by KC Kean
I can’t control my frown which Roman catches, and he pushes me to the front to order first, as if it’s hunger that’s got me worked up. I barely notice I’m ordering a pizza, but I grab my slip to scan at the table anyways and a bottle of water.
What do I do here?
I know what I want to do. I know it’ll upset others and that’s where I’m stuck. I hate causing more issues than we’re already dealing with, but if Roman has taught me anything it’s to do what I want, not what others want of me. Well when I can, and my life doesn’t hang in the balance, and right now is one of those times I can.
It’ll be making a statement...
Fuck it.
If I care enough to internally cuss then I care enough to suit myself. I don’t look back at Roman, because if he seems mad I’ll change my mind to please him, and this isn’t about him.
I make sure to keep myself relaxed as I walk through the crowd, like I’m not breaking code, but we’re not in high school anymore. I approach Luna’s table, and I’m petrified she’s going to tell me to get lost. So I try to make it less overbearing, and take a seat next to her friend with her across the table instead, scanning my ticket at the end as I pass.
The tables are long with matching benches, with a machine at the end to scan your receipt, so they know where to bring your order.
Whatever they were talking about is paused as she stares me down, while her friend observes her with me. I think we’re both waiting for a bomb to go off. Trying not to spook her I give her a smile and turn to her friend.
“Hey Jessica, right?”
“Err, yeah.”
She’s surprised I’m sitting here right now, but she also has a look of fear in her eyes. I get I’m an Ace, but I’ve never been cruel to her. I can’t help the confusion on my face, which she registers and leans toward me shaking her head.
“Not you, but the silence in here has me believe it’s about to kick off, where do you stand when that happens, because it’s going to?” She murmurs, folding her arms on the table.
It’s deadly silent in here, I hadn’t noticed because my mind was focused on getting here. Trying not to blatantly look around, I see that all eyes are looking in one of three directions, waiting on a reaction.
If they aren’t looking at me sitting with Luna, they are staring at the guys who are standing at the order station assessing me and the situation in front of them, or worse, they’re staring at Wren because if this blows up it’ll start with her.
I look Luna straight in her eyes, while responding to Jessica.
“I made my decision when I walked over here. Luna’s done more for me this morning than Wren has in four years. There’s a lot of Featherstone politics around here but where I eat my lunch isn’t one of them. Is that okay?” I have to ask, to make sure she’s not going to kill me.
She takes me in for a moment, bracing her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her clasped hands, finally she nods her head at me. Thank god.
I smile at her as I relax back into my seat, sipping my water so I can look over at the guys without being obvious. As I do I see Oscar pat Roman on the shoulder and saunter over like he’s amazing, and right now? Right now he is, because he just backed me. It might be because he’s hot for Luna but the why doesn’t matter.
Looking back to Roman he’s staring at me already, with a raised eyebrow. Code for ‘are you sure about this?’ I nod and that has him moving in my direction with Kai behind him. I look back at Luna.
“I apologize in advance, it’s about to get busy over here,” I smirk.
Her confusion only lasts a moment before Oscar arrives, scanning his ticket, and sitting next to her.
“Hello beautiful, you miss me?” his grin on full display.
I can’t help but laugh when she doesn’t answer him, just rolls her eyes, but there’s amusement in them.
Roman arrives, scans, and pushes Oscar clear down the bench, taking his seat next to Luna.
“Fuck off Roman I got here first,” Oscar sulks, banging the table like a child.
Jessica starts laughing, as Kai joins us and sits on my other side. Luna’s not laughing, she’s not doing anything, and I think that’s because Roman is sitting next to her, she’s waiting for his shit.
“Roman, can you not be overbearing? It’s food time. I want to relax, which is why I sat here, but your brick walls are bumping Luna’s concrete walls and ...”
Before I can finish my sentence there is a screech so piercing my ear drums hurt.
“Shit,” calls Oscar.
“For god’s sake,” groans Kai.
The girls are looking at each other, aware of what’s coming. I look to Roman, this is my fault but it’s Luna that’s going to get the backlash. He must see the pleading in my eyes because he nods, and leans into Luna, whispering in her ear. Whatever he says doesn’t relax her, but she does nod.
Fuck me they’re the same person with their own nodding language.
“What the fuck are you doing Roman? Get your guys and move your asses,” Wren yells, as she stands at the end of the table, hands on her hips.
It’s laughable, how she thinks we’re just Roman’s puppets.
“Wren, fuck off will you? We’re busy,” Roman responds, as he tucks a loose strand of Luna’s hair behind her ear.
It’s intimate for Roman, he doesn’t do PDA. So it’ll rile Wren up, because she’s always throwing herself at him with no success.
“Roman, I’m not playing around here,” she yells, flicking her hair back.
God her voice is like nails on a chalkboard.
“Neither am I Wren, now. Fuck. Off.”
I think steam is about to come out of her ears. Wren does not like it when she doesn’t get her own way, but I don’t care about pleasing her. I see the moment her eyes lock on Luna, and this is about to get out of hand.
“You, you fucking bitch ...”
She swings her arms at Luna, who is standing within an instant and smashing Wren’s face to the table. The thud is almost drowned out by Wren’s scream, but it doesn’t stop Luna. She cages her in from behind, with her hand gripping Wren’s hair, keeping her in place.
“I thought you might have learned from Saturday, but clearly I was mistaken. Every time you try me, it’ll get worse, do you understand? I couldn’t give a shit who you think you are, you have no idea who I am and what I’m capable of. I recommend you keep that in mind for future reference,” Luna growls.
With that, she stands tall with her hand still wrapped in Wren’s hair, lifting her up off the table and shoving her back in the direction she came from.
“Pepperoni pizza and meat feast pizza for Steele and Watson,” a waiter approaches with a tray loaded with food.
Luna doesn’t even spare Wren another glance.
“Yeah, perfect timing. Thank you,” she answers calmly, like none of that just happened.
Wren goes straight out of the cafeteria with her girl group chasing after her.
The girls start eating, is this another universe?
Are we not going to address anything that just happened? Jessica glances around the table noticing all of us staring at Luna with our jaws slightly loose, and she just giggles breaking the silence at the table.
“Fuck me beautiful, you can gladly have me by the balls. As a matter of fact, I insist. I’ll even buy a pretty jar for you to put them in, yeah?” Oscar says out loud.
Everyone just looks at him when Roman bursts out laughing.
“His fucking purr,” he chuckles, and the table breaks into a fit of laughter.
Except Oscar.
“Luna baby, tell them,” he pleads, holding his arms out wide.
She takes one look at him and grins.
“Well if they’re as small as I think they are, I can wear them as earrings, yeah baby?”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
(Luna)
I don’t even understand what happened at lunch. As if I’ve not dealt with enough already, and it’s not even
been four days yet. My life back home was easy, simple really, how I like it. There is so much going on here that I can’t control.
When Parker took a seat, I didn’t really consider the repercussions until Red mentioned it. When Parker responded, it was clear in his eyes that he meant it. I’m not sure what I actually did earlier, to make him stand his ground with his friends, but he seems happy about it.
I could see he hadn’t meant for it to cause such a stir, it shouldn’t be a big deal for him to sit where he wanted, but it caused a power play. One that left me in the shit, yet I still couldn’t bring myself to be mad at him.
From the way Wren screamed it’s obvious Roman is the leader, and his presence brought the power. That thought has me remembering Roman’s whispered words.
“You better not make me regret trusting Parker about you. I know you’re a little liar, and it won’t be his fault when you fuck up. Now, she’s about to cause a scene, and you Princess are gonna show me you can handle it. For Parker, because he’s never paved his own path before, do you understand?”
I’d simply nodded, this was a big deal, bigger than me, and usually I’d say fuck that and run, but I felt the need to validate Parker’s confidence in me. Roman seems adamant I’m a liar, and I don’t have the care to understand why.
I seriously needed to lie down, but sadly I was sitting in the Rolls heading back to Weaponry. Wren was nowhere to be seen, so I managed to jump in a car on my own. Luckily, Ian was the driver and he was happy to help.
See what I mean? Ian is already on my Christmas list.
Arriving at the main building, where the lockers are, I gather my belongings and head to get changed. From what I can tell, this building is just to hold the mini vaults and the changing rooms.
I kick my heels off and feel instant relief.
Bliss.
Hanging my uniform, I change into a loose black top over my sports bra and a pair of tight black shorts. Popping my combat boots on I feel like me, this girl in the mirror I know. Taking a few minutes to just sit, on my own, in silence, was just what I needed, seeing as I was on my own in here.
I sat on the bench, back straight against the wall with my head tilted up slightly. Taking a few deep breaths I find my center, relax my mind and the weight of the world doesn’t feel so heavy again.
A knock on the door gains my attention.
“Sakura, you ready?” called Kai.
There goes my silence.
I lock my uniform away and grab my suitcase. Stepping outside Kai is alone, offering me a quick smile and then he’s leading the way. Since our screaming match this morning I’ve found that isn’t really his character. He’s very quiet and observant, which I like.
He offers comfortable silence, no small talk, it’s perfect.
He leads me out of the main building and towards what looks like a giant circus tent, all blue and white stripes. It looks odd compared to the rest of the campus, but out here there is only the Combat building as well, so it doesn’t look as garish as it could.
Kai holds the door for me, and I step into a massive space which is laid out with different target practice areas, for both guns and blades, around the outside and a small seating area in the middle.
Following Kai’s lead, we head to the center. The rest of the guys are here, along with the guys from Diamond and Hearts. I read that all men from the top three blocks are required to attend weapons whilst only the women from Ace were. Although, there’s still no sign of Wren.
The seats are spread out enough to not be sat touching anyone else, but there isn’t much room. I find myself following Kai further, and I can feel a lot of eyes on me. I don’t know whether it's because they’re checking me out or because of what went down at lunch. Either way I look to the board instead of meeting anyone’s gaze.
Mr. Morgan – Weapons Expert
Is written boldly on the board. Huh, I know a Morgan. At least he's clear on how he wants to be addressed.
“Luna baby, sit closer to me, you’re too far away,” Oscar says with a pout.
He’s ridiculous, but I can’t help but find him entertaining. So I give him the finger, which just makes him stick his bottom lip out, and the guys laugh.
“Sit Luna,” grunts Roman, moving his bag off the chair next to him.
I’m not sure that’s a good idea, but glancing around I catch Parker's face. His face is light with joy, seems he likes Roman being nice to me. Which then means I can’t decline and the smirk on Roman’s face tells me he knows it too.
Fucking Acehole.
As I go to take a seat there’s a large bang from a door shutting.
“Sorry about that guys, I was held up for a moment, but we’ll get to it now.”
I assume it’s the teacher, heading towards us. But ... I know that voice.
I turn to get a better look at the guy when all the color drains from my face, and I think I’m going to be sick.
This is the devastation that broke the camel's back. This is definitely the cherry on top of my fucked-up situation.
“Hey. Luna. Hey,” Roman calls, shaking my arm, but I’m frozen in place.
I couldn’t have hidden these emotions even if I’d tried. I don’t look at him, I keep my eyes trained on the apparent fucking tutor, who has stopped at the edge of the space. The guilt is written all over his face, but the worst part is, he’s not surprised to see me.
“Luna, can you give me a minute please?” the silent plea etched in every word.
Is he fucking joking? Is this whole thing a fucking joke?
I remove the emotion from my body language, I’m angry enough now to overpower it.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea West, do you?” I growl, at the very same Morgan I just remembered.
I try to contain myself, but I need to pound my fists into something, anything.
I just need to let my emotions out.
“Luna, you need to let me explain, okay?” West gently speaks.
Like if he talks to loud it’ll set me off, but his fucking calmness is riling me up anyway.
“I think you’ve had plenty of time to explain, don’t you? Now, it’s a bit too fucking late.”
My hands are fisted at my sides, but the need to lift them is becoming hard to control.
“You want to explain what’s going on West?” It's Roman, the confusion is clear in his tone.
I’m glad he’s not asking me to explain right now, because he’d likely just get a punch to the face.
“Rome, it’s between me and Luna okay?” West answers looking at me. “Please Luna, I can’t do this in front of all these guys. There’s a lot you don’t know.”
Your fucking telling me, apparently I don’t know anything, but right now I’m not in the right frame of mind to listen.
“Right now West, it isn’t going to work out well for you,” I state calmly.
He must hear the truth in my voice.
“Okay, but we do need to talk Luna,” he says softly.
I just nod and take my seat. I can’t process anything right now, I need to tuck it all away for later. West starts talking to the group about what we’ll be doing today, but I’m not paying attention. I feel Roman lean in.
“What the fuck Luna? How long have you been fucking him?” He growls in my ear.
What the hell? Who does this guy think he is?
“Fuck you Roman,” I grind through my teeth.
I don’t owe him shit, and definitely not an explanation. Any progress to calming down I’d just made is gone now. Fuck men.
Fuck. Them. All.
*****
The shrill sound of a bell draws the class to an end. I pack my case up as quick as I can, and head for the door.
“Luna wait up,” West shouts, drawing everyone’s fucking attention.
I don’t slow my pace, not even a fraction. I just continue to head for the exit.
“Luna,” he calls again, only this time he grabs my arm, forcing me to slow down. He just can’t ta
ke a hint, can he?
I’m not fucking around. Using my free hand, I make a fist and punch him straight in the throat.
He instantly releases my arm, his fingers wrapping around the pain in his neck. He’s bent over at the waist, trying to keep himself upright as he coughs and splutters.
“I told you right now wouldn’t end well for you West, and I fucking meant it.” I grind out.
Without wasting anymore of my time, I avoid everyone’s gaze and storm out. I’m in a foul mood, I have been the whole fucking class and I couldn’t give a shit. Today has been a rollercoaster of epic proportions and I’m real close to losing my shit.
The lesson was for West to see how everyone handles a gun, there was a mixture of experience in the group, a few thought they were bad boys because they know how to play a video game, but couldn’t actually take the safety off. Whilst others had precision and skill, including myself, and I should, seeing as West fucking taught me how.
I can’t, I shake my head and stop my train of thought. It’ll do me no good right now to think about West, does Rafe know he tutors here? No. Stop. I’m at war with myself, my brain is gonna break if I don’t get a punch bag real soon.
Getting to the locker room I quickly change and send Red a text.
Luna: Grab me any coffee. Meet at Ace in an hour.
I can’t even bring myself to fluff it up a little more for her. It’s not her fault but she’ll have to get used to my shortness if she plans to stick around.
Red: Yes Captain!
Fucking captain, I can’t help the smile, but my current mood quickly stomps it out. Heading to the lobby I store my belongings in my mini vault and head outside. As quick as I thought I might have been, I wasn’t as quick as Roman apparently.
“Get in,” he grumbles.
I don’t respond, just climb in. I’m ready to get the fuck away from this building. The whole fucking place in general really.
Roman is clicking the partition up before we’ve even begun moving. I can tell he wants to trample me for information, but he can also see that I’m close to feral. His eyes are burning holes in my skull, making me want to scratch the spot.
