Page 43 of Greased

“Moving on,” I break the now awkward silence.

I think that's enough talk of my brother and his conquests to last a lifetime.

Ican’t help but stare at Scarlett the entire lunch break. I still haven’t been able to wrap my head around the fact that she is actually here. In front of me.Alive.

The fact that none of the guys or I were able to piece together the clues back in Australia is fucking embarrassing. Come on, both of their names are Scarlett, both had blonde hair and those stunning blue eyes that I could just dive into; not to mention a brother.

I feel like that guy fromA Cinderella Story,who had no idea who his girl was when her face was barely concealed by a mask. For fuck’s sake, the guy interacted with her multiple times after they met in person and still couldn’t see what was right in front of him.

It's obvious Scarlett was right when she told us about her memory loss. She can’t remember us. I try to not let that fact affect me as much as it should. Especially when I can remember every detail about her. The cheeky smile that would adore her face as we planned mischieftogether. The way she had this carefree attitude about her. Her voice that penetrated your soul. She was a fucking powerhouse. Still is.

I’d never tell the other guys but I have listened to an old recording one of the Mom’s took back when we were about seven. Scarlett is up on stage with nothing but a backing track keeping her in time. Her hair in braids, a butterfly shirt and matching skirt beltingCreep by Radiohead.I remember that day as if it were yesterday. We had been rounded up by Scarlett as per usual. It wasn’t hard for her to get our attention. It was her first performance in front of the club. It wasn’t unusual to hear her singing. That’s all she ever did. We all pretended it annoyed us, but we were enamoured by her. We had sat and watched her practice for weeks. Rhodes was always a little jealous of how close we were with Scarlett. I mean we did follow her around like lost puppies, but they were a package deal. Where one went, so did the other.

I knew that I was going to marry Scarlett even from a kid. Losing her was the most painful thing I have ever experienced in my life. Nothing has ever been able to compare. No matter what the trainers have put us through during training, I’d prefer to go through all of that ten times over than have her taken from me again.

Now that she is back, I refuse to let her go.

It feels surreal to see her just sitting there laughing along to whatever Rhodes and Wyatt are talking to her about. The fact that she was alive all this time. That she was right under our noses and we still didn't know that it was her. I instantly caught onto her plans. It doesn’t stop the raging jealousy inside of me every time she pins him with one of those breathtaking smiles of hers that I wish were only for me.

I don’t mind Wyatt. I haven’t had much to do with him since he became friends with Rhodes. He didn’t grow up in the club, instead transferring here in freshman year after being found in one of the trafficking rings the Birds were able to infiltrate.

While I know she is only flirting with him to get back at us, I hate every second of her attention that isn’t directed at us. Her laughter is ours. Her touches are ours and I will be fucked if he gets anymore.

I’m a possessive fucker. I always have been when it comes to her. We all are. Except when it comes to each other.

We’ve just never had that jealousy when it comes to her. If she was hanging out with one of us, we would be happy. It was the same in Australia. I don’t know if it's just the fact that even a tiny piece of her is enough or what exactly.

I’ll allow her to play her games for now. But she better make no mistake, she is mine. I will get on my knees, crawl through glass, do whatever she needs to know just how sorry I am that I hurt her. The reminder of the way we just dropped her like nothing eats at me and has done daily since we got back from Australia.

We meant what we said to her before we left. None of us had any intentions of stopping communication. Pretty sure we all fell in love with her. I know I did.

Finding a, drunk off her ass, girl on the beach was not on the cards when we went down for a walk that night. Seeing her face once we finally caught up to her and Pike, I could have fallen to my knees in front of her right there and then. She had us hanging onto every single word she said. I felt like I was drunk off her that entire trip. Fate pulled us to her for a reason. Like it was waving her in our face but we were too busy being fuckingAustin Ames.

Yet, unlike him, I refuse to lose the girl and be a complete Chad about it. I will suffer through whatever she determines is necessary. Even if it tastes like shit in the process. She will forgive me and my mistakes. Even if I have to force the point. I never claimed to be a good guy.

Lunch seems to drag on forever. Dawson sits beside me, grouching and broody the entire time. After the way he has been speaking to Scar lately, I don’t even understand why he’s here. Unbeknownst to me, he wants her gone. I still haven’t been able to work his issue out.

He hated having to ghost Scarlett. Was constantly going back through the photos of her we took over the break. I’m sure all of us did. But coming home to the club in absolute pandemonium, we had no choice. We each refused to drag an innocent civilian into our mess. No matter how much she meant to us.

The whole aim of the club is quite literally to protect innocent people. After already losing one person, we couldn’t lose another. It was better for her to stay safe. Although, that plan well and truly blew up in our faces. Now that she is here and won’t be leaving, it's our job to keep her safe. History won’t repeat itself.

The bell rings and I groan remembering we have English, then perk up when I realise Scarlett’s schedule is almost identical to mine.

Thank fuck Wyatt doesn’t have English with us.

Getting into class, I push past the guys throwing back a smirk at their grumbles and protests. I sneak up behind Scar as she tries to find a seat, throwing my arm around her shoulder and whispering into her ear, “You can sit with me, baby girl.”

She jumps slightly, not expecting me to have snuck up behind her. She turns and attempts to pierce me with a stern gaze but I don’t miss the way the corner of her mouth turns up slightly.

“It's your lucky day.”

“Baby, it's always my lucky day whenever it's spent with you.”

“Damn Nicky, that was smooth. I didn’t think you had it in you. I would have expected something like that from Sonny,” she retorts, rolling her eyes.

“I’ll have to work harder than won’t I?” Scar doesn’t reply but her little smile she attempts to hide before she heads in the direction of a few seats up the back is enough for me.

I rush to grab the seat beside her. The other guys grumbling in my direction, but I don’t care. I have my girl for the time being, even if it's only for just over an hour.

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