"Seth!" Corey knocked on the door. "Are you awake?"

Before Seth got a chance to answer, Corey opened the door. Seth sat up and dried the sleep from his eyes while he looked at Corey who had been generous enough to let Seth stay with him and Carmella for a while. Corey looked nervous, already chewing on a nail. Seth knew it was a big day.

"Is everything okay?" Seth asked. "Shouldn't you be on your way?"
"The car won't start," Corey said.
"Do you wanna borrow mine?" Seth asked.
"Fine, the car isn't the problem. I'm too nervous to drive. I need you to take me there," Corey said.

Seth did his best to keep his excitement down. Despite never having met Corey's sister before, he had heard stories and seen pictures. And what pictures. He was well aware the woman never smiled on the few photos Corey had been allowed to take over the years. Always sitting behind the glass with that prison suit on. But Seth couldn't deny the attraction. It ran deep. It felt real.

"Just let me take a piss first and we'll be on our way," Seth said.

12 years. Originally she got 20 but she was getting out on good behavior. From what Corey had told, she had become some sort of motherly protector on the inside, taking care of the new girls and showing them the rounds. It was kind of absurd seeing she was only 19 when she went in. She was 31 now and had never had a real life on the outside. Not since her childhood.

Corey was silent on the long drive to the prison. Seth didn't mind. They shared the same taste in music so he let the music fill the silence in the car. Meanwhile he wondered how Corey's sister would be in real life. Gail Graves. A beautiful woman with long, dark brown hair and a pair of dark green eyes that seemed to stare out from the pictures and directly into the person looking at them.

"We're here," Seth said.

Corey opened his eyes and looked at the prison in front of him. Soon his little sister would walk out through that gate and back into the real world. She was gonna stay with him and Carmella until she got back on her feet. Corey praised himself lucky that he had found a girlfriend who didn't mind all this mess. Carmella was currently gone shooting a secret project for weeks, so Corey and Gail had time to find their way back to each other. Only Seth was there too.

"Don't get me wrong because I'm fucking happy you took me here today, but why are you still here? Why haven't you gone home to Iowa yet?" Corey asked.
"It still feels too weird with Becky gone," Seth said.

That was a lie. Sure, Seth had started seeking out his friends when Becky and him broke up, but truth was that he was over her. He had been for a while. Instead he had started falling for Gail through the pictures and the stories Corey told. Seth knew it was fucked up. It was all in his mind. But he wanted to meet her at least once. That's why he was still there. Corey never questioned Seth's supposedly broken heart. One day Seth might come clean about it all, but not today.

"Oh my god, there she is," Corey said.

Seth moved his eyes to the gate as it opened. Gail came walking out wearing a pair of light blue jeans with holes on the knees, a pair of light brown cowboy boots full of sparkling sequins and a brown and green checkered shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. She looked like she had stepped out of a 90's country music video. All she needed was a cowboy hat. Her long hair was pulled back in a low ponytail.

"Gail!" Corey yelled.

Corey ran to her and scooped her up in a big hug. Seth stayed in the car and watched the siblings. He felt awkwardly jealous for no other reason than wanting to hug her too. It was not his place. They had never met. He didn't even know how much or how little Corey had told her about him. Corey grabbed Gail's hand and dragged her over to the car. Corey got back into the passenger seat while Gail took the back seat.

"This is Seth. You remember me telling you about him, right?" Corey asked.
"I remember," Gail said.

Her dark, velvety voice made the hair on Seth's arms stand up. In a good way yet also in a kind of scary way. He was not prepared for the impact she continued to have on him beyond the pictures. This was a step deeper.

"Hi, cowgirl," he smiled. "Corey's car died so I had to take him."
"Don't lie for me," Corey chuckled. "I was too nervous to drive."
"I was trying to hype you up," Seth smirked.
"No need. I've never lied to Gail and I'm not about to start," Corey said.

Seth nodded and started the car. He took a look at her in the rear view mirror. Her dark green eyes were staring directly at him in the mirror. He felt himself blush. He couldn't recall the last time a woman made him blush by a look alone. He moved his eyes back to the road as he drove them out of there.

12 long years. She had been in prison for murder. She had killed her boyfriend Travis. Corey had told Seth the story. Gail was only 15 when she met Travis who was 25. That alone was a huge red flag but the teenage girl had been flattered by the attention.

She started sneaking out and acting out. At first they thought it was just common teenage behavior but they soon realized the problem ran deeper than that. Travis got her hooked on drugs. Corey threatened Travis to report him if he ever touched her sexually. Travis of course did but Gail kept denying it so they had nothing to report.

The day she turned 18, she left the family home. She didn't even wait for them all to wake up to wish her a happy birthday or tell them goodbye. She packed a bag and left. Corey had to track her down to hear from her that she was never coming home again. She lived with Travis now.

Had Corey known what happened in Travis' home, he would have kicked in the door and rescued her. No one knew. She cut contact. Travis sold her as a sex slave to any man willing to pay. He kept her drugged up and beaten up, scared to run and embarrassed of what her life had become. So she accepted her fate until the day he brought home a new so called girlfriend. Another teenager.

Gail couldn't let history repeat itself. That night she stabbed him 13 times. Overkill for sure but she needed to make sure he was dead and stayed that way. She called Corey for the first time in a year. He didn't know what had happened but he came running. When he saw the body, he first thought she wanted help to cover up the crime. That was not the case. She just wanted to see him one last time and tell him how sorry she was before she called the cops and turned herself in.

That was 12 years ago. Despite drugs being easy to get inside the prison, she had stayed clean. She had kept her head low and not messed with anyone. The queen on the inside had taken a liking to her and adopted her into her gang. No one messed with the queen unless they were trying to take over. Gail had been protected, and in the process she had protected other new girls and tried to help them stay clean and out of trouble as well.

"So this is my place," Corey said.

Gail stepped out of the car and looked up at the building. Corey and Carmella lived in a nice apartment. One of those in a safe, locked building with a dog park on the roof and other rich neighbors. Roomy and nice, living with a dog and a cat. The dog was currently with Carmella though. It was her little baby.

"Seth has been in the guest room for a while," Corey said.
"I'll take the couch from now on," Seth said.
"There's no need for that," Gail said.
"There is," Corey said. "He's staying for a while but one day he'll leave again. The room is yours. He knew the deal when he arrived although he wasn't supposed to stay this long."

Corey smirked at Seth. There was something hidden in that smirk. Maybe Corey had caught on to Seth showing interest in Gail everytime Corey talked about her.

"So why are you still here?" Gail asked.
"Oh, it's silly. Don't worry about that," Seth said.

He didn't wanna lie to her like he had lied to Corey. He didn't want her to think for one second that he was off the market. He was very much on the market when it came to her. Corey couldn't read Seth's mind though.

"He and his girlfriend broke up. Becky. I told you about that too. He doesn't wanna go home to an empty house," Corey said.

Seth managed to grit his teeth and keep the smile on his face. If he started arguing with Corey now, the jig would be up and Corey might send him home. He wasn't ready to go home yet. Not until he got to know her a little bit better.

"That sucks," Gail said. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Don't be. It's just a breakup. I'll survive," Seth said.
"I don't know about that," Gail smirked. "Not everyone survives a breakup. Travis didn't."

The look Corey gave her said it all.

"What? Too soon?" Gail asked.
"That's fucking morbid to joke about," Corey said.
"What else do you want me to do? Cry about what happened? Sit down and tell sad stories about my past life? Or wait, I got it. How about I keep quiet forever and keep it all within? If you're lucky, I might not blow up one day when it all gets piled up too high," she said.

To both Gail and Seth's surprise, Corey pulled in for a tight hug.

"I know you're hurting. You can always talk to me about it. Don't take your anger out on me. I'm here for you. I love you," Corey said.

She nodded against his chest. Seth kept silent. He didn't wanna ruin the moment. He didn't know what went through her mind after everything that had happened. Corey probably didn't know either.

"Alright, no tears today. I won't allow it," Gail patted Corey's chest and smiled. "Can you find me a hair dresser? I need to get this long, thin mess fixed."

She held up her long ponytail. Seth could only guess that she hadn't had a hair cut in all the 12 years inside. It was long and thin to look at. His best guess would be to cut it up to the middle of her back and let it grow healthy from there.

"Sure, I'll find someone," Corey said.
"And a doctor tomorrow. I want an IUD so I can't get pregnant," Gail said.
"Pregnant? Who the hell are you planning on screwing?" Corey laughed.

Gail shrugged and smirked. Seth could only hope he at least made the list of who she would consider.

"Sure, I'll find a doctor tomorrow morning," Corey said. "Meanwhile, this is your room. Since you and Carmella are the same size, she already filled some clothes in the closet for you. You're not starting completely from scratch. I hope you'll like what we picked out for you. We can go shopping any day you want to. Except for Fridays of course. I work SmackDown on Fridays."
"Stop talking," Gail chuckled. "It's good. It's perfect. Thank you."