Reece was red in the face as he charged up towards me with Marc trailing closely behind with a worried look on his freckled face.

"Where have you been?" Reece hissed, attempting to keep his voice low.

"I've been sick." I replied, growing annoyed at having to say that same damn thing every time someone asked. It's a lie obviously, but I couldn't say the truth.

"Bullshit." He spat as I held back a laugh from seeing his missing front tooth that was very visible from being just inches from his face.

I should feel bad for him, but deep down I knew he deserved that.

"Whoever that guy you're dating is, I want his information. He's paying to get this shit fixed." He pointed to his mouth and I instantly rolled my eyes.

"Not happening." I told him, knowing damn well his rich dad could easily pay for it.

"I had my parents call your mom already this morning. I'm sure they'll be happy to know you've been hanging around with some thirty year old." He smirked, leaving me speechless.

Of course he would do that, I should have known.

"Fuck you, Reese." I hissed, trying my hardest to eliminate the urge to break another tooth in his mouth.

I instantly turned on my heel and walked away from who I thought was one of my best friends with tears welling up in my eyes. My mom pretty much knows now that I skipped school, and on top of that she thinks I was with a man that's thirty years old.
This isn't going to hold up well.

I ignored Natalie's call for me and kept walking towards the library to wait for lunch hour to be over; I had to finish the rest of my classes for the day. It was agonizingly hard trying not to go towards the exit, believe me, but I knew J wouldn't let me hear the end of it if I went home early.

I felt a little at ease knowing that I would be at home way before my mother, but it was concerning that she hasn't tried to call or text me yet.

I feared, however, that it was just the calm before the storm.

J

I contemplated leaving again after Jessa left for school. I hated that I even considered it, for it would definitely crush her, but her parents- well, mom, would be back soon and I couldn't keep hiding in her damn closet like some sneaky high school kid trying to get some.

I frowned at my thoughts as I filled up the large bowl that's probably meant to be used for popcorn with cereal and milk. After starving and barely getting by with scraps for years, Jessa's tiny ass cereal bowls weren't going to do it for me. I usually ate until I couldn't anymore, just in case it was the last time I could eat like this. It felt good as hell to be full, and it felt even better not to have my damn ribs showing as much as before.

I was getting more comfortable with showing my skin around Jessa, which is something I never thought would happen. I thought back to when she'd caress her fingers over the burns and cuts, and I remembered how it hurt but yet, felt so fucking good.

I've had girls touch me over the years, mostly too-cheap hookers that roamed the streets, unfortunately. Obviously none felt like jess, not even close. They were always cold and she was always warm, even that night in the rain her one single touch warmed me up in seconds.
Fuck-I hated that I was feeling this way about her, because if I wasn't I would have left days ago and saved her from the complicated bullshit that my life entails.

I looked over the art work on the walls covering their living room as I ate. They were all paintings, mostly of flowers and nature, but there was also family photos. I noticed that they were mostly of a younger Jessa and her mother, a few from what looked like Disney world and a couple from the beach. Jessa looked so happy in them, and I found myself smiling at the freckled round face with glasses hanging down her nose, similar to how they do now. I was happy for her, happy that she got to have an actual childhood and experience life the way it should be experienced.

My eyes switched over to the next framed photograph, and my smile immediately vanished as my vision focused on the man with his arm around Jessa's mom. My hands shook as I dropped the cereal bowl onto the floor before ripping the frame from the wall to have a closer look.

No fucking way.
No no no, I repeated to myself in my head while trying my hardest not to panic.

I thought back to Jessa when she was saying that her dad was never home, and more importantly to when she said that he had never been gone for this long before. I swallowed the lump that was forming in my throat as it all started to make sense. Cris's best friend was this man in the photo, more importantly though, he was their fucking gang leader.

We've had run ins from time to time, many resulting in him and his pack beating me senseless for not selling all of their drugs on time, which is what they'd forced me to do in exchange for not killing me. By now he had to have known Cris was dead, and I was certain that he knew it was me.

And if that wasn't bad enough, I've been hiding up in his goddamn house..with his daughter.

I had to leave, and I had to leave now-

I froze instantly in place as I heard the front door open along with the sound of a man clearing his throat; and at that moment I knew the world was out to fucking get me.

I closed my eyes and slowly put the frame back onto the wall, trying my hardest not to make a sound.

Shocked was definitely an understatement, but I was even more astonished at the fact that a man as troublesome and dangerous as himself had a whole different life apart from the one I knew. He had a family, a wife and daughter that wondered where he was every day, not knowing that he was out all day on the streets using homeless men to sell his shit for him.

I've seen this man beat people to a bloody pulp and kill without a single thought or hesitation over bags of coke. He was far beyond dangerous, he was a cold blooded murderer living a second life as a husband and a father in a big ass house that he used his blood money to pay for.

It made me sick, but it also made me angry. He had his daughter out volunteering for people that he'd kill in a heartbeat if he needed to, probably using that as a way to make himself look squeaky clean in the public's eyes. How could you live with yourself doing that shit?

I tried to hide, but my feet wouldn't budge at all. I was frozen, not so much out of fear, but more so because I think a part of me was simply tiring of hiding and running. I wanting to fight, not only for me, but in a way for Jessa too. This was her father, but I knew him well enough to know he'd hurt her to keep her quiet if he thought that she knew about his second life.

I quickly snuck to the side of the large bookshelf that was near the hallway where the front door was as I heard his footsteps creep into the living room. I wasn't hidden by any means, for if he turned around I'd be the first thing he saw.

I sucked in a sharp breath as I watched him set his gun on the kitchen table along with his car keys and wallet. His clothes were dirty and I could smell the booze on him from where I stood. He looked stressed as hell, probably because he hadn't found me yet.

Little did he know I was closer than he could have ever imagined.

I then slowly began to walk closer to him, his back still towards me. I wasn't sure what I was going to do exactly, Hell, I wanted to bolt out of the front door and run, but he'd follow me to the ends of the earth if he knew I was in his house.

I bit my lip and even stopped myself from breathing to make sure he wouldn't hear me before grabbing the glass vase that sat on the small table beside the couch. The vase squeaked a little as I dragged it across the wood, and just as I saw the man I used to fear so much turn around and lay his dark, cold eyes on me, I had the vase smashed and broken on his head before he could even speak.

He fell to the floor instantly, his bald head bleeding slightly from being cut by the glass. The water that once filled that vase was now pooled around him along with the Tulips that were now smushed and wet. I knelt beside the man and pressed my fingers to his neck; still a pulse, but for the time being he was out like a light.

Jessa would be home soon, and my heart beat quickened at the thought of her seeing this. She has no clue of who her father truly is, so I'll definitely look like the bad guy here.

I stood in silence for a few minutes and looked at his body, knowing that he wouldn't be knocked out for long and that I needed to come up with something fast.

One part of me thought about hiding him somewhere while I told Jessa everything, but the other part of me thought about protecting her thoughts and keeping this shit all to myself so that her life wouldn't be ruined by this mess. I could leave before he wakes up and she would never know about who he is. But at the same time maybe she needed to know?

My thoughts halted as I heard the man beneath me groan in pain while trying his best to open his eyes. I instantly put my foot on his chest to keep him on the ground, but just after his eyes focused on me and the realization of what was happening hit him, he wasted no time by grabbing my leg and pulling it so that I lost my balance and was now on the floor next to him.

God damn- I forgot how strong he was.

He was six foot one and buff, stronger than my build for sure. But i knew I had to at least try for Jessa, even if it's what kills me.

"How the fuck did you find me?" He spat, instantly lowering his fist onto my face with as much force as he could bare. He was angry, and me knocking him out definitely didn't help that.

I stayed silent and lifted my knee into his stomach, watching as he groaned before attempting to punch me again. I grabbed his fist before he had the chance and kneed him again before flipping him over and slamming my fist onto his face as hard as I could over and over again.

I then wrapped my hands around his neck and squeezed tightly, so tight that I could feel the blood pulsing through his veins and his heart beat racing. This didn't last long as he head butted me, sending me falling back and seeing only darkness and stars. I shook my head to try and get my vision to focus, but was too late as I felt him grip onto my hair and slam my face onto the hardwood floor multiple times.

My body felt on fire, and my mouth and nose felt like they were pooling with blood. I tried to breathe, but I felt as if I were choking until finally he stopped and I could lift my head up to spit the blood in my mouth onto the floor next to me. I thought maybe he left due to how quiet it was, but as I felt something cold being pressed to my temple, I knew he would never leave and never stop until I was dead.

My body was stiff, I didn't know what the hell to do next. I was honestly surprised that he hadn't pulled the trigger already until I heard the slam of a car door from outside.
Now he was the one that was afraid.

I used the distraction to bend my head down and knock the gun out of his hands, resulting in it flying across the room near the front door. I then threw my head back, knocking him hard in the face before standing up just as he did the same with his hand on his now possibly broken nose.

I was seconds from using every bit of energy I had left to beat his face in until it was a bloody pulp, but was distracted as I heard a familiar gasp from behind me. I turned around instantly and saw Jessa with a hand on her mouth. She had dropped her keys onto the floor and was looking at me, then her father, then me again. She was confused and shocked, just as any one would be in this situation.

"Jessa! Get out of here." Her father yelled from behind me before wrapping his hands around my head. I've witnessed him do this enough times to know that he was going to snap my neck. I was afraid, but only because I didn't want Jessa to witness this. He would have told her to call the cops, but he knew deep down he didn't want me arrested- he wanted me dead, and he wanted to be the one to do it.

"He isn't who you think, Jess." I tried my hardest to say through the blood that was trickling down my throat.

I couldn't see his face, but I knew he probably looked confused as fuck.

"Dad, let him go." She squeaked, trying her hardest not to cry.

"You know him?" He spat, pressing his hands tighter around my head.

"He, I-" she tried to find the words, but understandably couldn't do so.

"I saw him when I was volunteering and I wanted to help him, he was beaten up so bad.."

I closed my eyes and bit my already busted lip, hating that she was being way too honest during this particular situation.

"I told you not to go downtown- god damn it!" He shouted, making me wince and her to gasp. I could tell she probably hadn't ever seen her father like this, and I felt for her, for this would change her life forever.

"He's a gang leader downtown, Jessa." I said through the writhing pain that coursed through my body like sharp needles poking at every nerve. "He's killed people, he's almost killed me multiple times."

"Don't listen to this scum!" He shouted louder than ever, growing obviously nervous about the truth being let out, especially to his daughter.

"Want to know who you've been helping?" He asked, leaning his head down to look at me from the side. His breath reeked of alcohol and tobacco, and by the look in his eyes I knew what he was about to say next.

"I witnessed him kill a girl with his bare hands, about your age." Jessa's father said in a venomous whisper. I closed my eyes, not wanting to meet her gaze. "Not as innocent as he looks, is he?"

There's a lot about my past I never wanted to revisit, but it looks like that was impossible now. I opened my eyes and forced myself to look at her. She looked confused and hurt, but mostly scared, which was what I was most afraid of.

"Is that true?" She asked, her voice trembling and on the verge of breaking.

I didn't trust my voice, so I simply nodded slowly. I would explain the situation, but I had a feeling that I was going to be lifeless in just a few moments.

Her gaze switched to her father who I could feel was shaking. I never saw him afraid, but even the devil has weakness's.

"You never told me what your job was. You said you had a business, but would be gone for days from your family and to do what? Beat people up?" Jessa snapped, raising her voice with each word she spoke.

"It's none of your concern. I put food on the table and pay for the roof over your head, and you're going to keep your mouth shut or else you'll end up exactly where he's been." He said before pulling the back of my hair, jerking my head backwards to make eye contact with me.

"Stop." Jessa mumbled, fear lacing her voice.

"Close your eyes, now." He told her, and I sucked in a sharp breath as I felt his hands tighten and slowly twist.

"I said stop!" Jessa shouted before grabbing the gun that was thrown on the floor beside her. I tried to force myself out of her father's tight grasp as I saw her do so, but his grip was too damn tight.

"Put that down." He hissed, finally loosening his grip on me a little bit. "Now."

"Let him go, first." She replied, surprising the both of us.

My heart was beating so hard that I swore it was going to break out of my chest. I hated the thought of her holding a gun, and I hated that she had to be put in this situation in the first place.

I knew that if she had to use that gun, she wouldn't touch her father. She knew him her whole life, so I knew I didn't stand a chance. However I somehow felt at peace, for if I was to die, dying at the hands of Jessa would be the best possible way to go.

She was crying hard now and sobbing uncontrollably as she pointed the gun with her shaky hands. I hated seeing her this way, so much so that I wish she'd shoot me just put me out of my misery.

"It's okay." I whispered, making eye contact with her, wanting her to pretend that just for a moment, we were the only ones in the room.

She stared at me for what felt like centuries, and I found myself crying as well. I loved her, so much so that I was willing to die in order for her to keep her father safe.

She offered me a safe haven, a home, knowing not that she herself was the home I've been searching for all of these years.

I then closed my eyes as I felt his hands twist, and as I took what I thought was my last breath in, I heard gunfire and felt hot blood spatter in my face. I waited for the pain to set in or for darkness to overcome me, but there was nothing. I fell to the floor along with Jessa's father, and it took me only a few moments to realize that I wasn't the one that was killed, it was him.

I thought maybe she made a mistake until her arms were wrapped around me and she kept whispering the words: "he was going to kill you." while sobbing onto my shoulder.

I turned my head slowly as she cried and looked at the now dead man beside me. His eyes were open and there was blood pooling around his head that's been shot at.

I quickly turned Jessa around so she couldn't see the body, and hugged her tightly like never before while crying along with her. I gripped her hair in my fist and pressed her body to mine with more passion and love than I've ever come to experience.

She saved my fucking life again, but now, I wasn't the only one that needed to be running.

"We have to go." I whispered before grabbing the gun that was now lying on the floor and stuffing it down the front of my pants. She wouldn't go down for this, not if I could help it.

And now, I had someone to live for.
I had someone to fight for.