Lahat ng Kabanata ng Steel Hearts : Kabanata 11 - Kabanata 16

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

LucyThe day stretched long, noisy and restless. The men worked on their bikes, the sound of tools clanging against metal echoing across the lot, engines growling as they tested repairs. Every roar sent a shiver through me, though I tried not to show it.I stayed close to the edges, pretending to watch, pretending I was just curious. Really, I was calculating. Counting exits. Watching how people moved. Who looked at me, who ignored me, who lingered too long with their stares. Survival habits. I couldn’t turn them off, no matter how badly I wanted to.Blake was never far. He didn’t hover, didn’t smother me with questions or presence, but he was always there. Leaning against a bike, talking low to one of his brothers, checking the edges of the lot. Sometimes I thought he was watching everything—me included—without moving his eyes.It should have made me nervous. Maybe it did. But it also kept me breathing.I caught myself staring at him more than once. He looked like he belonged to this

BlakeThe clubhouse was half-asleep by morning. Engines cold, bottles scattered across tables, brothers snoring in corners. The quiet before the storm.I’d been up before the sun, couldn’t rest even if I wanted to. Old habits. My body never forgot how to be alert, how to listen for sounds that didn’t belong. It wasn’t restlessness—it was survival, sharpened into my bones.I stepped outside, the gravel crunching under my boots. The lot was empty except for rows of bikes, chrome catching the pale light. I leaned against mine, lit a cigarette, and let the smoke curl out into the cool morning air.It should’ve been peaceful. It wasn’t. My head was too full.Lucy.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her face. That flash of panic when Jake got too close, the way her breath hitched like she was being dragged back into something I couldn’t see. She covered fast, but not fast enough. I’d seen too many broken people not to recognize it.And it clawed at me in a way I didn’t like.I shouldn’t car