Hit

I couldn't believe I did that.

Hit

I allowed that psycho place a mark on my skin!

Hit, hit, hit

... It stung like a bitch.

Hit, hit, hit

"Stupid!"

I rested my hands on my knees as I caught my breath. I had been pounding a bean bag for the last hour and now my hands were aching.

Reason? I was angry and I needed to let off steam... I know right great stress reliever.

Luckily for me I was alone down here and that meant I had the room and its machines to myself. The reason why was that everyone was in the backyard enjoying their day off. Today was Sunday - a holy day according to Giovanni's belief- so we had no drills or training, just pure relaxation.

The kids usually made good use of this day, they would play various types of games or find a cool shade under a tree and kicked back giving their bodies a rest. After all they are just children, they needed a pain free day.

Pain...

I sighed as my mind wondered back to what occurred a few hours ago. Last night - well, technically this morning was unforgettable in a bad way. One, the feeling of needles piercing my skin because of that damn tattoo - like how the hell do people stand it or even return for more? Two, the amused look in Giovanni's eyes as I cried in pain and three the fact that I gave away my life to the devil - Giovanni.

Was I mad to hand him my life on a silver platter or was I just so desperate to escape the sense of loneliness within me that I played along, in the end trapping myself?

"Maybe I'm both," I groaned as I stood up straight, stretched my arms and walked over to the weights area of the gym. "Mad and Desperate."

I was in the basement of the building which was our gym, it was grey with different workout machines adorning the place, and it had a black mat to the side used for fights and abdominal workouts. It had blood stains on the floor - sometimes the fights got out of hand and it reeked of sweat.

I was in a blue sports bra, black track pants and I was dripping in sweat.

I grabbed two twenty pounds, placed my hand in front of my body at a 90° angle and brought it up to my shoulder, then brought it down.

I loved to work out in the mornings it usually woke up my brain and body to the obstacles in my day. I was what you called a gym freak, I would spend nights, even days in the gym just letting off steam.

That was one of the reasons Giovanni favoured me, I was a hard worker and would do extra work if necessary. He would always pet my head and praise me- in his twisted ways.

You're like the devil's pet... You're doing good Shaneil next you might just end up being his mistress. I shivered as at that thought.

Never in a million years.

I continued this workout for a while - increasing the weight as I went - until I was worn out. I grabbed my towel and emptied my water bottle. I ascended the stairs, climbing two at a time and made my way to the elevator.

Perks of being a gang member... No stairs! I cheered.

Remember that what sweets you now will end up souring you in the end. A voice in my head retorted as I stepped into the elevator.

I shook my head pushing away that thought. I needed to shower and get out to the backyard.

I wouldn't want to miss the game. Whatever they planned to play today should be fun and also would totally take my mind of my deal with the devil...

If not it should raise my spirit a bit. So it would be a win, win...

***

I walked through the metal door entering the backyard. I was now changed into a grey tank top, black leggings and Nike sneakers. My hair was corn-rowed back in two and the braids rested on my shoulder.

The rays of the sun hit my skin as I walked across the yard, the grass being trampled under my feet. The day was bright, warm and felt happy. I looked up into the sky watching a flock of birds fly by and sighed.

"Today is gonna be fun!" I said trying to talk things into being.

The sounds of children playing filled my ears and I smiled. I looked out at the little kids running up and down on the grass for a ball and it made my heart swell so, cute.

I smiled even more as I watched Artemis and Orion under a tree playing rock paper scissors. After Orion won the game I saw Artemis roll her eyes and lean in, giving him a peck on the lips. A blush crept on his face and they relaxed under the tree wrapped in each other's arm.

Young love... The cutest and easiest thing to find but the hardest to keep.

They reminded me of me and Vanni, how we were before. Happy, carefree and in love but it didn't last long... Young love rarely does.

"SJ catch!"

I whipped my head around just in time to see a ball coming towards me. I ran back keeping my eyes on the ball as I attempted to catch it. Out of the corner of my eyes, I see Gavin running towards me, trying to catch the same ball.

I jumped into the air as he did and used my hip to push him away, catching the ball in my hands.

I landed with the ball and threw it back to the kids. I looked down at Gavin and chuckled. "Honey you can't handle these hips."

He laughed and pushed himself up off the ground, brushing of his hands. "Oh honey you can't tackle this di-"

"I get it," I said holding up my hands. "Virgin ears here."

He chuckled again, showing off his pearly white teeth. He was cute like most of the boys here.

Gavin was eighteen with caramel skin adorned with tattoos that he hid behind a white marina and grey sweatpants. His most beloved tattoo was angel wings that covered his back. All the girls loved to trace with their fingers on the design and I was guilty as charged for that...

I mean he had killer muscles, an awesome personality and tattoos, like totally hot! I couldn't resist... but we were just friends, the flirty kind but nothing serious.

He ran a hand through his black messy hair as his green eyes ran over my body. I rolled my eyes.

"Um... Manners much," he stared at me, confused as I said that.

"Staring at someone like that is bad manners," I continued, my hands on my hip.

"Well I'm sorry but when the piece you're observing is so curvy you tend to get lost in it," he said as he held my hand and brought it to his lips. "Buenos dias, mi luz."

"Buenos dias señor," I replied with a teasing smile.

Gavin was cute and totally attracted to me but I wasn't interested, thankfully he knew and respected that. Gavin was more of a one night stand kind of guy and I was in no rush to lose my v- cord but it didn't hurt to flirt, did it?

We loved to flirt and I knew who would get ticked off this...

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him close. His hands wrapped around my waist and a charming smile crept on my lips.

"I have a feeling that someone was watching us," he whispered as he leaned towards my ear, nibbling it.

I giggled at his actions but quickly ignored it. I looked around trying to spot who he was talking about and my eyes landed on Vanni. He was in a hammock which was tied to two trees, which provided shade for him.

He was in a white T-shirt, black shorts and his hair was wild and waiting for someone to just tuck the loose strands out of his face. His eyes were locked on me and Gav.

If looks could kill, I believed Gav would be at the bottom of a river drowning right now.

I smirked as his eyes held mine. I turned my head and kissed Gav on his neck earning a chuckle from him and look of anger from Vanni. He held my eyes in a deadly glare. Somebody's jealous.

"I believe you're right." I responded as I looked away from Vanni's glare.

"How about we tease him?" he asked with a mischievous look.

Gav knew about what happened between us a longtime ago, he thought Vanni was an ass to do that and I agreed. Gav also loved to tease people about foolish choices and now he wanted to tease Vanni. Bad move.

Before I could reply, Gavin released me, spun around and called out to Vanni. "Hey Ferrez you up for a friendly game?"

I looked at Gav like he was crazy and then turned to Vanni.

Vanni sat up in the hammock staring at Gavin with a sadistic smile on his lips. "Sure why not?"

I looked at Vanni and gulped. The look in his eyes told me that this was going to be a far from friendly game.

This was war.