A/N: This chapter is one of the shortest I've written. So, sorry if this isn't what you've been expecting.

Warnings: Cursing.

Chapter XXXIV

The Mystery of Mikaela Banes

Selena's P.O.V.

Mom cooed at Sam when she saw him and his brand new bruise forming on his cheek. She coddled him, weeping at her injured "baby boy!" She brought him a bag of frozen peas, had him lay back on the new soft grey couch with a quilt over him, and pet his hair as she told him how she would threaten Trent for hitting him. Sam, meanwhile, tried to get off the couch and out of her arms, embarrassed as Mikaela and I amusedly watched.

After coming home from school, mom was the first to see us come inside the house since she was sitting in the living room watching tv. One look at Sam and she sprang up into overprotective mother mode. She even demanded answers to what had happened, and I ended up telling her because she could be awfully scary when she didn't get her answers.

Mikaela hadn't been so upset about what Trent had called her. Not as much as when Trent had insinuated in threatening to tell her on her father.

I honestly didn't know much about Mikaela except that her father wasn't so innocent. Her father ran an auto shop, but behind the scenes, he also robbed auto parts from other people's vehicles. Making a living is tough. I don't blame Mr. Bones for turning into crime to make a living, to have his wife and daughter afloat inside their home, and to have food on their table. Sometimes in life, we have to make tough decisions that go against our morals, even though we may not want to.

I suspect Mikaela pretty much had a tough childhood. One man can't be doing a criminal activity without at least once getting caught and ending up in jail. With her dad away from home and only with her mom around, I just knew she had to grow up fast. Because she needed to be there for her mother during those tough times. That's what would have happened to me if I was her.

I knew Mikaela loved her dad. Otherwise, she wouldn't sometimes help her dad in his thefts or his auto shop. She rarely saw him and so she probably looked up to him as her role model. How else would she know how to pick some handcuffs? Girls a tough walnut to crack. You would at least need a hammer to get her to open up.

Sam had tried to soothe her by telling her that she wasn't a whore, but a beautiful woman. I know he was trying to be charming and protect her honor. He didn't want her to be feeling awful for being called such degrading words, but Sam doesn't know Mikaela yet. He doesn't know about her relationship with her dad and how Trent's threat about telling on her to her dad makes her feel. He doesn't understand that Mikaela doesn't need soothing words of reassurance, but needs someone unbiased to listen to her fears. Sam wasn't an option for her because he is very biased. He practically worships her and would do anything for her love.

But I was all ears.

I grabbed Mikaela's hand and pulled her with me. "Mik and I'll grab something to drink. Be right back." I said to Mom and Sam. Sam tried to follow us, but mom tutted at him and pulled him back down onto the couch.

Mikaela and I stepped into the kitchen and I pulled the refrigerator open, pulling out two cans of soda. I handed one to Mikaela and she held hers as I popped mines open.

"You okay?" I asked her after I took a sip of my can.

Mikaela just stared at me. "Back there, you just called me Mik. Is that like my nickname now?" She asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah. It's easier than saying your full name. You don't mind, do you?" I asked her.

Mikaela smiled lightly and looked down at her can of soda. "No, it's fine. I don't mind." She said. She paused then looked up at me. "God, you don't know how refreshing it is to hear someone call me by that nickname. Usually, it's Kay or bunny or baby. The last person to call me Mik was my dad."

I snorted. "Just how exactly did the nickname bunny come to be?" I asked her. I sat on a stool for the kitchen island, sitting across from her. Mikaela hopped on hers.

"Came from something stupid. You know how Trent has that stupid big truck?" Mikaela said. I nodded and she continued. "Well, I was getting inside and that damn step was high up. I had to kinda hop to get up and Trent saw that. That's when he started to call me bunny. Plus, he always grabbed at my ass and told me I was his personal playboy bunny."

Her last comment grossed me the hell out and I expressed it to her with a sneer. "Gross!"

Okay, look, I always knew Trent was such a gross arsehole with no class. He was just a huge sexist lump of male testosterone. Not even once have I seen him be nice to a single person and I'm sure he wasn't always nice to Mikaela. Case point with him calling Mikaela his "playboy bunny."

"And you tolerated that shit? Why?" I asked her.

Mikaela bit her bottom lip and looked down at her can of grape soda. "Sometimes we gotta do things we don't want to, even though there's no other choice." She murmured.

My eyebrows furrowed down. "He threatened you, didn't he." It wasn't much of a question and more of a statement. Mikaela fingered the top of the can and nodded.

"What did he do? Or say?"

It took a while for her to respond, probably going through some pros and cons in telling me or probably trying to gather her thoughts.

"Don't tell this to anyone, but Trent caught my dad carjacking on one of his dad's cars. He then took that opportunity to threaten me with my dad going to prison, since you know how his dad is a criminal lawyer unless I went out with him. I was left in a tight spot and I didn't know what to do. We were already behind on some bills and dad always brought in more cash. We couldn't have him gone in prison."

Damn. I always knew Trent was an arsehole, but I had no idea he was that terrible. I had always thought Mikaela just liked to go out with guys with muscle and no brains, but clearly, that was not the case. Being in a relationship where one person is being blackmailed into the relationship was just toxic. And inhumane. It's no wonder Mikaela was ready to drop Trent's ass when she decided to break up with Trent and immediately go out with Sam. When the government agreed with Mikaela to drop criminal charges on her dad and clear his criminal history, it probably helped her out to grow a spine and stand up against Trent.

"What an asshole. I'm glad you dumped him." I said.

Mikaela nodded in agreement, taking a sip from her soda. "Me too."

"How angry was he?" I asked her.

Mik rolled her eyes. "I left before he could start one of his tantrums. He was shocked though."

I was glad Mikaela left him. He obviously wasn't good for her or for any other person. Mikaela is a very strong woman. I mean, she literally fought in an alien war. Her standing up against Trent should have been nothing. Plus, she seemed happy and free to be away from Trent. She also looked to be in love when Sam was around. She was always looking in his direction and smiling when he caught her looking. It was mad adorable, but I wasn't going to tell them that.

I grabbed my soda can and brought it up for a salute. Mik brought hers up too and bumped it against mines. "To being free and alive."

We both took a sip of our drinks and smiled.

"So, are you staying over for dinner?"

A/N: Aloha!

I've been busy these couple of months, but that's the thing with life. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this lovely chapter. Thanks for commenting, following, and favoriting this story.

Just an FYI, I will be taking back my words and be updating just a couple of chapters with time jumps. This means some of the time settings in the chapters would be weeks apart or months or maybe years. I'm just filling in the time that was left in between the first movie and the second movie. :)

Moving on, I hope everyone's taking care of themselves and their families. My cat is ill with an infection that he got from an injury. So I'm currently worried for him and watching how or what he's doing. Hopefully, he gets better soon. Also, it's Spring! This is wonderful because my mother's garden is full of flowers that are ready to bloom or are already blooming.

~Toodles~