To stand by him

I suck, I really do, I'm sorry I took so long, but I do actually have a good excuse, I had lots of homework and I was in a play but its done now so I'll hopefully be able to update on time now :D

Enjoy

Disclaimer: no still not mine

I don't think I can explain what I felt walking down that street, I don't remember walking, I don't remember seeing anything but red. It felt like something was trying to claw out of my chest and it fucking killed. I hated Ace, I did I hated what had happened, I hated him for doing it but mostly I hated him for making me believe him. That he wouldn't hurt us. How stupid could I have been?

I became stupid.

You could have asked me two plus four and I would have answered with thirty two, I didn't know anything that night, all I knew was my name is Anna Winston, my boyfriend was beaten and and I felt like I was beaten with him.

I was so stupid in fact that I actually went looking for the guy that beat him not an hour ago. Thinking I could do something about it.

I don't had any common sense, I didn't feel anything. Nothing. I was empty, aside from the clawing at my chest I didn't feel anything and it sucked. I didn't feel fear, or sadness, or even pain nothing, just nothing.

But there was a moment when I stopped, I stopped dead in my tracks and it seemed to dawn on me what I was doing, where I was. I could feel my tired legs from walking so far and for so long, I could finally feel the pavement beneath my feet, the air hitting my exposed skin since I was still in my shorts and t-shirt. What the hell was I doing? My boyfriend was hurt and I was walking around town? For what?

I remembered when I heard Ace's laughter.

It was all six of them, walking like they owned the streets, like they owned the town. And to my luck they were walking out of someones house laughing and drinking.

I stormed up to them, the clawing at my chest was back and all I wanted was to beat the hell out of Ace.

"Ah look boys it's Winston!" Ace slurred tipsy from the bottle of rum in his hands. "How are you-" he was cut off when my fist came in contact with his jaw, the bones in my hand hurt like hell but hitting him felt so much better.

I didn't move to hit him again though.

"What did you do?!" I screamed at him, tears welling in my eyes. Ace was struck right out of his state and stared at me holding his jaw. Charlie and Eyeball moved towards me but Ace held out his arm stopping them.

"Nah don't." he said to them before looking at me. "I'll give you that one Winston but I suggest you don't try that again." he warned. I didn't give a shit about his warning, I would have hit him again but I didn't I couldn't.

"What did you do to him?" I demanded my voice broken and quiet, forcing back sobs.

"Chris? Hey now he started it."
"You sound like a fucking four year old! I don't care who started it! You made a promise-"
"Whoa I didn't promise nothing." he said holding his hands up in front of him. I clenched and unclenched my breath. Taking a calming breath I continued.

"Six on one? You gotta be kidding me." I said shaking my head, gritting my teeth to keep from lashing out again.

"He hit me first."

"I don't care if he hit you first, we had a deal, you don't touch him or anyone else." I said my voice was gaining its edge back with each word but I managed to stay calm much to the amusement to his friends, they were waiting for me to snap, they wanted me to snap.

"Winston, he was threatening me." he laughed.

"I don't care, six on one. Six of you beat him. You only needed two of you to hold him back and throw him out of the alley. But you didn't do that." he paused for a moment, and I didn't know if he was thinking or just waiting for me to speak again. It was at that moment I noticed he didn't get out of the fight without his own injury, he had a bruise forming on his left cheek but other then that he was unharmed. He took a step forward into the light of the street lamp his features darkened and highlighted making him look like a god damned demon.

"So what?" he asked crossing his arms. So what? So what!?

"So what?"
"Yeah, what does it mean to you?" there went the quiet conversation.

"You're fucking kidding me! You beat him, almost to death, you took him in an alley, six to one and beat him with a pipe, cut him and kicked him until there was almost nothing left! You're a fucking prick! A fucking coward and fucking Pathetic."
"You know it's not appealing for a girl to swear." Charlie said smartly but I ignored him.

"I think you better leave." Ace sneered clenching his fists.

"Or what? You gonna rape me Ace? You gonna beat me? What are you gonna do? In case you haven't figured it out, I don't care what you do to me! You can do anything to me, it's not gonna change the fact you were wrong! And you know it! You're a coward and you know it! Fight Chris without your body guards, fight him with no weapons, fight him like a fair fight."
"I'd kill him." He said taking a step closer, I took one forward too surprising myself.

"No you wouldn't and you know that." we were silent again, just staring at one another.

A war of wills to see who would break first who would hit the other, say something, move, breathe, blink.

"All we were gonna do was scare him off but he kept going." Ace said finally. He was trying to defend himself. Ace was no idiot, and neither was I, I knew he could beat me to death if he wanted, but Ace knew he couldn't do that, he wanted that key and I wasn't sure if he knew I had it or not but looking at me in that moment. It dawned on him that it didn't matter what he did he was not getting it from me by force.

"He's not twelve anymore Ace! You can't run him off with a look anymore. You can't threaten him and watch him crumble anymore! He grew up and I think it's time you did the same! You're right back treating him like a little kid! You finally got to beat him like you couldn't when he was younger. Grow up Ace, stop living in the past and move on and let others move on too!" he yelled right in his face. His glare returned right away.

"Why do you care?" he asked again. I stared at him.

"Cause I'm tired of him being afraid of you, of you not letting the one I love walk these streets without being terrified."

"Whoa! You hear that eyeball, she loves him!" Ace cackled stepping back. I glared at him, mad at myself for telling him that but too angry to care.

"You don't take anything seriously. . . hell why did I bother getting that stupid key when I knew you'd pull this shit!" I snapped crossing my arms, he stopped laughing.

"You have it?"
"Doesn't matter, Deals off." I said turning around to leave.

"Whoa wait a minute it's not off!"

"It was off the second you touched Chris, this ain't my fault Ace, it's yours."
"Did you forget what I told you we'd do?!" I turned around slowly to look a him.

"You think I'm fucking kidding when I say that?"
"Yeah I do. And frankly I don't care if I'm wrong. You gonna do it then do it." I spread my arms wide tempting him, challenging him to come at me.

I was a god damn idiot. Did I mention that? I think I did. Well I was to think that Ace was going to back down when I challenged him. Because the second I challenged him with a raised eyebrow he moved and knocked the look right off my face with a punch in the jaw. I stumbled back a few steps but didn't fall.

Part of my wondered if Ace thought I had the key with me and that's why he was hitting me. He stopped for a moment and waited, I stood there holding my jaw, just looking at him. What was he waiting for? Me to give him the key? I didn't have it. Waiting for me to run? I wasn't going to move. Waiting for me to fight back? I couldn't that was the only smart thing I did. I didn't hit him back.

He moved again slower this time, more deadly, his arm raised and he took hold of my neck in a clammy ice cold hand, constricting my air flow ever so slightly.

Out of reflex I grabbed onto his wrist but I didn't try to pull him away just stared into his eyes.

"You don't give up do you?" he questioned. I shook my head slowly. "You don't belong here Winston. You don't know the rules of my streets. In my streets, I always win." he growled into my ear.

"If you always win why did you get me to do your work?" I questioned. His grip tightened and instinctively mine did too.

"Cause killing you to get it is a lot easier then killing him." he whispered raising his arm to punch me again. My eyes bugged out, watching his first raise, knuckled white and veins stressing in his muscles.

"ACE!" a voice rang out.

"Autumn what the fuck are you doing back?" he demanded.

"Let her go."

"This got nothing to do with you."
"It has everything to do with me." I was then released. I rubbed my neck lightly knowing there would be finger shaped bruises in a few hours.

"No it don't, just like our business with Chris had nothing to do with you." Ace snapped at her anger bubbling up in him. "Where did you bring him?" Ace asked.

"Where the fuck do you think?' she asked crossing her arms, Ace glanced at me and raised an eyebrow. I got what he was thinking.

It was really rare that there wasn't something going on in a poor kids house, and even more rare that their parents would accept a chambers kid into their house, even if he is roughed up.

The wheels in his head were turning, he was wondering where I lived.

"Oh so it's your fault that she's here bothering me."
'I came to stop her." Autumn said in a matter of fact tone.

"You don't need to come protect me." I hissed at her, I was more angry about her leaving Chris at my house alone.

"Yeah that's not how I see it."

"Back off Autumn or you'll be next." Ace said cracking his knuckles. Then she laughed. She actually laughed and right in Aces face.

"I call bull shit!" she said stepping right in front of him. "Cause that's not what you said earlier. You were happy to tell me what you wanted the key for. You won't hurt me, you wanted the key to get me back." she said my eyes widened. Wait what?

Ace gritted his teeth and glanced at me.

"Shut the fuck up."

"No, I think it's time she knew, Anna remember when I told you I wasn't with ace because of his record? That I couldn't be with a guy that was always on watch and had a record a mile long?" she asked. I nodded. "How I couldn't be with him if he got jailed and all that?" she asked.

"I said shut up!" Ace cried and pushed Autumn to the ground. She landed with a thud on the pavement.

"Hey!" I yelled strutting towards him.

"ANNA DON'T!" autumn yelled at me but it was too late, I had punched Ace straight in the mouth, splitting his lip. It was at that moment he lunched at me, knocking me to the ground, making sure to hit my head in the pavement.

He slugged me in the face a couple times, my vision blurred and I tried to get a good grip on his shirt but it slipped between my fingers as he punched me again.

I could vaguely hear the words, stop, let me go and you're hurting her. I knew I was the one being hurt, but I didn't feel it, for some odd reason I didn't feel the pain. I knew I was being beaten up but it just didn't faze me it was like I had disconnected, like that I had stood in front of the train, I was gone didn't realize what was happening.

It was a kid to my ribs that had me crashing back to reality. The sickening crunch of my ribs echoed through my mind and I knew I would never forget that sound.

Then it stopped. I was still conscious but I couldn't see, my vision was black.

"You got anything to say?" Ace asked.

"Ouch." I moaned out. That earned me another kick, then they were leaving. Their footsteps became more and more distant their laughter dying. The last words I heard them say was. "You're a dead man Winston, watch your back."
"Anna, Anna are you okay?" Autumn asked, I think it was Autumn anyways. I was being pulled to my feet, the edges of my vision was the only thing that was black now and I could make out Autumns red hair and pretty worried face in the dim street light.

"Anna? Anna come on, answer me." she said patting my cheek. I opened my mouth to answer but my jaw was killing me and I quickly closed it.

"Anna are you okay?" she asked again. I nodded, my head flopping up and down, in confirmation but my mouth deceived me.

I groaned out a simple. "No."

I was unconscious before I hit the ground.

Again I am so sorry I took so long to update, I promise I won't take as long this time. Hope you liked it I liked writing it.

Review and comment please and thank you and have a great week :)

-L.J