Page 17 of Imbalanced Minds
Chapter Nine
Natalie
Sensing movement awfully close to me, I spin to find Justin with his cocky smirk and prominent blue eyes staring down at me, undressing me as if I’m about to be his next meal.
“Babe, you keep looking at me like that with those eyes and I’m gonna have to take you out back for a ravaging.” Justin purrs in my ear, leaning in so close I melt into him. “I bet you’re soaking for me too, you ready for round two, sugar?” he hums while I’m trying to regain all sense of control. Who am I kidding, that went out the window the moment I locked eyes with my five feet eleven of pure bulked muscle.
“Mm-hmm,” I drawl. His giant fingers caressing my cheek has me surrendering to his touch. “That sounds fun.”
Reality hits, remembering we’re still at the club and slightly frustrated, I step back and start searching for Iris; she should be back by now. “Babe, what’s the time?” I ask as I keep looking around the now out of control room.
“Ah, just after one. Why’s that?”
“Iris should be well back by now. She went to the restroom earlier, but I haven’t seen her come back. Justin, I need to find her.” I say with panic laced in my voice.
“Okay, well I’m on my break so I thought I’d come see you, but I’ll help you find her. Don’t worry babe, you know what she’s like. She’ll be out there partying with other friends she found or more likely some random. We’ll find her.” He tries hard to reassure me.
Considering it’s easier to look from higher ground, we enter the booth area with the help of Jay’s ID. Scanning all the faces is easy for me as I’m a people watcher, but none are the face I need to find.
With a bad knot in my stomach, I turn to Justin; no words are needed as he knows exactly what I’m going to say before I even say it.
“She’s in trouble!”
Without any further communication, Justin has my hand firmly in his grasp and is dragging me through the crowd towards the restrooms where Iris said she was going.
Before we even make it to them, I’m slamming against Justin’s solid back.
“Woah, geez baby, warn a girl first,” I sass. Hearing no reply from him when I normally would, I look around his tall frame to find what stopped him in his tracks.
I emit a painful high-pitched scream as I push past Justin to find my best friend lying on the floor—dress torn, blood coming from everywhere and her face all messed up with some strangers trying to help her.
“We found her and some guy in the storeroom out the back. He bolted past us before we could do anything. We tried to bring her out here to get help but…”
I’ve zoned out from whatever the stranger keeps saying while frozen on the spot beside her. There’s nothing I can do to make myself move or look away from the traumatizing situation before me.
I’m taken out of my trance by someone pulling me away, but I still can’t find the willpower to pull my eyes from the scene and wonder what the hell went so wrong.
Being handled like special cargo by Gunner who was out front with Justin has left me scared out of my mind, thinking the worst—thinking I’ve lost one of the best people in my life.
Trying to get free, I twist and buck but it’s of no use. He has me wrapped up like a burrito.
“Let me go, I need to help her!” I manage through gritted teeth.
When he finally stops, he whispers in my ear. “Love, you need to calm down. Your friend needs serious medical attention and you thrashing around in my arms or over there causing a disruption is going to do no one any good. Especially to him.” He nods in Justin’s direction.
Watching intently, I see Justin barely holding it together now with Iris in his arms.
Time slows in a warp. I honestly don’t know what happened; one moment we were on top of the world, celebrating the successes of life’s accomplishments, the next, it’s being torn from us—ripped to shreds leaving my best friend fighting for her life.
All train of thought is cut when I hear a shocked voice right beside me.
“Fuck.”
I hang my head in defeat.
I have no fight left in me as I watch two of the strongest men I know break before me.
— Cory —