disgusting bowl in your hands to brace yourself. It feels like it’s never going to stop as you continue to heave into the bowl.

You groan as you have a small reprieve from the nauseau, your eyes watering and nose running as you look around for Danny. Another wave of nausea hits you, and as you retch you hear the door fly open and the sound of Danny’s bare feet on the floor behind you. His hands slide across your head, gathering your hair into his fist, pulling a few strands away from your clammy face with a gentle touch. His free hand rubs at the back of your neck and you feel your body relax at the warmth of his touch. You heave a few more times as he rubs your back and when you know there’s nothing left you spit into the bowl. A sense of relief washes over you and you feel like you’re finally done as you reach for the knob to flush the toilet, with your head still hanging low inside the bowl.

You hear the sink turn on and the shuffling of his feet against the floor as he crouches down behind you again. You lift your head from the bowl and you see a wet washcloth being offered to you, but as you take it you pause, realizing even in your drunken state, that the tattoos inked across the fingers in front of you, were not those that belonged to Danny.

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britney-gvf · 6 months

Text

Valor (Chapter 4)

Pairing: Jake x Reader, Daniel x Reader

Word Count: 25.1k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin'. Angst: Struggle and Poverty, Emotional Manipulation, Abandonment, Jealousy, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Fire & Property Loss, Physical Fighting, Blood, Mentions of Death, Mention of Suicide, Heavy Angst, Reckless Driving, Allusions to Shady Activities, Coercion, Gambling, Betting. Smut: Kissing, Heavy Petting, Allusions to Sex.

Valor Playlist: Apple Music | Spotify

A new project in collaboration with my talented co-writer @gretavanmoon.

HER POV

You twist your fingers together nervously waiting for them to walk your way. You saw the other car pull away in a cloud of dust, but the two of them still stood in the same spot, talking amongst themselves. You swallowed anxiously as you saw them start to head your way, sitting up a little taller in the front seat of Jake’s truck.

Jake opens the door and slides in behind the wheel, as Danny leans into the passenger side window. “What do you think, you hungry?” he asks, looking down at you beneath his dark lashes.

“Yeah, I could probably stand to eat something.” you pause, looking over towards Jake. “Plus it’s his birthday…”

“Yeah it is…What do you think Jake? Louie’s? My treat?” he asks, earning him a soft smile and a nod.

“Yeah, sounds good. Drop your bike at the shop first?”

Danny nods and smacks his hand gently against the windowsill, pushing away with a smile as he heads towards his bike. Positioning himself on the seat, he starts the bike and takes off first, Jake following behind him.

“So… Wha–what was the meeting about, or can you tell me?” you ask, as Jake pulls a cigarette from the carton in his pocket. He flicks the carved zippo to life, holding the flame to the tip and taking a long drag.

“Well, that man was at the poker game the other night. Just wanted to talk to me and Danny is all.” he answers, the cigarette dancing around his lips as he spoke.

“That’s it? That seems sort of strange? Why didn’t he just come to your shop?” you ask, confused.

“Nothin’ to worry ‘bout.” he says, turning the wheel toward the shop. You sighed, feeling the same feeling that they were holding things back from you again. None of your business, right?

You blinked back the confusion, scooting over so Danny could hop in the passenger seat beside you.

“I’m starving. I think it’s meatloaf night!” Danny rubbed his hands together, and you noticed just how hungry you had gotten, too. It was mere minutes before you were pulling into the parking lot of Louie’s. You’d really forgotten just how small this town was.

As you made your way to the front door Daniel held it open for you to enter first, seeing Geraldine working the counter. She motions for the three of you to sit wherever, so you follow Jake’s lead to a small booth in the corner. You slide in first, Danny taking the spot next to you as Jake sat across. Seconds later Geraldine was greeting you with menus and mugs.

She poured steaming hot coffee into the mugs, before telling you she’d be back. Your eyes scanned over the menu, not really feeling like the days special of meatloaf.

“Did’ya tell her?” Danny asked, looking across the table to Jake.

“Nah.” he grumbled, not bothering to look at Daniel.

“Tell me what?” you ask, folding your menu and setting it in front of you.

Jake’s eyes flashed to yours, before meeting Danny’s. “Okay, so the guy didn’t just want to talk to us.” he starts, pausing to run his fingers over his chin. “He saw us fight the other night.”

“Okay and…” you press.

“And, he wants us to fight in matches.” Danny finishes, pulling his folded hands in front of his face.

“Matches? Like– Like boxing or something?” you question, with a furrowed brow.

“Yes, but not boxing. Fighting. For money.” Danny answers.

“What? Why would he– Why you two? I’m confused.”

“So are we, but he said he sees something in us.” Danny took a deep breath and turned his body toward you to speak directly. “Look, there’s maybe a bit you don’t know about me, Y/N.” He confesses. “Since I was young, I’ve always been a bit of a fighter. I like to tussle. And I guess, I’m kinda good at it?” His eyes squinted as he said the words, blowing the steam off the top of his mug.

Your eyes catch Jake’s as he silently confirms Danny’s admission with a quick nod. “Taught me how to fight, that’s for damn sure…”

“Okay, so he saw you two fight at the poker game, and he thinks you’re good enough to fight in matches for money?” you ask Danny.

“Yeah, but not just me. Both of us. He wants both of us to fight.” he says, letting his eyes trail over to Jake.

“Money…How much money?” you ask.

“Don’t know for sure, but he said the word thousands.” Danny answered, embellishing the last word with a twirl of his hand.

Hold the phone. “You two aren’t actually considering this are you? I mean, you don’t even know this guy. You have no idea what you could be actually walking into. What if– What if it’s a set up or something?” you question.

“No risk, no reward.” Danny touts.

“We can’t just drop fuckin’ everything to go fight, Daniel.” Jake says.

He crosses his arms and sits back in the booth, “I think we should do it.” He digs around in his pocket, pulling out a business card and slapping it on the table. You snatch it up, looking at the name and the phone number, before flipping it over. Blank.

“This says nothing. It’s just his name and number…” you question.

You watched as Jake started bobbing his eyes around again, like they both did the day you met them. Always paranoid. “He said this shit was underground. Doubt Oscar is even his real name.” Jake quips, twisting the paper card between his fingers.

“Okay, so say this isn’t some scam or some shit, and you two go and fight… What about the shop? What about my car?” you ask.

“Parts for your car won’t be here for another week and a half. This fight is in a few days, so...” Danny says, helping you piece this together.

“Okay so, if he’s right, and you two do end up winning some money, it would help you pay that guy back right?” you ask. Jake nods his head, you can tell he is considering every single pro and con, while Danny already has his bags packed.

Geraldine walks back over towards the table, effectively shutting all of you up. “You guys know what you’d like?” she asks, pulling her pen and pad from her apron.

“I’ll take the special, how it comes.” Jake says, followed by Danny gesturing a two.

“Alright, two specials, and you hun?” she asks, eyes meeting yours.

“Could I please do… a BLT?” you ask, closing your menu and watching her scribble it down.

“Be right up.” she nods, walking away towards the kitchen.

“Okay, anyways…” you pause, making sure she’s out of earshot. “Say you two go fight, what happens when you get injured or something? How will you be able to work?”

“Jake and I have been fighting each other for a long fuckin’ time. Has yet to be a fight we haven't bounced back from the next day.” Danny says, smugly.

“Yeah, but you aren’t fighting Jake. You’re fighting god knows who!” you shout, quickly reining it in.

“Do you think we’re gonna lose, Y/N?” Danny laughs.

“I don’t know! But I don’t want either of you to get hurt!” you say, laying your fist on the table.

“You’ve gotta trust us. Can you trust us, Y/N?” he asks.

You let out a long deep sigh and look up to Jake, his eyes reassuring you. “Okay, yeah… But for the record I still think this is all a giant set up, and a really bad idea.”

A small laugh leaves Danny’s chest, “Well, I guess there’s only one way to find out.”

—

The three of you push your nearly empty plates towards the center of the table, the food disappearing quickly from your plates. The conversation had shifted away from the proposition from Oscar and into reminiscing about years past. Much of the meal was filled with laughter between the two guys, one funny memory spurring on the next.

You felt a tingle of excitement in your chest as you remembered the little surprise you had pulled together for Jake earlier this morning. You bit your lips together to conceal your smile, but Jake noticed. Just as he was about to ask, Bubba stepped up to the table, sliding into the booth next to him.

“Well, another year huh, boy?” he said, throwing his arm around Jake’s shoulder.

“That’s what they tell me.” he laughs, making room in the booth.

“You know, you’d think with time, things would get a bit easier on us but have ta say feels a little worse each year.” he says sullenly, twisting his fingertip around his thumb.

“Hell of a way to spend a birthday ain’t it…” Jake quips.

“I know, I’m sorry son.” Bubba says, squeezing Jake’s shoulder. “He was a good man beneath it all, I promise yeh. I know he’d be proud of his boys.”

“I reckon you went to that meetin’ right?” he asks.

“We did.” Danny answers. “What’s that guy's deal?”

“Well, he rolled into town a few days ago. Stopped in here for a bite to eat, took the seat next to mine at the counter. We got chattin’ for a spell, and mentioned your name. Said he’d heard ‘bout some boys that did some fightin’. I said, ooooh yes, I know those boys. Invited him to the poker game, since it seemed like he mighta had some money to blow. Led em’ right to yeh, and you boys put on quite the little spectacle for ‘em. Saw him the next day, and told me he wanted to arrange a meetin’. And well, you know the rest.”

“Yeah, Bubba…He wants us to– he wants us to fight in underground matches. NHB fightin’.” Danny says, hesitantly.

“I figured as much. You boys considerin’ it?” he asks, leaning into his elbows on the table.

“Talkin’ about it. What do you think?” Jake asks, looking over to him.

He sniffles, and looks towards the door before turning back to the three of you. “I think there's some good money to be had in those kinds of fights. ‘Specially if they’re run clean. Think you two boys could do fairly well for yerselves.”

“So you think we should do it?” Danny asks, a child-like innocence on his face as he asks Bubba for his approval.

“Think anythings’ worth tryin’ once. Least to say ya did.” he answers, and you almost see Jake’s body relax. “I have a good feelin’ bout him, boys. Think you should give it a go. Think there’s a reason he came to town lookin’ for you two.”

Jake nods his head and looks at Daniel, the two of them communicating silently as Wanda brings the check over. Bubba snatches it up off the table as he slides out of the booth, heading towards the register. “Happy Birthday, Jacob.”

—

DANNY POV

“I have a surprise when we get home.” Y/N’s voice was as soft as butter on the ride back from the diner, and your heart skipped a beat when she referred to the place as home. You let your hand run over her thigh in the darkness of the cab, creeping it closer to the heat between her legs.

“Is it for me?” You said flirtatiously, gripping your hand into her thigh.

She lightly slapped you across the chest. “No, dummy. It’s not your birthday, now, is it?”

You laughed through your teeth, tapping the top of her leg before removing your hand. “When even is your birthday, Danny?”

“Not until the winter, babe.” You thought ahead, realizing that really, neither you nor Jake ever did anything special for your birthdays. Never had enough money. Never had enough reason to care.

“You don’t need to do anything else for me, seriously. This has already been a better day than I’ve had in a long, long time.” Jake interjected. And you believed him. He seemed so upbeat today. Like good things were on the horizon. Like he had a sparkle in his eye.

“S’not much, nothing extravagant. Just thought maybe you’d like a cherry on top of your day.” You glanced out of the corner of your eye to see Y/N gently lay her hand across Jake’s upper thigh, petting it sweetly before ripping it away as soon as her sentence was finished. It made your breath catch in your throat. Why did she just touch him there?

“Pull over here, I need to go do something.” You motioned for Jake to pull into the lot of the motel, seeing that the light in the lobby was still buzzing a dull fluorescent yellow. Jake skidded the tires into the lot, pulling in right up front.

“What are you gonna do?” He asked, the tone of his voice letting you know he was going to follow you inside.

“Just stay here, I’ll be right back.” You flung the door open and slammed it shut, just a little pissed off that you saw Y/N’s hand brushing dangerously high on Jake’s leg.

Being met with Wanda’s now unfamiliar face after knowing her for so many years felt strange; it was like she was a completely different person. Stature, clothing, overall appearance…ten years ago you would have never guessed this would be how she ended up. But what had changed the most was her personality. She wasn’t the sweet and witty lady you always knew. Now she was wily, deceitful, and overall the most unaccommodating motel owner you’d ever met.

“Well if it isn’t little Danny come to grace my presence. How’s business, boy?” She yelled, squinting through one eye.

“Could ask you the same, Wanda. But I think I already know the answer.” You firmly placed both hands on the counter, straightening out your elbows to lean down. “I need to check the person out of room number seven.”

You watched as Wanda lifted her glasses to her wrinkled nose, sarcastically smiling with her mouthful of only a few teeth. “Oh, the girly come from outa town. She paid for seven nights. Still got four to go.”

“Right well she’s checking out, she won’t be back. And I’m here to collect the difference for the nights she won’t be stayin’.” You responded, feeling the gall rise up in your chest.

Wanda stepped forward and raised her voice to an even louder volume than it already was. She punched her pointer finger down to her ledger book, right over top of Y/N’s name, ironically the last person to have checked in to the motel since. “It’s non-refundable, and non-negotiable. She signed her name here, and my policy says—”

“Your policies don’t mean shit to me, Wanda. You probably didn’t even tell her that when she signed, did you?” You were seething. “Plus I know you overcharged the hell out of her…thirty-five dollars a night? Really Wanda?” You took your fingertips and pushed the ledger back toward her.

Wanda’s jaw clenched closed as you watched her face get hot. “Now what you ain’t gonna do is walk up in my establishment and tell me how to run my business, boy!” You felt the spit travel from her mouth onto your face as she yelled across the countertop. “Huh, if Ace was still alive he would have your ass—”

“If Ace was still alive this town would be in a lot better shape than it is now!” You lurched toward her. How dare she bring up Ace’s name like that. “And this isn’t your establishment, Wanda, shit. If Bubba was still running it you wouldn’t have gutters fallin’ off the building and the police here every single fuckin’ night!”

It had turned into a screaming match. You just knew Jake and Y/N were getting a show from inside the truck. But you’d been wanting to go in on Wanda for a long time, now. This just gave you extra reason to speak your piece.

Your mind thought back to when Bubba and Wanda were married not eight or so years back…the motel was actually thriving. It was one of the only businesses in Joslyn that was worth a damn. Bubba kept the building in top shape, and Wanda ran all the housekeeping. They did it by themselves, and they did it well.

Then once Ace died, and Teddy took over holding the reins of the town, everything went downhill. Wanda got in with the wrong crowds, started fighting and arguing with Bubba…the people who were once the ones you looked to for comfort in your younger years had turned into the poster-people for the phrase ‘nasty divorce’. Bubba couldn’t do it anymore. She asked for a divorce. And Bubba lost everything.

“Four nights’ stay total. You can even keep the pocket change.” You held your hand out, wiggling your fingers to let her know you weren’t leaving this room until you had the cash in your hand. And she knew you… she knew you were serious.

“That’s my fuckin’ money, Danny.” She spat, her voice lowered now.

You rolled your eyes. This is was getting to be a chore. You leaned in close again, the dirty smell of the musty carpet below your boots and the asbestos-ridden walls suddenly enveloping your senses. “Hm, be a shame if I called the state and reported my stay here was full of rat shit, bed bugs, and roaches, wouldn’t it? Black mold in my shower?” You raised your eyebrows, knowing the threat might not be all untrue. But the last thing she needed was an inspection from the state and probable shut-down, so she conceded.

She limped back to the back room and re-emerged with a handful of cash, gritting her teeth after licking her fingers, counting the bills back out to you one by one.

“That all?” You demanded to know, flattening your hands across the counter. “Because she’s out in the truck, I’ll come right the fuck back in here if this isn’t it, Wanda.”

“Yes that’s fuckin’ it, Daniel. Now get the hell out of my lobby ‘fore I call the law on you for harassment.” She barked.

You wadded the cash up and stuck it in your pocket, offering her the tiniest nod of your head. You turned to push the front door open before stopping yourself short, and turning back around to face her again.

“Oh, I almost forgot. We know you let Teddy know she had money. Sent Joey and Tanya out to see if she was there…we aren’t fuckin’ stupid, Wanda…plotting to find her and take her money… Snitchin’ on your guests’ whereabouts ain’t good professional practice, hm?” You raised an eyebrow to her before backing up again.

“Just tell your buddies up the road to stay the fuck away from her.” You spat again before shoving your way through her door, letting the old wooden slats rattle hard behind you.

——

JAKE POV

As you pulled into the driveway of the shop the sun was down and a blanket of stars littered the sky. You sat and watched as Y/N and Daniel exited your truck, Daniel shutting the door behind the two of them. Your eyes followed her as she and Danny made their way toward the front door, hand in hand. The sound of the rumbling engine tuned out every other sound, and you watched as their bodies cast shadows on the building from the beam of your headlights. You could tell he wanted to be near her, feel her touch… even if it was just a little bit. You’d only been around her for less than a week, but the energy that emanated from her was unlike anything you’d ever experienced before. And you knew Danny felt it too.

It hurt your heart a little to admit that you noticed her body language didn’t always match with his. Not all the time, and not obviously, but it was there. Within seconds, she released his hand, bounding forward as he pulled his keys from his pocket and unlocked the door.

She had a sort of giddy excitement on her face sending a little shiver through your body as you pulled the keys from the ignition. You reached over and locked the passenger door before stepping out and locking your own, letting the heavy metal door swing shut.

You walked slowly into the house, hearing a little chatter coming from the kitchen and deciding to join in on it. Your fingers fidgeted with the zippo in your pocket, letting your nails gently scrape over the carvings in the metal.

“Okay, okay sit, sit!” Y/N instructed. “And don’t look! It’s a surprise.”

You tossed Daniel a questioning look and she shrugged his shoulders, clearly not privy to her surprise either. You both sat at the kitchen table, turning your attention away from whatever she was doing, but hearing the freezer door open and shut and a plate hit the countertop. She opened and closed a few drawers in search of something, but eventually gave up with a huff.

“Okay, I don’t think you guys have any candles, but…you get the idea.” she says, walking towards you with the plate. “Oh wait! Where’s your lighter?” she asks, reaching her hand out.

You lean over, shoving your hand in your pocket to retrieve the item, presenting it to her in the palm of your hand.

“Okay…” she says, flicking it open and producing a flame. “We’re just going to pretend, okay?” she says as she hovers the lighter over the plate, which holds a slightly frozen piece of bread, soaked in milk, sprinkled with sugar and pinch of cinnamon. A birthday cake. You felt your heart clench, as you realized that this is probably the first birthday cake you’d ever had.

You swallowed down the lump in your throat as your eyes met hers, the flame flickering as it reflected into her eyes. She began to softly and nervously sing, “Happy birthday to you…Happy birthday to you…Happy birthday dear Jake…Happy birthday to…you…”

You couldn’t help the tears that began to well in your eyes, trying your hardest to fight them away as you nodded your head feeling more shy than ever before. “Th-thank you.”

“Blow out the flame…” she pauses, “Make a wish.” her eyes were locked on yours and as you stared at her you could hardly tear your eyes away. Had anyone ever cared this much? The soft orange glow from the small flame lit up her entire face, and her smile was warm and genuine. She wasn’t doing this because she had to, she was doing this because she wanted to. For you.

As you let your eyes take sight of the dancing flame you knew exactly what you wanted to wish for. But should you? Wishes never came true anyways, right? What would it hurt?

You swallowed, and took a deep breath, blowing out the flame as she let the familiar sound of the metallic lid flick shut. You made your wish, even though you knew you shouldn’t. She placed the plate in front of you and presented you with a spoon. “Happy Birthday, Jake. I know it’s not much, but–”

“Thank you.” you interrupted, reaching for her hand and holding her soft fingers in yours. “It’s more than I’ve ever had.” you say truthfully. Your eyes flick over to Daniel, who is grinning as he watches, nodding his head in approval. You look back at her, squeezing her hand before letting it go, even though you really didn’t want to.

She walks back over to the freezer, grabbing two more plates she had prepared earlier in the day, and two more spoons. She placed a plate and spoon in front of Daniel, as he squeezed her hip in thanks, before grabbing her own and sitting down at the table with you. It was quiet as the three of you enjoyed your little dessert, in a solemn but happy moment.

“Did you… know that cinnamon is my favorite?” you ask, breaking the silence.

“No, I just…My mom…she used to make this for me when I had a bad day at school, or if she knew I was feeling sad about something. Always said a pinch of cinnamon was her special secret ingredient. Kind of became a comfort thing for me. I know it’s not really the same as a real birthday cake, but it’s what I could do. I just wanted you to have something…” she explained, almost as if she felt guilty for not doing more.

“Y/N, this is more than I ever expected, more than I’ve ever had. We’ve ever had. Danny will back me up on this.” you said, nodding towards him.

“He’s right. This is…special for us. No one’s ever cared.” he smiled at her, brushing his knuckles against her arm.

“Thank you for thinking of me. Made my whole day.” you said, offering her a smile.

“You’re welcome, Jake.” she said sweetly. You watch her bite her lips together, and you almost think there's more she wants to say, but she quickly looks back down to her plate, scooping her spoon into her dessert.

Daniel stands from the table and puts his plate into the sink, “I’ll be right back, okay?” he said, running his hand over her shoulders as he made his way down the hallway.

You hear the front door close and realize it’s just the two of you now, and you let your eyes nervously flick up to look at her. She’s staring off into space, probably still thinking about her mom or maybe the last time she had this. Again you find yourself unable to look away from her, that is, until she looks back at you.

“Jake?” she asks.

You swallow thickly, “Yes?”

“Can I ask you a question?” she pauses, “And you tell me the truth?”

You bite your lips together, and let out a breath through your nose, “I can try.”

“If those guys get to me somehow…Are they going to hurt me?” she asks, eyes searching yours.

“Honestly, yes. Probably.” you answer, seeing panic shoot across her face. “But I’ll never let them.”

“You swear?” she pleads.

“Between me and Danny… No one is layin’ a finger on you. I promise you that.” you say confidently, knowing that for certain.

She nods her head and looks down at her plate again, swirling her spoon through the melted icy milk. “Thank you…For looking out for me and everything. I know you didn’t sign up for all of this.”

You place your hand on top of hers as it lies on the table, gently squeezing her hand, silently reassuring her that she’s no burden to either you or Daniel. Your mind wanders off to the visit from Joey the other day, and you wonder if her fears really are warranted. Would they take her? Would they hurt her? But more importantly you wonder if they knew that you threw the game the other night. Surely they had to be getting suspicious after so many wins. Would they use her to send a message?

Suddenly she stands from the table, grabbing her plate and yours before walking over to the sink to wash them. You watch her as she does it, trying to block out the bad thoughts swirling through your mind as your eyes focus on the sway of her hips.

She dries the plates and puts them back in the cabinet, hanging the kitchen towel from the stove handle as you watch. She turns back to you and rests her hands on the back of a chair. “Think I’m gonna go take a shower, and go to bed.”

You stand to meet her, mimicking her stance as you push in your own chair. “Okay, Daniel will be back soon I’m sure. But hey, I just—thank you again…for all of this. I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you did that. I don’t think anyone’s ever sang me happy birthday before. If they did I don’t remember it…”

She smiles and steps forward, wrapping her arms around your body, and pulling you in for a surprising hug. You’re stiff for a moment, unsure of the last time you really received a genuine hug from anyone, but once the shock wears off, you feel a warmth spread through your chest and a tingle in your stomach. Her head is pressed to your chest, and you can smell her hair and her perfume and the tingles in your stomach start to ripple through your entire body at the feeling of her so close to you. You nervously wrap your arms around her shoulders, pulling her in and letting your fingertips memorize the feeling of her skin beneath them.

“You’re welcome Jake.” she breathes into your chest, almost a whisper. Then, all too quickly she pulls away, letting her hands linger as long as possible before breaking away. Acting quickly you grab her hand softly in yours as you pull her back towards you, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek letting your lips linger a second too long. “Goodnight, Y/N.”

You can feel her skin heat beneath your lips as she pulls away, a dark blush tinting her skin as she stifles a smile. You drop her hand and let her step away, shoving your hands into your pockets as she responds. “Goodnight, Jake. Happy Birthday.”

She retreats down the hallway, pausing and offering you one more quick glance over her shoulder before slipping into the bathroom and closing the door.

—

You could see her face, the orange of the flame glowing onto the apples of her cheeks, the flame flickering and dancing around in the reflection of her eyes. You could see her lips moving, so soft and pink, although no sound came out. You could stare at her like that for hours, just watching the way her fingers gripped your lighter, how effortlessly she pressed the igniter, the way her tongue glided over her lips as she did so. She was gorgeous, and every day you spent with her you began to realize that more and more.

Black smoke started to gather behind her, thick and dense, you could hardly see her anymore as it crept forward. Soon it completely enveloped her, though she was completely unphased. You tried to grab for her but your hand went right through her, as if she was made of smoke too. You looked around, panicked to know where the smoke was coming from but you couldn’t see anything other than the thick black clouds completely obstructing your field of vision. It was getting harder to breathe, completely unable to take a deep breath as you choked on the smoke filling your lungs. It burned, you could feel it in your chest, taste the ashiness of the smoke on your tongue, but still you couldn’t reach for her, in fact you couldn’t move at all.

You tried to yell for help, but no sound came out. You could still see Y/N in front of you, smiling as she continued to mouth the words to the birthday song you’d always desperately wanted to hear. You tried to wave away the smoke burning your eyes, reaching for her again, but this time as your hand reached for her she disappeared into the thick smoke, as if she was never there at all. Trying to take a deep breath you choked on the hot smoke, coughing and sputtering as the smoke seemed to completely devour you until all you could see was the darkness.

You shot up in your bed, sweating and gasping for air, pushing your hair off of your face and looking towards the alarm clock on your nightstand that read 3:42am. But that’s when you smelled it. It smelled just like your dream. Was that actual smoke?

You jumped out of bed, eyes scanning the room for a pair of jeans, pants, anything you could find. As you pulled on a pair of dirty jeans you noticed the flicker of orange glowing through your bedroom window, stepping over to it and flicking open the blinds. You could feel the heat radiating from the crack in the window. Holy fuck.

You bolted out into the hallway, pounding your fist on Danny’s door. “Danny we’ve got a fire! Get the fuck up!” you yelled. You quickly grabbed your shop keys, running out to the garage, and flipping on the lights. They began to buzz to life but you could hardly hear it over the sound of your heart pounding in your ears. You ran to the opposite side of the garage, sliding into your work boots as you grabbed the old, dusty, fire extinguishers from the storage rack. You heard the shop door swing open, and you whipped your head to find Daniel pulling a shirt over his head.

“The fucks’ on fire?!” he yelled.

“Somethin’! Smell woke me, saw the flames from my window! Open the bay door, and grab the hose! Y/N!?” you called out.

“She’s coming! She’s calling the fire department.” he answered, pulling the metal chain and quickly as he could, watching the metal door fly up.

“Oh motherfuck it’s my fucking shed!” he yelled, running towards the flames.

You ran after him, pulling the pin on the extinguisher, but you knew from the looks of it, that your small extinguisher would be no match for this blaze. You tried anyways, knowing that hundreds of dollars worth of parts and materials sat in that shed, even a few spare bikes. This would be a total loss for him.

He grabbed the hose, spinning the spigot and letting the water spray against the vicious flames in a feeble attempt to quell them. You could hear the fire truck in the distance and felt thankful that Y/N had the clarity of mind to call them, while your first instinct was to try and fix it yourself. Though, that was kind of how you lived your life. How could you depend on anyone but yourself?

“Danny, back up!” you yelled, the roar of the burning shed almost deafening. He ran towards the shed, nearly burning himself in the licks of the flames.

“I can’t I gotta– I get get my bikes… My tools–” he stammered, knowing in that moment exactly what he was losing.

“I’ll fucking replace them! I can’t replace you! Get the fuck back!” you screamed, seeing Y/N rushing out to you from the corner of your eye. You were sweating from the heat, sweat falling in streams down your chest as you tried not to breathe in the thick smoke filling the air.

“What happened!? What’s happening?!” she cried, running up behind you. Daniel walked over, throwing the hose to the ground in defeat as the fire truck pulled into the gravel lot.

“I think we’re bein’ sent a message.” you answer.

“Message received, loud and fuckin’ clear.” Danny said, grabbing Y/N, and wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

The firefighters piled out of the truck, running the hose to the hydrant at the front of the property. Within seconds the water was pummeling the flames, making quick work of a seemingly out of control fire. In a way you felt relieved that it was only a parts shed, and not your full garage, and you knew it would take a little bit of time for Daniel to come to that same realization.

—

They worked the fire until it was just a dripping mess of blackened rubble and ash, the three of you watching on as the light of the day started to peak over the horizon. As Daniel talked to a firefighter, Y/N walked over towards you, leaning her shoulder into yours as you both stared off towards the smoking shed.

“You should go get some sleep…” you say, nodding your head towards the house. “We’ve got this.”

“No, I’m not leaving you two to deal with this alone.” she insisted, as her eyes met yours. “I feel like this is all my fault.”

You shook your head. How could she think this was her fault?

“This wouldn’t have happened if my stupid car hadn’t broken down. If I hadn’t stopped here and intruded into your life.” she scolded herself.

Your hand brushed the back of hers as it hung at your side, “M’kinda glad you did.” you admit quietly, offering a shy grin.

Her fingertips grazed across yours as she turned to face you with her own nervous smile, “I guess I kinda am too. I wanted an adventure, right?”

You felt your chest grow warm as you nodded. “That you did.” you pause, watching the sun start to rise. “Really, go back to bed. I promise we’ll be fine out here.”

“Dunno if I’ll be able to sleep with all of this goin’ on. Been a little bit on edge lately. Not sleeping too well. Especially…by myself.” she admits, almost seeming a little embarrassed.

“Just try? We’re right out here, and if you can’t…I’ll… send Danny in for a little while, and I can clean up.” you answer, swallowing the lump in your throat.

“And… if I’d rather your company?” she breathed, hesitantly.

You huffed out a nervous laugh, licking your bottom lip before biting them together. You grabbed her hand in yours, giving it a gentle squeeze in place of words you knew you couldn’t speak. She seemed to understand as she nodded her head again, and looked at you for a second before walking over to Daniel whispering in his ear. Your eyes met hers again as she made her way back to the door, giving you one last glance before disappearing into the house. You knew you and Daniel had a lot of work to do to clean this up before you could move on with your day, and once you got the okay from firefighters, it would be full steam ahead.

—

So what, was this a war declaration?

You stood outside smoking a cigarette in the early morning light, watching as tiny puffs of smoke still rose from the ashes of his shed.

But why? A war on what? You already owed them so much money…what more could they want?

You tossed your cigarette to the ground, stomping it out before walking toward the piles of smoldering rubble and ash, kicking around to see if there was anything you could save. A few old tools, a metal stool, and some more expensive parts that he had locked in a box looked like they might have survived.

Why the fuck does Teddy hate you so much? Constantly doing everything in his power to make your life a living hell…and you have never done anything in retaliation. He was just a bully that lost the love of his life twenty-some years ago, and you’re the product of his heartbreak. Like you could fuckin’ help it. Ace ended his own life…what else did he want?

You let the water get extra hot as you scrubbed away at the parts you were able to salvage, watching as the dirty, soapy water spun down the drain of the shop sink. You felt like the fire that burned last night was now burning in your chest, a madness brewing that you’d never felt before. How dare Teddy catch your property on fire, the son of a bitch…

You felt horribly for Danny losing all these parts and tools, most of them he’d collected since he was a kid, before he even made his way into you and Ace’s home. One day you would replace them all, one day you would pay him back…

“What’re you doin’?” Danny’s sleepy voice broke you from your thoughts.

“Ah, just found a few things that looked salvageable. Gettin’ some of the soot off.” You shook the water from your hands as you set a tin box on a towel beside the sink.

“Thanks, man. You didn’t have to do that…” Danny rested his hands against the deep sink, seeing what else you brought in. “Shit, did you sleep at all last night?” Danny asked through a harsh yawn.

You scrunched your face. “A little. In and out, mostly. Kept wakin’ up.”

“Me fuckin’ too.” He huffed. “Y/N hasn’t been sleeping good either. Up and down all night.”

Your brow furrowed as you think back to just a few days ago, and how peacefully she slept next to you. “Hmm…probably the stress of everything…”

“Yeah probably.” he pauses, “Man, I applaud firefighters, though. That shit was exhausting.” You let a little laugh escape your chest, knowing the best medicine for chaos was to laugh your way through it.

You watched as Danny fingered through the pile of tools in the sink. “You know what we gotta do, right?”

You nodded solemnly. “Fuck. Yeah…we gotta call Oscar. Need this motherfucker paid off and off our backs.”

“You really think he’ll stop once we pay him, though? Swear he does this shit for sport now…”

He had a point. Even after paying Teddy all of your dad’s debts, would ever really stop harassing you? Probably not… you wagered.

“Gotta fuckin’ try somethin’. Got a bit more involved these past few days, hasn’t it?” You raised your eyebrows to Danny, gesturing back to his bedroom with your eyes.

“Yeah…yeah it has. Gotta get her to Atlanta, man.”

——

You let your finger dial the rotary, while the other one intently followed the phone number off the card. You took a deep breath as you pulled the phone up to your ear, listening to the tone ring out. Danny sat in Ace’s chair, leaning in closely to listen to the impending conversation. You tapped your fingers nervously on the desk as you heard Y/N downstairs scrounging up something for breakfast.

“Talk to me.” The voice on the other end finally picked up.

“Hello, yeah, I’m calling for Oscar, please.” Your eyes darted anxiously to Danny.

“Who’s ringin’?”

“Uh, Jake, from…Ace’s Garage…”

“Oh. He’s been expectin’ yeh. Hold on.”

Your eyes widened again as you whispered to Danny, covering the speaker with your palm. “We’re 100% sure we wanna do this, right?”

“Fuck yes!” He whisper-yelled, throwing up a fist to your face. “I swear to god, Jake, if you bitch out…”

“Jacob, nice to finally hear from yeh. Have a little time to think about my proposition?” Oscar’s voice was the exact same as it was at the saw mill.

“Oscar, yes, hello. We um, we did have some time to think…b’lieve we wanna give it a shot.” You felt your insides churning with nerves. But you’d never let Danny see it.

“Excellent, excellent. Got an arrangement down in Kirksville day after, think you might want to get on the bill?” You realized he was probably speaking in rounds to keep suspicion from anyone around him, or anyone listening…

“Kirksville, only about three hours away.” You glanced to Danny as he nodded his head up and down so quickly you thought he was going to break his neck.

“Yeah, yeah, we can be there. Just give us details.”

“Wonderful, eh? I’ll get yeh a room at the Cosby Motel, my treat seein’ as how you’re my newest friends. Check in under my name by 4 o’clock. Once’t you get there, I’ll have further instruction.”

“Okay…Cosby Motel 4 o’clock…” you gestured for Danny to write it down. “Anything else we need to do?”

“Just start hydration’ now. Fuel yourselves up. And don’t be out back fightin’ each other, now, yeh hear? Don’t need you busted up and ugly for your debut.”

“Yes, got it got it.”

Debut?

“Okay, see you then. Oh, and Jacob?”

“Yes sir?”

“Heard about the action last night. Sorry to hear about that. Hope yeh know I’m here to help combat that sick son of a bitch ruinin’ lives, you understand me, son?” Oscar’s voice got quiet, an almost whisper. “That’s one thing I do not and will not tolerate, someone ruinin’ lives just for the sake of ruinin’…”

“Ah, right. We aren’t happy about it either. Could have ended up worse. ‘Least no one was hurt. Then I’d be the one burnin’ shit down.”

“That’s right, kid.” You listened as Oscar erupted into a deep, hearty laugh that lasted all of ten seconds before he finally calmed down. “See you boys soon.”

With that, you heard the click of the phone hanging up on the other end, before pulling yours down to the receiver with a clack. Danny’s excited energy was radiating from him.

“Kirksville?”

“Kirksville.”

——

The loud whining sound of the air impact drill echoed through the bay as you attempted to get a tire off an old Mustang, your mind clouded with thoughts about the fight. Like clockwork, Danny must have felt your anxiety, as he came barreling over to your side of the shop, two beers in hand.

“How the fuck we gonna break it to Y/N that she has to come along with us?” He wasted no time in asking as he cracked them both open, handing one to you.

You let the impact drop to the ground, having been wondering the same exact thing, on top of the million other worries rolling through your mind.

You shrugged, taking a long drink. “Just gonna tell her, I guess.”

“You think it’ll be that easy?” he huffed, “Not sure if you’ve noticed, Jake, but she’s a bit of a fire plug. What she says goes, if you know what I’m sayin’...” Danny side-elbowed you as he made the insinuation.

You pushed the visual of her being in charge at all in the bedroom far from your mind, letting logistics take over.

“I don’t need to hear ‘bout that, Daniel. Look, she already knows she has to basically be a stowaway here, anyway…shouldn’t be that hard to tell her she’s still safer with us even if we’re not here. This place ain’t a fortress, we learned that last night.”

You made a good point, knowing that if she stayed here alone, they could just as easily catch this place on fire, too. “Last thing we need is to get a phone call that this place is on fire, and she’s missin’.”

Your stomach turned over at the thought of her being three hours away from you, here…all alone, without your protection. But why did you care? You don’t care…she’s just passing through…

“Yeah, but we can’t ask Oscar to accommodate her, too. We don’t have the money for an extra room, Jake.” Danny argued.

“But she does. Fuck, if she wants to get her own room, so be it. But somethin’ tells me she’ll be shackin’ up with you that night, anyway, hm?” You gripped the wheel of the tire, ripping it from its hold to begin taking the brake pads off.

Danny breathed hard through his nostrils. “What about this place, huh? Losin’ two days’ work, we can’t afford that…”

“Been thinkin’ that, too. Let’s see how this goes, if we wanna stick with it, then if not maybe we can find some help. Geraldine told me there’s a drifter in town lookin’ for mechanic work. She didn’t tell him about us right off the bat ‘cause she knew we couldn’t afford him. Maybe after this, we could.”

You watched as Danny’s gears began turning, his fingers working over his peach fuzz as he thought about everything. “Alright, yeah. Alright.” His fingers padded against the hood of the Mustang before he resumed what he was doing across the bay.

You both worked silently for a bit longer before Y/N emerged from her morning bathroom routine, hand-drying her hair with a towel. She sat down in a lawn chair, flipping open a newspaper and kicking back. You eyed Danny, silently saying now or never before you both made your way to join her.

“Oh shit, what’s wrong?” She asked suspiciously.

“Nothin’, nothin’…we just wanted to tell you we called Oscar earlier, and gave him our word we’re goin’ ahead with a fight…” Danny explained.

You watched as she bit her lips in before folding the newspaper on her lap. “Great. And?”

“And…you gotta come with us, Y/N…s’in Kirksville day after tomorrow.”

She nodded. “Figured as much. On my way to start my new life and get sucked in to this fuckin’ mess…”

Whoa, you didn’t expect her to be this upset.

“Y/N, we didn’t ask for this either, it’s been a fuckin’ whirlwind and you just got here four days ago…” you interrupted. “This is somethin’ we have to fuckin’ do, okay? We’re not exactly out here living like royalty…”

“Can’t I just stay here? Bubba can come check on the place…”

“Y/N! They set a goddamned fire last night! To our property! They’re threatening us, don’t you get it?! This isn’t just some fun little side-gig, this is real fuckin’ money that we need, okay? If we don’t do this, we could end up losin’ a hell of a lot more than a storage shed and some spare motorcycles…” Danny raised his voice.

You watched as she closed her eyes, understanding the weight of what Danny said. And he was right.

“And I guess you forgot, but they have their eye on you too, Y/N…I’ll be damned if I leave you here alone…” Danny ordered. You could see the worry in his eyes.

“Yeah, and you don’t wanna be away from us for two days, do you?” You winked at her, gently punching her shoulder to lighten the mood.

She grinned a little, raising her hands up. “Yeah, yeah. I’m sorry, you’re right. Just…a lot going on I didn’t expect to be a part of…”

“It’ll go by quick. We’ll be back before you know it, the parts will be here for your Scout, we’ll get it fixed, and you can be on your merry way to Atlanta.” You could hear the dismay in Danny’s voice at the thought of her leaving. “I'm sorry you had to be a part of all this.”

You glanced at Danny, running your hands across your coveralls. “Yeah, we’re sorry, Y/N.”

“It’s kinda funny, you showed up and our world kinda turned over on itself. Maybe you’re a good luck charm.” That one earned Danny a sweet smile from her, the glimmer in her eye making your heart rate spike.

God, she’s…really pretty…

“I’m gonna go upstairs and reschedule our next two days’ appointments to next week. We’ll close up shop and leave Saturday mornin’.” You tried to pull yourself away from the situation, feeling that if you looked at her one more time, you would start feeling that strange feeling again down deep in the pit of your stomach. “Gonna pull some cash from the safe for gas to get us there and back.”

“Anything I can do to help?” She asked, throwing both of you off.

“Uhh, no, I don’t think so…” Danny stopped in his tracks, spinning around in confusion.

“Figured all I do is sit around all day, could make myself useful and clean up the shop or somethin’.” She offered, immediately walking over to grab a broom that had been leaning against the wall for probably the last six months.

You shrugged to Danny. “Feel free, babe.” The word naturally slipped from your mouth before you could even catch it, but Danny didn’t even seem to notice. She gave you a sly smile over her shoulder as she began sweeping. Fuck, you haven’t called someone ‘babe’ in years…

“Just uh, just watch the grease and oil, it’ll stain your shoes…”

“Oh! I’ve got a pair of old boots in the Scout, I’ll be right back.” She walked to the wall and grabbed her keys off the hook. “Ya know, I can’t believe you guys are making such a drastic career change from mechanics to fighting and crackin’ heads….”

You huffed out a laugh. Ha! Crackin’ heads.

If she only knew…

Wait. Stop.

“Hey, what? What did you just say?” You felt like a million light bulbs went off in your mind, ringers and buzzers and flashing lights galore.

She stopped in her tracks. “Uh, mechanics to cracking heads?”

Oh my god.

You ran to her, unable to stop yourself from grabbing her face in your dirty hands, planting a giant kiss right on her cheek.

You pulled back, holding her surprised face in your hands. “I don’t hardly know you, but I think I love you.” Your words came out as loud, forced mumbles as you dropped her face and ran to Valor, ripping the old tarp off the top.

“Whoaaaa, you what now?!” Danny yelled. “Did you just say you—”

“Yeah, Danny. If I find what I think I’m gonna find, yes, I love your girlfriend. And fuck, I’ll tell her again, too…” you were simply about to burst with joy. Please…please let this be it… come on, Ace…

You popped the hood, immediately going to your rolling tool kit to pull it your way. You worked fast, faster than you’d ever worked before. It felt strange, working on Valor sober. You could see. You could feel…nothing clouded, nothing slipped and forgotten about…no bad memories being thought about through teary eyes…

You felt Danny and Y/N join you on either side as you kept working, clawing away at exactly what you were looking for.

“Daniel, bring me the light…”

He jumped up, switching the hanging light on before bringing it to you.

“I’ll be damned…” you mumbled. “I’ll be damned!”

You jumped from under the hood, grabbing Y/N with force again as you shook her shoulders.

“What? What, Jake?” She chided, concerned about your sudden excitement. “What the fuck is going on?!”

You felt yourself smile, positively beaming at her. It hurt your face muscles to smile that hard. And you weren’t sure you’d smiled that hard in years.

“She just told me what’s wrong with Valor.”

—

“A cracked head?! Are you fuckin’ serious?!” Danny leaned down into the belly, readjusting the light to see better.

“I swear to god, man…look…”

“Son of a bitch…that is it, baby!” You could tell Danny was overcome with excitement too, as he picked up Y/N around the waist, lifting her into the air and twirling her around, having no regard for how dirty he got her.

She squealed as he spun her. “Put me down! Put me down!” She laughed. “And explain to me just what the hell I said?!”

He set her back down on the floor, and she walked closer to lean inside.

“Look…” you paused. “Right here… The wall between cylinders 2 and 4 have a crack between ‘em. Compression has been bouncing back and forth between the cylinders making it run like shit. I tried everything, so did Ace…Could never figure it out. Checked timing, checked fuel pressure. Fuck I even checked the compression… it wasn't horrible but it wasn't great… fuck how did I miss this!?” You explained, knowing she probably didn’t understand, but she was trying.

“So just now, you said crackin’ heads and…it clicked. I pulled the head of the motor and finally found the crack in the cylinder…right there, see? It’s tiny, but it’s there. Normal compression runs like, 130 and I was only gettin’ 60 psi. Fuck. I shoulda checked that years ago…”

“I have no idea what you just said but I believe you.” She laughed. “So, what now? You can fix it? We can take it to the fight?”

“Nope. It’s fucked.” You said, crossing your arms. “It’ll need a whole new motor…”

“Wait man, why don’t we just pull a motor from a scrapper? Won’t take us a day…” Danny suggested, motioning out to the lot of cars.

You nodded as you peered back down inside. Something so damn small…over seven years of searching…

“Yeah…yeah let’s fuckin’ do it…”

Y/N didn’t know it, but you wanted to kiss her cheek again. Hug her, even. Worship her big beautiful brain. You were elated…filled with so much relief. Yet again, because of her.

“Seven fuckin’ years, Ace…”

——

HER POV

You can almost feel the energy radiating off of Jake as he zips around the shop, collecting parts and talking himself through a mental checklist. His boots are heavy against the concrete floors as he walks back and forth grabbing tools and depositing them on the ground in front of the car. You stood nervously watching as Daniel joined him, putting on a pair of coveralls, and zipping them up to his neck.

“Gonna go grab an engine stand, need anything else from the back?” he shouts towards Jake, who is digging through his tool box.

“Yeah, grab some engine flush, and a bottle of coolant if you can.” he replies, letting his eyes catch sight of you before offering you a sly grin.

How did your silly little comment tip him off?

You hear the wheels of the engine stand rolling its way through the garage, then you see Danny walking up with the bottles in his arms and one hand steering the large metal frame. He parks it next to Valor and sets the bottles down, before leaning into the side of the car. “I’m thinkin’ we pull it from that old Biscayne.”

“Shit, either that or– Isn’t there an Impala out there?” Jake counters, standing up and wiping his hands across his coveralls.

“Yeah, the Impala had that timing issue, remember?”

“Oh fuck, yeah you’re right. Yeah, the Biscayne has the same block, let’s see if we can pull it. I grabbed the spanners and the breaker bar, just gotta grab my socket set.” he ponders, looking around the messy state of his tool box.

The two begin to make their way out towards the gravel lot, rolling the engine stand in front of them as Jake carries all the needed tools. As their feet hit the rocks, Jake turned around motioning for you to join them with a smile, “Let’s go miss brain, we need your help.”

—

You stood back watching as they finally broke the motor free from the long abandoned Biscayne, attaching the hook to the chain wrapped around it, and praying the engine stand would bear the weight. Jake crawled out from underneath the old car, covered in dirt and dust, but with a smile on his face nonetheless. “Alright, jack ‘er up.” he said, dusting off his pants.

Daniel spun the arm, and slowly but surely the engine rose out of the car. Jake used all of his strength to roll the stand away from the car as the engine gained enough height to make the clearance, but the gravel was making the job a bit more difficult than it needed to be. Daniel stepped in and with both of their muscles behind it, the wheels began to spin and the engine began its journey to its new home.

By the time the stand made its way to Valor, Jake and Danny were both winded and sweating, taking a second to catch their breath before repeating the exact same process with the motor still resting inside of Valor.

“Fuck, you ready to do that again?” Danny joked, earning him a laugh from Jake. A sweet sound you hadn’t heard too much of before. You noticed a dimple appear in his cheek, as he turned to look at you, and the glimmer of happiness in his eyes was magnetic.

He looked back to Daniel, who was cranking the arm of the engine stand, guiding the motor to the floor before unhooking the hook from the chains. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

—

Much of the day had been spent pulling the engines from the two vehicles, a few regular customers stopping in for quick oil changes or something of the like. You made yourself busy around the shop, tidying small messes here and there before finding your way into the house to see what you could do in there. You made the two a quick lunch, delivering it out to them as they held bewildered looks on their faces at the gesture.

“What, you two never seen a sandwich before?” you laughed, handing them the paper plates.

They both shrugged and took the sandwiches, and they were gone before you could blink. You let your legs carry you back inside, cleaning up in the kitchen as the sounds from the garage echoed into the empty house.

Hours passed as they worked steadily placing the motor into Valor. Jake underneath the car, while Danny worked from the top. You could hear the muffled chatter between them, and you were positive you’d never heard Jake talk more than he had in the past few hours. Danny seemed to enjoy it as the conversation flowed between the two of them endlessly, where previously it was a word or two every few hours.

As the sun was long past set you slipped into the shower, letting the hot water wash away any worries plaguing your mind. You grabbed the soap from the ledge, twisting it between your hands to a lather, before washing yourself, and realizing that it must be Jake’s since it didn’t smell like Danny at all. Your eyes flashed around and saw the shower gel, lifting the lid and being hit with the scent of Danny. The two could not be more different from each other, you thought. Opposite in nearly everything except their loyalty to each other.

You quickly washed your hair, and reveled in the comfort of the hot water before spinning the knob and reaching for a towel. You wrapped it around yourself, and rang out your hair before stepping out of the tub. You could hear talking in the kitchen as you opened the bathroom door, the steam spilling into the hallway as Danny popped his head around the corner.

“Dinner break?” you asked, quietly padding into the kitchen. A smile spread across Danny’s lips and Jake stopped mid bite as he saw you. You blushed a little as you saw his eyes scanning over you, before quickly looking away.

“Yep, got a little bit left to do, then I’ll be in, okay?” Danny said, placing his hand on your hip.

You nodded your head and pulled your wet hair to the side before making your way back down the hallway and into Danny’s room. Your heart was pounding out of your chest as you shut the door behind you, thinking of the way Jake studied your body. You realized he was probably a little taken aback, having never seen you, like that. You wish you knew what he was thinking. Was he thinking the same thing you were thinking?

You pulled a t-shirt over your head, and slid on a pair of panties before climbing into Danny’s bed, a guilty feeling washing over you for even thinking of Jake like that. You grabbed your book from the floor and found your page, letting the words transport you to another place where things weren’t so uncertain.

You weren’t sure what time it was when the sound of the bedroom door shutting woke you from your sleep. Your eyes cracked open to see Daniel stepping towards his dresser, hair dripping with a towel around his waist. You swallowed harshly as you took in the sight of him, still glistening from the steam of the shower. He dropped his towel, putting on a pair of dark colored boxers, before running the towel through his long waves, drying it just enough to get into bed. He tossed the towel over the closet door and pulled back the sheets sliding in next to you as you put your book on the floor and turned off the lamp.

“You showered?” you croaked out, a thin smile on your lips.

He grabbed your hips and pulled you in to him, “Mhmm…started gettin’ used to doin’ that now that you’re here with me. Wanna smell good for you.” You felt his face nuzzle into your neck as his hand slid under your t-shirt, resting over your ribs.

You twisted in his arms, soaking up his body heat. “Mm, well you do smell good. You guys get it finished?” you ask, voice still sleepy.

“Almost, still got a fair share to do. Think Jake’s still gonna work on it for a bit.” he answers, letting his eyes close.

“Can’t believe my stupid joke helped figure it out.” you giggled.

He pressed his lips to your forehead, “I know…Our little lucky charm, guess we gotta keep you around.” he hummed.

“I don’t feel like I’m very lucky. Look at what’s happened since I showed up.” you countered with a laugh.

“I don’t know. I, for one, feel very, very lucky.” he says, letting his hand trail further up your shirt, his thumb dusting over your nipple as his lips trail down the side of your jaw. You arch your chest into his touch, giving him the go ahead to touch you again. He palms your chest as you feel his dick growing hard against your stomach.

He pulls away from you just slightly, looking into your eyes before attaching his lips to yours. He rolls your nipple between his thumb and forefinger, letting his tongue lick into your mouth. Your hands that previously rested on his bare chest, have now found new placement as you stroke him through his boxers. He whines into your mouth before pulling away from your lips dragging his teeth over your bottom lip.

“I wanna fuck you, baby. I swear I do. But I’m so fuckin’ tired.” he admits with pleading eyes.

“I know. Just kiss me again.” you beg, and in seconds he complies, letting his hand slide down your torso, to cup your heat over your panties. His lips are soft and warm against yours and if you could live in this moment, surely you would. It’s you who pulls away though, brushing his damp hair out of his eyes as he savors the taste of you lingering on his lips.

“It’s okay…Go to sleep, it’s been a long day.” you whisper, watching his eyes close in relief.

“Hey…” he breathes.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for agreeing to come with us. I don’t think we could have left you behind even if we wanted to. I know I couldn’t.” He pulls you close to him, resting your head on his chest as he rubs circles into your shoulder.

“I wanna take you on a date, soon. A real one. Once I win my fight and become a zillionaire…take you someplace special.” You felt the low vibration of Danny’s sleepy voice rumble in his chest as your head rested on his breastbone. “Show you that I’m not someone you have to run from…like that asshole ex of yours. Still good ones out here, Y/N. Wanna show you I’m one of them.”

His words made you melt into a puddle and want to cry at the same time. It wasn’t often, you’d found, that Danny let his tough-guy guard down, a trait you’d noticed he shared with his brother.

You huffed a tiny giggle as you readjusted your head to press your lips to his bare chest, leaving tiny kisses from there and up to his throat. “Where you gonna take me?”

He then laid a sweet kiss to your forehead, a gesture of true care he hadn’t shown you yet, until now. It made your body flood with the sweet flow of endorphins, and you were sure you might disintegrate into a million pieces if it weren’t for his arms wrapped tightly around you.

“M’not sure yet. But I’ll think of something, if you say you want to go with me…”

“Of course I do, Danny. Wherever you want.” You answered honestly. You suddenly felt an overwhelming feeling of protection envelop you, like you could lie here in his comfort forever if it meant you never had to feel the pain of heartbreak ever again.

You hardly knew this man at all, either one of them, for that matter. But effort was a two-way street, and though the situation was so intensely twisted into a predicament you didn’t expect to find yourself in, he had already shown you more effort than Peter ever had. Jake, too, if you were being honest.

You breathed through a deep yawn, and it wasn’t long until the two of you were slipping off into your dreams, tied up and fighting off each and every intrusive thought that passed through your mind as his hand gripped hard into your thigh.

—

The metallic sound echoing through the walls woke you from your broken sleep. Your eyes flick to the clock hanging on the wall reading 6:08. God, was he already out there?

You slowly slipped from the warmth of the sheets, doing your best not to wake Danny who was completely passed out next to you. You pulled on a pair of Danny’s boxers from his pile of clean laundry, and silently made your way out into the hallway. After a quick stop in the bathroom to pee and brush your teeth you found yourself wandering out to the garage. You opened the shop door as quietly as possible, which wasn’t too quietly as it squeaked on the hinges.

Jake rolled out from underneath the car, looking exhausted and filthy, but completely and utterly overjoyed. He sat up and looked in your direction, wiping his hands on the chest of his coveralls, before standing to meet you.

“Jake…Have–Have you been out here all night?” you ask in shock.

“Dunno. Guess so.” he smiled, placing a hand on his hip.

“Well is it almost done at least?” you ask.

“Mm…No, not really. Still got more to do. Engine is in, just gotta flush it out, add new fluids, all that.” he says, reaching for his cigarettes in his chest pocket. Realizing the carton was empty, he mumbled under his breath and tossed the empty carton towards a trash can.

“You have to sleep eventually, you know…” you said playfully.

“Who needs sleep when you’ve got nicotine?” he winks.

“Well, you, since your vices have run dry.” you banter back.

He smiles, and maybe for the first time ever you’re rewarded with the sight of every perfect white tooth in his head. “You think you’re funny, don’t you? Standing there condemnin’ me in Danny’s underwear…” he laughs, shaking his head.

“You wanna do me a favor?” he asks, his voice rich with persuasion.

“Maybe…” you answer, twisting your fingers together.

“Go in my room, in my dresser, top drawer on the left, grab me the pack that’s sittin’ there?” he asks, running his dirty fingers over his chin hairs.

“Mmm, what’s in it for me?” you press.

“Well…” he pauses, leaning on the front of the car. “You don’t have to squeeze between Daniel and I for a three hour car ride, for one.”

“And who said I wouldn’t enjoy that?” you quip, walking off towards the door to retrieve his cigarettes.

You quietly make your way back into the house, slipping into his room and breathing in the smell that was so perfectly him. You open the dresser drawer and see the pack of smokes sitting there next to his boxers, a small black notebook, and a familiar piece of folded paper. You grab the carton, and beneath it you find a pack of cinnamon gum with a few pieces missing. You swipe a stick and pop it in your mouth, letting the familiar, comforting flavor quell your morning hunger.

You make your way back out into the garage, finding him leaning up against Valor with his ankles crossed and his arms crossed over his chest. He raises his eyebrows to you, flashing you yet another smile as you approach. You extend your hand out, offering him the carton of cigarettes as his eyes flick to your mouth. “You stealin’ from me, sweet thing?” he smirks, tapping the carton on the heel of his hand.

“Borrowing…” you jest. “I’m out of my own cinnamon candies, didn’t think you’d mind, but if you want it back I’ll gladly give it to you.” you challenge, throwing him a raised eyebrow and a flirtatious smirk.

He sucks his teeth and shakes his head, mumbling something indiscernible under his breath, turning back towards Valor, stopping and doubling back as if he’d changed his mind and wanted to say whatever it was, but again he just smiled and shook his head.

“So you really think we’ll take her out to…Wherever we’re going? Kirksville?” you ask, shifting your weight on your hip, biting your bottom lip between your teeth.

He flicks his lighter on, holding the flame to the tip of the cigarette hanging from his lips, taking a long drag and blowing the smoke behind him. “Mmhm…God willing, baby.”

You could tell the pet name slipped from his lips before he could stop it, and you felt your insides melt as it swirled into your ears. He didn’t seem too mad about it, as he took another long drag from his cigarette, holding it between his tattooed fingers, flicking the ash to the ground. You could hardly peel your eyes away from him as you watched the way his lips wrapped around the smoke between his lips. You felt positively drawn to this enigma of a man, and in this exact moment you were pretty damn sure he was feeling it too.

Baby…

Yeah, you could get used to that.

—

DANNY POV

“Daniel, you’re pacin’. You never pace. You ain’t got somethin’ to fix over there?” Jake muttered as he balanced on one leg with his head in V’s belly.

“Sorry, man.” Your nerves were shot. Normally you could handle things like this. You stayed cool, calm, and collected when it mattered, but your nerves about finally getting Valor running, your excitement about the fight, and the fact that you were developing a crush more serious than any other you’d had before, you felt like you were about to jump out of your skin. “You sure you don’t need any help?”

“No, I’m good. The hard part’s done…” he twisted a socket wrench a few times before giving you a side-eye.

“Sorry. Just…antsy.”

“Well go be antsy with that oil change on the Cadillac. You’re making me nervous.” You listened to him hiss a breath as you begrudgingly heeded his demand, flipping your baseball cap around backwards as you trudged back to your side of the bay. If he really fixes this car… mmm. You simply couldn’t wait to spin the tires hard on the pavement, leaving a black trail behind you as you kicked her sideways. Cars were something of a kink for you, the sound of engines revving and the feeling of the wheel in your hands was enough to get you going in more ways than one. And you weren’t too shy to admit it.

You climbed back under the lift, and busied your mind with the oil change, watching as the thick brown liquid poured into the drain pan. You breathed a sigh, waiting for the tank to empty. You glanced over to the doorway and found Y/N leaned against the threshold, watching both of you intently. You motioned with your eyebrows for her to look to Jake, giving her a knowing smirk saying he’s almost got it.

The last of the oil dripped down into the pan, and you set it on the floor below you. Just as you came back out from underneath the Caddy, Jake hopped off his step stool, taking a step back as he wiped his hands on his towel.

You and Y/N made your way over, standing in the line of Valor as Jake bit his cheeks in. “Did you get it? Think she’s good?” You chirped.

“I think…I think so…” he mumbled, pulling out his cigarettes and lighting one up. “You start her. I can’t do it.”

“Yeah you can, Jake. You have to, she’s your baby.” You argued, knowing that he should be the only one to do the honors.

Jake took a quick deep breath. “Ace’s baby. My unwanted older sister that was always in trouble…” he joked as he slowly walked to the driver’s side door, flicking his still-burning cigarette to the floor as he stepped inside.

You moved in closer to Y/N, letting your fingers flutter against hers as you both waited in anticipation. She gave you an excited smile, probably physically feeling the nerves rushing through your body.

Jake’s movements were slow and calculated, cautious though he had literally turned the key in Val’s ignition a million times. He closed his eyes as she roared to life, the sound of the pistons firing loud, bouncing off the concrete walls. He peeked one eye open after she ran for ten seconds or so, of which you returned with a thumbs-up. So far, so good.

Another ten seconds passed with the low purring sound sitting steady as ever. He had both eyes open now. He slowly brought both of his soiled hands to the wheel, gripping it tightly as you watched him swallow. The final test…

He moved his foot to the gas pedal, pressing gently at first, giving it just the tiniest bit of gas. When it held steady, he pressed harder, revving the engine to work a little bit harder. Still sounded smooth. His eyes finally met yours as he neared hitting the metal, a smile creeping to his face as the loud sound nearly deafened you.

You couldn’t help it. The excitement was enough to make you physically jump for joy, so you did. Fist to the air, you jumped to the driver door as Jake let off the gas, listening to the engine calm back down to idle.

“That’s fuckin’ right!” You yelped as Jake jumped from the seat, the same look of pure elation written all over him. “You did it!” He wrapped both arms around you, gripping you tightly as you jerked each other around with harsh pats to each others’ backs.

When you finally released, you ran to Y/N, wrapping her in a giant celebratory embrace, too. “I’m so proud of you guys!” She squealed.

You watched as Jake moved to face the front of the car, flipping the engine off with two middle fingers. “I figured you out, you beautiful ol’ bitch!” He slammed the hood closed, and leaned down on it. He took a few seconds, savoring the sound of the purring engine, a sound Ace had been trying to achieve for way, way too many years.

Finally.

He whipped his towel from his back pocket as he made his way back over to you and Y/N.

“Fuel, air, and fire, baby. That’s all she needed.” He said, eyes flicking to Y/N’s then to yours as he clamped an appreciative hand to Y/N’s shoulder; you both knew if it weren’t for her, he probably would have never made the realization. Or in his case, realizations. “Let’s celebrate.”

The three of you made your way to the liquor cabinet to find the appropriate libation to mark the day. You left Valor running, and you were positive that if Jake could have his way, he’d let the sound of the engine be his lullaby as he drifted off tonight.

—

“Got everything ya need?” You asked Y/N as she trudged back from her Scout, kicking up dust as her boots carried her toward Valor. The late spring air was blowing a sweet-smelling morning breeze, and you felt like there was a change in the atmosphere. Positivity was springing from your every limb and extremity, and though deep down you were nervous as all get out, your confidence in yourself trumped it tenfold.

“Think so…” her tone indifferent as she pulled the leather backpack from her shoulder and tossed it into the backseat before climbing in. You let yourself adore her tight-fitting cutoff Levi’s, paired with a raglan shirt. She made herself comfortable as she began digging through her bag, pulling out a pair of aviator sunglasses and placing them across her face. She’s so fuckin’ cute…again, how the hell did you manage to bag this one?

You moved to the shotgun seat and Jake wasn’t far behind, throwing his own bag and small cooler on the floorboard. “Jake, you agree…the best thing to come outta the 70’s was chicks deciding against wearing bras at all, yeah?” You grabbed the top of the door frame of your rolled-down window, turning to give Y/N a playful smirk.

Jake laughed along and he turned the key over, hearing Valor purr to life again with a few revs of the engine. He nodded, “Yes, siree, Debbie Harry knew what she was doing. I think we should burn them all.”

You watched as Y/N embarrassingly crossed her arms over her braless chest, sending you a snarl of her nose as you threw your hand back over the seat to grab hers. “M’just teasin’, baby. You’re gorgeous all the time in whatever you’ve got on.” You reassured her.

Jake backed the car from the lot and onto the hardtop, ready as ever to take V on her maiden voyage with her brand new engine. “Alright, you mean old thing, let’s see if you still got it…”

You gripped the frame again, bracing yourself for what you knew Jake was about to do. He gripped the gearshift, shifting it quickly as he hit the clutch, sending Valor flying forward quickly already, and she was only in first gear. When the engine idled out, he shifted again, picking up speed as he raced to the bottom of the hill. You felt your stomach turn over with excitement, your jaw clenched together as you felt the rumble and vibrations in the seat below you.

“Ahhh! Jake slow the fuck down!” Y/N yelled from the back seat, but he didn’t listen. He shifted again, forcing your back into the leather seat as he took off again at top speed before shifting down to a reasonable speed to make the curve at the bottom of the hill.

“Did you just accelerate down a hill you fucking wild ass?!” Y/N leaned her head forward between you as she hit Jake across the shoulder.

He was smiling ear to ear, that familiar smile you’d seen him sport fairly often these past few days. “Son of a bitch she’s still fuckin’ got it!”

You could feel the excitement radiating from the both of you, from Valor herself, and from the watchful eye of Ace, wherever in the universe he had ended up. Keep looking after us, Ace. We’re making progress…

After a few quiet minutes on the freeway after you’d marked your route on the fold-out map, Y/N spoke up from the back seat. “So since you both felt the need to comment on my lack of undergarments, tell me. Danny, are you an ass man, or a boob man?”

Your jaw fell slightly open as she posed the question, making you feel a tad intimidated. You sucked your teeth as you lowered your sunglasses to look at her. “You sure you don’t already know the answer to that?”

She met you with her chin in the air, arms still crossed. “I sure don’t, enlighten me.”

You turned back around to face front, letting out a huff. “Consider myself a boob man, I think. Chest, shoulders, all of that region, just…” you circled your hands over the entire area you spoke of on yourself. “It’s my favorite to look at.”

“Mhm. And Jake, what about you?” She asked him, making him readjust himself in his seat as he let his cigarette burn down to nothing.

He blew out the remainder of his last inhale, the wind whipping through the rolled-down windows filling the cab with the smell of his Lucky Strikes.

“Ass man. Definitely.”

“Really?” You asked him. “Never would have guessed that.”

“Ass man, hmm?” She pestered.

“Mhmm. Ass, thighs, hips… all shapes and sizes. Never encountered one I didn’t want to meet…” he chucked his cigarette out the window as you glanced back to Y/N, the look on her face full of some type of surprise. “I read once that women store stress in their hips, and I dunno how true that is, but I like to think I’m pretty good at helping to relieve it.”

Damnit Jake, stop with your fuckin’ smooth dirty talk…gonna get my girl all worked up in the backseat…

“Is that right?” She muttered. “What, with like a hands-on deep-tissue massage?” she taunted.

“Mm, you could call it that, I guess.” He laughed as he glanced at you. “Just take out the tissue part, and replace hands with—”

“Alright, Jake we get it, fuck.” You interrupted him.

He let out a boisterous laugh, this side of him and his sense of humor becoming familiar to you again. You hadn’t seen this Jake in years. You watched as she sucked her tongue over her teeth, crossing one leg over the other as she cleared her throat. “Alright. Noted, I guess. Anyway, here.”

She was handing you an 8-track over the seat. “Springsteen?” You asked questioningly as you slipped it inside the player.

“Ah, fuck. Not that guy…really, Y/N? I thought you liked the good shit…” Jake teased as he rolled his window up a little bit.

“He just put this out a few months ago, and he’s a hell of a musician, Jake, for your information. Just listen to this…”

You pushed play, turning the knob up a bit as the heavy harmonica sound and light acoustic poured from the speakers. Everyone in the car went silent as the lyrics began, even you feeling a sudden solemn and reflective feeling. You could picture you and Jake recreating this exact song…harmonica and guitar…that’s all it was…

The sweet song came to a close, and you watched as Jake swallowed his words. “Alright, that wasn’t bad, I guess. What’s the album called?”

“Nebraska.” She answered stoically. “I’ve played it nonstop since I walked in on Peter—”

You took a quick look behind you again, watching her move closer to the small window, placing her chin in her hand as she stared at the passing scenery.

You finished out the album without another word passing through anyone’s lips the entire time, except for Jake at the very end as the tape clicked off.

“Flip it, and play it again.”

—

The Cosby Hotel was definitely a step up from the motel back home…two stories with an actual parking lot, a fresh coat of paint, and every light surrounding the vacancy neon in working condition. The check-in lobby looked clean and well-kept, green turf carpet lining the walkway where the sidewalk ended and luggage carts parked outside.

“Well, at least it doesn’t look like serial killers live here.” Jake said as he pulled the car into the parking lot. The both of you stepped out and made your way to the entrance, keeping an eye on the sleeping Y/N parked right outside.

“Hello, room under Oscar, please?” Jake said quietly to the man working the front desk. He was about your age, chipper and happy and welcoming as he looked up the reservation.

“Yes sir, one second.” The man disappeared to the back before returning promptly with two keys on a ring and an envelope. “Room twenty-six. Hope you have a wonderful stay, let us know if there’s anything you need. Oh, spare sheets and pillows are in the closet for the pull-out bed.”

“Thank you, have a good night.” You responded with a wave as you and Jake turned to leave, both of you eyeballing the envelope in Jake’s hand.

“What is that?” You asked as you quietly got back into the car.

“Not sure…” he unfolded the flap to find a handwritten note inside. It was the seven digits of a phone number.

Call me.

-Oz

You both gave each other a look as he backed out to pull around to the side lot, choosing a spot right in front of your room. You turned around to find Y/N curled up in the backseat still sound asleep. You stepped out and pulled the seat forward, nudging her a little to wake her.

“Hey, sleepyhead, we’re here.” She peeped her eyes open as she got her surroundings, stretching a little as she sat up.

“Shit, when did I fall asleep?” She asked through a groggy voice.

“Oh, about halfway through the third play of Nebraska.” You laughed. “Come on, we gotta get going.”

The three of you made your way toward the room, letting Jake open the door to find a large room equipped with a queen-sized bed, plush couch, large TV and separate bathroom. “Shit, it even has a mini-fridge!” Jake exclaimed as he threw his bag onto the couch to go over and inspect it.

You chuckled as you flipped on the lights, finding the decor to be a bit posh, and you knew immediately this place would have been way out of your price range had you gotten it yourselves. It even smelled nice. You felt Y/N press against your back as she slipped inside behind you, darting to the bathroom first thing.

“Sorry boys, gotta go!” She pranced off to the bathroom while Jake ripped the envelope from his back pocket, motioning for you to join him at the phone.

“He’ll recognize your voice.” You said. “You go ahead.”

Jake picked up the old beige phone, dialing out Oz’s number. He pulled it away a bit so you could lean in, listening as well. After a few rings, the other end picked up.

“This Oz.”

“Oz. It’s Jacob. Just wanted to let you know we just got into the room.”

“Jake! Hello, boy. Good ta hear you made it safely?”

“We did, and thank you for the room…it’s, it’s real nice.”

“Not a problem, not a problem. Listen, I’m gonna give you some specific instructions, you ready?”

“Yes sir, ready…”

“Go eat dinner now. Diner down the road if you head East about a mile n’ a half. Lots of protein and starches, you hear? Fill yourselves up. And drink water only. Take a rest. You’re to drive to the very end of Halstead Street and park at the abandoned white building. Walk around the back and down the hill there ‘til you meet the old factory. The basement door ain’t hard to find. That’s where the matches will be tonight. Knock three times on the door, tell them you’re with Oz. 11 o’clock sharp, got it? Comfortable clothing, no jewelry. You’ll be barefoot. And you boys both got that long hippie hair, don’tcha? Tie it back.”

“Halstead Street, white building, find the factory basement. 11:00. Got it.” Jake relayed back to him, looking to you for a nod of confirmation.

“That’s it, boy. And listen, attitude is half the fight, you hear? Come in like you’ve done this a hundred times before. Don’t wanna see you wide eyed-and bushy tailed and embarrassin’ me, you got it? There is some money to be made here, tonight, boys.” Oz spat, followed by his extremely long guttural laugh.

You grinned hard as you covered your mouth and fought to laugh along with him. “Yes sir, got it.”

“Go eat. I’ll see yeh there.” And without a goodbye, Oz clicked the phone.

Jake breathed a sigh as he hung up the phone, giving you an exasperated look of panic mixed with excitement. Just then Y/N emerged from the bathroom with her hands on her hips. “You guys hungry?”

—

After an early dinner that followed Oz’s specific instructions, and a few hours’ rest back in the hotel, darkness started to fall as the time grew closer and closer to 11:00.

After a few episodes of Hee Haw, Jake shot up from his place on the couch, jumping up and down and rolling his neck.

“I dunno man, should we stretch? Go for a warm-up run? I’ve never done it like this before. What do we do?” His words fell without punctuation, and you could tell the nerves were creeping up to him just the same as they were you. But you held steady in your cool exterior.

You heard Y/N laugh through her nose at him. “Chill out, Jake. It’s gonna be fine.” You tried to calm him. “I’ve never fought planned, either. We’re gonna have to pretend we’re doin’ this on a whim.”

You watched as he shook out his limbs and sat back down on the couch. “I don’t know why I’m nervous, man. I’m never nervous.” He put his face in his hands as he rubbed his eyes.

“I’m nervous too. But it’s gonna fly by. Just pretend you’re fightin’ me.” You tried to reason, feeling the anxiousness literally radiating from him. Y/N slithered in behind him, looking at you as she began to knead her hands on his shoulders, trying to loosen up his nerves. He closed his eyes and took a second, recentering himself as she dug her thumbs into his neck.

“We ain’t even there yet, and I’m actin’ a damn fool.” Jake mumbled.

Y/N glanced at you again with sympathetic pity in her eyes. “No you’re not. I’m ready to see my dinner again, if I’m bein’ honest.” You laughed, the nerves making your stomach turn. “Y/N, you’re comin’ to watch… right?”

You watched as her hands slowed on Jake’s shoulders. “Yeah, I am. I mean, if you want me to, at least—“

“We want you to.” Jake interrupted. “Be good to have a friend in the crowd, eh Danny?” He gave you a tiny wink.

Jake patted his hand against Y/N’s in silent appreciation for the massage, standing slowly and reaching into his back pocket. “Oz didn’t say shit about no smokin’, though, did he?”

—

10:50pm.

The air had gotten cooler as the night fell, and before you knew it the three of you were parking Valor in the lot of the old white building… the tall, abandoned factory looming directly behind it. There were a few other sporadic cars parked here and there, but not enough that made you think this was going to be some big event. Thank god. You squeezed your fists together and popped your fingers and wrists, rolling them around as the nerves turned into excitement.

You caught up with Y/N after locking up the doors of Valor, Jake not being reluctant at all in his decision to let you drive.

You slipped her hand into yours, the heat of her palm immediately making you feel a hundred times better. It was a strange thought, and it was so new that you hardly believed it, but her touch felt more like home than any place you had ever inhabited. No home with a cozy fireplace, no seat of the fastest motorcycle you owned, not even the arms of all the women you thought you loved felt better than just the touch of her hand.

You looked down to her to find her hair wisping around in the breeze as the three of you hurriedly walked toward the back of the building, her sly but reassuring smile making you swoon. It was silent, no noise, music, distant conversation…it hit you then how underground this really was. It had to be, with all of the money involved, right?

The smoke from Jake’s cigarette floated back and hit you in the face, and you breathed it in deeply. The smell grounded you, the familiarity bringing you back down to earth. He’s here with you, you’re here with him. Everything is going to be fine.

“You got your piece?” You asked him, watching as the cherry of his cigarette burned a bright orange as you walked.

“Mhmm.” He patted the back of his old blue jacket, his safety-blanket of a clothing item that was ridden with cigarette burns and dirt, the grease stains still present from when it belonged to Ace. You weren’t sure Jake had ever washed it.

Of course you brought a weapon. A new town, unknown people…hell, you’d only met Oscar once, and you didn’t even get to have a conversation with him. Of course you brought a weapon…

10:54pm.

You neared the back of the building and spotted what had to be the basement doors, and you felt Y/N squeeze your hand as you got closer and closer.

Before you knew it, the old, heavy metal doors were in front of you, and you heard the very faint sound of men talking inside. “Here goes fuckin’ nothin…” Jake said, banging his fist hard three times on the door. He stepped back and shoved his hands in his pockets as the three of you waited for an answer.

Within seconds, the door pushed slightly open to reveal a giant man, husky and looming as he eyed you.

“Y’all Oz new recruits?” He asked, the only visible part of him was his gangly hand holding the door open.

“Yep, that’s us.” You said matter-of-factly, watching as he peeked out enough to see Y/N cowering a bit behind you.

“You bring a cheerleader?” He quipped.

“Yeah, she goes where we go.” You said with as much candid confidence as you could.

“C’mon. Oz’s room this way.” He motioned you inside through the dark hallway, the only light in each room you passed a singular light bulb hanging from the ceiling. Random men crowded the hallways, and you instinctively walked ahead of Jake, pushing Y/N behind you as Jake fell in behind, sandwiching her between you.

You followed him around corners and crowded rooms full of old machinery and dusty equipment, nodding to each shady man you passed as you creeped through. The air was dense, and you could smell the remnants of some type of oil that was probably used to grease all the moving parts of whatever machinery this was.

11:00pm.

Finally you were ushered into a better-lit room, pushing through a few more guys as you walked further inside, finding Oscar seated at a desk he had commandeered. His feet were propped up as he reclined in an old metal desk chair, his fedora hat tipped backwards as he puffed on a cigar.

When he saw you, he perked up, interrupting the conversation he was having with a few other men when he recognized you. “Hey, my new favorite fellas!” He stood from the chair, quickly making his way to stand in front of you. “Right on time, boys. Right on time.” He shook each of your hands as he said hello, inviting you further into the room to sit. It didn’t take him long, though, to notice there weren’t just two of you.

“Ah, and who do we have here?” He asked, holding his hand out to Y/N.

“My name is Y/N, pleasure to meet you Mr. Oz.” She spoke sweetly, her voice laced with honey. The concern on his face switched quickly to a genuine smile as she shook his hand.

“My, my…it ain’t often we get a pretty face to bless our presence at these things, eh boys! And a firm handshake, I respect that, ma’am. Nice to meet you, likewise…likewise…” Oz laughed hard again. “You positive you wouldn’t like someone to escort you to another place where you don’t gotta be seein’ these two get riled up?” He asked her.

She pondered for a second, glancing to each face in the room before she spoke. “No, sir, I appreciate that, though. Believe I want to be here from start to finish with them, if at all possible. Doesn’t bother me to see a little blood.”

You thought you were going to have to convince him to let her be around, but it looked like she was doing it herself.

Oz’s eyes widened at her confidence, and he tilted his head back in his infamous cackle again. He brought her hand up to lay a quick kiss to her knuckles, only breaking away to continue his hearty chuckle. “What the lady says, goes, fellas? You hear me?” He grinned ear to ear as he looked to his confidants lining the walls of the room, earning him nods of obedience his way. “Someone get her some champagne…” he snapped his fingers in the air as one man escaped through the door, apparently going to fetch her a drink.

You looked quickly to Y/N, in complete and utter disbelief that she had won over Oscar in under a minute. And you thought that was going to be a struggle…of course he already liked her…her bubbly personality had won over yet another man…her gorgeous looks were just the icing on the cake.

Within seconds, a flute of champagne was placed in Y/N’s free hand, and you could see her hesitation to accept a drink from a stranger. Like clockwork, Oz stepped in. “Sweetheart, I notice your restraint in taking things from strangers, but I can assure yeh, though we may appear to be no-good wrongdoers who only go out at night, I run a professional outfit, though it may be underground. You can trust each and every man in this room, baby. You hear?” He shifted his gaze to you and Jake, biting the tip of his still-burning cigar between his teeth. “We ain’t here to fuck around, we’re here to make money. Win matches, and make money. You do good for me, I do good for you, ain’t that right fellas?”

A collective “Uh huh, yes sir, sure is.” fell in mumbles from the men lining the walls as they all agreed.

“And you’re in my house. My house, my rules. Simple as that. If the rules aren’t followed, the consequences follow, right boys?” Another collective sound of agreement.

“So go ahead, sweetheart. Have the champagne. We’ll keep ya flute full all night, if that’s what you prefer.” Oz reassured her as he eyed her down. She pondered another minute, and you squeezed her hand still wrapped in yours. She shot back the champagne glass, finishing the drink off in a few short gulps, her eyes never leaving Oz’s.

Oz clapped his hands together. “Alright, boys. Shall we gather at the ring? Time’s a wastin’, forty-five minutes till the bell.”

You let Oscar lead the way out of the crowded room, following in behind the hoard back out into the dark hallway. It hadn’t quite hit you yet that Y/N had just taken on the responsibility of an inkless contract, showing her trust in Oz at her own expense… not yours, not Jake’s. With the tip of her flute glass, she signed away your fate, putting her trust completely in the hands of Oz. She showed him that if in fact they had messed with her drink, they’d then have to feel the wrath of you and Jake, and that wasn’t something they wanted to do this early in the game. Not ever…and Oz knew that. He knew that the minute he watched you fight in the dirt during the poker game.

The deal was sealed. There was no turning back, now.

—

11:36pm.

The room suddenly filled with more bodies, the same type of shady characters that lined the hallways now began filing into the large middle room, also more well-lit, taking their places in rusty chairs and on dusty work benches left behind from the failed factory.

Oz pulled you and Jake to the side as he began wrapping your hands in white tape. “Listen here. Gonna be 5 bouts t’night. Two before y’all. One afta. Daniel, you’re up first, Jacob, you’ll be directly after. Now I don’t know these boys, we call this an amateur fight, few other of my constituents who run these kinna’ contests bring about new guys just like you, see what you’ve got. This ain’t the big leagues, yet boys. You hear? Trial runs, trial runs…” you both nodded as you listened to him, trying your best to keep eye contact as your feet stepped side to side below you. You were thankful you tightened your shoestrings.

“Look at me, boys.” He said lowly as he finished up the last wrap of your hand. “They’s $200 a piece in y’all pockets tonight whether you win or lose…guaranteed. If you win, an extra $300 goes on top. Lose, $200. Win, $500. Ya got it?” You both nodded hard to show you understood.

He placed one hand on either of your cheeks as he brought you in, looking you both in the eyes. “I see somethin’ in you boys, both of yeh. I know you ain’t gonna disappoint me, you wouldn’t disappoint me, would yeh?” You both shook your heads, halfway terrified to disagree with him.

“I know y’all got yourselves in some heavy debt from that dirty son of a bitch Teddy. I wanna help, I’m here to help.” You both nodded, murmuring sweet appreciation to Teddy as he stepped backwards. “Help me help you, boys!!” He pointed both fingers your way.

12:00am.

A man dressed in a leisure suit walked by you, the same man who brought Y/N her champagne from earlier, and dutifully refilled her glass she held onto so tightly now. She gave him a nod of thanks as he scurried away to the next task. Oz sure ran a tight ship.

The three of you stood ringside as you watched the first bout of the night, a whirlwind of swings and steps and kicks, growls of menace and disapproval from the men who placed their bets from the sidelines. You felt wide-eyed as you watched them brawl under the dull lights strung above them, eyes already swelling as they both became panting, sweaty messes of exhaustion.

You glanced to Jake, standing still with one arm crossed against his bare chest while the other hand spun at his mustache. You knew he was still nervous. “Jake, you alright over there?” You mumbled watching his eyes flash around.

His jaw clenched as he nodded. “Yep. ‘M fine.” But you knew he wasn’t.

You wrapped your arm around Y/N shoulders, pulling her in a little as you all continue watching from the shadows. “Oz will be in our corners, givin’ us all the advice we’ll need…it’ll be alright. This will be nothin’. We got this in the fuckin’ bag.” You we’re trying to convince yourself as much as you were trying to convince him.

The referee held one man’s hand high in the air as he stumbled around, blood pouring from his nose while the other man lay writhing on the floor beside him. “Winner!” The ref yelled, and a few men along the sidelines cheered.

You swallowed hard as the two men were escorted off the raised mat, ready to be tended to by whoever would help. The mat was cleaned and dried, ready for the next round. And then you were next.

“Daniel!” You heard Oscar call from a few yards away. He motioned with his hand 3 minutes, then pointed to the ground next to him. You nodded that you understood. You felt your heart rate rise and your face get hot as you began trying to psych yourself up, bouncing on your feet to get the blood flow going. You pulled your hair back again and re-tied it tightly, wanting to keep it from falling in your face for as long as possible.

Three minutes.

While you watched Jake busy getting in his own head as he paced around, you took a second to talk to Y/N, the look on her face an expression you hadn’t seen in her yet, except maybe the night of the fire.

You turned her toward you, leaning down and grabbing both her hands in yours, wrapped up and mummy-like in your tight white wraps. “Listen to me, I don’t want you to worry, okay? This is going to be shit to watch. Just try to tune it all out, walk away if you have to…same during Jake’s fight. We’re not forcing you to watch anything you don’t want to.” She nodded again, and you grabbed her face, putting another sweet kiss to her forehead.

God, what is this woman doing to you?

“You’re gonna be fine…you’re gonna be fine, Danny. Both of you.” Her hands found your wrists as you squeezed her cheeks, your breathing picking up as the time dwindled.

“Tell me, Y/N…tell me you’re my girl. I need to hear it…” you spat out, without even thinking it through. Her look turned to confusion, she was unsure what exactly you were asking. Hell, so were you.

“I’m not asking you to be my girlfriend, Y/N, just…tell me you feel this too…whatever it is…” you breathed again, motioning to the air between you. “I haven’t felt like this ever before, Y/N, a-and, it feels good, okay? It feels so good…I…I really like you. A lot. Just tell me you feel it. That’s all I wanna hear. That I’m not crazy…”

You were cut off by her lips crashing to yours, heated and sweet as they cut your rambling sentence in half. You could have cried, her gesture telling you all you needed to know before she pulled away, taking your face in her hands now, bringing her lips close to your ear. “I feel it too, Danny…” she whispered before lowering herself off her tip-toes.

“But you are a little crazy, look what you’re about to go do…” she winked one eye closed, gushing a little as you both laughed at the situation. You brought her in again, breathing in the smell of her hair.

“Shame we’re sharing a hotel room tonight…really wanna fuck you again…” you felt the smattering of her hair against your lips as her body tensed in your embrace.

“Yeah, been thinkin’ about that, too…” her face blushed as you stepped away, looking to Oscar. “Go kick ass, baby.”

JAKE POV

You walked up behind Danny, reaching up to place your hands on the back of his shoulders. “Yeah, go fuck him up, Daniel.” You said, squeezing his traps.

You watched as he leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to Y/N’s cheek, and bounded away toward Oz. You huffed a sigh as you took your place next to her, steadying your feet as you prepared yourself to watch.

“You guys seem awfully cozy. You in love or somethin’?” You asked, more teasing than really wanting to know.

She scoffed, folding her arms across her chest. “Shut up, Jacob. No, we aren’t in love…”

“Mmm, he’s pretty taken with you. I can see it in his eyes. I would know…” you explained, truthfully.

She didn’t have much to say, just stood awkwardly as she watched Oscar whisper hard into Danny’s ear. “I really like him, too, Jake.” She finally uttered.

You nodded, your heart sinking a bit. “I know you do.” You heard the referee yell something as Danny and his opponent stepped into the ring. “You gonna break his heart?”

That one earned you a quick snap of her head. You loved getting her worked up. “What? Why would I do that?”

“Because I see the way you look at me… I’m not stupid, Y/N.”

Was it risky? Yes. But there was something about her that made you want to shout from the rooftops, all your insecurities finding you before they knocked down the walls you built. She was destroying them, and fast.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Jake…” she scoffs.

“I’m not. And I know I’m not making it up, either.”

Just then, the shrill sound of the bell went off, and the referee signaled for the fight to begin. Danny wasted no time in undermining his opponent, a thinner guy about Danny’s height, with nowhere near the muscle or agility that Danny naturally had.

He laid an immediate low blow to his ribs, the sound of his knuckles cracking radiating through the room. His opponent retaliated with a sharp hook to Danny’s eye, lowering him to a quick crouch before he stood again, returning with the same motion. They were wailing on one another, going blow for blow as they stumbled around the ring.

Immediately you felt Y/N move closer to you, taking your hand in both of hers as she squeezed tightly. Her nerves had finally sunk in. Danny delivered a blow to the guy’s jaw, sending blood flowing into the air as he spun. Cheers erupted from half the crowd as they patted their hands on the mat. That last blow caused his opponent to fall to one knee, and Danny seized the opportunity. He tackled him to the floor and into a semi-headlock while the man rolled and tumbled. Danny wrapped his legs around him, effectively stopping his every movement while Danny continued lighter blows to the man’s face where he could.

“Fuck, is he winning? Is he winning Jake?” She spouted, obviously feeling overwhelmed.

You watched as the opponent’s eyes began to slowly flicker closed as Danny held him between all his limbs.

“Yes Danny!” You screamed. “Hold him there! Hold him!!”

You watched as Danny squeezed with all his might, his jaw clenched hard as his nose poured with blood. You could tell they were both exhausted. It was mere seconds before the man gently tapped on Danny’s arm around his neck, only seconds away from passing out. An immediate win.

“Yes! Yes yes yes!” You jumped and spun in the air and Y/N crouched down in disbelief. Danny released the man and stood, helping his opponent shakily get to his feet. The referee held Danny’s arm into the air, his body already black and blue from the fight that barely lasted two minutes.

“He won! He won, Y/N!!” You ran to her, lifting her into the air and kissing her cheek as you spun. For the tiniest split second, you felt her hair fall onto your face as you held her above you, watching as the elation grew on her face. Your faces were so close that you felt her breath, dripping with the essence of champagne, savoring the taste of it on your tongue before placing her back down on two feet.

Oscar dashed to the middle of the ring and grabbed Danny up, walking him down the steps and to an old metal folding chair. The two of you rushed to him in a whirl of congratulations and quiet squeals of happiness.

“Fuck yeah, Daniel!! Fuck yeah!” You shoved his shoulders back as he sat down in the chair, wincing a little already. He was breathing heavily as his hair fell out of the tight knot he had wrapped it in. He tried to smile through his already swelling lip and eye, a bit too dazed to comprehend what had just happened. You were all overjoyed.

“Your turn now, brother.”

And before you knew it, Oz was whisking you away to the mat.

DANNY POV

“You did it, baby! You did it!! I’m so proud of you!” Y/N was squatted down to be even with your face, pulling the strands of hair back as they stuck to your sweaty, bloody face.

“I fuckin…did, didn’t I?” You breathed through labored breaths. One of Oscar’s men was immediately at your side with wet cloths and drinking water, dabbing away at your wounds while your eye began to steadily swell closed. Y/N’s hands felt like hot coals on your shoulder and knee, as you both had no choice but to watch Jake go through the exact same thing you just had.

His opponent was a bit bigger, though. Had about a foot on him, and definitely more reach. You sucked in a quick breath of disappointment, knowing that he was going to have to fight for his life out there. You watched as they shook hands before the referee stepped between them.

“Fuck, Danny. That guy’s huge…” Y/N mumbled.

“No shit…he’s got it, though. He knows how to fight a guy that size, because he knows how to fight me. I taught him how to counteract someone with reach.” It hurt your lip to talk.

The bell rang again and you watched as the man went right for Jake’s jaw, leaning forward with the strength of a thousand fists. You scrunch your face up, waiting for him to feel the blow. But he didn’t. He swerved. Ducking quickly to avoid the blow and instead stepping sideways so the other guy tripped over his feet a little. Jake took the opportunity, laying a quick left-right blow to his ribs, followed up by a kick to the back of his knee, making him stumble again.

“YES Jake!” You yelled, getting to your feet. You could hear Oscar’s voice overtop of everyone else’s, the crowd quickly erupting into a deafening roar as Jake gained the upper hand off the bat.

But you knew better. All that did was piss the other guy off. And you were right, when he found his footing again, it was a wild blur of long arms falling and delivering hit after hit to Jake’s face and torso. He tried defending himself, blocking the hits and backing away.

“Don’t let him corner you! Push forward! Step into it!!” You yelled, hoping he heard you. Jake stepped forward and kicked him again, reaching an arm up to hit him directly in the ear, a guaranteed disorientment for his opponent. He already had red strawberries creeping up on his skin and tiny scratches all over his face and neck.

The guy was good, no doubt, but he wasn’t as quick as Jake. You watched as he got out from underneath him, pacing away as he turned and readied himself. The fight lasted a while, and they continued well into the second round. You could tell he was tiring out, the look of exhaustion coming over him.

“Is he okay, Danny? Can he finish this out?” Y/N was standing swaying side to side with her hands in a praying position in front of her face.

“Yeah, yeah he can. He’s got it.” You responded, turning your attention back right at the second that Jake lurched into him, finding the last little bit of heart he could find to pound directly into the side of the opponent’s skull. He stumbled backward, falling directly on his behind with a thud, followed by leaning over onto his side and rolling to his stomach.

The referee ran to him, laying down toward him while he wailed with his head in his hands. You watched as the man shook his head from side to side, letting him know that no, he wouldn’t carry on.

You shot up from your chair, both fists held high as you screamed again, and the place erupted with roars of both defeat and success. The referee held Jake’s hand to the air, shouting “Winner!” over the loud booming crowd.

“Yes!!! Yeahhhhh!” You bellowed, fighting through your own pain and ailments as Oscar walked him down the stairs to the chair beside you. “Fuck yes, brother!” You attacked him with a big embrace, nearly knocking his unsteady self over as he hugged you back.

“Ah, the ribs, the ribs…” he muttered, his cheek gashed open with blood pouring. You and Oscar made sure he sat down and had plenty of water to rinse and spit the blood from his mouth.

“Goddamnit, you didn’t disappoint, boys! Neither of yeh! I’m so goddamn proud!” Oscar was overflowing with pride and accolades as he held your cheeks and faces, looking at you both as if he had just won the grand prize.

“Jimbo, take care of our fellas, here. Clean them up real good, okay? Have them back to my office as soon as possible. Need to collect their winnins’.” Oscar stood up, being met with ten or so other men in congratulatory embraces.

And Jimbo did. He unwrapped your hands, gave you water, cleaned and treated your cuts with better treatment than you would get at a doctors office. You glanced over to Y/N as she bit her fingernails, giddy and vibrating with happiness for you. For the both of you.

Jake was right, maybe she was a good luck charm.

—

HER POV

It’s mostly quiet on the way back to the hotel, only the muffled sound of the radio as it quietly plays. The loudest is the labored breathing coming from both of the men in front of you. There’s a slight tremble in Jake’s breathing and you can tell that swift shot to the ribs is causing him some major pain now that the adrenaline has worn off. The street lights are flashing in through the windows every few seconds, highlighting the dark smears of blood and bruising starting to color their skin.

Jake’s left hand hangs awkwardly over the steering wheel, as his knuckles are too swollen to grip it properly. His fingers are twitching from the overexertion, but you can tell he is doing his best to ignore it. His right hand sits delicately on his leg, his hand facing upward as he tries to flex his fingers with little to no avail. Danny seems to be in slightly better shape, his match not going nearly as long as Jake’s had, affording him slightly less damage to his body.

One particular shot to his face had his left eye swelling, and the sheer force he used to knock the guy out had split the skin on his knuckles. He took a few blows to the ribs, and you could see the purple blooming on his skin only minutes after he left the fight. A punch to the nose left a trail of dried blood on his face, and black spots developing under his eyes. Their bodies were worn down, and completely exhausted, but to them it was worth it to walk out of that building knowing they had proved themselves to Oscar. You were sure it didn’t feel half bad to have a pocketful of cash either.

Jake struggled to turn the wheel into the parking lot of the hotel, but he managed, taking a deep breath before shifting the car into park. He painstakingly pulled the keys from the ignition and flipped his seat up to let you climb out of the back. You gave him a sympathetic smile as he shut the door behind you, the two of you walking over to meet Danny at the hotel room door.

As he spun the key in the lock, the three of you entered and the door slammed shut behind you. Your eyes scanned the room for an ice bucket, spotting a vending machine area at the end of the corridor. Danny fell back onto the small queen size bed with a groan, a deep breath releasing from his chest as his muscles began to ache. You grabbed the ice bucket, and walked over towards him as he lifted his open hand to you. You grabbed it, gently holding his tired hand. “You should shower, get the blood off of your face. I’m going to go get some ice so we can ice that eye.” you said, to which he responded with a tired groan.

You saw Jake out of the corner of your eye, doing his best to pull the cushions from the couch to pull out the stowaway bed. His hands were clearly bothering him, you could tell just from the way he was holding them. You set the bucket down on the dresser and rushed to help him, his eyes meeting yours in silent thanks. The two of you worked to pull the bed from underneath the cushions, unfolding it and watching the thin mattress spring to life. You walked over to the small closet, pulling out a spare set of sheets, and a pillow before making your way back over to the bed. You could see the pained look on his face as he realized he would have to get the bed ready, but what he didn’t know is that you never intended to make him.

You quickly found the fitted sheet and shook it out. You saw Danny stand from the bed, and make his way into the bathroom, turning the shower on to warm up. He shut the door behind him and your eyes met Jakes.

“Thank you… for helping me. I swear I’m not helpless I–”

“It’s fine Jake. I don’t mind. Really.” you said, tucking the last side of the sheet over the mattress. You threw the flat sheet and blanket over the mattress and fluffed the pillow. “There. All set. I’m gonna go get some ice for you two and I’ll be right back.”

“They have a vending machine?” he asks.

“Yeah, end of the corridor, Ice and Vending.” you answered. He gave you a soft smile and nodded his head, perching himself on the edge of the bed as he struggled to untie his boots. You slipped quickly out the door, making your way to the ice machine, filling the bucket and the two plastic bags you were allotted. The weather was cool, and the wind felt nice on your skin compared to the sticky humidity in the hotel room. You made the walk back a little bit slower than normal, just enjoying the coolness of the night before pushing the door to your room open.

As you entered the room, you flicked the latch to let the door close fully. You set the ice bucket and the two bags down on the dresser, stepping over towards the bathroom to grab small towels to wrap them in. Danny was now laid out on the bed in just his boxers, his damp hair creating a halo around his head as he laid there. You could hear the shower running and assumed Jake decided to let the hot water soothe his aching body.

You grabbed one of the ice bags and wrapped the small white towel around it, as you sat down next to Daniel. “Hey…” you breathed, running your fingertips down his chest. “Should ice your eye. It’s swelling pretty bad.”

He opens his eyes to look at you, giving you a soft grin and grabbing the ice filled towel from you. He places it over his darkening eye, before grabbing your hand and lacing your fingers with his. “I’m glad you came.”

“Why, so I could be your sexy nurse?” you laughed.

He smiled and shook his head, “No. You were good motivation. Wanted to win. For you.” he admits.

“Well you did. I’m proud of you. Both of you. Consider me very impressed by your manliness.” you say, rubbing your thumb over his.

“I don’t know about manly. I feel like I got hit by a truck.” he groans.

“Used a lot of strange muscles I’m sure. And I hate to say it but I know it’s going to hurt worse in the morning…”

“I know, I know. You coming to bed?” he asked, moving over to the right side of the bed.

“Yeah. I’m gonna wait for Jake to get out of the shower and make sure he ices his hand, then I’m going to have a shower. I’m sure you’ll be long out by then.” you smile. He nods his head and shuffles himself beneath the stiff hotel sheets, letting out another groan of pain as he settles.

“If you can stand five more minutes of the ice, you can be done and go to sleep.” you say, standing and walking back over to the dresser.

“If I fall asleep with it on my face will you take it off? I don’t know if I’m gonna last five more minutes with my eyes open.”

You laugh as you prepare Jake’s ice pack. “Yes, I will take it off. Close your eyes.”

“Goodnight, beautiful.” he breathes.

“Night Danny.”

It’s less than two minutes before you hear his breathing even out and his hand that was holding the ice bag fall behind his head. You grab your book from your bag of things, and kick off your shoes as you move to position yourself on the left side of the bed. A few minutes later you hear the bathroom door open, and are met with the vision of Jake walking slowly across the hotel room with a towel around his waist. The water is still dripping from his skin, and you can’t help but think that maybe he was in too much pain to really dry himself much more than he did.

Your eyes travel the length of his tattooed torso, catching sight of a few new tattoos you hadn’t noticed yet. You tried not to stare but the way his skin pulled across his stomach was positively hypnotic. You flipped the page in your book, pretending to read the words on the page, but the truth is that you were studying his every move as he pulled clean clothes from his bag. With his back to you, you were free to look as conspicuously as possible, but as the towel began to sink lower and lower on his hips, your heart rate began to spike.

You swallowed nervously as he stood up, stepping carefully into his boxers, and pulling them up his legs as the towel dropped to the floor. You felt the tendons in your neck jerk as you caught sight of his bare ass, and as he spun around you felt your face grow hot with guilt of being caught.

Your eyes snapped back to your book as he looked at you. You could see him bend over to pick up the towel, quickly running it through his hair to dry the dripping ends. He tossed the wet towel over the back of a chair, sitting on the end of the bed, with a painful exhale. You closed your book and set it on the bed, standing to retrieve the ice pack you’d made for him. You grabbed it off the dresser as his eyes fixed on you, nervously turning to meet his gaze and you held it out to him. “For your hand.”

He took it from you, letting his fingers brush yours for a miniscule second, before setting the cold towel on his knuckles. You watched him swallow down the pain, as his eyes flicked up to yours. “Thank you.” he paused, tumbling over his words in his mind. “Might have gone a little too hard on the first one.” he smiled, hoping to earn him a little laugh.

“Worked in your favor.” you said, raising an eyebrow. “Gonna take a shower. Leave that on there for as long as you can, okay?”

“Yes ma’am.”

—

The room was dark when you stepped out of the bathroom. Just the sounds of Danny’s snoring and Jake’s hard breathing. You hung your towel on the back of the bathroom door, running your hairbrush through your hair as you walked through the room. The room was stuffy, the A/C not cooling the room below 76, so you opted for just a large t-shirt tonight, hoping it wouldn’t be too warm.

You pulled the sheets back on the bed, crawling in next to Danny and letting out a comfortable sigh. In your peripheral you watched Jake roll over on the pullout bed, the sound of the metallic springs filling the room. You knew it couldn’t be comfortable, especially for how much he was hurting. You’d trade places with him in a second but you knew there was no way he would let you take the worse bed. The sound of the barely functioning AC unit roared to life and you let the whirring sound of the fan lull you to sleep, thankful that you were here to help them out in what little way you could.

—

Your bladder wakes you, begging for relief. It’s an ungodly hour, probably around three if you had to guess, and you begrudgingly slide yourself out of the bed to cave to the nagging feeling. You hear Jake roll over again, a sigh leaving his lips as you shut the bathroom door to relieve yourself. You wipe the sleep from your eyes as you flush the toilet, hoping it wouldn’t wake either of them. As you pad back through the room you see Jake move to get up, succumbing to his own bladder.

“I’m sorry, did I wake you?” you whisper.

“No. I’ve been up. Can hardly sleep.” he answers, his voice just as soft as yours. You take a drink from the glass of water on your nightstand as he quickly returns from the bathroom, falling into his bed with a hiss of pain.

“Jake, please take the bed. I feel so bad.” you plead, walking over towards him.

“No. I’m fine. I’m just sore. I’ll be okay.” he replies, trying to position the pillow beneath his head. The thin flat sheet laid just over his hip, leaving most of his stomach exposed. You let your eyes travel over his body as you sat in front of him on his bed.

“I’m sorry that you’re in pain. Wish there was something I could do. I’d do it.” you admit.

“I’ve been in pain much worse than this. Swear. Don’t want you to be worried about me. Dealt with this shit my whole life, this is nothin’.”

“You have nothing to prove to anybody, Jake.” you said, letting your hand rest on his.

“Do you often quote Maya? Or do you do it because you know I like it?” he asks.

“What if I say both?” you breathe.

His fingers move subtly against yours, “Then I’d say don’t stop.”

“Did Danny teach you how to fight?” you ask.

“You have a lot of questions. How about you answer mine and I’ll answer yours.” he counters.

“Okay. What’s yours?” you ask, grabbing the melting ice pack from the floor, and placing it on his swelling cheek.

“Why do you read that Maya book, over and over?” he asks.

You swallow harshly, unsure if you want to tell him the real reason. “Um…” you pause, trying to formulate your answer.

“No. Don’t lie to me. I know there’s a reason. You’ve seen my ugly, now show me yours.” he demands.

“Because her words help me realize that there is a life worth living if I just keep pushing through. Because she’s brave and– and I just keep hoping that if I read the words enough that something will stick and I will find that same braveness buried down somewhere in myself.” you answer honestly, completely unsure if you’d ever spoken the truth aloud.

“You left your husband, right? That was brave…” he presses, letting out a shaky breath.

“He was my fiance, we weren’t married yet. And yeah, I did.”

“Sounds pretty brave to me.” he says, his voice comforting the nervous feeling in your stomach.

“Now your turn. Answer my question.”

“Yeah. Danny taught me how to fight. We were young, he was fighting every damn day. Think it was because of his foster family at the time. Treated him like shit. Watched him punch a kid in the face, so I asked ‘em if he’d show me how to do it.”

“So, you two have always been this way…” you asked.

He nodded his head, adjusting the ice on his cheek. “What’d your fiance do?”

The pain was still fresh, you hadn’t even really talked about it to anyone. “He cheated on me with his bookkeeper.” you said, letting your eyes flick down to the tattoo that sat just on top of his ribs. “Tell me about this tattoo.” you said, running your finger over the outline of the dark black spade, wanting to change the subject.

“That one, huh?” he sighs, “That would be a spade for Ace. He had one too. Got it when he died. Spades have been known to represent a few things, and well, when I was reading ‘bout em, I thought it was kinda fitting. They’ve got two meanings. Right side up, marks the end of life, upside down means you’re lookin’ for something. Something just beyond your reach.”

“What are you looking for?” you ask, letting your hand rest over the inked symbol.

“Dunno. Something. It’s out there, whatever it is. I feel it.” he says, wincing as he rolls to his side. Your hand falls from his ribs down onto the sheets and you pull it back to your lap.

“Hey, thank you for… I don’t know. You kinda fixed Valor. I would have never thought of checking the heads for cracks like that.” he says, a look of genuine thanks in his eyes.

“Nooo… You would have figured it out eventually, I didn’t even do anything but make a stupid joke. You really should give yourself more credit, Jake. I think you’re smarter than you want people to believe.” you answer.

“Really? You think that?” he asks, a boyish quality to his voice.

“Yeah. I do.”

You can tell he is biting back words as his lips twitch, and in this moment you’d give anything to hear them. His swollen hand slides up your bare leg to grab your hand as it sits in your lap. His skin is perfectly warm against yours, and the fire in your stomach seems to be growing from a smoldering ember to a full on blaze.

“Got you somethin’.” he breathes, letting a sweet smile cross his lips.

“What? Me?” you question, furrowing your brow.

“Mmhm. Grab my jeans from the floor.”

Your eyes scan the floor spotting the old Levis crumpled in a pile by his bag. You lean over the bed, grabbing them from the floor and holding them in your lap.

“Reach into the pocket.” he presses.

You check the front pocket and you feel a long hard foil roll, wrapping your fingers around it and pulling it out. You hold it up in the darkness of the room, trying to make out what it is. A warmth radiates from your chest as the light hits it just right, and you can make out the words. ‘Lifesavers - Cin-O-Mon’

“You got me my cinnamon candy… Where did you– When?” you ask, holding the foil roll in your hand.

“While you were in the shower. Vending Machine.” he smirks, squeezing your hand..

“Jake, you didn’t have to do that…”

“Wanted my first purchase with my winnings to be something special.” he breathes. “Nevermind they were only fifty cents.”

You feel your heart twist at the sweetness of the gesture, and that fact that he even remembered you mentioning you were out. “Jake…Thank you…”

You rub your thumb over his hand, grasping it tightly and pulling it up to your lips. You press a soft, gentle kiss to his swollen knuckles, letting it linger just a little longer than you should as your eyes lock with his.

“You’re welcome.” the words barely audible as they leave his mouth.

You stand to make your way towards your bed, but as you pull away his hand doesn’t let go of yours. He holds you there, the two of you locked into that moment. He purses his lips together as he blinks slowly, “Goodnight, cinnamon girl.”

A shy smile spreads across your face as his words sink in. Your mind swirls back to just the other night in the garage. Just you and him baring your souls to each other, much like you are now. Cinnamon girl…

“Goodnight, Jake…” his name on your tongue never tasting sweeter than it did at that moment.

He drops your hand and lets you walk over to your bed, but you hear him turn over as you place the roll of cinnamon candies on the nightstand with your book. You slide into the sheets and pull them up over your shoulders, attempting to get comfortable again. You feel Danny wrap his arm around your waist, pulling you in tightly to meet his body, but as you peer over the edge of the bed to the pull out bed across from you, your eyes lock with Jake’s again. The two of you just lay there, staring at each other for what felt like hours, and as Danny’s hand slides down your hip, you can’t help but wish it was the hand that belonged to the brown eyes staring back at you, instead.

—

When the morning came your eyes sprang open, quickly taking in your surroundings and remembering where you were. You could feel Danny’s warm body pressed against your back as a sheen of sweat covered your limbs. Your eyes caught sight of Jake, still in the same position he laid in as you fell asleep, although this time his bruised eyes were closed and he was sleeping soundly. You wondered how long he continued to look at you after you fell asleep last night, pondering the thought that you’d seemingly slept through the rest of the night after your chat with Jake. Something that hadn’t happened in the past few days.

You rolled to your back before turning to face Danny, the sight of his face just as bruised and swollen as Jake’s. You lift your hand to gently rub your thumb over his swollen cheek, stirring him awake as his eyes fluttered open.

“Good morning.” He whispered in a scratchy voice.

“Morning…How are you feeling?” you ask, feeling his hand grip your hip under the sheets.

“Don’t think I can complain too much when I’ve got you here like this…” he flirts, letting his thumb slide under the hem of your panties. When you don’t stop him he takes it further, sliding his fingers into the front of the pink fabric, dusting his fingertips across the sensitive skin.

“Danny!” you huff, looking over your shoulder to see Jake still asleep.

“What? He’s out. Can’t hear shit anyways.” he gripes, pulling his hand from your panties.

“Later.” you offer, and he accepts with a soft kiss to your lips.

You slide out of the bed, and make your way to the bathroom with your clothes for the day, dressing and brushing your teeth before returning to the bedroom. Stepping through the bathroom door you see Jake sitting on the edge of his bed, putting on his jeans and his boots before standing to grab his shirt. Danny is dressed and sitting on the bed, spinning the car keys on his finger.

“Ready, baby?” Danny asks, seeing you emerge from around the corner.

You tear your eyes away from Jake pulling on his t-shirt over his purple marred skin as you answer, “Yep, but I get shot-gun this time.”

Jake flashes him a laughing grin as he slings his bag over his shoulder. “You heard ‘er. Let’s go.”

—

The drive home seemed significantly shorter than the drive there, but you’re sure that was due to the nerves running through all of you at the time. You were glad it was done and over, but you knew it probably wouldn’t be the last time. Not after the highs they were riding.

You smiled to yourself as you watched Jake flip the 8-track for the third time in a row, offering him a lifesaver from the pack he so generously gifted you. He popped one into his mouth with a twinkle in his eye before you turned to Danny to offer him the same.

“Eh, no thanks, don’t like cinnamon that much.” he says, squeezing a hand over your shoulder from the backseat. You wrap up the candies and place them in your purse as you let the cool wind blow through the window and across your face as Bruce serenades you with his gentle crooning.

—

It wasn’t long until the car was pulling in at the shop, and the overwhelming feeling of being home washed over you. Which was a little strange given that this wasn’t your home. Did you even have a home? The three of you piled out of Valor and made your way into the house, the familiar homey smell comforting, as you’d grown accustomed to over the last week.

Almost immediately Jake excused himself to the garage, turning on the radio as the shop door slammed shut. You followed Daniel down the hallway to his bedroom, seeing him flop down on his bed with a sigh.

“Backseat is small as fuck. You’re lucky you’re so cute and that I can’t say no to you.” he teases, grabbing your hand and pulling you down on top of him. His hands come to rest over your ass as he cranes his neck up to press his lips to yours.

“Mmm, you ready for that later now?” you murmur against his hot wet lips.

Pressing his hardening bulge against your center, he smirks, “You tell me.”

—

The two of you had fallen victim to exhaustion after a few long overdue rounds. Both of you taking it easy on each other as his body was still riddled with bruising and sore muscles. That didn’t seem to phase him however, and even with minimal effort he held you in the palm of his hand as he had you falling apart for him over and over again. You wondered if you’d ever get used to the way he unraveled you, leaving your body exhausted and spent in the best ways.

He was still asleep next to you as your eyes took in the darkness of the room. You silently crawled out of the bed, pulling a t-shirt over your head as you slipped out of his bedroom and into the bathroom. The house was quiet, and the music in the garage had stopped. You could hear talking though. You could make out Jake’s laugh from a mile away. Your brow crinkled as you wondered who was making him laugh like that if you and Danny were locked away in his room the whole night.

Your curiosity got the best of you as you snuck into the kitchen, and gently twisted the knob to the shop door. You knew it would squeak if you opened it all the way, so you only just cracked it, opening it just enough to see Jake and the blonde haired woman leaning up against Valor. Who is that?

Realizing it was truly none of your business you shut the door, and made yourself a glass of water. You leaned on the countertop as you sipped from the glass, drinking down its contents as you let your mind wander back to last night. Why were you feeling so jealous after such an amazing night with Danny?

You shook the thoughts from your head, knowing you needed to go back to him before he noticed you were gone. You began to wash the glass, drying it with a kitchen towel to leave no trace of your presence. The doorknob twisted, causing you to jump as you placed the glass back in the cabinet. With the unmistakable squeak, the door flew open and Jake and the unknown blonde woman came stumbling into the kitchen completely connected to each other.

Her arms were wrapped around his body as he closed the door behind them, clearly unaware of your presence as his hand traveled to her backside, squeezing and what you now knew was his favorite part of a woman. Her mouth was attached to his neck, as his hands wandered her body. She caught sight of you, growing tense and stopping her actions with Jake as she cast you a dirty look.

“You need somethin’? Wait, who’re you?” she scoffed.

“Y/N. Who are you?” you quipped back.

“Suzanne.”

Jake whipped his head around to see you pressed into the kitchen cabinets in nothing but a thin white t-shirt. His eyes flashed to your chest, where your nipples stood at attention from the rush of cold air coming in from the garage. You crossed your arms over your chest as he cleared his throat.

“Yeah, she’s uh–” he paused, sucking his teeth as he pulled away from her. “She’s Danny’s girl.”

“Since when does Danny have a girl?” she asked, as if the thought was ludicrous. Not waiting to hear his answer she continues walking through the kitchen towards his bedroom. “Whatever. You coming, baby?”

Baby?

He breathes in deeply as he pulls his gaze from you, turning to face her as she reaches for his hand.

“Yeah, I’m comin’. I’ll be there in a sec. Go wait for me.” he answers, smacking her ass as she walks down the hallway.

He looks to you and pauses for a moment as if he wants to say something. His eyes search yours, but it seems he can’t find the words he needs as he blows out a breath and swipes the stray hairs away from your face instead. He pulls his hand back and runs his fingers over his face as she calls his name from the hallway. He turns to follow her, and instinctively you follow after him, pausing as you reach Danny’s bedroom door. You turn, pressing your back to the wood door to watch him as he takes the few steps towards his door.

The two of you turn to look at each other one more time, and suddenly you’re back in that same moment from last night. Completely locked in on each other like you’re the only two on the planet. His eyes bore deep into yours, hoping you could hear what he was trying to tell you, but there was nothing. Static, just white, jealous, deafening static.

You’re both pulled back to reality as you hear her shrill voice call to him again through the door. He blows out another breath and reaches for the doorknob, pushing the door open but pausing to meet your gaze as he smirks. He pulls his nearly empty pack of gum from his jeans pocket and slides a stick into his mouth. He rolls the red gum around his tongue as he blows a quick bubble, his warm pink tongue running over his bottom lip.

In a split second decision he makes a move to step back towards you, walking slowly and placing the pack in your hand as your eyes flashed down to the single stick left inside.

“There. Now everybody gets a piece, don’t they...” he says with the raise of his brow as he turns back, stepping through his door, and locking it behind him.

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britney-gvf · 8 months

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They apologized, took it out of the story, and provided space for anyone to speak up about it. I don’t know what more y’all want her or Jules to do. If you don’t like the story, then read something else.

Vigilance has always sucked. Who fucks two brothers repeatedly? Stupid plot and the SA stuff too? Horrible thing to write about and it hurts more knowing Noel is an adult and should have known better.

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britney-gvf · 8 months

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What that person said was that it was like watching season 6 of glee, they hate all the characters and the plot lines are dragging and they said it publicly. Noel and Jules work so fucking hard on vigilance and to shit on their work for no reason other than to stir shit up is nasty and they have every right to defend their work and their ART. they didn’t attack her, they responded and there’s nothing wrong with that.

the writers of vigilance are attacking people that have a negative view of their story. i read every chapter but i still think it should’ve ended already too.

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britney-gvf · 9 months

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angel

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britney-gvf · 9 months

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😘

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britney-gvf · 9 months

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Film Josh 📸

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britney-gvf · 10 months

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Troubled Mind coded 😃

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britney-gvf · 10 months

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That me hehehehe

it's me, i am josh

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britney-gvf · 10 months

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Troubled Mind: Part Four

Josh Kiszka x fem reader

Warnings: 18+ Violence, horror

Synopsis: In the conclusion Y/n, Josh, Jake, and Sam move to end the horror once and for all- and save Danny.

A/n- thank you to every single person who’s liked, reblogged, and read my story. This is the first fic I’ve written in a long time and I’m so appreciative of the support!

"Get out of my way."

The three of you linked hands and planted your feet on the ground, preparing for the struggle that was about to ensue. Danny's dark eyes darted bewteen you, then he scowled and attempted to push his way through. He pushed his body weight in betweeen you and Josh, causing you both to slide in the mud and causing Sam to stumble. He broke from Josh and focused his efforts on getting Danny to back up.

"Daniel, stop, let's talk about this," Sam said, starting to pull on his arm and push his shoulder back. Danny turned his ire towards Sam, shooting him a glare so fierce that it made Sam flinch. Even still, Sam had a grip on him.

"There's nothing to talk about! Let me GO!" he forcibly pulled himself away from Sam's grip and pushed him to the ground. Sam groaned in pain and started to get up on his feet again. Danny, however, wasn't having that. He raised his arm, ready to hit Sam to the ground again. Anger began to rise inside of you. Anger at the situation, for Sam, and towards Danny.

"STOP!" You screamed, grabbing Danny's arm and pulling down as hard as you could. It wasn't enough, he shook you off like you were nothing. In the scuffle you didn't notice that Josh had placed himself at Danny's side, between him and Sam. Danny's raised hand descended to reach Sam's head but Josh quickly put himself in the line of fire, taking the driving hit to the side of his head. Your focus immediately shifted. As Josh stumbled, you ran over to check on him, but he brushed you off, turning his attention to Danny, who was making his way over to the swamp.

"Oh, Daniel!" Danny turned around and stood dumbfounded as Josh got low to the ground and tackled him, using his shoulder to dig into Danny's hip and his arms to pull Danny's legs towards him. Danny fell to the ground, his head landing on the side of a rock, stunning him even in his infected state. Josh climbed onto his torso. He got into Danny's face. "Now. You're gonna stop trying to fucking hurt us, yes? I already had to punch you in the face yesterday for kicking my girl and now you went after Sammy? The only reason I'm not kicking your ass is because you're not yourself."

Danny said nothing, only groaned and accepted his position as Josh continued to straddle him in an effort to stop him from entering the swamp. Josh said loudly, "Can we find the amulet already so I don't have to keep fucking up the jolly green giant over here?"

You started to laugh despite the desperate situation, but the laugher caught in your throat as your eyes scanned the swamp. Bubbles were coming to the surface like it was beginning to boil. As it progressed, the bubbles became larger and more forcible, until they started to resemble a rolling boil.

"What the hell…" Sam had stood up and his face mirrored the alarm you felt. Something big was coming and it was coming fast. Your eyes snapped over to Josh and Danny and they were struggling. Danny was alert and pushing his body up as Josh struggled to keep him down. You followed Sam to their sides. You expected Danny to be angry but he was petrified, muttering quickly just loud enough for everyone in the immediate area to hear

"Jake, Jake, Jake, Jake," he looked at Josh, black eyes breifly turned hazel once more, fear etched into every line in his face. "Jake has it. Jake has it and they're going to get it back. Get him out of here!"

Josh's brown eyes grew wide as he started searching frantically for Jake in the treeline. Sam was breathing heavily as he kneeled down to his best friend and cupped his face. "Danny, stay with us. Stay with us. Its okay! We'll find Jake, just stay!"

The black was forcefully spreading in his eyes again and he was desperately fighting to not lose himself in the madness once more. His body was shaking and convulsing, finally making Josh abandon his position on top of him. Danny's eyes were teary as he said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I can't control my body. I can't fight it. Go NOW."

Bodies were starting to emerge from the swamp covered in thick mud that was quickly absorbing into their skin. It clicked: they were made of mud. They were all the same terrifying zombies that had chased you before. All of them, except for Jimmy, who was at the front and looked much more healthy and together than he did when he went in. Danny let out a gutteral scream, no longer able to fight the darkness. It sent chills through your entire body. He was gone again.

"What the fuck?" you heard someone say behind you. The three of you whipped around to see Jake holding a glass orb with a small green crystal inside of it: the amulet. "I found it but I see we have a problem."

Danny, the zombies, and a rejuventated Jimmy were staring at your group with hungry, angry eyes. Occasional throaty clicking sounds escaped the mouths of the zombies, their sharp talons itching for blood. Sam was shaking beside you and Josh's breathing was so shallow and still that it took you by surprise when he spoke.

"Jake, run. They want what you have," he said in barely a whisper. You heard Jake back up, trying to make as little noise as possible.

"Boy, I suggest you put that back right where you found it," Jimmy boomed, Every hair on the back of your neck stood up. His voice was thick and gravelly with age, every syllabel dripping with menace and hatred. "He won't be liking this at all. You don't want him to come here, do you?"

"He? Who's he?" Josh asked with false bravado. He grabbed your hand and started backing up as well. Jimmy's attention snapped to Josh, making him stop in his tracks. Your stomach was tight you feared you might vomit.

"HE is the reason for all of this," he gestured towards the zombies and Danny, who was standing at full attention, staring at Jake like a hungry dog. His fingers were twitching, ready for a fight. "HE made us! And if you don't put that back we're ALL going to be in deep shit, you hear me?"

"Well I don't see him around, Jimmy…" Josh's voice trailed off, his entire body shivering. He looked at you with a terror in his eyes that mirrored you own. A new player was completely out of left field, something you weren't prepared for, certainly not something that was planned for.

"Oh, he's much bigger than this, boy," Jimmy said, letting out a humorless laugh. The hair on your arm stood up. "Now, tell your twin to give me the amulet or its YOU that I'll tear limb from limb."

You heard identical sharp intakes of breath from all three Kiszkas, then complete silence fell up on the swamp. You were waiting for the other shoe to drop, for something that would happen to agitate the hoard. You noticed that Danny had inched closer, his eyes laser focused on the sphere in Jake's right hand.

"Run now, I'll be right behind you…just run," Jake whispered so quietly you could barely hear him. Josh stiffened beside you and gripped your hand tightly. Sam turned slightly to face his brothers, panic written all over his face

"But Jake I-" Josh begun.

"I promise, I'll be right behind you," Jake interjected. Josh turned around and gave him one of those looks that they do when they're speaking without words. You tried to understand their eyes and facial expressions but they were so in tune with each other that no outsider would understand.

"Fucking fine," Josh said begrudgingly. "On the count of three, we run to the truck. One.."

Jimmy's lips curled into a twisted smile. "Alright then, if you won't hand it to me-"

"Two-"

"Then I reckon we're gonna have a hell of a good time tearing you apart-"

"THREE." Josh broke his hand from yours and him, Sam, and you, ran as fast as your feet could carry you into the surrounding woods, Jake following closely behind. You heard the water of the swamp break as the horde spilled out, filling the spongey shores and soon, the thick woods. Danny was at the front, as he never entered the swamp. The only thing that was on his mind was the same thing on all of their minds: getting their souls back.

You could feel the stitch in your side growing, making every breath more painful then the last. Sweat had made its way into your eyes, making it harder to see. Just follow the person in front of you. It'll all be okay, it'll all be okay…

Another person ran past you so close that you could feel the wind coming off them as they approached the figure in front you. You wiped the sweat out of your eyes: it was the twins. Jake slipped Josh the amulet quickly. This is what they communicated silently. It seemed rather obvious that Josh would want to share Jake's burden now that you thought about it but the reality made you want to scream.

The hoard's attention turned to Josh now, who somehow started to run faster. For the first time, you heard terrifying, ear bursting shrieks erupt from their wide mouths. You hesitantly turn around to see that they were right on top of you, claws out, shrieking in anger. Danny was the closest, meeting your eyes with murderous righteous anger. That was the last thing you saw before you tripped on a tree root and tumbled to the ground.

The zombies ignored you, even running around you instead of over you, but not Danny. You felt a hard tug on your shoudler as he forced you on you back. Jimmy was behind him, his face contorted with rage. Danny, however, seemed to take pleasure in the whole ordeal.

"Oh, now, y/n, you should really look where you're going," Danny said, kneeling down to get in your face. You were shaking, scared to death of what this man, who used to be your sweet, shy friend, was going to do to you. "I think this would give josh plenty of motivation to give it back, yes?"

"Son, call that little snarky son of a bitch over here," Jimmy said, clearly not in the mood to watch his new recruit play with his prey. "Let's see if he'll do a trade."

"HEY!" a familiar voice cut through the woods as you heard footsteps get closer. "LET HER GO!!"

It was Sam, running towards you from the trees. You had never heard him this angry, or scared, since you'd known him. He made an attempt to pull Danny away from you, but Jimmy grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt, pulling him up. Jimmy gave Sam a long look. "Which one is this?"

"Sam, " Danny no longer looked mildy amused, now he looked a little worried. A small bit of hope overcame you. He wasn't as gone as you thought.

"Well? Call him, boy," Jimmy was growing impatient and anxious, tapping his massive foot on the ground while he effortlessly held Sam at bay.

"I swear to God, if I die in a fucking swamp in South Carolina I'm gonna be pissed," Sam muttered, as Danny yanked his phone out of his back pocket. Danny dailed Josh…he didn't answer. "Of COURSE he didn't answer. I'm gonna haunt him first."

You chuckled in spite of the situation, earning a small smile from Sam. Danny noticed and roughly pulled you to your feet. A small whimper escaped your lips when he squeezed your arm, earning you a hiss and a hard tug in his direction.

"Don't get rough with her!" Sam snapped. Jimmy kneed him the back for his objection, causing him to yelp in pain and tears to spill out of your eyes.

Two figures appeared in the distance , getting bigger as they got closer. Same height, same build, same gait. It was the twins. Despite the very real danger you were in, you felt a wave of relief wash over you. Maybe they have a plan. Maybe you'll survive. Danny gripped your shoulder at the sight of them and Jimmy chuckled under his breath.

"Well, lookie here, y'all finally decided to grace us with your presence. You got something I want. I got something you want," Jimmy said, gesturing towards you and Sam. "Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. Your choice."

He snapped his fingers and the zombies that had cleared the area appeared almost instantly, surrounding everyone except for the space between you and the twins.

Jake's eyes squinted, Josh scoffed and replied, "Why would we give it to you? You'd still kill us." Jake and Josh kept eyeing a large stump across the small clearing you were in and then you noticed the KA-BAR in Jake's hand. Josh was gripping the orb so hard his knuckles were white. You put their plan together and hoped they were quick enough.

Jimmy, however, didn't seem to make this connection. He tightened his grip on Sam, who was staring intently at his brothers, also putting together what they were going to do. "It seems y'all have made your decision then."

"We have,"Jake said. The twins gave you and Sam looks of resolve, looks that said 'trust us.' You gave them a small nod. Sam grabbed your hand, squeezing it in an effort to remind you and himself that the two of you were in it together. Whatever "it" was.

His hand seperated from yours when Jimmy pushed him to the ground, hard. Jimmy attempted to kick him, but he caught Jimmy's foot, causing him to lose balance and fall with a thunderous BOOM. Sam recovered and got back to his feet quickly, taking the opportunity to kick Jimmy in every spot he could in an effort to keep him down. You looked up to gauge Danny's reaction. Confused, conflicted, and angry, he was looking between his best friend and the man that had been controlling him. In his feelings, his grip on your shoulder slackened, just enough for you to wiggle away and run. It took a second for him to process what you did and you were halfway between him and Josh before he started running after you.

You ran between Jake and Josh, hiding behind them. Danny attempted to grab you, but Josh held up the Amulet and taunted him like a dog, "Down, boy."

Danny stopped in his tracks and much like a dog with a toy, his eyes did not leave the amulet. He didn't even notice Jake slinking away making a sizable distance between the three of you and himself.

Danny looked behind him towards Sam and Jimmy. He had stopped beating Jimmy, his hand holding down Jimmy's arms to restrain him. Everytime Jimmy attempted to get up, Sam would push him or kick him back down again. Danny turned around, walked to Sam, and shoved him towards the group. He was helping Jimmy up as Josh ran over to Jake with the orb. The zombies started inching closer, making impatient clicking noises, waiting on the orders to attack.

Jake and Josh rushed over to the tree stump and just as Jimmy gained his composure, Josh sat the orb down, gripping it on either side so it didn't roll. Jake raised the KA-BAR with the blade to the sky, handle to the amulet. His brows were furrowed in concentration, his lips pursed together, sweat dripping from his hairline. Josh looked apprehensive and braced himself for Jake to slam the end of the KA-BAR into the orb. Jake was going to break it with brute force.

"We're gonna die," Sam muttered to you, clearly lacking confidence in his brothers' simple plan. "They're fucking idiots."

"Stupid sons of bitches," Jimmy spat, his anger coming to a boil as he watched the scene unfold. "The hard way, then."

Danny bared his teeth and charged towards Jake with as much speed as he could muster while the zombies let out ear piercing shrieks and ran towards the stump. He brought Jake to the ground and in the last glimpse of the two of them, Jake was underneath Danny, holding the blade to Danny's throat…

You saw Josh holding the orb close to his chest and dodging the zombies grips with his own KA-BAR. You heard him cry out as they nicked him over and over again. But they weren't aiming to completely incapacitate him, they didn't want the orb to fall to the ground. Better to let him live than risk the chance. Sam had grabbed your arm as the horde descended upon the twins and tried to lead you from the scene but you weren't having it.

"We have to save them, Sam! WE CAN'T JUST LEAVE THEM THERE!!" You cried as he tugged. He stopped and whipped around to face you. Eyes filled with terror, but fiery nonetheless.

"Y/n, now isn't the time for you to be brave, okay? I'm coming back to help them, but you need to get to safety first," he said firmly. Rage filled you. What kind of white knight bullshit was he on?

"No, I'm not leaving them behind," you yanked your arm away as he heaved a deep sigh and made his way towards the fight, beckoning you to follow him. Jimmy wasn't in the melee; he was standing off to the side, observing his work. You and Sam caught his eye and he let out a harsh laugh.

"Now ain't this cute! LOOK," Jimmy shouted the horde into silence and they turned towards you. "These two are gonna save them! How noble! Y'all should just run along."

You craned your neck and the only one you saw was Josh. He had managed to grab his KA-BAR and he was holding it out defensively with his dominant hand. His arms were covered in cuts and blood. He eyes made contact with yours and he nodded silently. He was okay and he was planning something.

"I'll let you go, just tell your mama they disappeared and we'll keep it all quiet," Jimmy continued to berate you and Sam, who was growing more red and angry with every word. You, however, only had eyes for Josh. He moved silently, taking advantage of the distraction. It was like the zombies only had one thing on their mind and it was whatever Jimmy said it was. You saw through the crowd that he had made his way to the stump once more, meeting with a bruised and battered Jake. Danny had done a number on him. A black eye was forming, busted lip swollen, and blood was coming out of his nose. Josh sat the orb down with his left hand, KA-BAR in his right. He lifted it over his head with the blade to the sky and handle to the ground and brought it down with all the force he could muster.

The first crack was LOUD. It got Jimmy's attention and the entire hoard turned to face Josh once more. As they began to shriek and barrel towards him, he lifted his arm and did it again and it cracked enough for him to pull the thick glass apart. Jake grabbed the delicate amulet from the glass with shakey hands. As he sat it down on the stump Jimmy warned.

"Boy, I may leave this earth, but He will find you. He always does."

Jake looked him in the eyes as he brought his hand down to the stump, flattening it on impact. It shattered the amulet into small pieces. Smoke rose from between his fingertips and you could hear faint screams in the air.

The zombies shrieked in anguish as their bodies melted into mud. One by one, they all fell to the ground, bodies dripping like candlewax until they were nothing more than pools of mud. Jimmy was the last one standing. He gave nothing more than an accepting sigh and his body became one with the ground. Then, nothing.

Dead silence.

"What the fuck?" Danny was backed against a tree, his eyes wide as they jumped between each of you. His hair was more wild than ever, both eyes bruised, his cheek swollen, and a small cut on his neck from where Jake pressed the blade against it earlier.

You could have cried from relief that Danny was standing there fully intact and NOT mud. All of you made it. You wanted to celebrate but your words caught in your throat. The most you could do was smile as you caught Josh's eyes, who gave you a smile back.

Sam didn't say a word as he rushed over to Danny and wrapped his arms around him. Danny returned the hug, looking confused. "What happened?"

"You don't remember anything?" Josh asked, stowing his KA-BAR away in its sheath. He walked over to Danny and gently ordered him to show Josh the back of his head. "Fuck, I got you good. You probably have a concussion."

"Everything is coming back to me…I think. Y/n, did I kick you in the head? That feels like a dream.." he looked at you, eyes full of hope that it was a dream but you nodded and reality hit him. "Oh my God. Josh, you hit me then I went to jail then….I was here…it went blurry..except me saying Jake had something?"

"You don't need to worry about details, Daniel," Jake said, voice thick from his injured nose. Everyone elese nodded in agreement. "If it wasn't for your fighting it, we wouldn't be here. The rest doesn't matter."

"Still, I'm so sorry. I don't know what I did, but I know Josh didn't beat you like that, Jake. I kicked Y/n in the head…I got a lot of making up to do," he took a few steps from the tree and fell into Sam. His balance was off like he was drunk.

"Jesus, you're burning up!" Sam said, checking his forehead, "You can make it up to us by going to the doctor. Josh can you and y/n get the truck? Its too far for him. We'll get him back to the church and you can meet us there."

Everyone agreed so you and Josh began the trek back to the truck. He immediately took your hand in his, guiding you through the trees, leaves, and sticks. For the first time since you left the house yesterday, you felt light and hopeful. Things were going to be alright.

Josh stopped and smiled softly as he turned to you. He brought his hands up to your face as he looked into your eyes like he was seeing you for the very first time. He leaned in slowly and your lips met his. The kiss was slow, deep, and passionate. He wrapped his arms around you, letting his right hand rest on your ass and his left hand on your back. He pulled away to your dismay and gave you a long, hungry look. "We'll pick this up later, okay?"

You only sighed but you wanted to stomp your feet and whine. He took your hand again, chuckling at your irritation, leading you through the last few yards of the woods and coming out to the abandoned parking lot. For the first time, the both of you really took in the damage that had been inflicted on the poor rental truck. Dents all over the body, the tailgate was bent, there were scratches everywhere, the windshield was shattered…

"I don't think Enterprise is gonna be happy with us," Josh said, laughing as he opened the driver door. You got into the passenger side and noticed the backseat covered in old blood from the day before, which turned your stomach. The inside of the truck smelled like iron and sweat. It took a lot of inner strength to not gag.

Josh swerved around the parking lot to avoid the many, many pot holes. Getting back to the church only took about a minute and it was a minute that went by way too quickly. Approaching the church felt different. No longer did you feel the heaviness and foreboding. It was just an old church. Danny, Jake, and Sam were approaching the church from the woods. Jake and Sam helping Danny walk as he was weak and stumbling.

Jake let go of Danny as they got to the church and ran up to the truck. He swung open the back door and picked the Bible off the floorboard. "I want to put this back on the altar." He shut the door as you and Josh jumped out the truck, joining Sam and Danny as they followed Jake through the church doors. It was golden hour and the sunlight was peeking through the cracks in the wooden boards of the church, making a beautiful, messy picture of a place that was once thriving with people. You thought about the last congregation and hoped they were finally at peace with the Amulet destroyed. You thought about Jimmy and how everyone thought he was the leader…but his final words played in your head on a loop.

Jake set the Bible down on the altar disrupting the layer of dust that had collected on the surface. He backed up until he was standing with the rest of the group and said, "I'm ready to never come back to this place again, how about you guys?"

"Finally speaking my language brother, let's get the fuck outta here," Sam said. He placed his hand on Danny's shoulder and led him out the door to the truck. Danny was trying his best to keep balance but he clearly needed help. The concussion he got when Josh tackled him was taking its toll.

You, Josh, and Jake followed behind them, through the large doors, out into the church lawn. The sun was slowly disappearing behind the large trees in your sightline. Although the most dangerous creatures there were now nothing more than puddles of mud, you had no desire to be here after dark. The party trudged along, making their way to the truck as the fatigue started to set in. As you climbed into the passenger seat, your muscles screamed. All you wanted to do was take a hot shower and sleep.

"That ER is gonna be sick of us, aren't they?" Josh joked wearily as he turned the engine over. Oh, God, you forgot about that. Danny gave Josh a small laugh, but the rest of the truck was too tired to pretend that was funny.

Danny was admitted to the hospital for a concussion and the infection in his back wounds. Each person needed stitches on at least one wound, and left with very, very firm instructions on how to take care of them. You were the gossip of the hospital, everyone wondering where the group of kids covered in blood and mud came from and how they got that way.

When you finally got back to the house, Dave was waiting, just as red and visibly irritated as he was the night before. "Well, its nice of you to finally show up at-" he checked his expensive watch "-10:30 pm. Where the hell is Danny? Why are you all so dirty and bloody? What the fuck happened?"

"Danny is at the hospital, recovering from an infection from his back scratches and a concussion he got when Josh tackled him to the ground for pushing Sam down and trying to hit him," Jake explained calmly. "Doc said he should be discharged in couple days."

Dave fell silent, mouth agape as he processed the information he was just given. Finally after several minutes, "so you need a new drummer?"

"Who said that?" Sam said. "Everything is fine. Although, we're supposed to be in Atlanta in uh…2 days and I don't think he's gonna make it. We need to reschedule a couple shows."

"Fucking great!" Dave exclaimed, somehow getting more red. "So, let's see: Danny is recuperating from a fight and some scratches on his back, you guys are covered in cuts and bruises, I still have to explain his arrest and I don't even know where to begin with that, now I have to reschedule shows because you got into a fight? Do you want me to have a heart attack?"

"Well-"

"Shut up, Sam," Josh stopped him before he said something stupid. "We'll work it all out together, Dave. Its a lot and I'm sorry. We'll get it figured out."

After Dave walked outside to get his laptop, saw the condition of the rental truck, and flipped out once again, a plan was constructed: Announce that the next 3 shows were rescheduled due to a car accident, which was also why Danny was in the hospital. His arrest was a simple misunderstanding caused by him accidently hitting a "good samaritan" while they were attempting to help him. It was almost midnight when Dave finally left, muttering that this band "stressed him the fuck out" as he walked out the door.

Everyone immediately said their goodnights and made their way to their own rooms. You practically ran upstairs, excited for the hot shower that awaited you. As soon as you entered the bedroom, you peeled the muddy camo off and threw it in the corner, followed by your sports bra and panties. Turning the shower on was like music to your ears. Then you heard the door open and shut.

"Where'd you get that ener-oh wow," Josh stood in the doorway of the bathroom, admiring you as you took your hair out of the messy bun it was in. "I wish I wasn't so tired cause damn."

You giggled, stepping into the shower and under the water. The pressure and the temperature made your wounds sting something fierce but it was all part of the cleansing your body and mind needed. Closing your eyes, you massaged the shampoo into your scalp, making sure to get every inch. As you rinsed, you heard someone else step into the shower and inching their way closer to you.

Words were not spoken. The two of you spent the next twenty minutes washing each other's bodies, paying special attentions to sensitive areas. He stole kisses from you on occasion. Soft, passionate, filled with desire, but it was never acted upon. You turned off the shower and handed Josh one of the towels on the hook, then took one for yourself. Every part of you wanted to skip skincare and lotion but you went through the motions anyway and he walked out the bathroom with a towel around his waist. By the time you turned off the light of the bathoom, he was fast asleep. You crawled into bed, thankful that you were falling asleep next to a man that you truly cared about.

Two days had passed and you were riding up to the hospital to pick up Danny with Josh and Sam. Dave had demanded that someone from the label pick him up, but Josh was very firm…he should be picked up by family. Sam was driving a rented BMW, as the truck was taken back by a very horrified and pissed off Enterprise employee. Everything felt easier and lighter, but you did worry about seeing Danny again.

After getting lost 3 different times in the halls of the hospital, the three of you finally arrived to pick him up with a fresh set of clothes. Sam knocked on his door and entered quickly, followed by Josh. You hesitated, the knot in your stomach growing, but you followed suit, reminding yourself that its just Danny.

"It's about time!" Danny said, beaming. He had gained his color and weight back, looking as cheerful as ever and his sweet smile was contagious. Sam practically ran to the bed and gave him a tight hug. A wave of relief washed over you and your entire body relaxed.

Sam pulled away and quickly wiped his eyes. Composing himself, he grinned, "Sorry Daniel, I didn't realize you were recovering in a MAZE. Here's your clothes," he took the bag from you and put it on the bed. Danny gingerly sat up and swung his legs off of the bed. His face said it all: he was in a lot of pain. He caught your eye briefly and attempted to hide it more after he realized you noticed.

"I guess almost becoming a swamp zombie takes a toll on your body, huh?" Sam said, helping him stand up. Danny gave up an annoyed look, but there was no denying that Sam was right. Along with the infection and concussion, Danny was covered in bruises that he didn't have when you dropped him off.

"It feels like I ran a marathon and powerlifted back to back," Danny admitted. He started to take his gown off and you took that as your cue to step outside until he said, "Y/N, you've seen me in boxers before you don't have to leave."

Sam helped him get dressed. He was putting his shoes on when the nurse walked in with his discharge papers. Prescriptions and doctors orders were giving, along with disapproving looks at Sam and Josh. As she marched out, Danny laughed at their expressions of bewilderment.

"She doesn't approve of the hair. One of those old school baptist types," he said. "She complained the whole time."

"She sounds like a peach. Glad we're leaving," Jake said, gathering up Danny's personal effects to carry to the car. "Let's get the fuck up out of here."

Disapproving nurse insisted Danny get wheeled out in a chair due to hosptial policy and immediately regretted it when Sam started running him down the hallway. Sam ran off to pull the car around and you felt someone grab your arm. You turned expecting to see Josh, but it was Danny, who had pulled himself out of the chair. He was looking at you with tremendous guilt.

"I remember everything-" He started but you quickly cut him off.

"No, you weren't yourself, don't worry about it," you said quickly. Nerves were creeping up from your stomach, threatening to spill out of your body in the form of tears.

"Y/n, I kicked you in the head and called you a bitch," Danny said, his eyebrows furrowed. "You deserve an apology, I don't care if I wasn't myself. You all deserve it. I'm truly sorry for it."

The tears spilled out of your eyes and you wiped them away quickly, hoping he didn't notice. You managed a nod and a small "thank you."

He gave you a smile and gave you a tight hug as Sam pulled into the bay. He got out and ran over to Danny, damn near pushing him into the front seat. "You are the man of honor, Daniel, I will not have you sit in the back like a peasant!"

"So we're peasants?" Josh asked, raising his eyebrow.

"That's what I just said," Sam joked as he sat in the driver seat. Jake sat behind him, Josh in the middle, and you behind Danny. As the car headed back to Charleston for the final time, you looked out the window lost in your thoughts. Your time in the low country was horrific and traumatizing, but as Josh placed his hand on your upper thigh, you felt a wave of appreciation for the experience. You strongly felt like everything happened for a reason and maybe the reason for you was growth.

Sam sped past the road that First Baptist Church was on and your stomach got uneasy. Althought the immediate danger was gone, a nagging thought persisted in the back of your mind. He was still out there, the reason for all of this, and you had no idea what or who he was but you knew one thing…

He will find you. He always does.

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