Page 75 of Raise 'Em Up

I’m here, but I don’t want to be. I can feel myself fading more day by day, and I know Rylee and the guys are worried. Hell, I am too, but I don’t know how to get out of this funk. I have a secret, and it’s so dumb, but I don’t want to talk to anyone about it.

Well, besides Cobbler. She knows all of my trauma and demons. She’s another reason I don’t want to be here. I’d rather stay home, in bed with her and Peaches. But I can’t do that to Colt or the team.

I swear the Black Widows are cursed or something. Maybe Missi really is a witch and she hexed us after she was kicked off the team.

Rylee runs her fingers through my hair as I continue to watch the yellow lines on the road. She’s chatting with Serenity and they are laughing. I wish I could push through this sadness and join in with her.

This is her first competition, we should be having fun, but I can’t get out of this funk.

I thought, after I left home, I would be able to put the past aside and move on. Why did they have to contact me now? Like I give a shit that the man who abused me for years is dying.

What am I supposed to do? Stand vigil by his bedside and wait until he takes the final breath of his pitiful life?

Pulling my blanket tighter, I cuddle into it. I was surprised to find out that the guys had grabbed me some of my comfort items, but then again, they are always there for me.

“Why don’t you take a nap, baby?” Rylee suggests and I nod. I really am exhausted, and she keeps the nightmares away.

The driver talking over the sound system pulls me out of a really good dream. Rylee and I were at an ice cream shop, trying all sorts of flavors. I had just bent her over the cooler…

“Welcome to Las Vegas. The weather is a cool one hundred and ten degrees,” the guy jokes and Teo groans.

“So, basically, we are going to be sweating our balls off during practice and the competition,” he grumbles and Colt huffs, then laughs.

“Actually, due to the girl passing out last year, we are going to be inside an air conditioned arena.”

“Oh, well, that will be nice, but I still want some pool time, Ryles,” Ren says and Rylee nods.

“Yes, we should go pool jumping. I saw on TikTok that some of the pools on the strip have crazy features.”

Len laughs, shaking his head.

My dick perks up at the thought of my Cherry in a bikini, and she notices since her hand is on my thigh. Giving me a saucy smile, she grabs it and I bite my bottom lip, holding back my groan.

I wish we had time to fool around, but I can see we're about to pull into the arena's parking.

“To be continued,” I whisper against her lips before kissing her. She makes my heart race, and I don't want to move away from her warmth right now.

She keeps the darkness away, even for just a moment, making me feel like I can actually breathe.

“Later,” she says, smiling, and I nod.

Teo laughs when she stands, moving along the aisle to get off the bus. “You had six hours with her and all you did was snore and drool. You snooze, you lose, dude.”

Grumbling, I hand Lennox my things and he puts them into a bag before moving off the bus.

Glancing out of the window, I groan. I have always loved cheer, but this looks like a pom pom threw up all over the place.

Girls are running in formation in their tiny matching workout clothes, while other teams are wearing full uniforms.

Thankfully, because of the long drive, we were allowed to wear our practice sweats, but now that we're leaving the air conditioned bus, I'm starting to regret it.

“This is insane,” Rylee shouts as we walk up to the convention center that's hosting Regionals.

“This is nothing, baby girl, just wait for Nationals. It has double the amount of teams competing,” I say, putting my arm over her shoulder, tucking her into my side, where she's a perfect fit. “And if we make it to Worlds, there's even more.”

A lady in a bright yellow jacket runs up to us and shoves a clipboard with a folder at Colton.

“Black Widows? Here is your itinerary and room information,” she says before leaving us to talk to some other teams.

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