“We need to disperse this crowd,” Cam said, his brows pinched with concern. “Any suggestions?”
“Leave it to me,” Asher said, grabbing a couple of the guys and whispering in their ears. Soon they had disappeared into the crowd.
“Come on,” Cam grabbed Hailee’s hand and motioned for us to follow. We had to push and shove our way through the wall of bodies, but when I finally saw Jason, I froze. The sight of him shirtless and bloody was sensory overload.
“Flick?” Mya yelled over the noise: the grunts and groans from the two fighters in the middle of the crudely formed ring, the bloodthirsty cheers from our classmates. “Hold it together,” she scolded, yanking on my arm, jerking me into action. “He’s okay, see? You need to really worry when—”
Thatcher got in a good hit, the crack of bone on bone reverberating through me so violently, my stomach lurched, bile rushing up my throat. I swallowed, dragging in a lungful of fresh air. “Someone has to do something.”
“We are, if you’ll just keep moving.”
“Thank fuck,” Grady rushed over to us, sporting a black eye of his own.
Cam shook his head at his teammate, disapproval written all over his expression. “Save the lecture, man, I’m fully aware of what a clusterfuck this is,” Grady winced.
“I’ll deal with you later,” Cameron seethed. “Right now, we need to figure out how to end this.”
“I’ve tried, twice. This is the thanks I got.” He pointed to the ugly bruise forming around his eye.
“Okay, go find Asher and help with the crowd. We’ve got this.”
We did?
Because my legs felt ready to give out on me as I clung to Mya.
“Okay,” Asher reappeared, breathless and flushed. “I’m here, what’s the plan?”
“I’m thinking you two should get in there before you lose your quarterback for the play-offs,” Mya deadpanned.
“Man, I love a woman who tells it like it is.” Ash grinned at her. “Yo, Thatcher,” he sauntered toward them, “Having all the fun without me?”
“Fuck off, Bennet, this is between me and Ford.” Thatcher wasn’t unscathed, blood trickling from a cut in his lip, another under his eye. He also had a nasty bruise ripening around his ribs.
“Sorry, bro, but we kind of need our QB for the play-offs; you know, the ones you didn’t make this year.”
“What the hell is he doing?” Mya lurched forward but Cam cut her off with his arm.
“He’s got this.”
“The hell he does, look…” She flicked her head to where a couple of Eagles’ players were closing in on him.
“Fuck, okay, you three stay here.”
“Cam,” Hailee said, “I’m not sure this is a good idea. Maybe we should call the police?”
“If it comes to that, we will, I promise. But for now, just stay here.” He levelled her with a look I rarely saw from him.
“That boy has more restraint than me,” Mya remarked.
“That’s what I’m worried about.” Hailee reached back for my hand and we stood there, the three of us, watching while the guys we cared about faced off with Thatcher and his bunch of goons.
“Whatever Asher did, it worked. Look, people are leaving.”
We glanced back to find the crowd slowly dispersing, being herded away by the remaining Raiders.
“It’s over, Thatcher,” Cameron stepped between him and Jason.
“You think just because you showed up with your girl in tow that it’s over? It’s over when I say it’s fucking over.” He was incensed, anger rolling off him like a tidal wave. “In fact, since she’s here,” his eyes found Hailee, “why don’t you come over here and experience what it feels like to be with a real ma—”
Cameron’s fist drove straight into his face. Thatcher grunted in pain, staggering back, but he quickly righted himself, spitting blood onto the ground. “So you do have balls, Chase? I was beginning to think you didn’t after you let me and the guys mess with your girl time and time again.”
“Cameron, don’t.” Hailee tore her hand free, moving toward them, but before she got there, Grady appeared and scooped her up, bringing her back to us.
“Stay out of this, Hailee, trust me.”
“Aw, you don’t want to play? What about your girl, Ford, does she like to play? It sure looked like it from the—”
“Thatcher,” Jason’s tone was icy cold.
A chill ran up my spine watching them. There was so much anger and hatred between them, I knew I was missing some of the pieces of the puzzle.
“Lewis, stop,” a girl’s voice shattered the tension.
“Aimee, I thought I told you to stay the fuck out of this?”
Her dark hair whipped around her as she ran toward them, putting herself in front of Jason as if she was shielding him.
“Hailee,” I asked, the knot in my stomach tightening, “who is that?”
“I think that’s Aimee.”
“Aimee?”
“Yeah, Thatcher’s sister, Jason’s ex.”
Jason had an ex?
I had vague lust-haze filled memories of him mentioning a girl, but he hadn’t gone into detail. She hadn’t even been a blip on my radar, but now she was there; a real-life person. And she was standing in front of Jason like he was hers to protect.
“Oh, shit, Flick, I didn’t…” Hailee’s voice became white noise as I watched the unfamiliar girl face off with her brother. She hadn’t frozen on the side lines or stood by and watched; she’d run straight into the fray.
To protect Jason.
But why would she do that? Unless…
“Hey, you don’t know anything yet, so stop thinking whatever you’re thinking right now.” Mya nudged my arm, giving me her trademark death stare.
“I’m not leaving until you walk away, Lewis. This has gone too far. Jason only did what he did because he was hurt.”
“You think I give a shit about that? He sent that video to—”
“Hurt me. Me, Lewis. If anyone should be standing here demanding revenge, it’s me.” Aimee’s expression turned sad. “Look, I know you only want to protect me, to get back at him, but this is his future.”
Thatcher’s jaw clenched, his eyes burning with hatred for the guy I realized I knew nothing about. Not really. I thought he’d let me in, let me see a side of him no one else got to see, but Jason was a locked box.
Maybe he always would be.
Tears burned the backs of my eyes as I slowly began to edge away from my friends.
“Felicity, where the hell are you going?” Mya hissed, trying to reach for me, but I shrugged her off.
“I can’t be here.” I couldn’t see Jason’s past play out right in front of my eyes. It hurt too much to see their history.
To feel it.
“Don’t run, not now. Not when he needs you.”
“Jason doesn’t need me, Mya.” I smiled sadly, letting the tears fall freely now. “He never did.”
Without a second glance, I walked away. Ignoring her calls, Hailee’s too. Blocking out the sound of Aimee’s voice as she tried to reason with Thatcher. The low rumble of whispers as the Raiders and Eagles stood guard.