"Here."
She looked at the tab Selena was holding. She raised her eyebrows and looked at Mila who stuck her tongue out revealing the small white tab on her tongue. Ari took it, "Thanks."
Selena shrugged, "Its ok."
"I'm sorry I played the mom card, I know its off limits. That wasn’t cool."
Selena smiled looking sad, "One day Ari we'll have a real life and we'll have houses and we'll have husbands and none of the shit that’s happened here will matter any more."
Ari hugged her. Selena seemed shocked by it but hugged her back.
"Look girl no offense but I'm here to find me a dude and this is cock blocking my shit."
Ari laughed, "You are nasty."
She let go of Selena and let the music take her. She let it all go. The past and the future didn’t matter as the E hit her.
She let it all go.
She felt like her old self again as her hips started to move to the music. She felt someone grind up against her, dancing behind her. It was hard to get pissed about someone touching her as she had let the ecstasy remove her inhibitions.
She looked up behind her to see a cute guy. He looked about twenty-five. She smiled until his hands started to roam freely. She pulled away shaking her head.
"Come on, just one dance."
She studied him for a split second and knew from the wicked look on his face he was a baddy, "One dance no groping."
He nodded sliding up against her again.
She stayed as alert as the drugs would let her, which wasn't a lot. Eventually his hands were on her again. She tried to push him off but his hands were everywhere all at once. His grip was stronger than hers.
She closed her eyes wishing she hadn’t taken the drugs. The room wasn’t spinning yet but she was fairly certain she wouldn't be able to hold him off and if she ran and he followed her she wouldn’t stand a chance at getting away. Her stomach started to feel sick as she pushed on his chest, "Please I don’t like this." She hadn’t ever begged for her life before. She had always been stronger than that but she was weak now.
"You like it."
Ari felt her hands heating up. She knew that if she pushed him back in time everyone would see the window she made. It wasn’t big but it was big enough that everyone around her would notice.
"Let her go."
She looked up to see Lucas. He growled menacingly at the man, "Now.'
"Fuck off buddy, she's mine for the night dude. Find your own slut."
Ari winced hearing him call her that, she deserved the title but she never would have wanted Lucas to see her in that light.
Lucas looked to be holding back a severe reaction, "She is MINE." He spoke firmly grabbing the man by the hand.
Ari felt her stomach twist and turn as Lucas removed the mans hand from her waist. She ran behind Lucas to see Ben there smiling at her, "Hey Ari."
She nodded at him but his eyes shot to the man who had been holding her and his smile was replaced with the same crazed and angry look as his brother as stepped forward to ensure Lucas had everything under control.
Lucas spoke something to the man and then stepped back. The man looked frightened and turned and left the dance floor.
Lucas turned back to her but his face hadn’t softened, "Ari what the hell are you doing?"
His eyes burned down on her, he scared her and she let Old Ari come to the surface.
Her lip trembled slightly, "Nothing, I-I-I just uhm. Nothing." She could feel tears creeping up into her throat.
"You freak when I touch you and yet here you are dressed like this, with someone like him who calls you a slut?"
She didn’t have an answer. She turned to walk away but he grabbed her arm, "You're coming home Ari." His grip told her he wasn’t messing around and he would kill everyone in the bar before he let her go. His face was more dangerous than anything she'd ever seen.
She looked at Ben who put a hand on Lucas's arm, "Calm brother." Lucas's eyes flashed at Ben and back to Ari.
Lucas dragged his hand down her arm to her hand and took her entire hand in his. He pulled her off the dance floor, not dragging as much as guiding. She looked back as her friends as they watched her go. They looked scared for her, they wouldn’t try to help her.
"Ari that’s quite the outfit." Ben laughed trying to break the ice.
She nodded, "Yeah its my friends."
Her heart skipped when she saw Lydia sitting in the car at the curb.
Lydia leapt from the car running to her with her arms out.
Ari flinched away from what she expected, which wasn’t the hug she received. The old woman's embrace filled her.
"Ari I'm so sorry. I didn’t think what would happen if someone's life got worse, how you would respond. I'm so sorry Ari." Ari couldn’t fight her tears, she couldn’t fake her brave face because Lydia saw through it all.
She felt Lucas behind her, his telltale warmth covering her naked skin with his body.
Ben spoke softly from behind them all, "Lets get you home, Annabelle's been unbearable." Ari snorted laughing. She could imagine Annabelle in a state of concern would be intolerable.
Lydia kissed her softly on the forehead and walked around to the driver side. Lucas climbed in the back helping/pulling Ari.
Ben stayed outside her door until she was in and safe. He closed it giving her a soft smile. He rode passenger but spent the entire ride smiling at Ari and telling jokes. She was grateful for his efforts at keeping the conversation light.
Lucas sat at the far side of the car, he kept himself away from her looking out the window continuously. Ari felt miles between the foot that separated them. She knew he was hurt but the drugs in her system prevented her from being able to hold a thought longer than a second.
"Lydia I did in the alley again, right away after the man in the apartment. It was only minutes in between." The words felt hollow but she was trying to be herself again not the little street skank.
"Right away? You don’t need to recharge?"
She shook her head meeting Lydia's gaze in the rearview mirror.
"That’s interesting to know."
"Are you high Ari?"
She turned to Lucas who watched her suddenly. She met his harsh gaze for the briefest of seconds before lowering hers and nodded feeling sick at the admission.
"What would possess you to put yourself in such danger?"
She felt her walls crumble as she sputtered her excuses against New Ari's wishes, "She took over, I swear, I just fell into blackness and new Ari was there waiting for her chance to spring free. The man attacked us in the alley and she pushed into him and sent him back. She just knew how to survive." She felt the flood of tears but swallowed them back.
Lucas watched her, she could feel his cold stare upon her.
"Sweetie we need to find a way to get rid of New Ari. She is so damaged, she will be the death of you both."
She nodded, even new Ari nodded. She wanted the life old Ari had had, she wanted the diner and their uncle and cookie and high school completed and over with. She hated being a street rat, she hated being used and she hated the memories that came with every scar whether visible or not.
As Lydia parked the car Ari watched Annabelle appear on the front porch. She smiled seeing her and waved. Ari got out of the car exhausted in ways she hadn’t experienced in a long time.
Her legs buckled slightly trying to get out but Lucas was there catching her before she fell. His warmth against her brought her home completely.
"I love you Ari, even if you cant love yourself. Don't scare me like that ever again." He whispered it so quietly she nearly missed the words against her ears. Her fear of her feelings for him vanished. She loved him, more than anything in the world. She let him carry her inside, she never fought him on the stairs or when he brought her right to her warm bath Annabelle had prepared. She kissed him back when his lips brushed against her softly sending shivers across her skin.
He placed her on the ground and left her in the capable hands of the ghostly maid, "Night Ari."
She watched him leaving wishing secretly he could stay and help her with the bath.
"Miss Ari ya looks a mess. Now just lie back and let Annabelle cleans ya off. You been gone one day and ya looks like the urchin ya was when ya came."
Chapter Thirteen- Wanna Pet My Wolf?
Ari
Ari woke to Annabelle sitting in the chair in the corner watching her sleep.
She grimaced, "Creepy Annabelle."
"Why good morning Miss Ari. Or rather good afternoon."
"How long have I slept?"
"Nearly eighteen hours. You was a wreck when ya got here though so that might be why."
Ari squinted against the silhouette of light coming from the edges of the curtains. Her head was pounding. She knew she was probably dehydrated from the E she had taken the night before.
"Stupid Ari." She whispered sitting up completely. She climbed out of the bed stretching. Everything felt fine, she had no aching muscles and no after effects of all the running and jumping and escaping she had put her body through.
She remembered the previous days and grimaced. The run had been stupid, running away had been even more stupid, clubbing was down right insane and the drugs had been the absolute pinnacle of disaster and poor choices.
"Ari?"
She looked up to see Andy at her door, "Hey Andy."
"I just wanted to check and make sure you were okay." Her pale skin set her bright blue eyes off.
Ari smiled at the dark haired woman, "Yeah I think so. I feel like such a nightmare though. I'm so annoying with my split personalities and crazy life."
Andy laughed, Ari couldn’t recall her ever laughing before. It was a magical sound.
"Yes well if it makes you feel better when I was new at this I ate a village. Women, children, everyone. I was like a horror movie. I ate everyone and everything that moved. I am haunted by the images still."
Ari swallowed hard, "Andy that's terrible."