THE DEADLY SEVEN

It could be something

Lucy;

I focused ahead at my goal, sprinting was my thing, I was amazing at it! My legs pumped harder, the wind whipped past my sweaty face. I had spent months preparing for this meet. I was going to win, I HAD to win, there was no other choice. The finish line loomed closer, I pushed harder, sweat dripping in my eyes. I could see the Oakmont, runner to my left, she was creeping up slowly. My arms pushing furiously forward, I puffed my chest out, crossing the line seconds before anyone else. I rested my palms on my knees, sucking in breaths sharply.

" LUCY, great job my girl." Coach Saunders, enthused.

"I have to admit, I was slightly concerned for a moment! That Oakmont girl was fast. That burst of energy came from no where Lucy, you are amazing. I am proud of you! Go get cleaned up. There is a luncheon for all the schools athletes." She turned, striding towards the buses. I admired Coach Saunders, she was a middle aged lady who somehow had broken into a male dominated industry. I had never heard of a Female coach before. It was empowering and she was PROUD OF ME! I felt like I was floating on a cloud. My head was in a daze.

" Hey, great race Lucy" His hand on my shoulder made my skin erupt in goosebumps. I had never felt so giddy.

"Thanks, Jason" I mumbled. My cheeks flushing a furious pink. I wanted to be noticed, I needed to be acknowledged. However, attention from men still made me melt, especially Jason. The head of the football team. He had a following of girls, why should I be worthy of any of his attention.

" Wanna ride with me to the Lunch do?" His question made my heart jump into my throat.

"Uuuh..Y..Yea, I g..guess so." I stammered out.

His beautiful smile lit up his hazel eyes. He was so bright and compared to Luc's dark and brooding demeanor.

We walked hand in hand, casually glancing at each other.

" Tell me more about you Lucy." His voice was deep and smooth.

" I grew up in the country and then came here for University, a scholarship." I had never been good at talking about myself, it was " boastful" and so very obviously not something I should indulge in.

Jason chuckled " OK, not exactly the type of information I was after. Let's start easy, family?"

We found a seat and he shifted to be facing me. " They ahhhh, they don't really talk much to me anymore." I shifted uncomfortably, in my months here they had not once tried to contact me, I guess I had also not tried, but it hurt. I was hurt.

Jason's smile turned to a scowl of concern.

" Oh, wow, Lucy, I am sorry. I didn't mean to bring stuff up. Just tell me to shut it next time."

" It's OK, you weren't to know." I desperately wanted the conversation to continue. I hadn't made many friends since moving here. Claudia had mountains of friends, she socialised heavily with the church. I just couldn't bring myself to associate with another bunch of people blindly following a faith that seemed to disagree with everything.

" Well then, if I can be heavy again, boyfriend?" He raised an eyebrow with his question.

I took a deep breath and sighed " I..I... it's complicated."

To my surprise he smiled."Well it isn't a no, that's fantastic!"

He was so upbeat, so positive. I couldn't help but smile.

" Why does this make you so happy?" The question slipped, I mentally slapped myself. How stupid could I be.

I couldn't quiet make out the expression on his face, it was possibly confusion.

" You really are clueless, aren't you? Did you realise every man on this bus wants to talk to you? Haven't you noticed how everyone stops when you enter the room? His revalations floored me. I wasn't anything amazing. I mean, yea, I was athletically gifted, but I wasn't beautiful like Claudia was.

The rest of the bus ride was an uncomfortable silence. I felt uneasy. I wasn't sure why, my chest was heavy and my stomach was giddy. Jason tried again to lighten the mood. "Why did the chicken cross the road."

" Nope, I am drawing a blank. Why?"

" To get to the other side." His punch line had me snorting.

" Oh my, how bad is that joke, it is so bad not even a dad would use it!" I managed through giggles.

" Yea, but it worked. Look at you smiling."

He wasn't wrong. I had forgotten about the heavy feeling and I was laughing freely at his terrible jokes. He was a nice guy. I could see us being.... Something.

Luc;

I had been feeling so distant lately, focusing more energy on corrupting Claudia than maintaining my hold on Lucy. Juggling girls was hard work. Claudia was slowly but surely becoming increasingly greedy. I over heard her asking Lucy for more money, she also wants to hide it from Josh, this could not be anymore perfect. I can see the effect it's having already. Lucy freely boasts about her accomplishments, she no longer attends church. Claudia is taking what makes her happy and keeping for herself. I can see big things in her future. She will spread her sin far, I can tell now.

Feeling extremely proud of my efforts to date, I wandered down the busy streets of the city. I always like to escape when Josh is home. I need him to keep thinking of me as a decent human.

I spotted a diner, it was around coffee -o'clock. A familiar laugh rang through my ears. Lucy sat at a table with a giant brute of a man, he was handsome, but she is MINE!

I had to plan my next move carefully, I had kept Lucy at an arms length, I wasn't sure being romantically involved would be beneficial, it would also make my life harder further down the track. Heart break, scorned women, it all made my head hurt.

I placed both my hands on the table and leaned foward. " Hey Lu, how was the meet today?" I am sure she could sense the danger in my tone, her body stiffened.

" Oh hey Luc, it went great, I won." She didn't sound excited, she was nervous. Something so important to her should make her joyous, why did it not?

" Care to introduce me to your friends." I questioned. My tone was neither nice nor nasty. It however held danger.

The brute stood up and held his hand out towards me, he smiled, he wasn't intimidated like he should be. " Hey man, I am Jason, the coaches are all just treating us after a successful meet."

" Nice to meet you." I grabbed his hand in mine and squeezed tightly. Trying to regain the authority in the conversation.

" I am so surprised to see you here Luc, I thought you were working." Her sweet voice had regained composure, relaxing me. She was still mine.

" I was just on lunch, lucky for me I got the surprise of seeing your beautiful face." Feeling satisfied that I had proven our connection to this group of jocks.

Her cheeks blushed a soft pink, it complimented her so well. " Oh Luc, you are so cheesy!" Her giggle melted me.

" I am late, I will see you tonight. " I lent over and kissed her cheek. Turning to walk out the door.

His voice was lowered " I am going to fight for you Lucy, I will prove that I am who you should choose."

Obviously his words were not meant for my ears, it made my blood boil. Game on human, game f*****g on!