Our fallen souls [EN] (High Enough) : VOLUME 1

50 - Joey & Blake

The next day, I'm sitting on a stool, a cold beer in hand, trying to de-stress. The wait is fucking long. It's been a long day and a short night. My heart skips a beat just thinking about joining a gang of criminals.

Maybe I'm overdoing it, but I prefer to keep my guard up. The atmosphere in this shithole worries me as much as anything I've discovered about them. With one gulp, I down my beer, my mind completely tense.

"Mike!" exclaims a guy behind me.

I turn around and face the big lump.

Oh no, please don't let him beat me up for yesterday.

"How are you?" he asks me cheerfully.

Well, either he's drunk or Blake didn't tell him about my intrusion yesterday.

"Hi... John," I reply in a flat voice.

He leans against the bar and looks me up and down. "Are you stressed or something?"

It doesn't take a genius to tell. My leg's moving like lightning, my forehead's all shiny and my breathing's going crazy.

"A second," I ask the waitress.

Come on, Joey, relax. It's just a trial run.

"The tests aren't that bad, you'll see," John tries to reassure me.

"Yeah, we'll see."

Bloody stupid gang.

"Hi, Dad," says a guy behind me.

I turn around and see Jared.

John, his father? What the hell?

I stand there, staring at Jared. His chestnut hair always well groomed and his green eyes, it's confusing. I already knew he was part of this gang, but to see him here, surrounded by all these guys, including his... father, it's scary. It's like this world doesn't fit him, just like it doesn't fit Joséphine. Jared reminds me of her, damn it, right now. Stop looking for similarities, Joey, it'll give you a headache.

"Oh, Mike!" he exclaims, gripping my hand tightly. His gaze locks with mine, and his smile immediately fades.

Yeah, he knows, all right.

"Jared," I say in a low voice.

He lets go of my hand abruptly.

"Are you ready for your first test?"

"Yeah, I feel ready," I answer, trying to mask my nervousness.

"Good," he replies curtly.

He approaches me, his mouth almost pressed to my ear. "Blake did you a favor by accepting you here. If I were him, I'd have left you in the lurch. Enjoy it."

His last words make my blood run cold. I answer with a forced smile and look away. I take another sip of my beer, hoping to calm my nerves, when I feel tapping on my back.

Shit, someone's here again.

"Hey, buddy!" exclaims Shawn, planting himself in front of me. "Long time no see!"

Almost forgot about that one...

"Your buddy's not much of a talker," remarks John.

Shawn looks down at me, a wicked grin on his face. "Yeah, he can be a bit special sometimes," he retorts, staring at me intently.

His gaze is anything but cordial, but I'm glad he's keeping his mouth shut in front of John. There must be a reason why nobody tells him anything. He's probably the most impulsive of all, despite his gentle appearance.