Welcome! To some of you that may find this story familiar, I have decided to pull the second chapter, split the first chapter in half and then the second in half as well, to make a new total of four chapters. I realized that each chapter I was publishing was too long for some readers (not everyone likes reading eight thousand words in one chapter like me) and I have realized that. My deepest apologies if this is unpleasant to anyone however I will do my best to post two chapters at a time to make up for the change.

Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans or anything affiliated with them. I merely created the plot line and changed a few things to there characters, past, and the Teen Titans universe as a whole.


The Life I'm Forced to Lead

Chapter I: The Stranger

Kori sighed as she adjusted the bright pink hip-length wig over her own bound up long red hair, taking in the image of her makeup caked face. The other girls around her were bustling around, chatting excitedly with one another and taking bets on whether certain customers would show tonight and where they would sit. She was envious of the girls because they could simply chatter on for hours with one another while she had trouble even looking at her reflection. The black eye shadow and liner caked around her eyes made her feel sick to her stomach, but she could only disguise herself so many ways and painting herself up like the other dancers seemed like the most effective method.

One of the full time girls, Regina was her stage name, offered her a drink of tequila before she had to go out. Kori considered it for a second if only to make the misery she was in seem well, less miserable, but she refused politely. She had to walk the five miles in the dark through the edges of the city to the hidden spot where her bike was chained and then the five milebike ride and the fifteen mile bus ride, and she wanted to be completely sober in case some assholes decided to follow her again. She shuddered to think of that night and was immensely grateful her parents had taught her a strict regime of self defense before they had died.

"Starfire, you're up. Rich guys in the crowd so make it good." The owner, Miss Bee, was very nice to her girls and treated them good and Kori was no exception. She had found Kori wandering around the city, the telltale manila folder in hand telling Miss Bee she was in need of a job.

She had watched Kori for the majority of the day, noticing how her shoulders slumped just a little further each time she left a store. Eventually she called out to her across the street and offered to buy her a hot drink, since the poor girl looked like she was about to shatter she was so cold. After speaking with her for awhile and weaseling what little information she could out of Kori, Miss Bee could infer she wasn't treated well at home and had to fend for herself.

"So Kori, how old are you anyway?" She had sipped on her second hot chocolate and nervously crossed her ankles beneath the booth.

"I am seventeen." Miss Bee was hesitant, but believed she could help the girl as long as she could hide her when inspectors came.

"Listen, I'm going to offer you a deal. It's gonna sound shady as all get out, but I wanna give you a chance. I'm the owner of Bee's and I want to offer you a job as one of my dancers. Now before you freak out you're not going to be a stripper, I don't do that kind of club so you would just be dancing. I can't give you a paycheck, but I can pay you under the table and let you keep seventy percent of what you earn on stage. When you turn eighteen, if you still need to work here, I can start giving you a paycheck and register you as one of my dancers or if you can learn the talent a bartender." Kori started to shake her head, because the deal was sketchy but Miss Bee had seemed nice and was willing to give Kori a chance, something she hadn't had in a very long time.

To the other girls the rich guy comment would sound like a ploy for more money on Miss Bee's part, but in reality Miss Bee wanted to give Kori a heads up so she could bring in as much money as she could that night. Kori silently thanked Miss Bee as she rolled her shoulders and stepped out onto the stage in her purple stilettos, crop top, and mini skirt with very convincing faked confidence. Miss Bee watched Kori dance, and wondered how such as sweet girl had been stuck in a situation like hers.

Despite their deal when Kori had first started, Miss Bee let Kori keep eighty-five percent of her earnings. Most nights were so hectic Kori couldn't keep up with the amount of money and had long ago entrusted Miss Bee to manage it for her till the end of the night. The other girls wouldn't dream of anyone else touching their money, so when Kori had asked her to help she was taken aback but agreed.

Unbeknownst to Kori, she was actually the most popular dancer at the club. Miss Bee ran a classy establishment, which tended to draw in the higher class gentlemen, so Kori's slim build combined with her otherworldly radiance and compacted muscle made her one of the most requested ladies. So not only did Kori make as much as the full time girls, but she often brought in more than the others while only giving fifteen percent compared to the usual thirty percent.

"I sure hope some gentleman snags that girl up soon before she falls so hard she can't get back up." One of the waitresses placed her tray down and stood by Miss Bee, watching the red headed beauty dance in the limelight, her fake pink hair trailing behind her like a mono-colored rainbow.

"I hope she does too, Miss Bee."

~.~.~.~.~.~.

Kori pulled the pins out of her hair rapidly, wanting to leave as soon as possible so she could get some extra sleep seeing as the next day was Saturday and she didn't have school. As soon as the pink wig came loose she hung it hastily and started to pull on her jeans and a baggy hoodie over her tank top. It would be easier if she could just slip her clothes over her uniform, but if her aunt ever found out where she worked—Kori shuddered just at the thought.

She bid the girls and Miss Bee goodnight before leaving Bee's through the backdoor and starting the five mile trek to her bike. Kori stayed to the outskirts of the city for the most part as she walked. Some people would tell her it wasn't safe, but she couldn't afford to be recognized until she made it out of city limits and was back in Jump City.

The walk was silent, and she took a little longer seeing as she didn't have to wake up early the next morning. When she could see the bike rack where her bike was chained, she let out a sigh of relief. She let her backpack drop onto the ground beside her as she took out the key and began to unwind the chain. Without warning a fist wrapped in her hair and yanked her backwards, a startled yelp of pain slipping past Kori's lips.

She grabbed her hair closer to her head to relieve some of the pressure created by the man's grip, and flipped round to punch him in the jaw. His grip on her hair released as he fell backwards, but her victory was short lived when another hand struck her in the stomach causing all the air in her lungs to escape. She went limp to avoid another punch as she scrambled away and tried to get her breath back. She almost wailed out in frustration when three more men came out from the shadows, sinister smiles on each of their faces.

"What is the matter with you men? Have I acted in a way to offend you?" The man she had punched was still on the ground, laughing as he wiped blood from his busted lip.

"You're hot but you speak real weird. As for us, we only want a hot piece of tail and you've been teasing us for months, riding past on that bike of yours and wearing those skimpy outfits." The four other men laughed, while Kori wondered what in the world was considered desirable about a girl in a baggy hoodie.

"I am sorry, but I ask that you leave me alone now." She managed to keep the tremble out of her voice, but deep down she knew she wasn't going to come out of this unscathed. Her fighting skills were excellent, but even she couldn't take on five men three times her own weight each and not get injured.

She jumped backwards when one of the men took out a switch blade. She had trained briefly with weapons, but had much preferred to use hand-to-hand combat much to her parents delight. She knew how to deflect a knife, but again she didn't know how well she could keep up with five men attacking her.

"Alright Princess, time to come with us quietly. It's almost midnight and this store had no cameras outside. No one will hear you cry or scream."

"Do not call me Princess, as you have no right!" Only her parents had ever called her Princess and the thought of these disgusting men using it made her want to rip their throats out. The one with the switch blade disappeared as the man she had earlier punched lunged at her again, going for a punch to the throat. Kori skillfully ducked the blow, and returned one to his jaw again aiming for the area she had hit earlier. She grunted in pain and stumbled a few steps back before coming back at her again.

Two of the men were trying to get a grip on her arms and legs, but she kept dodging them and jumping any attempts at knocking her legs from underneath of her. Kori knew the moment she went down she wouldn't be getting back up. When the men began to tire, Kori began to feel a sliver of hope that she might actually come out of this with only the injuries she had already received. Until she felt something cold slide from the juncture of her shoulder and neck down between her shoulder blades and end at her lower back.

She cried out at the deep pain and fought to stay standing. The man with the blade had gotten her when she had stood still for two seconds to center her balance. She could feel the warm blood trickling down her back and soak into her hoodie. Gritting her teeth, Kori kicked the blade out of the man's hand and into the bushes before collapsing against her will. She felt someone begin to tie her legs together as her vision faded in and out, but Kori refused to pass out. If she let herself slip into the darkness she knew she'd wake up a broken person and would never be the same.

Right as she was fighting against the strongest wave of exhaustion and her hands were being tied, a sharp and deep voice rang out.

"Hey, get the hell away from her!" A guy about her age came sprinting over and landed a solid drop kick on the man standing above her with a length rope in the chest, causing him to fall over and land with a heavy thud. Kori tried to stand back up, only to fall again and catch herself with her hands.

She could feel the skin on her lower back rip further, and hissed in pain. The stranger, seemingly content the guy he drop kicked was down and out, turned to the man who had the pocketknife and gave him an uppercut to the jaw that resulted in a sickening crunch of bones. Kori struggled to stand up again and this time managed, before turning and shakily roundhouse kicking one of the men in the chest, sending him flying backwards into one of his buddies.

The three conscious men realized they couldn't take the girl with the guy here as well, so they grabbed their two buddies and started to make a break for it. The stranger went to chase after them, but Kori's eyes had fluttered shut against her will and she felt herself falling. Thankfully she succumbed to the darkness before she could feel any more of her skin rip open from landing on the hard and unforgiving ground.

~.~.~.~.~.~.

"Alfred! I need you for a second!" Robin was struggling to haul open the ridiculously heavy oak doors to the estate while balancing the unconscious girl in his arms. Alfred came around the corner and grimaced when he saw the blood staining the young Master's shirt. The girl in his arms was very pretty, so Alfred could only assume someone had tried to take advantage of the young woman and Master Robin had either found her like this or stopped what had been about to happen, hopefully the later.

"I need the suture kit, heavy bandages, a numbing agent, maybe a splint for her hand and arm, and a set of clothing for her. These ones are ruined." Alfred nodded and hurried off to gather the essential supplies before going to buy her some new clothes, while Robin rushed to his section of the mansion.

He had his own training room and along with his room a small medical area was adjacent. He rarely used it, but Robin had a feeling that he would need somewhere sterile to fix the knife wound he had found while running her to his car. He gently set her on the table in the corner of the room and began to get gauze, antiseptic, and a pair of scissors while Alfred gathered everything else. He took a deep breath and began cutting through what was left of her tank top and hoodie. His cheeks flamed when the fabrics started to fall to the side but thankfully the material didn't drop any lower.

"Just please don't wake up while I'm doing this."

"I thought the goal was to get her to wake up, Master Dick?" Robin jumped out of skin at Alfred's silent arrival and begged the heat in his cheeks to die down.

"I just don't want her to wake up and think I'm, uh her wounds don't need to be moved, and I, you know what never mind." Robin turned back around while his cheeks reddened further and Alfred let a small smile emerge—sometimes it was simply too easy to mess with the young Master.

After Robin took one more look at the unconscious girl his instincts kicked in and he asked Alfred to go ahead and prepare a splint for her arm and hand while he cleaned and stitched together her extensive knife wound down her back. Alfred dutifully injected the numbing agent and wiped the excess blood off as Robin worked his way up, but when he started to near the top of her spine she started to come around.

"Oh my back does feel much of the stinging pain." She groaned and began to try and push herself up, but Alfred quickly yet gently grabbed her elbows and pulled her hands away from the table; Robin hadn't gotten to splinting her arm yet and didn't want her to wake up from the sudden pain.

Robin started to worry that she would try and fight him but thankfully she seemed to remain in a half conscious state, only flinching occasionally when Robin had to pierce nerves with the needle. When he finished Alfred mentioned he would begin preparing a light snack and some orange juice while Master Robin finished bandaging her and would then run out to find her some clothing. After splinting her arm, Robin had been slowly cleaning away any fluids from the sutures before placing gauze over them when a soft voice broke through the silence.


That's a wrap for the first chapter! Again sorry if the changes to the postings have messed up anything, but a writer's gotta do what a writer's gotta do.

Please don't forget to leave a review and PM me with any questions or suggestions. Thank you for reading!