Chapter Three

The upstairs of this club was filled with smoke, and it burned my eyes. There was a slight aroma of weed, and the floor seemed to be somewhat wet. My shoes were sticking to the surface. I don't even want to know what made this floor so damn sticky. Disgusting myself, I shuddered.

"Are we sitting right here?" I asked, hoping she would say 'no.' My eyes couldn't take the burning sensation. Or the thought in the back of my head that bodily fluids are what made the floor sticky.

"No way, we're going to the back." Thank god. We walked through a curtain and inside this warehouse there was another club. This side was much nicer. There wasn't anyone bumping into me, and it didn't smell. The bar sat in the middle of the open floor. I wanted to sit down so badly. My feet were killing me already in these heals. There weren't any strobe lights either, thankfully. My eyes wouldn't be able to handle it.

"I'll be right back. There is someone I need to speak to." Rory huffed and handed me her purse.

"Who?"

"The asshole that lied about me to Josh." She was getting angry quickly, and I wasn't sure if I should go with her. Most of the men on this side of the club look like trouble, compared to the ones downstairs.

I glanced at a table across the dance floor and saw a group of four men in the corner. They clearly didn't want to be seen.

As if reading my mind she shook her head, "I'll be fine. Go sit at the bar. I'll be back."

I nodded, "If you need me, let me know." She gave me a thumbs up and walked over to the group of men. I wanted to stand there, and make sure she was okay, but I couldn't any longer. My feet hurt. This is why I don't usually wear heels.

As soon as I got to the bar, I sat down and took my shoes off. My feet were red and looked they would be blistering soon. How fun.

I looked around the room and noticed there was a mix of men. Half of the men had on suits, while the other half had on casual clothes. I don't understand why you would wear a suit if you're on the south side. That seems a bit redundant.

My friend Kayla always said she loved men in suits. She said it made them look sophisticated and put together. It reminded me of Goodfellas or any other mafia movie. Maybe they just stopped here to get a drink and were planning on leaving to go strangle someone.

"Well, look who it is." A mystery voice said, making me jump. I turned my head left and right and didn't see anyone. Suddenly two hands made their way over my eyes.

"Guess who?" He chuckled, "I'll give you a hint. I'm tall, dark, and gorgeous."

I laughed, "No idea."

He took his hands off my eyes and spun me around. I did not recognize the man in front of me. His smile was gleaming. He was tall, with black hair, and dark eyes. He really was tall, dark, and gorgeous. He had tattoos covering most of his body. I couldn't make any of the symbols out under the dim light. He had on ripped jeans and a black t-shirt.

He held a lazy smile on his face.

"You really don't remember me?" He put his hand over his heart and faked hurt.

"That cuts, A. That cuts deep." He pulled his hand up and showed a scar on the side of his hand. A pool full of memories hit me at once.

"Ash?" I smiled. "That can't be you." The last time I saw him we were kids. Childhood friends. He was just a scrawny, sarcastic, loudmouth when we were young. Last I heard he moved in with his grandmother.

The scar on his reminiscent of a when he accidentally put his hand through glass at my house. That was not a fun day.

“’Tis I, the devil in the flesh." He kissed me on my cheek, and my face lit up, red.

"You grew up that's for sure. You look good. I look better, but you still look good." He joked and put his arm around my shoulders. I laughed and pushed at his chest. He was still the sarcastic asshole I remembered. He still had that same glint of mischief in his eyes as well.

"You still at the same place?" His face was so close to mine. He was unbelievably attractive. Definitely not the boy he once was.

"Rory and I are. My parents moved to Florida." Thank god.

"Your parents never liked me, much." He laughed. "They always thought I'd get you into trouble."

"You never did. You aren't evil." I smiled. He gave me a wicked grin and rubbed his arms.

"I am very evil." He joked and fluttered his eyes. It was slightly awkward seeing him again. I didn't know what to talk about, exactly. I haven't seen him in almost eight years, and the last time I did wasn't very pleasant. My mom always hated him, so she blamed everything that happened to me on him.

Ash and I were playing on the front lawn, and he got into a fight with a neighborhood kid. The kid accidentally hit me, and my mom called the police and told them that Ash hit me. We weren't allowed to be friends anymore. We still snuck around behind my parents back and continued to be friends for about a year. His father died, and his mom had a breakdown, so he moved in with his grandmother across town. That was the last I heard about him. Years later I tried searching his name on F******k, and nothing was there.

His mom died last year. She was extremely mentally ill, and never seemed to get help. She would only come outside at night, and she would only walk to the store down the street and come right home. She never had any visitors, and when she died, there was only a handful of people at her funeral. Ash, being one of the people who decided not to go. Her cause of death was suicide, but of course, around town, there were speculations she was murdered. The rumors were cruel, and not needed.

He still held a lazy smile on his face, "It's crazy seeing you again. I can't believe it's been so long."

"How come you never called me?" I asked, bluntly. When I was a kid that hurt a lot. We were best friends, and I waited for him to call every day for what seemed like months after he left. He never did. That was my first real heartbreak. There was a time in my life where he meant the most to me. After years it was almost like he had died, and the only thing he left behind were memories. And, after years here he was standing right in front of me.

His smile dropped, and he shoved his hands in his pockets. He appeared to be thinking about his words more carefully.

"My gram was pretty strict. I wasn't allowed to use the phone in the house. She was kind of like my mom." He laughed, nervously. I could tell he was lying. I glared at him, and opened my mouth to tell him off, but before I could my sister interrupted.

"Well, well. If it isn't Mr. bad boy in the flesh." Rory laughed and threw her arm over my shoulders. I glared at her, and she gave me a confused look.

"Well, well. It looks like ugly decided to show up." He teased and poked her in her arm.

She pretended to be hurt and punched him lightly in the shoulder.

"I joke. I joke." He held his hands up, defensively.

Ash and Rory always got along quite well. They're the same age, so they were in the same grade together. She was the one who introduced us when he moved to the neighborhood. My sister was much more talkative and outgoing than I was when we were young. She got along and was friends with everyone. It was much harder for me. I had one friend, and I was looking at him.

"I see you two are catching up," Rory said, looking between him and I. I became confused and angry. Did she know where he was this whole time?

"You knew he was back around?" I snapped.

Rory looked at me with regret in her eyes. She knew, and she didn't say anything. How could she?

"I told her not to say anything." Ash interrupted and stood between my sister and me.

"Why?"

"I couldn't see you. I've only been out for two months." That was a slap to the face. It's never fun to find out how little you mean to others. How insignificant you are in their life.

"Out from where?" I spat. Hurt had to be clearly written on my face, because he frowned slightly, and reached for my hand. I snatched it away and furrowed my brows.

"Jail." He sighed.

And then I heard the first gun shot.