One of the masked men barked, "Put her in the car!"
The man carrying Hazel yanked the car door open, shoved her inside, and growled, "Don't try to escape."
But just then, Lucas stepped forward, rolling his shoulders as if warming up. He smirked.
One of the men lunged first—Lucas ducked, threw a hard punch to his gut, and twisted his arm behind his back. The second came in from the side, swinging wildly. Lucas blocked and kicked him square in the chest, sending him crashing backward. The third tried to sneak up behind, but Lucas elbowed him without turning, grabbed him by the collar, and threw him over the hood of the car.
All three were groaning on the ground when Lucas walked over, calm and composed, and opened the car door. "Are you okay?" he asked Hazel.
She nodded silently.
"Did they do anything to you?"
Again, she shook her head, her eyes wide.
Lucas gently reached out. "Come with me."
He opened the passenger door for her. She hesitated, then stepped out and got into his car. Lucas slid into the driver's seat and started the engine, quietly taking her away from that dark street.
As they drove, Lucas asked, "Do you know who they are?"
Hazel shook her head again, still trying to process it all.
"Why were you so late?"
She finally spoke, her voice soft, "I didn't hear the final bell… I fell asleep."
Lucas let out a low chuchuckle. Why are you so quiet now? Where's the girl who once punched me for bumping into her?"
Hazel smiled faintly, not meeting his eyes.
Lucas smiled, eyes still on the road.
They reached the apartment building. Lucas walked her to the lift, and then to her room. He stopped just opposite her door as she unlocked it. Hazel looked at him, hesitated, and smiled. "Thank you."
And then, she closed the door gently behind her.
Inside her room, Hazel sat down, heart still racing. Why did everything happen today? What's going on with me?
Meanwhile, Lucas was still staring at her closed door with a small, unreadable smile on his lips.
SLAP!
Lucas jolted. Levi stood behind him, grinning.
"What the hell, man?" Lucas snapped.
Levi folded his arms. "Why are you standing here like a creep?"
"M–no–wh–why would I—"
"Speak properly first," Levi rolled his eyes.
"I was just getting fresh air!" Lucas defended.
"From looking at her door?" Levi smirked.
Before Lucas could say more, Caleb walked up, confused. "What's going on?"
Lucas tried to change the subject, "Nothing, we were just—"
But Levi cut in with mock innocence."You know Caleb, someone said we should all stay away from Hazel and never talk to her. Especially me." He stared straight at Lucas.
Lucas gave a sheepish grin. "Levi—"
Before he could finish, the rest of the gang arrived.
Drake stepped forward and, without a word, punched Lucas in the arm. "What did you do now?"
Levi grinned, "Let's get him!"
The chaos exploded. Everyone started playfully beating Lucas — even Drake joined in, throwing a couple of dramatic punches.
"Wait—wait—" Lucas shouted, laughing and dodging. "I was helping her!"
Levi narrowed his eyes. "Oh really? Helping her? I was also helping her."
Drake crossed his arms. "Yeah, why did you help her?"
Lucas quickly explained everything that happened—about Hazel, the men, the fight.
Drake's face changed. "Is she okay? Did anything happen to her? Who were they?"
The others fell silent and turned to look at him.
Ben squinted. "Wait… why are you asking so many questions? Are you worried about her?"
Lucas, grinning, he leaned closer. "Do you… love her?"
Drake blinked rapidly. "What—no—I was just asking! Why are you guys questioning me? The victim is Lucas!"
The gang turned back to Lucas again—and resumed the beating with more laughter.
"Okay—OKAY!" Ben finally shouted. "Final decision—Hazel is officially one of us."
Caleb frowned, "Why?"
Everyone turned to look at Drake.
Drake scowled and turned to Caleb, shaking his head in denial.
Levi nudged him. "So we treat her like our sister now. Except Drake. I know you can't take her as a sister."
Drake lunged at Levi, who squealed and ran as Drake chased him around the hall.
The teasing, laughter, and chaos continued like wildfire.
---
Meanwhile, in Hazel's room, she sat curled on the couch, her knees drawn to her chest. Her mind spun with everything.
Where are you, Ethan?
Her phone buzzed.
She grabbed it quickly, hope flashing in her eyes.
It was an unknown number.
Hazel didn't answer. Her fingers trembled slightly as she stared at the screen, fear creeping up her spine.
The call ended.
She sighed, trying to calm her nerves… but then the phone rang again.
Her heart skipped. Slowly, hesitantly, she reached for it, about to answer—knock knock knock.
The sudden knocking startled her.
Her phone slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.
She sat frozen for a moment, staring at the door.
The knocking continued.
Then came a voice from the other side, "Hey, it's me, Levi! Don't be afraid!"
Hazel exhaled in relief and walked slowly to the door.
She opened it, expecting to see just Levi.
But the entire gang stood there, shoulder to shoulder, grinning like they were on a mission.
Hazel blinked. "Uh…"
Ben leaned forward, "Are you okay?"
Hazel blinked once. Twice.
They all echoed the same question, "Are you okay?"
She nodded quickly, saying, "Yes."
Suddenly, her phone buzzed behind her. She turned her head sharply toward it. The others peeked over her shoulder to see.
Drake narrowed his eyes. "Who is that?"
After a few hours
Hazel sat on the couch, casually scrolling through her phone, the quiet hum of the evening surrounding her.
Ding dong.
She looked up at the sound of the doorbell, placed her phone aside, and walked toward the door. When she opened it, five men stood in front of her, faces covered in black masks.
Hazel folded her arms. "What do you want?"
The man in front—clearly the leader—stepped inside with a smug grin. "We just want you." He leaned in close to her face.
Without flinching, Hazel stood her ground.
The rest of the masked men pushed their way into the room and locked the door behind them.
Hazel exhaled sharply, shoved the leader back, then calmly walked over and sat on the couch.
The gang leader growled, "You think this is a joke?" He raised his voice and started toward her.
Just then, footsteps echoed from different directions.
Drake and the rest of the boys casually walked in from the bedroom. Levi, Ben, Caleb emerged from the kitchen, one by one, lining up behind Hazel like her personal army.
The masked men froze.
The leader chuckled mockingly. "What is this? You trying to scare me with these kids, Hazel Knight?" He laughed, shaking his head. "This is cute."
But the fight started in the blink of an eye.
Fists flew. Furniture crashed. The boys fought fiercely, outnumbered but unshaken.
Hazel stood frozen, wide-eyed, as chaos erupted around her. She couldn't believe what was happening—her living room had turned into a war zone.
One of the masked men lunged toward her.
Before she could react, Drake grabbed her wrist and pulled her behind him. "Stay back," he said firmly.
Eventually, one by one, the gang members were subdued and dragged out of the flat. The boys carried them to their cars and drove down into a quiet street, where they parked and left them there.
All except the leader.
Back at the flat, the leader sat on the floor, tied up—angry, silent, and completely outnumbered.