Juilliard or Else (41 page)

Once we were outside, we said our goodbyes to Trish at the curb of The Lincoln Center. Trish hugged me, told me how well I did, and that she was proud, and how she would love me always like another daughter to her. She thanked me for letting her come tonight, and I deeply squeezed her back like a daughter would hug a mother.

I still thought about Tucker and why he didn't let me see him tonight. I had to dance and let Alex watch me move across the stage when all I wanted was Tucker's eyes. I think Alex played on his phone more than he watched me. I wanted so desperately to tell Tucker about the baby.

Oh, our little innocent baby.

Just at the thought, I placed my hand on my belly and sighed. Jade looked over at me with raised brows and took notice of my hands.

Jade knew my situation I was in with Tucker; I couldn't even call it a situation. I was pregnant with Tucker's baby. I wanted Tucker more than anything, body and soul. Rachel raved about Brad and something he did for her that was "so cute and heartwarming'.

"We are getting closer. I can see us becoming an item." Jade and I both smiled at that. The night was cold. New Year's approached closer and closer every day. I pulled my silver jacket tighter around my body. I only had five more months of school left. If I did the math right, our baby will arrive around August, which made me not be able to go back to Juilliard the following year.

"Gabs?"

Jade's voice pulled me out of thought about our baby and school when I kept walking when they stopped. "What?"

I looked back at them and their eyes were set on something in front of us. I turned to see a group of guys walking towards us, saying profound things about the girls in front of them. They said Jade's name, but not Jade, they said Jaiden. I started stepping back. Rachel grabbed my hand.

"Hey girls! Where you off to tonight?" one of them called out

And that's when we took off in a different direction. They chased us, hearing their footsteps hitting the pavement behind us, gaining on our moves. We turned down an alleyway in hopes for a shortcut to our building, but it came to a dead end. When we turned back, the men crowded the opening. Their harsh breaths were coming up to us, sounding as it was echoing off the brick walls of the buildings between us. One of the men who was bald was right in front of my face and I slowly backed up. Jade grabbed my hand, pulling me back further until I was in the middle. The group of guys circled around us like prey. "I like the red head." Rachel gasped. Now we were shoulder to shoulder in a triangle shape, holding each other's hands, each one of us just watching them.

"I like the blonde," one Hispanic guy said about me. I gave him a death glare, but I didn't scare him. The look he gave me made me want to run and hide.

"Wait, I know this chick," the bald one said and pointed a finger in my direction, "Yeah, that's Kyle's girl."

"Kyle?" We three said in unison.

"Yeah, Kyle Tucker. That son of a bitch owes me money. Well, his buddy Brad does anyway." He shrugged. I heard Rachel suck in a deep breath.

"Just leave us alone, you dick," Jade spat at them and they all laughed. Their laughter echoed throughout the darkened alleyway, just like out of a scary movie with the dark shadows and evil lurking voices.

"I like a girl with a mouth – makes them harder to train," the Hispanic man voiced at us, then lunged for Jade's arm. Rachel screamed. We tried to pull her back to our little triangle safety zone, but his hold was much stronger and she was ripped from our fingers.

He had his arms snaked around her as she screamed and fought like her life depended on it. The bald guy, who called Tucker by the name of Kyle, was standing in front of me. I had every nerve in my body demanding to do something to get out of the situation we were in with this unknown group of guys.

I had a sudden impulse to do something, so I spit in his face, trying to distract him, to make him not see my next move. I then kicked his shin as hard as I could in my flat shoes, grabbed Rachel's hand and ran towards Jade to help her get free. He grabbed me around the waist, fisting a handful of my hair and wrenching my head back hitting his masculine shoulder. Then everything in that moment stopped—now moving in slow motion as I felt something cold and sharp pressing up against my throat.

Oh holy shit, he has a knife.

Horror surged through my body as I started to hyperventilate, my breathing picked up quicker with every beat of my heart and I went completely still. My fingertips left Rachel's as the guy snarled out words in my ear.

"Hold the fuck still or I swear to God, I'll slit your throat so fast you won't have time to say any last words." Pain radiated throughout my scalp as he pulled harder and I cried out.

"Now, be a good bitch and tell me where Kyle and Brad are." His breath hit my face, smelling of pure death and body odor.

"I don't know a Kyle," I stated. He pulled harder on my hair, stretching my neck up some more. I held my breath, trying so hard not to breathe so the knife wouldn't cut me.

"Oh, I think you do. He's your little boyfriend. He goes by Tucker," the man rumbled in my ear and moved some hair back from my face to peck my cheek. I flinched away from his revolting touch and chapped lips against my skin. His breath smelled so rotten, I wanted to throw up.

"Tell me where he and his friend are and then I'll let you go." He pulled harder on my hair and I screamed at the pain surging through. I swear it felt like my hair was going to snap any minute.

Tears pricked my eyes, and I cried, "I don't know where he is, I swear". I heard Rachel scream somewhere in the background behind me. Then I heard more stumbling around, more screams, her high heels pounding on the pavement, more screams, then a crashing into a dumpster. Silence. It was quiet for a good four seconds.

"JADE!" Rachel screeched out. Jade kicked her legs and clawed at the guy trying holding her. I bawled just watching her fight against him. I couldn't see what was happening to poor Rachel, hearing only the sounds of her cries.

"Now, if you don't tell me, my friend really likes redheads. He's knows just how to treat them." Sobs escaped my mouth as Rachel's screams continued to call for Jade and I.

"GABS!" Rachel grunted as I heard her face get slapped multiple times. You will never forget the sound of slapping skin when it was forced upon you with strength.

"RACHEL!" Jade screamed back, and still tried kicked at the man who was holding her in place. More grunts and harsh breaths from Rachel behind me made me turn into full on crying, soaking my shirt, while I listened to Rachel scream helplessly for us, but we couldn't do anything to help her.

"I really don't know. Let her go," I pleaded with the bald man. I looked at Jade, who was staring behind me at Rachel, now in full struggle to break free, still clawing away. But the man was still stronger.

Jade kept screaming, "Let her go, you bastard! Let her GO!" Her black hair whipped around in the night air.

The guy was back at my ear, wiping my face with his spare dirty hand. "Come on, gorgeous, just tell me and I'll have my friend stop," he cooed, his breath smelling of rotting eggs. I let out a breath and the blade pressed harder against my skin with the swallow of my throat. I had to go up on my toes to help get rid of some pressure. He pulled harder again with my hair wrapped around his fingers. I thought I felt the breakage happen as the hair pulled apart from my aching scalp. My tears cascaded freely down my face.

"I…" But before I could tell him,
I don't know
, I saw a quick flash of Jett sneaking up behind the man who had a hold of Jade, then he hit him over the head really hard. He fell onto the wet pavement, knocked out cold.

"Ah, they send the good friend to help." I tried to move away but the knife pressed harder. "Where are they Jett?"

Jett pulled Jade behind his body to shield her, but Jade pulled on his shoulder and whispered something in his ear. A sneak attack, maybe. But I watched Jett's body go hard and his dark eyes went cold as the dark night when he looked at me, already knowing what Jade just told him. My one secret that was now out of the bag and now Jett knew. I shut my eyes and let the tears fall on my icy cold face.

Jett held up his hands, and stepped a little closer to us. "Listen Skinner, the girl doesn't know where Tucker is, so…just let her go." Jett stepped closer and the guy constrained me harder to him. I was almost on the point of my toes, he had me that close to him. He pulled harder on my hair, causing another shriek from me. Jett was losing patience with every second, his face growing red with anger the more time passed. His dark brown eyes were black.

Rachel stopped screaming as we stood in silence. Jett and Skinner just stared at each other while I struggled to breathe. The knife pressing a tad harder and I whimpered. I thought of all the good things that had happened in my life so far, wishing Tucker was here—wishing I told him about the baby. To tell him that I love him always. I started to sob at the sudden thought of not getting the chance to meet our little baby that we created together. Even though our baby was an accident and unplanned, I knew deep down it was all going to be okay.

I kept trying to look around, looking for an escape route when suddenly I was let go and pushed forward so hard, I started falling on the wet ground on my hands and knees. I grabbed my throat and held my hand to see of any evidence of blood. Trying to catch my breath, I wheezed for a couple of seconds as I held my throat.

Jade crashed down in front of me. "You okay, Gabs?" she asked as she pulled me up. I turned around in a rush to see Tucker and Jett pin the guy to the ground. Tucker then straddled him, punching his face over and over again, one cheek then the other.

The guy had a knife and he was going to stab Tucker with it. I had to warn him. "Tucker!" I screamed and moved to go next to him. But Jade pulled me back and my eyes couldn't leave
Tucker's rage as he beat the living crap out of the guy who wasn't moving when I heard sirens headed our way.

I ran over to Tucker to yank on his shoulders, to get him off the man who laid there unconscious. Jett and Jade followed me. Tears streaked down my face as I heaved on Tucker's gray hoodie. "Tucker, stop!" I yelled and surprisingly, he did. His breaths were strict as his angry blue eyes stared me down. I glanced down at his hands, noting that they were extremely bloody and he had cuts that needed tending, too. But that didn't stop Tucker from enveloping me in his arms.

"Gabs," he kissed my head. "Are you okay?" Cupping my trembling face to look at him, still a shaking mess, I nodded.

I just wanted him to hold me, bring me comfort in some way. The next was inevitable; I didn't even see it coming as the guy Tucker was beating the crap out of pushed the both of us off him. We fell on the cold ground. He started running towards where Rachel was. My eyes followed the guy's moves as he ran to their directions in slow motion, and Jett ran past us as we scrambled to get up. Rachel was running back to us. Her nose and lips were bloody, and her right cheek was flaming red.

"Gabs," Jade grabbed my hand as we ran towards to get Rachel. Taking in her face, I wanted to comfort her and hold her so badly.

"You owe me, Tucker!" The guy screamed at us, then hit Rachel in the stomach. Jade screamed as Rachel's body slowly crumbled to the ground, holding her stomach. My hand went to my mouth as I watched poor Rachel's body dropping to her bent knees and she was gradually going limp to the ground. Jade caught her head before it hit the pavement and started to sob on her chest.

When I finally made it over to the two of them, the little knife that was held up against my throat was now in Rachel's flat stomach. Her bright yellow shirt spotted with darkness. I shook as I pulled out my cell to call the cops.

"911 dispatch."

"Yes, we need an ambulance, right now!" I screamed in the phone.

"What's the problem, miss?" the very annoying dispatcher asked me. I couldn't get out my answer fast enough, so Tucker took my phone. I dropped to my knees and grabbed Rachel's hand, feeling more of my own tears escape. I rubbed her hand on my cheek and kissed the top of it.

"Rach," I squeaked out. Rachel tried to say something, but it came out in gurgling noises with a small amount of blood coming out the corner of her mouth. Jade quickly wiped it away.

"Don't talk, Ray," Jade cooed. Seeing more blood seeping through her shirt, Rachel's body started to shake and quiver. Jade pulled off her jacket to drape it carefully over Rachel's stomach, hiding the ugly knife.

More sirens sounded as Tucker and Jett huddled around us. Watching Rachel gasp for breath with each passing second, I was so scared for her at this moment, each passing second was so valuable for her. Each of her cold breaths she made clouded around us from the cold. Her body shook. I just wanted the cops get here faster to help her. Her eyes got heavy. Oh please hurry. Her eyes fully shut.

"Ray, you stay here with me, I need you," Jade cried out as Rachel's eyes started to drift open but slowly closed again. I held my breath just watching her, waiting for her to gasp for air again, waiting for her body to continue to shake.

"Ray!" Jade shook her body for her, "help her!" Jade looked at me, her black makeup smeared all down the front of her cheeks as we made eye contact.

"Help her, Gabs," she pleaded at me with sad puppy dog eyes. But there was nothing I could do to help save her. I dropped my head and let more tears fall, and I collapsed on Jade's shoulder and wrapped my arms around her. We held Rachel's head as we both cried out for our loss of our dearest friend, Rachel Dawson.