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Quiet

Penulis: Lindsey Smith
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-09-23 04:13:16

Lucy

The room was plain, but it felt more like mine than any place had in years. Four walls, a bed, a lock that clicked solid under my hand. That lock… it meant more than the clean sheets or the dresser or the quiet. It meant choice. It meant safety I could control.

I sat on the edge of the bed, jacket still clutched around me, listening to the muffled noise of the clubhouse below. Laughter, boots on wood, the thud of music bleeding through the floorboards. This house breathed chaos. And yet, up here, I could almost imagine I was outside of it.

Almost.

My mind wouldn’t let me rest. Riker’s voice echoed in my ears, that cruel smile still burned into my memory. Pet. I’d told Blake I’d heard worse—and it was true—but sometimes the smallest cuts go the deepest. It wasn’t just the word. It was the way the others had looked at me, like I was a thing, a question mark, a problem they didn’t want to deal with.

And maybe they weren’t wrong.

I curled onto the bed without undressing, shoes and al
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  • Steel Hearts    Quiet

    LucyThe room was plain, but it felt more like mine than any place had in years. Four walls, a bed, a lock that clicked solid under my hand. That lock… it meant more than the clean sheets or the dresser or the quiet. It meant choice. It meant safety I could control.I sat on the edge of the bed, jacket still clutched around me, listening to the muffled noise of the clubhouse below. Laughter, boots on wood, the thud of music bleeding through the floorboards. This house breathed chaos. And yet, up here, I could almost imagine I was outside of it.Almost.My mind wouldn’t let me rest. Riker’s voice echoed in my ears, that cruel smile still burned into my memory. Pet. I’d told Blake I’d heard worse—and it was true—but sometimes the smallest cuts go the deepest. It wasn’t just the word. It was the way the others had looked at me, like I was a thing, a question mark, a problem they didn’t want to deal with.And maybe they weren’t wrong.I curled onto the bed without undressing, shoes and al

  • Steel Hearts    Lost Soul

    BlakeThe clubhouse was alive in its usual rhythm—boots on wood, laughter spilling sharp, engines snarling awake and cooling down again—but none of it held my attention the way she did.Lucy sat at the corner table, small frame folded tight like she was bracing for an impact that hadn’t come yet. She’d eaten the food like someone half-starved, careful but fast, then set the fork down like she was waiting for permission to breathe.Most people didn’t notice things like that. I did. Couldn’t help it.Her eyes darted every time someone walked by, like she was measuring the distance to the door, the angle of escape. That kind of vigilance doesn’t come from nowhere—it’s carved into you. She was wired to survive. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t recognize it.She caught me watching once, and her chin lifted just slightly, like she wanted me to know she’d noticed. Not defiant, not exactly, but not broken either. That small flicker of stubbornness—yeah, that caught me harder than I expecte

  • Steel Hearts    Flowing Fear

    LucyThe rag was still in my hand, but my fingers had gone numb. My whole body felt like it had gone cold when Riker said those words. Pet.I’d heard worse, yes. But the way the men in the lot laughed—or pretended not to—burned hotter than fists ever had. Fists left bruises that faded. Words stuck, carved into the softest places of you.I kept polishing the chrome because I didn’t know what else to do. The metal shone under my hand, but the shine didn’t matter. I didn’t matter. That’s what Riker had meant. I was just something Blake had picked up on the side of the road. Disposable.But Blake had stepped in. Again.The way he’d faced Riker, calm but lethal, like the air itself could cut—it left the whole lot quiet. No one challenged him, not then. And that silence felt like safety.When he crouched beside me again, acting like nothing had happened, my throat ached. I wanted to say thank you. I wanted to say I wasn’t fine. I wanted to admit how much it shook me to be called that word,

  • Steel Hearts    Bleed

    BlakeThe garage was alive with noise—engines revving, tools clattering, voices calling back and forth—but I kept my focus where it had been all morning. On her.Lucy moved different than the rest. Quiet, careful, like each step was measured before she set it down. She didn’t belong here, not in this chaos, but she hadn’t bolted either. That told me more about her than anything she’d said. She’d learned how to stay put in places that made her skin crawl. Survival, not comfort.I leaned against my bike, cigarette burning between my fingers, and watched her out of the corner of my eye. She was studying the bikes, pretending interest, but her gaze kept drifting back to me. Each time I caught it, she dropped it quick, like she was afraid I’d call her out.Smart girl.But the truth was, I didn’t mind her watching.What I minded was the way the others were watching her.Riker’s smirk had returned sometime this morning, lurking around the edges of the lot like a snake waiting for its chance

  • Steel Hearts    Crossing Lines

    LucyThe clubhouse smelled of oil, coffee, and the faint tang of smoke when I stepped inside. The morning sun poured through the wide windows, lighting up the worn wood floors and the rows of motorcycles parked outside. The men were busy—cleaning bikes, checking engines, shouting over the roar of machinery. I stayed near the edge, hesitant, feeling like I’d stepped onto a stage without knowing the lines.Blake was there, as always, leaning against the bar, arms crossed. He didn’t move much, just observed, his gaze sharp and calculating. My stomach tightened whenever I caught him watching me. He wasn’t intrusive—never had been—but the way he measured me made it impossible to forget he was there. That he was watching. That he could step in anytime.I tried to focus on the others, to blend in, to keep my presence small. One of the younger guys, Jake, tried to make small talk, joking about my being new to the club scene. I forced a polite smile, answering in short, careful sentences. Ever

  • Steel Hearts    Unraveled

    LucyThe morning sun had barely warmed the clubhouse lot when I stepped outside, still clutching my jacket tighter than necessary. I knew I didn’t belong here. Every instinct screamed it. The motorcycles gleamed under the pale light, lined up like soldiers, their chrome catching the sun, their engines cold and silent for now. The men were starting to stir, boots thumping against gravel, voices carrying across the lot.Blake was already there, leaning against one of the bikes, arms crossed, watching. As usual, his presence made everything else fade from my awareness, and I had to remind myself to breathe.“Morning,” he said, voice low, casual, but every syllable carried a weight I felt in my chest.“Morning,” I replied, careful to keep my tone steady. My hands were still trembling, though I tried to hide it.“Ready to meet some of the guys?” he asked, tilting his head toward the group gathering by the bikes.I hesitated, my stomach tightening. Last night had been one thing—surviving, h

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