Stuck
1102 Words
LEXIE
I spent the rest of the morning avoiding everyone like they had the plague. After Chaos left my room, I stayed upstairs for a long time, sitting on the bed and staring at the wall like it might suddenly grow a brain and give me brilliant escape advice. It didn’t. The wall was useless, just like my current life choices.
Eventually my stomach started complaining loudly enough to drown out my overthinking, so I forced myself to go downstairs.
The bar looked different in daylight. Sunlight streamed through the windows, making the dark wood look less like a villain’s lair and more like a slightly less intimidating dive. Only a few people were around, a couple of older guys drinking coffee at a table and Mia behind the bar wiping glasses.
She looked up when I walked in and gave me a small, knowing smile. “You must be Sara. Coffee?”
“Please,” I said, sliding onto a stool. “Strong enough to wake the dead. Or at least strong enough to make me forget I’m currently trapped in a biker town with no exit strategy.”
Mia chuckled and poured me a cup. “Rough night?”
“You could say that.” I wrapped my hands around the warm mug. “More like a rough week. Month. Year. Honestly, my life has been one long ‘what the hell was I thinking’ montage lately.”
She studied me for a second but didn’t push. I liked that about her. Smart woman.
I took a sip and glanced around. “Any chance someone around here knows how to fix a motorcycle faster than two days? Because I’m starting to feel like I’m in a very slow hostage situation.”
Mia raised an eyebrow. “Crow’s good, but when he says he needs tools, he means it. That man doesn’t half-ass anything.” She leaned on the bar. “You in a hurry to leave?”
“Something like that,” I muttered. *Understatement of the century.*
Before she could reply, the front door opened. Chaos walked in with Brick behind him. His eyes found me immediately, like they always seemed to. He gave Brick a quiet order, then headed straight toward the bar.
“Morning again,” he said, stopping on the other side of the counter.
“Still morning,” I replied, trying to sound light. “I’m starting to think time moves slower in Harlow. Or maybe it’s just my luck taking a coffee break.”
A faint smirk touched his lips. “You’ll get used to it.”
“I don’t plan on staying long enough to get used to anything. I have places to be, people to avoid. You know, the usual.”
Chaos didn’t answer right away. He just poured himself a coffee and leaned against the bar, watching me over the rim of his mug. The silence felt heavy, not uncomfortable exactly, but full of things neither of us was saying.
I decided to fill it before it swallowed me whole. “Look, I appreciate the room and everything, but I can’t just sit around doing nothing for two days. Is there anything useful I can do while I’m here? I’m not helpless, despite how my current situation makes me look.”
He tilted his head slightly. “You don’t have to work.”
“I know, but I’d rather keep busy than go crazy in that room thinking about all my terrible decisions.”
Chaos considered me for a long moment. “There’s a storage room out back that needs organizing. Old parts, tools, paperwork. It’s a mess. You any good at sorting chaos?”
I gave him a dry smile. “I’ve had plenty of practice lately. My entire life has been one big chaotic storage room.”
He nodded once. “It’s yours if you want it. No pressure.”
“I’ll take it,” I said quickly. *At least my hands will have something to do besides shaking.*
The day passed faster than I expected. I spent most of it in the large storage room behind the bar, sorting through boxes of random bike parts, old receipts, and tools that hadn’t seen the light of day in years. It was dusty, tedious, and my back was screaming by noon, but it kept my hands busy and my mind from spiraling into full panic mode.
Every now and then Chaos would check in. He never stayed long, just long enough to bring me water or ask if I needed anything. Each time he left, I caught myself watching him walk away a little longer than I should have.
*Stop it, Lexie. He’s not a snack. He’s a whole damn buffet you cannot afford right now.*
By late afternoon, my back was aching and my hands were filthy, but the room actually looked decent. I stepped outside for some fresh air and found Chaos leaning against the back wall, smoking a cigarette.
He looked up when I approached. “Done already?”
“For today,” I said, brushing dust off my jeans. “You weren’t kidding about the chaos back there. I think I found three things that might actually be from this decade.”
He exhaled smoke slowly. “Told you.”
We stood in silence for a minute. The sun was starting to set, painting the sky in soft oranges and pinks. It felt strangely peaceful for a place that screamed danger.
“Why are you really helping me?” I asked again, quieter this time. “And don’t say ‘because you need it.’ I want the real reason.”
Chaos flicked the cigarette away and turned to face me fully. His storm-gray eyes held mine. “Because the first time I saw you on that road, you looked like someone the world had already tried to break… and you were still standing. I respect that.”
My throat felt tight. I looked away. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know enough.”
I let out a shaky laugh. “That’s a dangerous way to think, Chaos. I could be trouble.”
“You are trouble,” he said simply. “Doesn’t change anything.”
I stared at him, heart beating a little too fast and for the first time since I arrived, I didn’t feel like running.
Not immediately, anyway.
“I should get back inside,” I said softly, taking a small step back.
Chaos gave a single nod, but his eyes followed me as I walked toward the door.
- Writer
