Maria

Maria

Arabella

KASH CORNERED ME at school today. The first thing he did was make sure I'm okay after Marianna and Karmen attacked me in the bathroom at school. I look like shit and feel just as bad. My ribs are bruised, my nose is busted leaving me with two black eyes, and I've got bruises and small puncture wounds all over the place. This is almost worse than anything my mother or the men she's with have ever done to me. I know at the end of the day I'll heal from this, I just wish I wasn't constantly healing from one injury or another. This shit sucks and I'm ready to get through one day without something terrible happening to me. To know that I'll be left alone and safe no matter where I am. It's not something that will be happening, but I believe there has to be a day where I won't have to look over my shoulder and wait for the next attack to happen. That's a day I look forward to experiencing.

Anyway, Kash told me that he's putting everything together for our wedding and that he'd like me to wear a dress. Not a wedding dress or anything like that. He said as far as he's concerned, I can wear a sundress and that would be perfectly fine by him. I can see where he's coming from. My clothes aren't exactly fit for this type of thing and even though I don't really want to be married to anyone, I can see this as being something bigger than either one of us. He's going to treat our marriage as the real deal and I can do the same. Even if it's in name only and we don't share a bed or anything else. So, after school since I don't have to work, he's going to introduce me to Maria and she'll go shopping with me. I honestly don't know if I want to go shopping with someone Kash knows. From what I've experienced so far, none of these people are very good and I don't see myself having any fun at all.

Still, I agreed to go since I have the money and it would probably do me some good to be able to get Vinnie some things he needs. The money is just sitting there and it's time I use it. So, I'll get my brother what he needs and a dress for my wedding. I don't know about anything else, but with us not staying at our mother's house, I really don't have to worry about my mother seeing anything I buy and knowing I have any money at all. The longer I can keep that shit from her, the better off I'll be. If she knows I have a large sum of money, my mother will drain my account quicker than I can blink and buy herself all the drugs and alcohol she can get her hands on. I'm not about to let Vinnie continue to suffer because our mother is a selfish bitch so I'm going to make sure she never finds out what has happened and all the changes that will be happening in our lives.

I also plan on getting Mrs. Andrews enough food to fill her kitchen. She's been so kind to us and has gone far beyond what she's had to do for a couple of neighbor kids. So, if I can do something like this for the only person in town who has helped my brother and me, I'm going to do it. At least that's the plan. I don't know how I'll be able to hide everything, but I'll figure it out one way or another. It's just going to take some time for me to be able to put a plan in place so I can figure out how to get so many groceries to the house after walking from the grocery store. I certainly won't be using the one in the poor section of town. There's never anything on the shelves. So, I'll have to use a different grocery store to get everything I want to and then find a way to get it all to the house for Mrs. Andrews.

The day has flown by because I'm so damn nervous about this shopping trip with Kash's friend. All I know about her is that she was with his older brother and they have a daughter together. She's been raising her alone with no help from anyone but Kash. Her parents kicked her out when she told them she was pregnant and Kash's father refuses to have anything to do with her. So he helps out in any way he can when he's not in class, practice, training, or at a game. I know he has other things he does, but every spare second he has, it's given to his niece and Maria. At least that's what he told me when he asked me earlier to go shopping with her.

Now, I'm dragging my feet toward the parking lot of campus where I'm supposed to meet Kash. Brock is walking with me before he heads to football practice. It's not long before I spot Kash talking to a beautiful girl. They're laughing and it's one of the rare occasions where Kash is completely open and free. He throws his head back as he laughs at something she said to him while she rests her hand on his arm. Kash is close to Maria and it's easy to see they have a good relationship with one another. Maybe this is who he should marry. Then he would be able to see his niece every single day and be as happy and free as he is right this second.

The girl is about as short as I am with Kash towering over her by almost a foot. She's skinny and her skin is as pale as mine. Her long brown hair blows around her face as the breeze kicks up slightly. Light brown eyes that are almost too large for her face look back at me as she smiles. I'm instantly put at ease in her presence as she looks me over from head to toe. When she takes in the bruising on my face, I watch her wince but no pity ever enters her eyes. There's almost a look of understanding on her face as Kash turns to see what captured her attention.

"Song Bird, you came," Kash says, relief filling his voice as he gives me his full attention. "Arabella, I'd like you to meet Maria. Maria, this is my fiancé Arabella. You know what to look for. She doesn't want anythin' over the top as we're keepin' this entire thing simple. You know what's goin' on and what needs to happen. Don't fuckin' scare her away."

"I'm not gonna scare her, Kash. God! You're worse than your brother was when he was alive. I'm perfectly capable of having a conversation with a female and not pushing her away from me. You're thinking of Karmen and those other sluts that hang around you guys," Maria says and I can't stop the laugh that falls from me at her words. "See, she already gets my sense of humor and this tells me we're gonna be the best of friends already. Now, you go do whatever it is that you do while I get your girl all fixed up and ready for your big day. Come see Harlow later."

"I will. Thank you, Maria," Kash says giving her a hug before turning to look at me. "Song Bird, thank you for doin' this. If you need anythin', Maria can call me and it's yours. Have fun and try not to listen to anythin' she says about me. Maria likes to make jokes and will try to poison you against me."

Maria hits him in the arm with a scowl on her face. It's easy to see they treat one another like I imagine a brother and sister would. Brock steps back from me and I wave goodbye before stepping closer to Maria. She helps me into her car and takes my backpack to put in the backseat next to her daughter's car seat. Kash doesn't move until Maria gets in the driver's seat and pulls away from the curb where she parked. For several minutes, we don't say a word as nerves fill me and I try to think about a safe topic of conversation.

"So, Kash has told me a little bit about what's going on. I can't believe someone actually hid your grandparents' will from you. Do you have any questions about things?" Maria finally asks me, her voice soft and gentle as she looks at me for a second before turning back to the road in front of her.

"I don't even know where to begin. I'm not sure what's going on or what to expect. Though, can I ask why Kash hasn't married you? I mean, you seem to have such an easy relationship and it would give you both massive time with your daughter. He can help you when you're not at home and vice versa," I ask hesitantly, my voice barely above a whisper because this is actually none of my business.

"I'm not allowed to marry Kash. I have no ties to The Faction and there are certain rules they have to follow. If you ask me, it's completely archaic. Forcing them into arranged marriages they have no choice in. The fathers enter into contracts and that's all there is to it. The guys don't get to choose their bride, when they get married, or anything else. Honestly, the only ones who win are the girls because they end up living a luxurious life and take full advantage of those guys. That's what's going on with Fallon and Karmen. Their marriage has been under contract for a very long time. It's been years and she only goes after him when it's convenient for her. Every other time, she's out fucking anyone she can coax into her bed. That's what Marianna's doing too. She scares everyone away from Kash on a daily basis but fucks every cock who will give her a second glance," Maria informs me, letting me know she understands way more about this stuff than I do.

"So, Fallon doesn't want to be with Karmen?" I question, not sure I should even ask that because it might make her believe things she shouldn't.

"No. From what I understand, he's working on figuring a way out of the marriage to her and has been since the day he learned about it. Dash and Dante are the only two who aren't getting forced to marry someone they don't want to. But, their parents are different from the rest and they actually give a shit about their kids. Now, I want to know about you. Tell me about yourself, Arabella," Maria says, a smile on her face as she once again looks at me while driving out of town and toward our neighboring one. I'm glad we won't be shopping here in High Point because then someone might put things together and we'd be screwed.

"There's not much to tell. I go to college at HPU. When I'm not on campus for classes or tutoring, I'm either at work or taking care of my baby brother. I don't have friends or participate in school activities of any kind. My entire life revolves around my brother," I tell her honestly as she once again takes in the bruising on my face.

"So, was that damage done at home or by one of the skanks at school?" she questions me, her hands tightening on the steering wheel in front of her.

"It was done at school. Two girls cornered me in the bathroom and beat the hell out of me. I'm used to it happening. This isn't the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last either. For the most part I avoid running into anyone. The day this happened just wasn't my lucky day I guess. So, for now, I'm just healing and making sure no one catches me alone again," I tell her as I duck my head so my hair falls in front of my face to hide my shame at being attacked once again and not doing anything to stop it from happening.

"Hey, don't hide from me. Trust me, I've been where you're at. When I was with Kash's brother, the same shit happened to me on a daily basis. Girls were always trying to rip us apart and making me believe what we had wasn't real. They just wanted Luke because of who he was and not for the man he was becoming. Luke could be himself with me and I was safe and loved by him. Now, I see the same shit you're going through on a daily basis. I'm a social worker now and have helped so many kids who don't see a way out of their situation. You don't have to talk to me, Arabella, but it's not hard to see there are secrets you bury deep and it's all to protect your brother. I completely get it. If you want to talk at any point, know your secrets are safe with me. Especially from Kash," Maria says, her voice breaking as she gets lost in thought about her own past while she pulls into the parking lot of a mall.

"Thank you, Maria. I just don't know how much I can open up. I'm not sure if Kash told you about our circumstances. I used to be friends with all of them when we were younger. The day of my tenth birthday, not only did I lose their friendship, but I lost my dad as well. That was the day everyone in High Point turned their back on my mother and me. I was moved to the poor section of town. It"s been a living nightmare every day for almost nine years. Everything I do is to try to protect my brother from the hell I've lived through. Marrying Kash is something I have to do for that," I tell Maria honestly as she finds a parking spot and pulls her car to a stop. It's easy to talk to Maria about things.

"Kash has told me everything. I'm the one person in the world besides the guys he can be completely open and honest with. There are some things he hasn't told them that I know. Kash's secrets are safe with me and I assure you that yours will be safe as well. I also understand why you've taken everything on your own shoulders. Not knowing what will happen to your brother would be a scary aspect of life. However, you're old enough and now have the means to take care of him. If you ever want to pursue getting custody of your brother from your mother, I will do everything in my power to help you. Even if I don't know the full circumstances as to what's going on," Maria says before she opens her door and gets out so we can head in the mall.

This is honestly the first time I've ever been to the mall. Even when my dad was alive, I didn't come here. It's honestly overwhelming with all the stores inside the building. As I look around, it seems as if anything you could want is sold in one store or another. Maria leads me to a large store and we head straight for the women's section. The other hard part of this entire situation is that I don't actually know what size I have to get for clothes. Everything I own is baggy and way bigger on me than what it has to be.

"You look so scared," Maria whispers in my ear as she places my hand on her arm. "Relax. I'll help you find a dress you love and I can tell you don't know what size you wear. We'll figure it out. I want you to get a few new things for yourself today, Arabella. Especially some bras and underwear. Those are essentials that you need and we're going to make sure you have them."

Nodding my head, I let Maria lead me to a rack of dresses. They're all summer dresses in soft colors. One grabs my attention immediately as I move closer to it. It's a soft white color with blue flowers all over it. The straps are those thin spaghetti straps and the top is cut to emphasize my chest. That's not a part that I like, but the dress is beautiful. Maria sees what I'm looking at and her eyes seem to light up. She goes through the dresses and pulls out one she thinks will fit me before draping it over her arm. Maria picks out two more dresses that are similar for me to try on.

We walk through the store and Maria ends up with an armload of clothing before we hit the dressing rooms. An employee helps me get everything set up in one of them before she leaves me alone and closes the door behind her. With a deep breath, I quickly undress from the worn jeans and baggy sweatshirt I wore to school today. In nothing more than my bra and panties, I grab the dress that first caught my attention and remove it from the hanger. With it on my body, I turn to look in the mirror before me. My breath catches as I take in my body in this dress.

The dress flows to my ankles from the fitted top. It really does make my chest look bigger than it is as the top of the dress is cut in a way that curves with the shape of my breast. My bra is visible from under the dress, but if I get a new one, I can ensure that it won't be an issue. Turning around so I can look at my back in the mirror, I notice that almost my entire back is exposed. I guess I won't be able to wear a bra at all with this dress.

"Come out and show me," Maria urges me, her voice filled with excitement as I hesitantly open the door and step out so she can see me in the dress.

For a few minutes, Maria is speechless. She looks at me from every side, signaling for me to turn around and show her the dress in its entirety. When I can't take the suspense any longer, I let myself look up at Maria to find a soft smile on her face.

"You look beautiful, Arabella. I think this is the one you should wear when you get married," she whispers, being cautious of who's around us so no one learns of what's going to take place whenever Kash finishes putting everything together.

"Thank you," I murmur, my face heating in response to her compliment.

We spend the rest of the afternoon going to multiple stores in the mall and I try on more clothes than I've ever tried on in my life. Maria talks nonstop and gives me so much information about The Faction, the guys, and everything else that I can't keep anything straight in my mind once again. However, I also spend a good amount of time with Maria laughing and having a better time than I expected I would. I'm honestly glad Kash set this up for me.

The last store we hit for the day is a cell phone store. Maria helps me choose a phone and start a plan for myself. She was appalled when she learned that I only have a prepaid phone that I don't use for any reason because Brock gave it to me and paid for the minutes currently on it. I see her point that it's important for me to have one in case of an emergency with Vinnie. I need a way to get him help if something goes wrong. So, I finally relented and used Mrs. Andrews address so I can have the bills go to her house instead of my mother's. The less she knows, the better.

With my new phone in hand, I watch as Maria puts her phone number in my contacts along with Kash and the rest of the guys. I don't really need their phone numbers, but I won't say that now. When I get it back from her, I add Brock's number to it as well. He'll be happy that I now have a phone. That's been one of his biggest complaints since we started hanging out and I started tutoring him. Though, I'm sure it's going to take me forever to learn about this phone and I don't have the time to devote to it on a regular basis. Technology has never been my strong suit so, it's going to be a new adventure for me. That's how I'm choosing to look at things.

Before Maria drops me off at Mrs. Andrews' house, we stop at the grocery store where I pick up enough groceries for her to last a month at least. I've already gotten Vinnie what he needs and I only add some diapers and wipes to the cart in the grocery store. Mrs. Andrews is gonna be eating good for the foreseeable future because once this food runs out, I'll go out and get her more to replace it. Mrs. Andrews won't ever have to ration her food again if I can help it.