**I added a new character so if you've already read the first chapter before I posted this one, go check her out!!**

Chapter 2
"When all you got to keep is strong, move along"

♥♥♥

AFTER A LONG DAY AND enjoyable night, Hana finally made it home. The brunette opened the door to the trailer she resided in and walked inside, noticing instantly that the living room was dark and empty. She hummed quietly in thought as she shrugged her jean jacket off her shoulders and she tossed it onto the couch. Her eyes flickered to the door of her aunt's room, pausing once she heard more than one voice.

The door was cracked open, loud music playing, so she walked up to it. She hesitated before looking into the crack to see Jamie as well as a few other people sitting in the room. There were a few empty needles laying around the bed as well as one being used by her aunt. A grimace appeared on her lips as Hana turned around to head to her room. She knew Jamie smoked weed, but that's where she thought it stopped. Meth was something she would never even try once, mostly because of the horror stories of addiction her mother would tell her as a precaution.

On the way to her bedroom, Hana accidentally stumbled on a beer bottle which led to a loud noise of the glass hitting a counter. She heard the door of her aunt's bedroom open as her whole body tensed and she turned around slowly to see a strange man. She hadn't seen him before, but she figured it was one of many one night's of Jamie's.

"Who are you?" He asked, his words slurring. The man stood quite a bit taller than Hana with a buzz-cut and dark brown eyes that seemed to be sunken in slightly. He wore no shirt so she could see how skinny he was, his sweatpants barely hanging onto his hips.

Jamie's head poked around the man's shoulder and her face lit up once she saw Hana. "That's my niece, Hana. She's living with me-"

"More like you're living with me," Hana grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest. She didn't know what she was going to do about this. Sure, she was friends with Heather and Natalie, but Heather was almost more worse off than her and she wasn't as close to Natalie to stay with them.

Jamie only let out a fit of laughter in response and she patted the man's shoulder. "See? She's hilarious, just like I told you," She paused as she looked from Hana to the man. "Oh, this is Jax. The other two in my room are Trevor and Justin. You should come hang out with us, Hana."

"I think I'll pass. I have work tomorrow and it's already late," Hana responded as she forced a smile onto her lips.

Hearing this, Jamie shrugged her shoulders and turned to go back into her room. Hana could feel Jax's eyes lingering on her as she turned around and she went into the kitchen to open the fridge, searching for a bottle of water. Dry mouth was a bitch.

"Grab me a beer," Jax said as he walked into the kitchen, leaning against the counter behind her. She grabbed her water and turned around to face him as she chuckled.

"Why don't you grab it yourself?" She asked, a faux sweetness lacing her tone. The young woman began to walk past him only to halt to a stop when she felt his hand wrap around her wrist tightly.

"You better watch who you're talking to like that, cunt. I'm not afraid to hit a woman," Jax growled into her ear, his grip tightening around her wrist.

Not even flinching, Hana turned to face the man seeming to bring their faces inches apart. She stared him right in those dull eyes of his and she smirked. "And I'm not afraid to kick a druggie in the balls."

She then yanked her hand away from him and she walked past Jax with a scoff. Leave it to Jamie to find a bunch of assholes just for a lick of drugs. The last thing she heard before she shut the door to her room was a low, taunting laugh that sent shivers down her spine. It was nothing like Ray's which was more teasing and, in a way, attractive.

Hana quickly shut the door behind her and she locked it in hopes to keep any unwanted visitors out. She could never be too careful. She let out a soft sigh as she ran a hand through her hair, plopping down onto her bed. What had her life turn into? Utter shit, that's what. And that was why she couldn't wait to begin Panic.

♥♥♥

Hana leaned against the counter at work, a bored expression engraving itself into her face. She wore an idiotic blue cap that read "The Snack Bar" in yellow letters as well as a matching blue apron. The pay was decent enough for her first job, but it got quite boring. Luckily, she had made it through most of the day and she couldn't wait to get home to take a long ass nap. Those fuckers partied all night.

Her eyes landed on a certain triad and she straightened her posture. Bishop came up to the counter with that same kind smile of his. "Hey, Hana. I didn't know you worked here."

"Hey, and yup I just started a couple of weeks ago. I told my manager he could pay me in the drinks we make but he said 'unfortunately, we can't do that.'" Hana told him, lowering her voice to mimic her manager horribly.

This earned a light laugh from her friend as he pulled his wallet out from his back pocket. "Let me get three of those lemonades, please." He told her as he glanced over his shoulder at Natalie and Heather who seemed to be in a deep conversation.

With that, she made their drinks, making sure to put the biggest slices of lemons in them. Hana didn't know what it was about those three, but they always seemed to put her in a better mood. She handed each of the drinks to Bishop and he switched them out for the money, putting a few dollars in the tip jar for her.

"Thanks, Hana, and if you hear your manager saying he's hiring, make sure to tell Heather. She got let go from her recent job," Bishop told the girl as he began to back away.

Hana only nodded in response, taking a mental note of his request. She sent him a kind smile and a wave of her hand. "Of course. See ya'll later, Bish."

Bishop nodded back to her before heading over to his other friends. Hana's eyes lingered on them for a few more seconds as she leaned up against the counter once again. Her line of sight was cut off by a customer and she stood up straight.

"Hey, how can I help-"

Hana cut herself off once she saw the person and she instantly recognized her face. "Oh my god. Kelsey Langley?"

There before her stood her best friend from middle school. Her, Kelsey, and Ray used to be as tight as Natalie, Heather, and Bishop. The young woman had short black hair and the most vibrant blue eyes Hana had ever seen, well, in competition with Ray of course.

Kelsey didn't leave Carp willingly, which would surprise anyone she told this story to. When they had reached the ninth grade, her parents split up and her dad dragged her all the way to Florida. Her mom was actually Christine Langley who was a cop at the Carp Police Station.

"Hana fucking Donovan," Kelsey started as a wide grin spread across her lips. "I thought that was you! You've changed so much."

Hana quickly motioned to the side door of the small building and she walked outside, immediately wrapping her arms around the former best friend. "I've missed you so much. Are you back to visit your mom?"

"Yeah, she practically begged my dad to bring me for the summer," Kelsey replied and she gave Hana a bear hug in return. Once they had embraced each other for a few moments, the two parted and Hana felt as though her cheeks were going to fall off from how much she was smiling. "I wanted to come see my best friend, of course, but I also wanted to come because of Panic."

"I hate that you can't participate," Hana grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest. Only the graduating class from Carp High School specifically could attend the games.

"I totally would if I could, but now I get to relax and watch my best friend give it a go."

"You mean win?" Hana asked as a smirk curled the corners of her lips upwards. Kelsey could only laugh in response and nudge the other girl with her elbow.

"Exactly."

After a few more moments of catching up, the two girls sadly had to part so Hana could actually do her job. She couldn't explain how happy she was that Kelsey was back in town. On the other hand, she knew the cops were looking into the competition even more this year so she hoped her friend would be careful.

♥♥♥

"KELSEY LANGLEY is back in town, huh? That's one awesome bitch," Jamie said as the two rested on the couch. They were sharing a blunt, mostly because Hana wanted to get rid of the nerves that were bugging her due to the first night of Panic.

"Yeah," Hana nodded as she passed the brown paper over to her aunt, coughing a bit because of the smoke in her lungs. "She asked me to hang out with her tonight, so I'll be at her house."

"That's fine. The boys are coming back over tonight," Jamie murmured before taking a drag, Hana rolling her eyes in response.

"Just don't let them in my room. Jax seems like he has sticky fingers," Hana grumbled only to pause once she heard the sound of fireworks. The girl stood to her feet as she took the blunt from Jamie, pulling in another long hit before handing it back to her.

"Bye, Hana Banana."

Hana felt like Jamie knew that she would be playing the game, but Hana never brought it up. This was because Jamie would most likely blab to anyone while under the influence if they asked. Word went around quick in the small town of Carp.

With that, Hana left the trailer and she grabbed her backpack on the way out just in time to see Kelsey walking up. She couldn't stop the big smile that appeared on her lips as she grabbed her board.

"You ready?" Kelsey asked as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her jean shorts.

"Hell yeah," Hana replied as she laid her board down, taking off down the street with her best friend close to her side. As her short, brunette locks blew in the wind behind her, she felt as if things were finally falling into place. She had her best friend back and she had a big cash prize in the hopeful future.

Her eyes trailed upwards at the night sky which would usually be only lit up by twinkling stars, but tonight it was colorful. Fireworks were being set off in many different places, a tactic to set off the cops in the wrong direction hopefully.

Finally, the two made it to the setting of the Panic players' first challenge, Pilot's Point. It was a large water hole that had a cliff on the opposing side which Hana knew they would be jumping from. Luckily for her, she wasn't afraid of heights. It was just the point of hitting the water the right way so she wouldn't break her legs.

"Phones!" Summer called out at her table as Hana and Kelsey walked up, shooting them a smile. "You got a phone?" She asked and the two gave her theirs. That was one major rule with Panic: whatever happens in Panic, stays in Panic.

"Kelsey Langley! Welcome back. I would pay to see you in the challenge." Summer grinned brightly at the girl and she leaned over the table.

"That's the same thing I told Hana over here."

"Jesus Christ!"

Hana let out a quiet groan as she heard Ray's voice behind her, feeling his arms sling over both her and Kelsey's shoulders while standing between them.

"No, it's just me." This reply from Hana earned a few laughs from both Kelsey and Ray.

"Looky here, we got the gang back together. I think this calls for a threesom-"

"How about you stop talking before Ray Jr. gets detached?" Kelsey asked earning a nudge from Ray.

"Then Ray would become Regina. Now, that's something I would pay to see," Hana said with a nod of her head, the two girls falling into a fit of laughter.

"Hardy har har," Ray grumbled before pulling away from the two, now facing them as he backed towards his group of friends. He shot them handguns with a wink and said, "If you change your minds, you know where to find me."

"Unlikely!" Kelsey called out as he began to walk away, turning his handguns into middle fingers in the air.

Hana's eyes stayed on the man for a moment only to glance back over at Kelsey, seeing her wiggling her eyebrows at Hana. "Someone's got an eye for Hall."

"I think I might throw up," Hana started to gag after saying this as Kelsey began to poke her stomach. Their little conversation was interrupted (thank god) by Diggin's voice, the person who was hosting Panic that year.

"May I have your attention!" Diggins called out into a voice amplifier. "Welcome to Panic!"

Everyone began to cheer, this even including Hana as she clapped and hollered.

"My name is Diggins and this summer I will be your host with the most. This year, the winner of Panic is gonna take home the grand prize of 50,000 dollars!"

Hana blinked in surprise as she heard this, her hands pausing in front of each other. That would definitely be enough to get her out of this damn town. She would finally be able to leave everything behind.

"Wow, last year was only 30." Kelsey mumbled, a shocked expression of her own coming across her face. Kelsey's dad was a doctor in Florida, so they were pretty well off. If anything, she would have played just for the hell of it... honestly, that's why Hana was glad she couldn't play.

"You all know the rules. What happens at a challenge stays at a challenge, so I don't wanna see any posting," Diggins started again as he pointed at random people in the audience, "tweeting, or gramming about it, no exceptions. Anyone found in violation risks losing game privileges. The first challenge is the Jump."

People began to "ooo" and "ahh" as Diggins turned around to motion towards the cliff. Diggins continued, "Remember kids, you want to go out and down into the swimming hole. You miss it, and it's gonna be the rocks that break your fall. Take a leap from the lookout and grab yourself 100 points, courtesy of this year's friendly judges, whoever they may be."

Hearing this sent chills down Hana's spine. As if Kelsey had noticed her change in demeanor, she wrapped an arm around the girl. "You got this. Just run and jump as far out as you can. It doesn't look too bad."

"Let the games begin!" Diggins yelled out, making the crowd continue their cheers.

Hana let out a soft sigh and she began to pull her clothes off, leaving her in a simple black bikini. She put her clothes in her backpack, tossing it to Kelsey and earning a wink from the girl.

"Go get it, bitch!" Kelsey said before gently shoving her back towards the table Summer sat at.

Hana laughed softly and she made her way over to the table again. As she waited in line, she glanced over at Kelsey with a smile. No matter how hard Hana acted sometimes, she already felt better having Kelsey by her side during this. She blinked once she saw Bishop walk over to her, watching as they held a conversation. It wasn't the fact they were talking, but the conversation looked pretty deep.

"You ready for this, Hana?" Natalie asked as she walked up, patting the girl on the back with a grin.

"Fuck yeah. Let's do this." With that, Hana turned around to step up.

"Hey again, Hana. Damn, nice suit," Summer said as her eyes raked over Hana's tanned body. "Here, you need a number and a flare. You're number 10."

Hana chuckled softly as she watched the girl write on her hand in black marker. "Thanks," She said with a smile and she took a flare. She stepped aside so Natalie could go next, her eyes flickering over to Dodge who stood behind her friend.

Hana took the cap off of the flare and ignited it before walking towards the hill. She felt her heart beginning to race, hearing people call her name from down below. The girl walked up to the first ridge and she could almost hear her mother's voice.

"Shoot for the stars, Hana baby."

"Contestant number te-"

Diggins cut himself off as Hana turned and began to go for the next cliff. She gripped the flare tightly, her knuckles turning white from the pressure. Her mind flickered back to her dad's knuckles when he was choking her mom, that being one of the first things she noticed. She dropped the flare as she got to the cliff and she peaked over the edge, watching the still water for a moment.

"Looks like we got a player going for the high point!"

The rest of his comments about the different points on the cliff began to drown out as she listened to the waves crashing onto the rocks, making a mental note in her head to avoid those.

"Contestant number ten, state your name!"

"Hana fucking Donovan!" Hana yelled back as a grin appeared on her quivering lips due to the cold wind. Hearing this from her earned cheers from the crowd below.

Hana didn't give herself a chance to back out as she made a run for it. Before she knew it, she was pushing herself up to jump and her feet lost contact with the earthy ground. She straightened her legs so the impact wouldn't be terrible and in the blink of an eye, she was engulfed by water.

♥♥♥