DARCE MONTGOMERY AS SEBASTIAN BROOKS!

THIS WAS NOT WHAT I WAS EXPECTING.

We were in the middle of nowhere, and there were so many people here. I see cars lined up for at least two miles. Everybody we passed driving had red solo cups.

Was this a party?

Joshua passed by all the cars until we got to an empty spot, and he parked his car before turning off the engine.

We sat there for a minute in silence before he broke it.

"Whatever happens tonight, I need you to stay with me. If not me, then with Xavier. Do not go anywhere by yourself," Joshua warned me, making me furrow my eyebrows in confusion.

"Okay? Why? What's going on?" I asked, clearly confused.

"It'll just be easier to show you," he replied before opening his door.

He shut it behind him, and I opened mine. As soon as I went to get out, he was by my side. Joshua shut the door behind me, and I looked around to see that people were glancing at me.

Well rephrase that, they were staring at the guy beside me.

Joshua ignored their stares, and he wrapped an arm around my waist. We started walking, and I noticed a few guys checking me out.

I felt uncomfortable, and Joshua sent them a death glare. We kept walking for what felt like forever until we stopped at an opening field.

And that's when everything clicked.

People were cheering as they threw their drinks around. What were they cheering for, you might ask?

They were cheering for two cars that were racing each other. Like street racing.

Holy hell.

"Holy shit. Isn't this illegal?" I asked Joshua, looking up to meet his face.

Joshua nodded,"Very."

"Please tell me you don't do this," I said, making Joshua look down at me with a guilty look on his face.

Shock overtook my body as I processed this news. Joshua street races; Joshua illegal street races.

"I have a reason. I don't just do it because I feel like it, I promise," he quickly stated, almost nervous about my reaction.

"Joshua, you don't have to explain yourself. I'm not judging you for anything. I promise," I replied before adding,"I'm just...processing all of this."

Joshua nodded, but he didn't look like he believed me. I stood up on my tiptoes, and I cupped his cheek so he has to look me in my eyes.

"Josh, I promised you at my house that I wasn't going to look at you differently because of this, and I don't break my promises," I told him, gently brushing my thumb over his cheekbone.

He shivered under my touch, and I smiled at him. I like that I'm not the only who gets affected by us touching.

"I believe you," he said as our foreheads touched. His arms tightened around my waist, bringing me even closer to him.

My head was fuzzy, and everything around us disappeared. It was only him and me; me and him.

"Now, look at these two love birds," Jake's voice said, breaking us apart.

Joshua and I looked over to see Jake, Eliza, and Xavier. Vanessa wasn't with them, and I looked around for her.

But she wasn't here.

"Where Vanessa?" I asked Xavier since he was the one who was suppose to pick her up.

"She said she didn't feel well," he answered with a shrug. Xavier looked away like something else was on his mind.

Well there goes my plan for getting her alone and asking her why she was talking to Asher then lied about it.

"I'm actually surprised you showed up, blondie," Eliza said, regaining my attention. "I thought you would found an excuse to get out of this."

Eliza was dressed in a gray silvery crop top that showed her flawless skin and a pair of black ripped shorts. Her curves were clearly noticeable, and all of the girls were staring at her with an envious look on their faces. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail, and her curls looked amazing.

And all of the sudden, I'm feel insecure about my outfit. But I won't let her get me down. She thinks I'm not brave, but I'm about to prove her wrong.

"Of course not. Gotta support my boyfriend in whatever he does," I replied before standing on my tip toes and giving Joshua a kiss on the cheek.

He smirked, and I rested my hand on his shoulder. Evie rolled her eyes, and Jake wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Well holy shit, hell must have frozen over," a male voice said behind us.

Joshua's whole body tensed, and he turned around to see who was talking to us. I turned around also, and Joshua pushed me behind his back, protecting me from this unknown man.

"Don't hide her now, mate," the guy continued to say in a strong Australian accent.

"Sebastian," Joshua said his name like it was poison.

"Joshua," the guy, Sebastian, replied in the same tone.

Xavier moved to stand next to Joshua, and he crossed his arms across his chest. I peeked around Joshua's back to see a older guy, probably twenty or twenty-one, smiling. His dark brown hair was slicked back, and his blue eyes found mine.

"So, who is she?" Sebastian asked, nodding his head towards me.

"None of your damn business," Joshua replied, coldly.

Sebastian raised his hands up in surrender,"Calm down, Joshua. Just trying to get to know the new girl around here."

I stay behind Joshua's back because I noticed two more guys standing on either side of us. Joshua must have noticed it to because he wrapped his arms around me.

"I assume you are still salty from last race," Xavier said before adding,"I mean, Joshua did drag your ass on the track."

"Oh shut it, Xavier. At least I can actually get on the track," Sebastian replied, making Xavier scowl while clenching his fists by his sides.

"Look, boys," Eliza said, catching everybody's attention. "Let's calm down. There is no need for a fight before the racing begins. If you fight, you get thrown out and neither of you will race here again. Isn't that what you two really want?"

Sebastian looked at Eliza, and he nodded,"You're right, El. We'll just leave everything on the track. Isn't that right, Joshua?"

Joshua nodded, and Sebastian turned around, ready to walk away. After he took his first step, he turned back, and he smirked.

"By the way, it was really nice meeting you, Leah," he told me as his eyes met mine once again. My eyes widen, and fear crept up my spine.

How does he know my name?

Sebastian laughed when he saw my distress before walking away with his two buddies.  As soon as he was far away, Joshua quickly turned around to face me. His eyes held worry, and he checked me up and down for any injuries even though I was behind him the whole time.

"I need to get you out of here, now," Joshua said as he literally started pushing me to the parking lot.

"Woah, woah, woah. What in the hell is going on?" I asked him, planting my feet sternly in the ground.

"I'll explain on the way to your house," he replied before trying to push me once more.

I stood my ground, and Jake said,"Joshua, you can't leave. If you leave that means you forfeit the race, and Sebastian wins."

"I don't give a damn," Joshua argued with his friend. "He can keep the damn money. I don't care about it anymore."

Jake looked surprised by his reaction. Is that Joshua is doing all of this? For money? His father is loaded. Why does he need money?

Xavier stood in front of us with his arms across his chest.

"Listen, Joshua, if he wins, that means you lose your unbeatable status. And the irony is that you two wouldn't even race! If you loose your status, then nobody is going to race you. You can't leave," Xavier argued, agreeing with Jake.

"He knows her name!" Joshua exclaimed, angrily, at his friends. "Which means he probably knows more than what he is letting on. I don't give a fuck about the money or my status. Leah is more important to me, and I need to get her out of here before he does something stupid."

My mouth dropped open at his confession. He cares about me. Joshua Alexander freaking Carter cares about me. He has to mean as friends because it can't be anymore than that.

Right?

Right.

"I think Leah should have a say so in all of this since this is about her," Eliza said before popping her pink bubblegum.

All three guys turned to look at me, and I looked up Joshua. His eyes are pleading for me to agree with him and leave.

But I don't even know what I'm agreeing with. I need to know what's going on first before I make any decision.

"Explain what's going on, and then I'll make my decision," I said before adding,"Please."

Joshua groaned in annoyance, but he nodded. "Sebastian Brooks is the son of Ace Brooks; the guy who runs this gig. Sebastian thinks that just because his daddy controls the racing then he can do whatever he wants. But his father likes me because I bring in a lot of money so he doesn't kick me out. People will pay all kinds of money to see if they can beat the unbeatable racer. But anyways, Sebastian is a very powerful guy with all kinds of skeletons in his closet. He uses whatever he can to get me to lose. And I mean anything."

Joshua looked over at Xavier with a sympathetic look. Xavier looked away, and I started to piece everything together.

"He used Xavier against you?" I asked, glancing at Xavier before returning my gaze on Joshua.

"He didn't just use Xavier," Joshua started,"Look, I only race once a month, and when I do, I usually race against ten different guys because they all think they can beat me. The last race is usually with Sebastian. Well, before we raced, Xavier and one of Sebastian's buddies raced."

I looked at Xavier with shock on my face. "You race?"

"Raced," he replied with a frown.

"During the race, Sebastian's buddy made an illegal move, and he caused Xavier to wreck. But it was really bad. He had a broken hand, a few broke ribs, and a mild concussion. Right after he got out of the car, it went up in flames. It nearly costed him his life. We later found out that  Sebastian was the one behind the wreck. He thought that if he could hurt my best friend, then I would leave the race.

He was right, but Xavier made me stay. So as I was saying before, I need us to leave right now before he does anything stupid. Sebastian obviously knows you are important to me, and I need to get you back home; safe."

I nodded,"Okay. Let's go."

"Hold on," Eliza said,"you gotta go talk to Ace before you leave, right? I mean, so he knows you are leaving."

"Screw him. It's not like I'm under a contract. I do whatever the fuck I want to."

"Joshua, she's right. If you stand Ace up, he is going to be pissed at you. Just go tell him that something is something is going down at home or some shit," Jake replied, making Joshua nod.

"Okay, fine. I'll go let Ace know while Xavier takes Leah back to my car," Joshua said before tossing his keys to Xavier.

"Eliza and I will go watch after Sebastian to make sure he doesn't try anything," Jake said before throwing an arm around Eliza's shoulders.

They started to walk off, leaving us alone. I looked up at Joshua, and he brought his hand up to my chin, tracing his thumb over it, gently.

"I'll meet you at the car in a few minutes, okay?"

I nodded,"Please be careful, Josh."

Joshua smiled down at me,"Always, Annie."

Then he stepped back, and all of the sparks disappeared with that step. Joshua looked at Xavier, and the two seemed to be having a silent conversation.

Xavier nodded, and he looked at me before saying,"Come on, Le."

I walked over to Xavier, and we started walking towards the parking lot. I felt Joshua's eyes on me, and for some reason, I wanted to turn around and run back to him. But I didn't. I walked beside Xavier like Joshua told me to do.

The sun was down setting, and night was overtaking the sky. Stars shone brightly, and the moon was full tonight. Xavier was still quiet so I decided to start a conversation with him.

"So...." I drawled out, making him glance over at me.

"So?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Why do you look like somebody stole your favorite candy?" I asked him, twirling a piece of my hair with my finger.

Xavier looked at me with a puzzled look on his face. "Do what?"

I sighed,"All evening you have been distant and sad looking; like a lost puppy. Why?"

Xavier shrugged it off,"No reason."

I tsked,"Are you sure? Because I think that it has something to do with my beyond pretty best friend. You might know her; Vanessa Mason?"

Xavier gave me a side smile,"That obvious, huh?"

I shrugged my shoulders, but I couldn't help the smile forming on my face.

"You clearly like her."

"Do not."

"Do too."

"Do not."

"Do not."

"Do too," he replied before cursing underneath his breath. "You tricked me."

I gave him an innocent smile,"Me? Never."

Xavier laughed,"Yeah, sure. And so what if if I like her? She's...well...extraordinary."

My heart melted as Xavier described Vanessa. I can tell just by the way Xavier's face lit up just talking about her that he is head over heels for her.

I was about to say something else to Xavier, but something caught my attention. I could have sworn I saw somebody watching me.

"Xavier-..." I started to say but it was too late.

Out of nowhere, three guys jumped on Xavier. They had him in the ground, hitting him.

"Xavier! Stop!" I screamed as I tried to get them off my friend.

"Leah, run!" Xavier said, making me look around me.

There were two more guys, and they both were making their way over to me. I looked back at Xavier, but he was fighting them off. He was now standing on his feet.

"Now, Leah!" Xavier exclaimed, making me run between cars.

I could hear the two guys behind me running and that made me run even faster. I kept making turns around vehicles to trick them, and I quickly hid under a truck while they were distracted.

My heart was beating out of my chest, and my breathing was heavy. I covered my mouth as the two guys came to stop right beside me.

Please don't look under here. Please.

"Go look around those cars! She couldn't have gone far!" One of the guys ordered before they both went different directions, looking for me.

I waited for a minute before sliding out from underneath the truck. I quietly got off the ground, not standing straight up. I peeked around the truck to see one of the guys still searching for me.

I took a step back, and I turned around, ready to run. But as soon as I turned around, I was met with a chest. Looking up, fear exploded throughout my body.

The man grabbed me, turning me around as his arms wrapped his arms around me, tightly. I was lifted from the ground, and I started kicking and thrashing in his grip.

"Let go of me, you stupid idiot!" I screamed, struggling against his grip. "Help! Somebody! Help!"

The other guy came running up to us, and he had something in his hand. My eyes widen when I realized it was chloroform.

"Just stay still!" The guy who was holding it said as I continued to thrash in the other guy's grip,

I raised my head before throwing it back and hitting the guy straight in the nose.

"Mother-...." The guy exclaimed as his grip loosened. "You bitch!"

I elbowed him in the ribs, and he groaned in pain. But as soon as I could get out of his grip, the other guy grabbed me. He covered my nose and my mouth with the towel, and I struggled against him.

But it was too late.

Everything around me was growing fuzzy and black. My eyelids grew heavy, and my whole body felt like it weighed a ton.

"Sebastian better pay us double for this shit," was the last thing I heard before everything went black.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Hey guys!!

Things are getting INTENSE!!

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•Kensli•