Bad Choices

(1) I will be the villain for you

Hey guys, welcome to my newest story 'Bad Choices'! I've always wanted to write a story featuring Jay Park as a mafia leader of sorts, so here it is..! Enjoy reading!

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The loud clanging sound of the metal gates behind me didn't have the same effect on me as it has for the past ten years. For once, this ear deafening sound was a good sign. Every fiber of my body felt alive again. A huge smile appeared on my face as I let the sunlight burn my cheeks. It felt liberating looking at the sky without having metal bars in the way.

I was finally free.

It felt weird now that I got released from prison. Honestly, I was starting to forget how normal life felt like. I had to remind myself about it every single night, thinking about the good times that I spent with my fiancé and my family members.

I did tell my fiancé about my release date. I was a bit disappointed that he didn't send someone to come pick me up, but the feeling didn't last long. Perhaps he was at work right now. He did promise he would send a car for me.

So I waited. And waited. And waited some more. I didn't have a watch or a cellphone, so I didn't know how much time went by. But when the sun started going down, I gave up waiting and started walking. I couldn't wait any longer; I had to see him.

My name was Lexi. I was 34 years old now after having been locked up for ten whole years for something I didn't do. However, I didn't have anyone to blame but myself. I lied to protect him, and I sacrificed my freedom for his. I didn't regret a second of it. Life in prison was the absolute worst thing that could have ever befallen me, but to me, it just made me realize how precious he was to me. Surely if he were in my shoes, he would have done the same thing.

As I strolled through the busy streets, nobody batted an eyelash at me. I bet people didn't remember my face from ten years ago. My trial was all over the news for several weeks. But my image from ten years ago was different from my current appearance. Ten years ago I was a beautiful, slender girl with curves in all the right places. My dark grey eyes made me stand out. I had long brown hair that I was proud of. I had inherited it from my mother and my mother's mother. As soon as I entered jail I was attacked by a group of women who decided I would look better with shorter hair. Much shorter hair. In an attempt to stand up to them and to stay alive, I changed my personality. My happy, bubbly attitude had completely vanished within a week's time.

But it was all worth it. I was out now, and I couldn't wait to see my love.

I could still remember where we lived. We lived in a high-end apartment that had a stunning view of the ocean. When I got there, I got hit by so much nostalgia. I didn't think I could get even more excited than I already was. I rang the bell and waited. But I didn't have much patience anymore. I started calling out for him. I couldn't tell if his car was parked in the garage or not, because the garage door was closed.

Did he really forget about my release date today? He sounded cheerful on the phone. Our relationship never dwindled despite the distance between us. He made it clear to me over and over again. He was the only one who could remind me of my old self. He was the only one who I could open up to about anything and everything that happened to me in jail. But... where was he?

"Are you looking for someone?" I heard a woman's voice say behind me.

I turned and found a frail, old-looking woman peering at me curiously.

"Yeah," I told her, "My fiancé lives here."

She let out a surprised gasp, which caused me to lift a brow at her. "What?" I asked her.

"The person who lives here is already married," the woman said.

I frowned. "What?" I repeated.

"He's married with two kids."

What the hell was she talking about? "Senile old woman," I grunted, "You don't know anything."

"Wait... are you... Lexi? Lexi Taylor?"

I hesitated to answer her. After staring at her for the longest of time, my eyes widened. Wasn't she my old neighbor? She didn't croak yet?

"Yeah," I told her, "Mrs. Lee, right?"

"Yes, although Mr. Lee died many years ago."

Yikes. "Oh, sorry to hear that."

She gave me a toothy grin. "Don't worry about it! I'm so happy to see you again. I couldn't believe you got arrested. Why did you do something like that? It was all over the news."

It annoyed me how this old woman's mind was still so clear. She was always great at remembering the finest details. In the past I used to like her. But I became cautious as the years went by. Mrs. Lee was sweet. But she liked to gossip. Telling her anything about what happened would definitely be a terrible idea.

"Greg got married?" I asked her, ignoring her question.

"Oh, no honey. There's someone else living here now. Greg moved elsewhere."

Relief flooded through me instantly, almost bringing me to my knees. I couldn't imagine Greg getting married to someone else. Just the thought of it made me sick to my stomach.

"Then where is he?" I asked her, giving her a small awkward smile.

"I can write the address down for you. Do you want to come inside for some tea?"

I really didn't want to. But I knew that look in her eyes; I had no choice. If I wanted information on Greg, I had to do what she wanted.

"Sure," I said, although the strain in my voice made it evident that I wanted anything but to do as she said.

I followed her into her house. For an old woman, she lived in a pretty big house. But everything about her house looked lonely. The inside of her house had the simplest items: a stuffy old leather sofa, a basic-looking kitchen... I could only imagine what her bedroom looked like.

Minutes later I was holding a hot cup of tea in my hands. I gave her a grateful smile, one that wasn't so awkward this time. Mrs. Lee smiled back at me.

"You didn't answer my question," she told me with the same sweet smile, "You're not the type of person who would do something like murdering someone. Were you covering up for someone?"

She was sharp; way too sharp for her own good. My smile dropped and all traces of my kindness disappeared.

"I don't want to talk about it," I told her firmly, giving her a warning look, "If you won't tell me where Greg is at, I'll search for him myself."

She chuckled. "My, my, aren't we impatient? I must be right then. I bet you got released for lack of evidence or good behavior."

I placed the teacup onto the coffee table and stood up. "I'm done here."

"He lives two streets from here," Mrs. Lee told me, "Big white house #51. He has a white Lamborghini now. It stands out, so you'll spot it immediately."

I nodded at her. I was about to leave when she grabbed hold of my hand.

"If you ever want to talk, I'll be here," she said.

I wasn't sure if she was saying this to be nosy or if she actually cared about my wellbeing.

"Do you have money? Don't you need a place to stay?"

"I'm fine," I told her, "I'll stay with Greg."

Something about her gave me the impression that she didn't want me to go look for him. Maybe it was the pleading look in her eyes. Or maybe it was her wrinkled shaky fingers that held onto mine. But I shrugged it off and gave her a reassuring nod.

"I'll be fine," I repeated.

She let me go. She didn't say anything else to me. I grabbed the teacup again and took a few sips from it. Tea has always been my weakness. It didn't matter which tea it was; I loved all of them. It was the surefire way for me to feel relaxed.

"Thank you for the tea," I told her before walking out of the house.