Knockout

Chapter 3

"Girl get your ass out of that bed!" Thatcher yells from the bottom of the stairs. "You gotta be at Ren's in like thirty minutes!"

Today's the day, Ren's getting married. I'm absolutely ecstatic for her. I'm supposed to meet her so I can help her get ready. She said to be at the house at two, and it's one. It's a good thing I put my dress and shoes and everything in the car last night.

"Am I talking to a wall?" He teases, and I hear him coming up the steps.

I sit up in my bed and see Thatcher standing in only a pair of jeans in the doorway. Dang Thatch, why don't you have a boyfriend again? He walks over to the bed and puts a mug of coffee in my hand and I take a sip.

"I'll meet you at the church at five, I'll wait outside so we can walk in together okay?" I smile at him and he walks out of the room and hops down the stairs. "Now get up you're late!"

I roll my eyes and down the coffee. Something tells me I'll be needing it. I pull a hoodie on over my tank top and yank on some jeans. He's right though, I'm late. I run down the stairs and grab the keys from the table by the door.

"Five o'clock!" Thatch yells from the couch. "And remember when I said I think you should wear your hair up? Well I changed my mind so keep it down!"

"Remember when I let you move in?" I say, turning towards the couch and laughing. "Well I'm about to revoke the invitation."

Thatcher leans his head over the back of the couch and smiles at me upside down.

"Love you too." He laughs and brings his attention back to the tv. "Now get out of here girl, damn!"

***

I can see Rule's house from the bottom of the hill. For some reason it seems to get bigger every time I visit it. As I come up the driveway, I can't help but remember that night. It's like I can feel it all over again. The pain, the fear, and how it was all over as soon as he came. And it didn't hurt anymore, I was finally safe with him. Get out of my head! I shake my head and take a deep breath. I need to stop thinking like that.
I park next to Rule's Maserati and immediately I feel even more out of place than I usually do at his place. Sometimes I forget just how rich he really is. I walk to the front door and knock, only to hear Ren tell me it's unlocked from the inside. I let myself in, and see Ren with her hair in a towel scrambling with a hair dryer and a makeup bag.

"Hey, you can put your stuff in the bedroom I'll be there in a minute." She says and points down the hallway.

I walk down the hall to a large wooden door. It takes all of my force to get it open. I gasp when I see the inside, Rule's bedroom is bigger than Marshall's entire apartment. It has a cathedral ceiling, and the bed is clearly larger than a king size with dark maroon sheets. There's a big stone fireplace against the wall, a walk in closet, and a floor to ceiling window that overlooks the pool and then a city view of Detroit. I don't even want to know what the bathroom looks like.

"It's big, I know." Ren says, taking her hair out of the towel and squeezing the water out with it. "But you get used to it."

"I don't think I'd ever get used to this." I tell her.

"Well then I guess I'm just a lucky girl." She smirks at me and then takes me into the bathroom.

I was right about not wanting to see it. It's the size of Marshall's living room. The vanity in it could seat four, a sizable shower stands next to a bathtub the size of a jacuzzi. Next to the tub there's a large window with another city view, and nothing but hills.

"I know, don't say it." She laughs and I sit next to her at the vanity. Time to begin a long getting ready process.

"Rule's mother is going to come pick us up and take us over there at four thirty." She explains, heating up a curling iron. "I wanted just us to go but she insisted."