7 | Better than this

"Nothings gonna hurt you baby."

Willa

𓇼𓇼𓇼𓇼

The car ride home was tense, thick with an unspoken heaviness that pressed against my chest. Alex kept glancing at me like she wanted to say something, but she didn't. Instead, she just turned up the music, letting the steady thrum of bass fill the silence between us.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't even know what I was feeling. My mind was still caught on the way Dom had looked at me back at the lake—the raw, unfiltered emotion in his eyes, the way his grip had tightened around my wrist like he was afraid I'd disappear if he let go. Like I hadn't already disappeared from his life once before.

I wanted to scream.

I wanted to rip that stupid tattoo off his back and throw it at his feet and demand to know why. Why did he still care enough to mark his body with something that would never leave him, when he had left me so easily?

My fingers clenched around my thigh, nails biting into my skin as I stared out the window, watching as the fading sunset bled across the horizon.

There, standing by the old gas station.

It wasn't just the sight of him that made my stomach drop, though. It was the people he was with.

A chill washed over me as I recognized the head of the group. The man standing next to Dom was someone I'd seen before, in whispers, in rumors. His name was Eli, and he wasn't someone you crossed. He was the kind of guy who ran the darker side of things in this town—deals, trades, substances. He had that cold, predatory look to him, like a snake waiting to strike.

The rest were older guys. Not just high school dropouts or the usual burnouts. These were men, late twenties or maybe even older, with hard expressions and tattoos that stretched up their necks. One of them was leaning against a rusted car, his arms crossed, watching Dom like a predator sizing up prey. Another had his hands shoved into his hoodie, speaking low and fast while Dom nodded.

I knew what this was.

I had seen it before, in whispers, in rumors, in the way Dom had disappeared for days at a time last year before he finally left for good.

This wasn't some casual deal with his idiot friends behind the gym.

This was something worse.

"Stop the car." My voice was sharp, cutting through the music.

Alec frowned, pulling his sunglasses off and glancing at me. "What?"

"Stop the car."

His gaze followed mine, landing on Dom. His lips parted slightly, and I knew exactly what he was thinking.

Not again.

"Willa, don't—"

"Just stop the fucking car, Alec."

He hesitated for half a second before pulling over onto the curb. Before he could argue, I was already unbuckling my seatbelt and shoving the door open.

Alex cursed. "Are you serious? Willa—"

"Drive away."

"Like hell I'm leaving you here alone." Alex said sharply from the drivers seat.

I turned to him, voice low and sharp. "I can handle it."

"No, you can't." He looked at the group again, brows furrowing. "Those guys aren't just some assholes from school. They're—"

"I know."

That was the problem.

Alec clenched his jaw, gripping the steering wheel hard enough to make the leather creak. "This is a bad idea."

"I'll be fine."

"Willa—"

"I need to do this."

His nostrils flared as he exhaled sharply, looking between me and the scene outside. I could see the battle playing out in his head. I wasn't just his best friend—I knew he thought of all of us as his family, due to his shitty one. He had picked up the pieces Dominic left behind. He had been there with Alex through the nights when I couldn't stop crying, through the months it took to pretend I was fine.

But Alec also knew me well enough to know I wasn't going to back down.

God knew if Roman had decided to come back with us and not hook up with Tessa Green, he would've dragged me back into the car himself out of his loyalty to Dom.

"Fine," he muttered. "But I swear to god, if you don't text me in five minutes, I'm coming back and dragging your stubborn ass out of here myself."

I didn't respond. I was already walking toward Dom.

As I approached, I could feel their eyes on me, the weight of their stares like fingers crawling under my skin. Eli's gaze flicked over me like a predator sizing up its prey, his lips curling into a smirk that made my skin crawl. The other guys were no better, their eyes narrowing in a way that made me feel exposed.

Dom stood at the edge of the group, looking tense, his shoulders squared. He looked different. Not just in the way his clothes hung off him, or the way his hair was unkempt and wild. He looked... lost. Almost out of place, like he didn't belong here. I wanted nothing more then to pull him into my arms.

I swallowed the lump in my throat as I stepped closer, trying not to show the unease gnawing at me.

"Dom," I called out, my voice cutting through the low murmurs of the group.

His head snapped up at the sound of my voice, and for a brief moment, I saw something flicker in his eyes—surprise, maybe? But it was gone in an instant, replaced with something colder, harder. He stepped forward, pulling himself away from the group, but not without a glance back at Eli.

"What the fuck are you doing here, Willa?" His voice was low, laced with irritation, but there was something else there too—a tension that I couldn't ignore.

"I came to take you home," I said, not bothering to sugarcoat it. I didn't care about the crowd, about the way they were looking at me, or the way Eli's smirk widened as he watched us. "You don't belong here. You don't belong with them."

Dom glanced back at the group, his face darkening. I saw the way his hand twitched, like he was ready to push me away, to send me back to where I came from.

Too bad for him. I was one stubborn bitch.

"I'm fine," he said, his tone hard. "This isn't your business."

I shook my head, refusing to back down. "The hell it isn't. You think this is fine? These guys? They're dangerous, Dom. You're better than this."

One of the other guys snorted, flicking his cigarette butt to the ground. "What's your problem, West?" His voice was thick with disdain as he eyed me like I didn't belong. "This your girl?"

Dom stiffened, his expression hardening, a flash of something dark crossing his face. "She's no one," he muttered, turning his back to me, like that would make everything go away.

I felt the sting of his words, but I didn't let it show. Not now. Not when I had come this far.

"I'm not leaving without you," I said, my voice quieter now, but firm. "Come home with me, Dom. Please."

For a long moment, he didn't say anything. His eyes flicked over to the group, to Eli, who watched with cold amusement, his arms crossed over his chest. But Dom didn't move toward him.

Then, with a quiet sigh, he turned back to the group, his voice low and controlled. "I'm out."

Eli raised an eyebrow. "Just like that?"

Dom didn't answer. He just shoved his hands in his pockets and started walking toward me.

I couldn't breathe.

I couldn't believe it. But he was walking toward me, away from the danger, away from them.

My heart hammered in my chest as we walked in silence, the tension still thick between us. The weight of everything that had happened hung heavy in the air.

When we reached our houses—his just a few steps from mine—I couldn't hold it in anymore.

"You're better than that!" I shouted, my voice cracking with frustration.

He flinched, but his gaze hardened. "You don't know shit, Willa."

"Yes, I do," I snapped, anger flaring. "You've got a choice, Dom. You always have. You think this is the only way? It's not. You had a choice at the lake, and you had a choice now. And you chose to walk away."

His eyes flashed with something darker. "You don't understand—"

"I understand more than you think," I shot back, fists clenched at my sides. "You're not some fucking lost cause. You don't have to live like this, Dom. You're better than them."

He didn't answer, but his gaze dropped for a split second, like he was about to say something. But then, without another word, he turned and walked away, disappearing into the darkness of his house.

I stood there, staring after him, my heart heavy with the pressure of everything left unsaid.

And then, finally, I turned and walked into my own house.

𓇼𓇼𓇼𓇼

Guys I'm actually so scared there's like two months till my gcse's😬😬😬😬😬

Anyway a few months back I posted a note on my announcement board with a sneak peek I got his book and that sneak peek is a major major hint on the upcoming plot......