The Meaning of Beauty

Chapter Six

Reid

My chin rested on my hands, which were latched together on the table. Caleb sat across from me, with Baby Boy to my left and Pogue to my right. The girls stood against the wall behind Caleb, whispering to each other and glancing at us worriedly. My eyes kept flashing up from the wooden table to Aiden whispering to her sister. Her eyes would glance at me every now and then, her lips tilting up in a sad smile when our eyes locked, before she'd look back at her sister. I knew she was worried but she didn't have anything to be scared of. We'd faced Chase before (and yes, failed, but that was almost year ago when only Caleb had Ascended).

"Well, I don't really think we can wait till Tyler Ascends. Hell, Chase might not even wait that long." Pogue said to Caleb, who was in a similar position to me but his elbows rested on the table.

He sighed, looking from Pogue to me then Baby Boy. "I hate to say it but I agree with him, guys. Pogue and I are going to have to go after him. With our Powers combined, we'll have a better chance than just me facing him on my own."

I snorted, rolling my eyes. "So you're saying that Ty and I are going to have to sit this out…again? I've got my Powers and Ty does pretty damn well with his."

Aiden walked around the table, stopping beside me to put her hands on my shoulders. "Reid, they know what they're doing." She whispered, her hands massaging my shoulders soothingly. "If they think it's best that you two sit this out, listen to them."

Tyler shook his head, sighing. "I don't know, man. I mean, Reid's got his Powers in July and I get mine in a week. What if Chase does wait that long? There's no way he can win with the four of us already facing our Ascension."

I nodded, looking from him to Caleb. "Seriously, Cale. Let us help. He tried to go after the twins-one of which being my girl. That's enough to make me wanna rip his head off his shoulders. But after all the shit he put us through last year, this only adds fuel to the fire."

Caleb closed his eyes, sucking in a breath before he'd begin going on one of his many "I know what I'm doing" speeches before Aiden spoke up.

"Look, I'm not entirely sure what happened last fall but I do know that I'm not willing to put any of you out there just to save me. I'm sure Lyn agrees," She whispered, nibbling on her bottom lip.

"No, Aiden, you two are worth it. Caleb and I went through the same thing with Sarah and Kate and now Baby Boy and Reid are feeling what we did. You two are the only reasons they're willing to fight. They might say that they're fighting for the families but deep down, they're fighting for their girls. Selfish as it may sound, it's exactly what went through my head." Pogue said, looking from Aiden to Lyn.

There was an odd silence that fell over the table and I realized that Pogue was right. Both Baby Boy and I were focused on wanting to kill Chase just so the girls would be safe again.

"You boys cannot go out there," Lyn spoke up finally. "The lot of ya will be running out like raging bulls with blood on the mind, not even thinking about protecting yourselves. I know you must be itching to get out of here and go after this Chase fellow but you'd only be throwing yourselves out there for him to get you."

"She's exactly right and you all know it." Aiden said, her usually soft voice in such a stern tone that I had to turn around and look at her to make sure that it was still my Aiden talking. Sure enough, those blue eyes, legs, lips, and insanely hot accent couldn't belong to anyone else. Well, beside Lyn but that was beside the point.

"I agree with the girls, I guess. We have to wait and see if it really is Chase and if he's even going to bother with us." Caleb sighed, looking at the girls.

I stood, turning to Aiden so I could wrap my arms around his waist tightly. "Way to make my mind up for me," I muttered into her hair, kissing it gently.

She smiled against my cheek. "I'm trying to keep you boys alive. I think that should be the major thing here."

I shook my head, groaning against her neck now. "No, you two definitely matter the most."

"Goddammit, Reid, if you're gonna throw against the wall do it in your own room." Pogue muttered and I unlatched myself from my girlfriend. I'd forgotten the boys and Lyn were still there.

"My bad," I said, rubbing the back of my neck before taking Aiden's hand. "So are we seriously gonna stayed hauled up in here or are we going back to school tomorrow?"

"Well it is Friday," Caleb sighed, checking the time on his phone. "We could always go to Nicky's then head back to school on Monday like nothing happened. We'll just have to keep our eyes open."

Aiden

One of his arms were wound tightly around my waist while the other held up the pool cue, his ice blue eyes trained on the pool table we were standing beside as Ty took his shot. Aaron Abbott and a few of his goonies had shown up about twenty minutes before to harass Reid and Tyler into a game. As I'd presumed, our boys were showing Aaron how pool was really played.

"So, new girls, the 'Babies of Ipswich' already snag you up?" Aaron looked over Lyn, who was standing beside Tyler, arms crossed. Then his ice blue eyes-so hideous compared to Reid's beautiful blue ones-scanned over me. I whined a little, turning into to Reid, my head fitting into the crook of his neck.

"Mind keeping your beady eyes off my girlfriend?" Reid growled at him, maneuvering the cue so he could wrap both arms around me.

I heard Tyler laugh and Lyn snicker. I could only imagine the look on Aaron's face at that moment.

"How about we play for her then?" Aaron's voice snarled.

The silence that fell over the table then was so frightening, I knew that there must've been the scariest look on Reid's face at that moment.

"You must be dumber than I thought, Abbott, if you think—" Reid slammed a fist down on the table before handing me over to Tyler so I would be out of the way. "That I'd actually bet my girl."

My heart was thudding in my chest at that moment as I watched wide-eyed from the sidelines at that fight that was surely about to begin. From the short time I'd been with him, I already had seen a taste of Reid's temper and I was sure to see all of it be released yet again because of me.

"Reid, please." I begged, grabbing for one of his arms but Tyler held me back, shaking his head. The look in his eyes clearly said "Just let what happens happen."

"Turning down a bet, Garwin? That sure don't sound like you. Maybe it's because this…sleep buddy—" Reid snarled. "—means something to you."

"Don't you frickin' call her that!" Reid growled. Of course he didn't say "frickin'" but I prefer not to use some of his choice words.

Aaron threw down his pool cue, his eyes fuming. "Why don't we take this outside, Garwin? Mama Danvers isn't here to stop us!"

"Gladly." Reid muttered, leaning up from the table as Aaron and his boys headed for the door at the back. He turned towards Ty before stopping when he saw the look on my face.

I'm sure I looked terrified, like a deer in headlights, but I didn't care. He was seriously about to get into a fight with Aaron Abbott over me. I wasn't worth the trouble with Chase, let alone some jerk boy that went to Spenser.

"Aiden, you wait here with Lyn and the others. Baby Boy, come with me." Reid said to his best friend before he leaned down to kiss me, his lips almost crushing mine with such force that I could practically feel them bruising.

"Reid—" I started but he shook his head, cutting me off.

"Baby, I'm a little less than in a good mood right now. Beating Abbott to hell and back will let me blow off some steam." He whispered, his lips brushing my ear as his husky voice spoke.

If it wasn't for the current situation, I would've gotten goosebumps just from his voice. But the whole situation was driving me insane and I felt as if my head was being slammed into a wall again and again.

"Please." I whispered, so low I almost thought he hadn't heard me.

He sighed, his eyes closing for a moment before his lips brushed mine softly. Then he and Tyler were gone.

"Do ghrà—" Lyn began cursing in Irish to herself before she grabbed my arm, leading me toward the table behind the dance floor.

Caleb and Pogue looked at my twin as she stormed up and they both muttered "Reid" at the same time.

"Some girly looking boy was picking on Aiden and Reid pulled them all out into the alley! Girl, your boy is completely mad!" Lyn looked at me as we followed Caleb and Pogue towards the door our boys had disappeared through.

There were a few steps before the ground, where Reid stood with Tyler. About ten feet in front of them was Aaron and his boys, looking ready for a fight they thought they could win since our boys were easily outnumbered.

"Reid! Tyler!" Caleb growled, stepping up beside them with Pogue on the other side. "What the hell is going on here?"

"Aw, look. Mama Bear did show up," Bordy, Aaron's right-hand man, smirked.

"You know what, Simpson—" Tyler began to step forward put Pogue put a big hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Hey!" A voice behind us caused Lyn and I to jump before we all turned. Nicky, the baldheaded man that owned the bar was standing there with a baseball bat. "Take it somewhere else, ladies. Abbott, I'm tired of you stirring shit around here. I see your face in this alley with the Sons one more time, I'm callin' the cops on your ass."

Aaron snorted before he smirked. "Sure thing, Nicky." On his way past the boys, he slammed shoulders with Reid, who began to spin around to punch him but I caught his arm.

"No," I whispered, my eyes locking with his and he froze a little before lowering his arm, nodding. His arms snaked around my waist and I buried my face in his neck, feeling completely exhausted.

When the door slammed, Caleb began ranting.

"With everything going on right now, you two are still worried about Abbott. When will you two learn that there are more important things than picking fights over a damned game of pool?" The eldest Son looked beyond irritated and his deep voice sounded clenched through his teeth.

"He started after Aiden! That's one too many bastards right now that need to be heading towards my girl!" Reid shot back, his arms tightening around me.

Caleb sighed and I could imagine him running his hands down his face. "Look, I get it you two are on edge. Maybe Nicky's was a bad idea. But you still need to watch your actions for those two." I knew he was motioning towards Lyn and I. "Because if you two screw up, the girls will be left to suffer for it."

Reid exhaled against the crown of my head, kissing it gently. "Alright, fine. Let's just get the hell outta here."

Reid

Aiden was curled up in my lap as we listened to the thunder outside. The storm had hit not too long after we got back to my place from Nicky's and we'd been hauled up in my room ever since. Tyler and Lyn were in the spare bedrooms while Pogue and Caleb went to their homes to get some sleep. I think it was the best thing the four of us could've done for ourselves but I couldn't think of anything else besides Aiden and Chase. So sleep was completely out of the question for me.

"Do you really think this Chase is really back?" Aiden whispered against my neck.

I tightened my arms around her, leaning my head on hers. "Well I know it wasn't any of the guys in the parking lot that day, so yeah I think he is. See, he likes messing with our heads, using little mind tricks to piss us off before getting all theatrical." I sighed, kissing her temple before I thought back to the last time I'd seen him. How he acted all buddy-buddy after causing Caleb's head to slam against the pool wall.

Aiden yawned a little and I maneuvered us so she was lying down and I was lying beside her, my arms still wound around her waist. I kissed her forehead gently.

"You really should get some sleep," I whispered.

She shrugged, her eyes looking up from the chain I wore around my neck to my eyes. "I don't think I can. Tyler told Lyn and I about how…Chase can get himself into our dreams and well…I've been afraid of sleeping ever since."

Dammit! I'd completely forgotten about how he could get into your head-literally-and harm you in the dream world while it actually hurt you in reality. "Damn," I muttered, pressing her face against my neck as I held her as close as I could.

Aiden snuggled as close to me as she could, sniffling a little. "I'm scared, Reid." Her voice came out muffled and the wetness against my cheek let me know she was crying.

"Oh, babe." I whispered, pulling away so I could look down at her face. I cradled it in my hands like it was the most fragile thing in the world and to me, it was. "Don't be. Your sister and you are gonna be perfectly safe. Lyn's got Tyler and Pogue and Caleb are gonna make sure that he doesn't get near any of us. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, angel. I promise."

She sniffled again, nodding tiredly.

"Look, try and go to sleep and I'll be here the whole night, watching over you. If I feel any sort of Power, I'll stop it immediately, ok?" I murmured, rubbing circles on her cheeks with my thumbs.

She nodded again, tilting her face up towards mine so she could kiss me once before she snuggled closer to my chest. I held my Aiden there, making sure I stayed awake for as long as humanly possible before I figured I was in the clear before I went to sleep.

Author's Note: *dodges tomatoes being thrown at me* I'M HORRIBLE I KNOW! *drones on onto the same AN apology I put in every story* I've been busy yet again for the past few weeks with band. From a trip to Atlanta to Concert Festival, band's back to taking up EVER-Y-THANG! But I'm sorta okay with that :D Any who, figured I'd work on my stories again this weekend since I'm doing nothing. :)