Kai
I pulled into the parking lot in front of George's complex. My mind was racing with different outcomes this conversation could end with, or if he would even explain everything to me in the first place. No, if he won't tell me, I'll make him tell me, I wanted to understand Diamonds. She makes me feel whole, like she filled in the emptiness that she left. God I miss her, I miss her so much. But if I can get to Diamonds, I feel like I don't have to grieve any longer.
Her walls are guarded up so high that she creates this 'strong' facade, I just want to see the girl behind those walls, and I want to show her how to love. I've never felt so close to somebody in such a long time and it makes me slightly nervous. Am I sure that I want to find out about Diamonds? Am I sure I want to know the truth? I'm not sure, I'm just certain that I want to take care of her and show her what she's been missing all of her life.
The ding of the elevator pulled me out of my daze and I searched down the hallways for 923. Once I was finally in front of it, I was hesitant to knock. My knuckles hovered over the wooden door until I sucked in a breath, and gently continued.
After a few seconds the door swung open and I was met with a very surprised George.
"Kai right?" He asked unsurely.
"Yeah, may I?" I asked gesturing to the living room.
"Yeah, course man," I walked over to one of the couches and sank down while my eyes were on the view of the city outside. Diamonds really does have a good taste in views.
"So what's up? You want something to drink?" He asked as he sat down on the couch in front of me.
"No, I'm alright. I just came here to find out Diamonds' story," I watched as George stiffened in his spot before clearing his throat, "W-what do you mean?"
"I mean her family, Jewels, the fighting, all of it. Talk," I questioned as I glared at George.
He bit on the side of his cheek and shook his head, "I don't think Diamonds would want me to-"
"Diamonds isn't being Diamonds right now George. She's fucking pissed," I interrupted.
"Pissed? Why-"
"I'll explain once you tell me, " I pushed.
He sucked in a breath of air before leaning back into the sofa and relaxed, "Well, we've known each other since, ever. I was with her through everything man, I watched her change into someone I didn't recognize but I knew if I asked questions it would make her uncomfortable, so I just waited until she would speak up, and when she did, it was already too late."
"Too late? What do you mean?" I wondered.
"You see, Jewels is Diamonds' 23 year old brother, and before they were inseparable. Sometimes I even got jealous of how close they were but I understood because they were siblings, their bond was really strong and she learned a lot from him back then," he leaned in and placed his elbows on his knees and let out a breath, "When Diamonds was in sixth grade, she slowly started to change. Kids would suddenly go missing and Diamonds kept her head down most of the time. Her goofy little outfits turned into a hoodie that looked like a dress and an old pair of jeans, and she's worn that every day throughout middle school."
"I stayed by her most of the time because I knew that she needed a friend, even though she tried to push me away, me being so stubborn, decided to stick with her. We wouldn't talk but would enjoy each other's presence but right after school she would disappear to get home really quick. She was the most gorgeous girl in the school who loved the attention but I watched as she turned that love into hate, and she wasn't the same anymore."
"One day, she asked me to ditch school with her and that she needed to talk so I did. We hung out at a park nearby where she told me everything that was going on with her-"
"And what happened to her?" I asked sternly.
"She told me that her brother would hurt her. Emotionally and physically. Her brother would make her stay in place while he threw knives at her for fun, he would kidnap some kids from school that she knew and use them against her just because he liked seeing her hurt. Sh- she told me that she had to watch Jewels kill her friends in front of her so she could be 'strong', but she was only in sixth grade and she was far from strong."
"I didn't believe a word that she had said until she took off her hoodie and- and I cried at how many scars she had on her body. Small cuts on her arms and legs from the knives, bruises that almost covered up her whole body, she looked like she was going to die any second. Her body was so frail and weak and so, so skinny that I could see down to her bone. It was unbelievable and I was so disgusted by her brother's actions. But what really caught my eye was the scar she had on her arm."
"It was carved into her skin as a sign that he would always be permanent in her life. That he would always be the worst thing in her life and that the only thing she should fear the most is him,"
"What was on her arm?" I asked quietly.
George took a deep breath, "Shattered Jewels... she covered it with that tattoo of roses she has though, and she told me how he blamed her for every bad thing in their life, for all the bad luck that came upon their family and she even believed him at some point."
"When she was staying here for the past week, she told me how he had fought him for your gang," My eyes shot up at his statement. Now it made sense on why she was beating him with so much more emotion than her fights with Williams.
"She told me how he only knew it was him because of his tattoo; shattered Diamonds. It was a promise to her that he would be back to get her and destroy everything she loved, that's why she was pushing you guys away in the first place. She was worried that he would use you guys against her like he did before, despite the fact that you're more powerful than him."
"Where did he go?" I asked confused.
"In her eighth grade, Jewels sold Diamonds to Williams as a fighter. Williams saw how fragile Diamonds was and instead took care of her while training, they grew a bond and when Williams found out that Jewels had put her in that state, he had him illegally shipped off to another country. But, I guess he escaped," he mumbled the last sentence, "since then Williams had always looked out for her and her mom. He always protected her like she was his own and that earned him her respect."
"She told me that she doesn't know what love is..." I whispered.
"She doesn't. But that doesn't mean she doesn't care. See, Diamonds likes seeing people happy because she doesn't know if they are going through a rough day. She believes that with every good deed she could have possibly saved a life. Though, she doesn't care about saving her own... " he trailed off.
It all makes sense now, she continued to fight for Williams because the money she earned would go to the house they were staying in for her mom. She survived through her abuse because she didn't want Jewels finding a new target. Diamonds races cars, fights, and possibly more things that could get her in danger but she doesn't care; because she doesn't care about her life. She doesn't talk to anybody because that could grow into a friendship and she's scared of having more of her friends dead because of her. She blames herself for Jewel's actions but she has to realize it was not her fault. It was never her fault, but he brainwashed her into thinking it was. And with the amount of things that has happened in her life, she's been holding everything in. She's like a bomb just waiting for someone to light match, and she might explode into an ocean of tears.
"Why did he do it?" The words were already out of my mouth before I could stop them, but I needed to know why.
"No one knows, Diamonds never likes to ask questions. So, only Jewels himself," George leaned back and stretched his muscles while I got up and stormed towards the door.
"Where you going?" He called from behind me.
"I'm gonna go find Diamonds," And I left without another word.
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Diamonds
I sat in Williams office burying my face with food as I sat in the far couch. This was the first place I thought I'd go to rant about everything that has happened almost three hours ago, and I honestly felt a little better.
Once I let everything out to him, he took me out to get fast food and ice cream so I could feel better. He had to cancel a meeting and even though I protested, he said that my feelings come first. I was glad to know that I had a guy like Williams in my life, or I would've definitely ran off to another state without looking back. Men have been coming in and out of here to talk to him, so I've been wearing my mask with some leggings and a windbreaker I had in my trunk, they're actually quite comfortable. I don't know why I haven't thought about wearing this before.
But anyways, since I'm in my mask the men have been acknowledging my presence but I have my headphones in so I don't have to eavesdrop on them. I mean it's just William's business, nothing I want or need to know about. He even offered to take me shopping later just to clear my mind, but I denied since I didn't want to keep spending his money. He's already doing enough by letting me accompany him, and the food of course.
A loud knocking was heard through my headphones and I took one out to listen better. Williams and I gave each other a look but we just shrugged our shoulders and I put my music on full blast to cancel it out. I buried my head in my knees as the intruder barged in but I didn't mind on looking up, I just focused on the lyrics of the song until I felt a small tap on my knee.
I looked up to see those all too familiar deep ocean blue eyes that I always get pulled into. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips into a smirk, I looked over to Williams who looked just as confused as me and I paused my music.
"Yes?" I asked softly.
"Hey princess, let's go," he said.
I looked up to him in confusion, "Where?"
"My house, you're staying with me sweet pea," he deadpanned.
"No it's okay, George doesn't mind me staying there so-"
"You're staying with me, and that's final," he crouched down to eye level with me and glared playfully. I rolled my eyes at him and started cleaning up my mess of food. I gave Williams one last hug and whispered, "I'll be fine, I'll call you if anything happens," before I pulled away. He gave me a nod and I walked out the door with Kai.
I told him I would follow him with my car and he agreed. As I slid in my car I couldn't help but feel like it was a little more silent than usual. But that's only because my mind was clear of it's thoughts and all I could think about was the volume the car lacked. I started following him down the road and when we stopped at a light, I decided to put on a little music.
The music filled the air and I tapped away to the beat with my fingers on the wheel. My head started bopping side to side once the light turned green and I continued to follow him until we stopped in front of large iron gates that looked like it was in the middle of nowhere. We passed the gates and a huge mansion came into view not too far, this driveway is long as fuck what the-
I parked my car near Kai's and I got out gawking at the structure before me. The lights were on since it was sunset and I couldn't help but admire the glow it gave it.
I heard someone clear their throat next to me and I turned to see Kai smirking down at me, "You got a little drool right there honey," he teased.
"Yeah, it must suck that I drool over your house instead of you," I fired back.
He put his hand on his heart and wiped away a fake tear, "Wow princess, that hurt right here."
"You're such an idiot. But anyways, do I have to prepare myself for any parent encounters?" I asked as we walked towards the door.
"They don't live with me," he explained shortly. I wanted to ask why, and where they were but he'll explain to me eventually.
I watched in the corner of my eye as he looked down at me expectantly, but I just kept my eyes towards the door. We stepped in and I was met with beautiful chandeliers that hung from the ceiling, illuminating light across the huge foyer that I gawked at. Many old paintings hung from the walls, all telling a different story in their own way.
He showed me to the third floor where many doors stood in the hallways. "Which one is my room then?" I asked curiously.
"There is no my sweetheart, there is only our now," he said smugly.
"Y-you want me to live here with you?" I asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, what'd you think I was doing?" He asked confusedly.
"I th-thought I was just g-going to s-stay here for l-like a couple of d-days maybe," I stuttered. I was just so struck by his kind gesture, I almost didn't believe it.
"Is it that surprising that you had to start stuttering?" He teased.
I rolled my eyes at his question, "Well duh!" I exclaimed.
He led me over to a chair by a window that took over a whole wall so we could look over the city and woods. He pulled another chair closer to me and rested his elbows onto his knees, "I know it's a lot to take in, but I don't want you going back there. With the way your mom has treated you-"
"You don't know how she treated me," I snapped back. Wow, I should probably keep myself under control.
He let out a sigh and continued, "I do know, you don't have to lie to me. But anyways, I just don't want you going back there right now. You are free to do anything in this house as much as you want. You can continue working for Williams and you don't have to be part of any gang work unless you want to. You will always be protected 24/7 either by me, Liam, and Blake, or another trusted guard. My only rule in this house; don't lie."
I took in the information and weighed my choices; go back to my mom and face the tension in that household with Jewels, or stay here where I could be protected by somebody who already knows my secret life. Well, if it wasn't obvious...
"Ok, but what about my things?" I asked in a sigh.
"We'll get them as soon as possible. But not right now, first, you eat and then you rest, okay?" He smiled softly at me, a genuine smile too. A smile that showed that he cared, one where he was hopeful, it was adorable.
"Okay yeah, but seriously which one is my room?" I asked as I walked back down the stairs.
"I'll show you after we eat, c'mon, I'm starving." He said trodding down the stairs.