Damien mentally prepared himself to attend his Systema class. Prepod Antonov had another gruesome yet effective training planned for him. He had to be in a strong mental state, and that encounter with Adeline made him feel restless again."Good, you're here. I hope you're ready for some pain," Antonov grinned."Aren't I always?" Damien barked."We'll see about that," Antonov said. "You there! Get your asses over here," he called out, and three guys walked in and crowded Damien."What's going on?" Damien asked. He had a bad feeling about this."What's going on is that these guys are gonna punch the shit out of you, and you will take it all," Antonov declared."Why the fuck would I do that?" Damien barked."I'm teaching you how to take punches without flinching by taking in pain and turning it into a rage. It will convert your rage into energy and help you win fights," Antonov said."You're kidding me!" Damien exclaimed."

Adeline didn't move from Damien's side for a few moments. She watched him drift into sleep then placed her hand on his forehead, carefully, so he didn't wake up. He was burning up.Adeline's chest tightened at the sight of him so vulnerable and helpless. Why couldn't she control her emotions? Every day she told herself she didn't give a hoot about this asshole, yet seeing him like this broke her heart. Especially when he said thank you. His eyes were gentle, and he looked like he truly appreciated her, and it was nice to be appreciated for once.Be strong, Adeline, she told herself. You don't really care about Damien. He is a terrible person and only cared about himself. So what if he was hurt? It was probably his own fault. No one asked him to go around and fight other kids at school. She headed to the bathroom. She needed to wash the

Addie went into the kitchen to prepare dinner, so she didn't have to listen to her mother about how she wasn't 'taking care' of her stepfather enough. She boiled some water and threw some pasta in."What's this? We are having pasta again?" Jimmy walked by and frowned."Oh, sorry, is this not to your liking? Maybe I should throw some rat poison in the pot to spice up the flavor," she remarked."Ha ha. You are real cute, sweetheart. Have you heard the news about your new school?" Jimmy asked."What are you talking about?" Adeline looked at him curiously."There were some kids at your school who were beat-up and tied to the fence. I heard they were from the Italian gang," her stepfather

"Are we going to your house?" Molly asked Damien."Nope. We are going to Robbie's place since you "for real" want to learn math. I figured we could focus better when Robbie's around," Damien smirked."Whatever, hey so...what's with you and that new girl Adeline?" Molly looked at him curiously.Damien narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean. Nothing is up with us. She is just a girl in my class. We aren't even friends. Besides, she hates me."Molly looked at him intently as Damien's facial expression changed when she mentioned Adeline. His eyes turned gentle. He must really like her, she thought irritably. She had been trying to make Damien go with her for months, but he kept brushing her off. This girl comes out of now

"You just turned eighteen, right?"Robbie narrowed his eyes at Damien. "You know that, asshole. Why do you ask?" he said.Damien grinned. Robbie was going to get the shock of his life when he finds out where he was about to take him. Damien remembered his promise to Sally when he said he'd go to the strip joint and keep an out for her. He figured, why not take Robbie with him? He had never seen anything like it."You'll see," Damien smiled mysteriously."I don't like the look on your face. I'm gonna regret this, aren't I?" Robbie winced.Damien laughed and got in his car, followed by Robbie.The strip club wasn't extremely strict and didn't serve alcohol before midnight, so people can go in if they were eighteen years old. Robbie was suspicious of Damien the entire car ride there, but he didn't protest. Damien is his best friend, and he trusted him.Once they arrived, Robbie was floored as he saw exotic nude dancers dancing on the sta