The stiffness in my back woke me the next day. I sat up with a weary groan and rubbed the nape of my neck. "Morning." Croy's voice lifted my spirits immediately.
"Croy, you're okay!" I shouted as I tossed my arms around him
"Ow, ow, ow, careful with the cut." He chuckled as I pulled away.
"Oh right, sorry." I apologized sheepishly.
"So how are you feeling?" I asked as I drank some water.
"I'm okay. I think you did a really good job. Look, it's still dry." He enthused as he pulled up his shirt and showed me the clean gauze. My cheeks grew warm when my gaze focused on his abs instead of the cut.
"You okay?" He asked as he put his shirt down.
"Yeah! Why wouldn't I be?" I asked with a nervous chuckle. He rolled his eyes before handing me a granola bar. "You hungry?" He asked. I nodded and accepted it, gratefully peeling the wrapper off and taking a bite.
"So, what happened last night? Why did you pass out like that?" I asked as I munched on the bar. He shrugged.
"Honestly, I don't know. I think I lost a little too much blood though, cuz I still feel light-headed." He muttered before shoving the last of his granola bar into his mouth.
"You do look a little pale." I admitted before sticking the wrapper in my pocket.
"Do you remember anything from last night?" I asked, my cheeks heating up at the memory. He shook his head.
"No, although I do remember looking at you before passing out. I had a reason though." He trailed off as he scratched his head. "Oh yea. I was going to clean your face. You have blood on your cheek." He said as he opened the first aid kit and took out some moist towelettes. "Hold still." He instructed. I swallowed nervously as he took my face in his hands. I could feel heat rising to my cheeks as he studied me.
"That bastard hit you pretty hard huh?" He asked as he ran his thumb along the bruise o my cheekbone. I nodded. Goosebumps prickled my skin as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "You have a cut near your brow." He informed before rummaging around in the kit. "Don't move." He reminded before pouring some peroxide on a piece of gauze and cleaning my cut.
I flinched.
"Sorry, I'm almost done..." he trailed off before opening a giant band-aid and placing it above my brow. "There you go, how does that feel?" I touched the band-aid above my eye carefully.
"Much better, thank you." I blinked as he took my chin, bringing me even closer to check me for any more scratches. When he traced my bottom lip with his thumb, it tingled.
"Your lip is swollen too." He muttered. "Does it hurt?" He asked without letting go. I shook my head and noticed that one of his eyes was also darkening and his nose had a cut on the bridge. A few scratches lined his jaw and a another cut through his top lip. Even with all those injuries, he still looked...perfect.
"Why didn't you run?" He asked in a low voice as he kept his hand on my chin. "If you had, you wouldn't have so many injuries." He scolded.
"I couldn't just leave you by yourself." I huffed as he pulled away.
"While I appreciate the gesture, I think it was stupid on your part." He admitted as he began putting away the health kit.
"So, I'm stupid for worrying about you?" I asked, a little miffed. "Honestly, yeah. You could have gotten hurt. Those guys could've done something terrible to you. It was hard to concentrate on fighting them when I couldn't stop worrying about you." I furrowed my brows at him.
"Well sorry for caring!" I blurted out; his eyes widened. "Sorry I'm not as strong as you, or as brave. Sorry you have to worry about me."
He sighed. "I didn't mean it like that." He assured.
"Then how did you mean it?" I asked, upset. Croy took the gauze he was holding and tossed it across the room.
"Why do I always have to spell everything out for you!?" He snapped, his eyes darker than before. "Do you want me to paint you a fucking picture, is that it!?" He shouted as he crawled towards me. I leaned back, a little anxious.
"You always want me to state the obvious, it's infuriating!" At this point Croy was so close that I could see the freckles that dotted his nose. A heavy silence blanketed the dungeon as I held his glare. "You're not a burden, and I'm not very brave." He muttered as he sat in front of me.
"That's a lie. You're the bravest person I know." I countered firmly. He shook his head.
"I can't get through a simple birthday without wanting to cry. I can't open-up to people because I'm afraid they'll leave. I can't even tell the girl I like, how I feel about her..." He trailed off. My heart cringed when I heard the last part.
"The...girl you like?" I repeated unconsciously. His face turned pink as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Yeah..." He muttered. 'He already likes someone...' I thought sadly to myself as I stared down at my boots.
"Hey, why are you making that face?" He asked as he placed his hand back on my cheek. I shook my head.
"It's nothing, don't worry about it." I muttered as I fought with the lump in my throat. I failed to notice the change in atmosphere as he leaned in a little bit closer.
"Tell me." He whispered; his eyes focused on my mouth. Both of us leaned in, entranced by the moment...
"Ramos! Gallego! The warden wants to see you!" A loud voice made us jump away from each other. We glanced up as the metal door opened with a clang. Quickly, I picked up my stuff. Croy shoved the half-drank water bottles into my satchel and followed behind as the Sargent led us out of the pit. We took stairs to the warden's office. When we reached the top, the Sargent held up his hand to stop us before knocking on the door.
"Come in." The warden instructed. Croy and I both tensed when we caught sight of Scaggot already standing in the room. "Thank you, Jeremy, you may leave now." The young Sargent gave her a quick salute before stepping out and closing the door.
"Hey sweetheart, did you miss me?" Scaggot asked before blowing me a kiss.
"You son of a bitch!" Croy snapped before lunging towards him.
"Croy no!" I shouted as I pushed him back.
"Mr. Ramos, behave yourself!" The warden scolded slamming her hands on the desk.
"Sorry..." He apologized before taking a step back. After a few seconds, she took a seat again and opened one of the files on her desk.
"Any of you kids care to explain the destruction to the kitchen?" She asked before taking off her reading glasses and hanging them on her blouse. Her short hair was messy, and a bitter scowl framed her lips.
"I caught them stealing from the freezer and when I confronted them, this delinquent attacked me!" Scaggot lied through his teeth.
"You're so full of shit!" Croy growled.
"He's lying! He was the one stealing! Don't you have cameras in there? Can't you check the footage!?" I asked.
"All the cameras in the kitchen were damaged. There's no way to retrieve anything from them..." She trailed off.
"It says here that you've been punished for stealing before." She told Croy as she motioned to his file.
"Yeah, when I was eight!" He protested.
"It also says you've been punished three times for fighting and one other time for attempting to escape." Croy stared down at his boots. "Your record doesn't exactly help your case Mr. Ramos. How can you expect me to believe anything you say?" Croy kept his gaze fixed on the floor.
"Because it's true, I was there! Croy didn't take anything. He was only trying to get that asshole off me!" The warden glowered at me.
"Watch your language! Especially when addressing my nephew!" She scolded. That's when I understood. They were related. It was the warden's nepotism that made Scaggot untouchable. "Mr. Ramos, it looks like your release date was scheduled for December twenty seventh, the day after you turn eighteen, is that correct?" Croy nodded.
"Well after much debate, we've decided you're a menace to society and we won't be releasing you until you turn twenty-one." The color drained from his face. "I've already spoken to the judge and he gave the verdict. See for yourself." She said before handing him the paperwork. He shook his head incredulously.
"No, this can't be true. FUCK!" He shouted before tossing the papers on the ground and storming out of the room. A satisfied grin framed Scaggot's lips as I ran after Croy.
"Croy, wait up!" I shouted as I sprinted after him. "There has to be something we can do, maybe if we-"
"NO! Give it a rest, just go home!" He shouted before disappearing into the woods.
(A/n: Aww poor Croy! Nothing ever seems to go his way! DX Also, what was all that hullabaloo in the Pit? Could they be falling for each other? ;) Check out the next chapter to find out! To all those of you that have made it this far in the story, thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I love you guys!)