I rushed towards the other side of the ring where Jake had gone. The smell of nicotine, sweat, and alcohol burnt my nostrils, but I somehow endured it. Although the nervousness and dread that I felt earlier no more bothered me. It was like Jake made me do things I would have never done in my sane mind. Was he making me brave (or crazy)? But sure, he was turning me into someone I only lived through the characters I created, not through me.

There was only one thing that occupied my mind, and it was Jake. As I squeezed through the packed crowd, who were mostly the sturdy men with scraggly beards and rugged facial features, I prayed to God that they would give me a pass without any trouble. The music boomed through my bones, and if I didn't find Jake soon, I might as well hammer someone's head. I had almost reached the corner where we left Jake a moment ago when a muscled arm blocked my path. My eyes shot up to find a muscled sturdy-looking man with lots of piercing on his face.

"Now, mi Hermosa," the man's lips twitched in a sinister smirk as he spoke in his thick accent. "Why are you in such a hurry? Are you looking for someone?"

"That's none of your business. Stop blocking my path." I clenched my fists and glared at him warningly. I took a step back to create some distance. He smelled like chickens and alcohol. Ignoring his throaty laughter, I passed from his side. And just when I thought I had escaped, the man moved and came in front of me again. I gulped down and didn't spare him a glance this time as I tried stepping away from his presence. That didn't fit well with the thick head man and gripped my waist with his rough hand pulling me forcefully towards his body.

"Don't be difficult, mia Cara. Let's have some fun." I was already irritated with Jake's stubbornness, the loud deafening music wasn't helping either, and he dared to touch me without my permission. I jerked away from him, clenching my jaw, but who was I kidding. The guy was ten times my size. In a fit of anger, I snatched the beer bottle from someone in the crowd and smashed it on the man's head. He instantly cursed loudly, holding his bleeding head and taking few staggering feet away from me. The crowd around me gasped, and I heard a few of them wolf-whistling and cheering at the scene.

"How was the fun, you asshole?" I yelled at the groaning man with gritted teeth. New exhilarating energy surged through my veins. My anger wasn't that easy to deal with either. I could feel a slight sting on my palm, but the fire in my head surpassed it.

"That's no way for a princess to behave," I heard a man looking similar to the groaning man on the floor. He clenched his fists and flexed his muscles in an intimidating way. Even if he didn't, I felt a little. My heart thudded against my ribcage as he took a step towards me with a smirk. What were the odds there? A thin invisible girl against giant muscle men. "Let me see how many fights you can give." He added. And just as he was about to take another step towards me, a voice boomed through the crowd. All the color from his face flew away.

"You dare lay a hand on her, and I will tear you limb to limb," Jake growled in his deep voice, making me snap my head in the direction. All the attention shifted towards him as he walked out of the shadow and stood in front of me. His eyes darkened as I looked up at him, a little shocked. He gave me a disapproving look followed by an ominous glare. His jaw locked the moment his ink-black eyes swept between the wounded guy on the floor and the one who charged towards me. "Fuck off before I break your face like my girl broke your brother's head."

'My girl' his choice of words always blew my mind away. Why he had to always behave like a bipolar? One moment he treated me like no one, and the very next moment, he called me his girl. The guy needed a shrink more than me. Yes, I was sure catching up with some of his insane traits.

Surprisingly the crowd dispersed within a second. The other guy picked up his groaning brother from the ground and left. As soon as we got some personal space, Jake turned towards me and glared. This face grew hard as his eyes traveled down to my hand. I followed his gaze with a frown, and that's when I saw blood trickling down my right palm. I hurt myself while smashing the bottle on the man's head.

"You like trouble, don't you?" He said, taking a step closer to me. My eyes once again scanned the fresh bruises on his face and his bloodied knuckles. "I told you this place isn't where you should be, then why didn't you leave with Seb?"

"I couldn't leave you alone here," I snapped, jabbing my index finger on his chest, finally releasing all my built-up agitation towards him. "And I know it's not my lookout to check on you, but I really can't stop thinking about you. Not when you are getting bitten up in a place where you clearly shouldn't be either. If you still want to behave like a prick, then suit yourself. But do understand that I care about you, and it's not like I can help it anyway. So yeah, I'm definitely in trouble."

I finally said all my chaotic emotions and feelings towards him. In my sane mind, I would have never spelled those words, but his stubbornness got to me.

He took a step closer to me, and before I could retreat my finger from his chest, he grabbed my hand. There was a few seconds pause, with him holding my wrist and his charcoal eyes keeping me captive before he pulled me along. He didn't utter a word as I protested and struggled to free myself but kept dragging me to the room where he disappeared before. The interior looked like some storeroom with only a couch in the middle, and the rest of it occupied dust-covered old and broken furniture. He kicked the door shut and trapped me against it.

"You're one hell of trouble, do you know that?" His warm breath fanned over my face as he breathed out. The way he pressed me against the door of that dingy room reminded me of our first kiss accelerating my heartbeat. "However hard I try to keep myself in control, you make me lose it some more," he husked, leaning towards my face.

He slowly brought my hand, the one he was holding to his lips, and gave a feathery kiss on my wounded palm. I sucked in a breath looking into his dark orbs, which never released me even for once. His face once again inched closer to mine, our lips almost touching. I could feel how my veins throbbed underneath my skin. The intoxicating smell that he carried around made my breathing ragged, and tingles ran wide all over my body. But I somehow suppressed the desire bubbling up in me and placed my other hand on his chest, creating a small distance between our burning bodies.

"I care for you, Jake. If this whole fight club thing is just for fun, then it's not healthy." I whispered, looking into his eyes.

A frown appeared on his face as he stepped away from me and turned his back on me. "You think I come here for fun?"

I swallowed, taking a step towards him, but his words made me halt where I was. "It's not for fun, Amy. It's my redemption." He moved his head to the side and said sharply.

Redemption for what?

"What redemption?" I asked, taking a few quick steps and stepping in front of him. He glared at me with a tightened jaw. It was clear he didn't want to tell me anything about it. "What redemption, Jacob?"

Jake exhaled an exhausted breath and ran his bruised knuckles through his curls. "Why do you keep pushing? I'm too drained to answer your questions."

"Fine, if you don't have the heart to talk about your feelings, then I don't see a reason why we are even together in the same room. I should go." I sighed, closing my eyes. He was too much of a difficult person to even care for, honestly. No matter what I tried, all he ever did was push me away.

As I stepped towards the door, he grabbed my wrist again and pulled me in front of him. "You're hurt. Let me treat it first. Then I will drop you." His voice was deep, and his eyes looked tired. I gave him a nod and let him lead me towards the couch.

I only had a small cut on my palm. The one who needed treatment was Jake. Wasn't it the reason I stayed behind?