Ryder’s point of view:
Despite the rain which was pouring down on us, I felt like I was suddenly splashed with cold yet hot water. My hold on the man loosened. I let go of him completely before standing up but before I could stand up, I was forcefully hit at the back of my head with something hard. I flinched.
I quickly wrapped my hands around the back of my head and cried out in pain when I felt my ears ring. Everything turned deaf for a split second before I started hearing the rain and the man’s uncontrollable laughter.
“Ryder…” I heard Lea screaming my name.
I turned to glance in the direction of her voice to find a man pulling her out of the house by the back of her hair.
The sudden fear that overtook her was starkly visible on her face.
Streams of tears flowed faster than my heartbeat from her eyes.
Tears of pain and fear ran down her cheeks.
Feeling disoriented and dizzy, I
Ryder’s point of view: When I woke up, I found myself lying on the floor. The moment I moved, my head pinched with pain. I stopped moving. I closed my eyes tightly shut and waited till the pain dissipated. I tried to sit up only to realize that my hands and feet were tied up with ropes. I pushed myself up and leaned my back against the cold wall. I felt something trail down the back of my neck and the side of my head. I instantly knew that it was blood. I looked around but could barely see anything. It was dark and only the beam of the moon penetrating through the window served as my light from where I was. I shook my head slightly to prevent the blood from getting into my eyes. I did not want to be blinded any further than I was already. I coughed and winced slightly when I tasted the metallic taste in my mouth. The side of my lips stung. I gulped to try and get rid of that taste but to no avail. I held my breath when
Ryder’s point of view:“The fuck is wrong with you, man. That’s your daughter.” I said through gritted teeth.I felt disgusted to look at his shitty face.He was not worthy of being called a father.“She is not my fucking daughter.” Thomas retaliated furiously.Lea calmed down slightly when Thomas placed the chair back in place.“Y-You can’t be my f-father.” Lea mumbled quietly.Thomas stilled entirely. I watched his expression change on the spot. His face went pale in astonishment. The face that was red with anger just a while ago was suddenly as white as a sheet.He slowly turned around to look at Lea.Unlike earlier, Lea did not flinch in fear when her father glanced at her.She stared right back into his eyes with confidence.It was dreading to watch him approach Lea as a predator would his prey. Lea gulped back the tears that had fi
Ryder’s point of view:“What the actual fuck are you -”His head jerked backwards when the piece of glass slit and penetrated his throat halfway with a sickening crack.The next few words he was trying to say got stuck in his throat.He did not have time to react.He could not step away on time.His eyes widened in disbelief before watering in pain.Blood gushed out as rapidly as water exploding out a broken dam.He instinctively caught his throat with his hands.Blood seeped through his trembling fingers.He appeared troubled when he pulled his hands away from his throat.As much as I wanted to stare at him while he suffocated in tremor and pain, I searched for another piece of glass lying around on the ground behind me. When I found another one, I sliced through the rope tied up around my ankles before standing up. I held the glass in my right hand.Thomas’s
Lea’s point of view: My heart dropped to my stomach when I heard his demand. Ryder’s body went rigid. I heard a deep rumble reverberated in his chest as he tightened his grip around me and held me close. I felt safe being in his arms like this. I would not want to ever let go of him. “Dare you dare even try that!” Ryder’s voice was tight when he spoke. “I don’t think you are in a position to refuse me, kid.” The man’s voice raised an octave before I heard his half-suppressed snigger. “I don’t remember giving you the right to judge me.” Ryder refuted. “Huh, you don’t look right in the head, kid.” “You’re right but with bastards like you, this is exactly how I should be.” “I dare you to say that again.” “Why? Are you deaf now?” “You piece of shit -” I felt a gush of air hitting my back and a loud swoosh of air was heard before I heard a thud. I tightened my arms around the back of
Lea’s point of view: The tension filling up the entire space within the room was overpowering than before. Everyone could feel it. The other men surrounding us within a circle shifted awkwardly on their feet while glancing at their companions standing beside them but remained quiet. It was clear that they were scared for their leader. Ryder’s fists balled at his sides, the veins in his arms protruding and throbbing from the rising tension. The tiny hairs on my body raised, goose bumps littering my skin. A strange feeling of anticipation flooded my system. I knew that Ryder was not a guy who would just go down without a fight but I was worried for him. My heart swelled when I realized that despite being badly injured, he was determined to fight for me. I gasped when the man threw a fist directly at Ryder’s face. Ryder’s head jerked to the right with the punch. He held his chin before clenching his jaw in anger.
Lea’s point of view: Amidst all the chaos, I heard my ears ring the moment I caught Ryder’s eyes closing. I ran to him while pushing everyone out of my way. I knelt down beside him and shook him but he was unresponsive. “No, this can’t be happening.” I uttered while choking back my tears and shook him harder; my actions became more urgent than necessary. I needed him to wake up. I can’t lose him. I thought. I tried listening to his heartbeat. It was faint. He had a weak pulse. His breathing was shallow. He was barely hanging there. “No! Ryder, wake up!” I screamed at him to get up. I fell back on my butt when the guys came to check up on him. I felt at a loss for words. I shook my head and refused to accept the fact that Ryder was in a critical condition. I could hear Jake’s screams and cries as he tried shaking Ryder awake but it was in vain. I pulled myself together and listened to Ryd
Ryder’s point of view: I woke up to Blake throwing a fit.“Just look at him, Max! Can’t you see how messed up our brother is? I’m telling you, I’ll kick that asshole out of our gang.” Blake snapped.“Blake, stop it!” Max whispered silently.“Gentleman, I will have to ask you to step outside if you don’t stop yelling.” I heard an unfamiliar voice warning him.I heard Blake humphed before nothing could be heard.So typical of Blake! I groaned when I moved my head to look in their direction. The back of my head stung in pain.“Ryder’s awake.” Shelly exclaimed.I heard several steps making their way towards me before I was suddenly surrounded with their faces looking down on me.I searched through the faces before stopping on Lea’s.Her eyes welled up with tears when I locked gazes with her. She smiled through h
Lea’s point of view:Ryder was discharged from the hospital after a week but he had to revisit the hospital for his head injury once a week for the next month until it was fully healed.Ever since Ryder stole my first kiss, things between us haven’t been the same. Everything changed. We got so close to each other that hugging, holding hands or even cuddling became almost natural.One thing I learnt about him though is that he was a romantic.He hasn’t expressed anything to me yet but his eyes conveyed everything. People do say that actions speak louder than words and so far, it’s been like this between us.His actions, his behavior and his attitude towards me drastically changed, not in a bad way but in a good way which still have my heart fluttering like crazy even today.I was well aware that Michael, the guys and the girls somehow knew that there was something cooking up between Ryder and I but the