Tammy’s POV:
OOOOHHHH YYYEEAAAAA! I get to hustle today. Get to get out of this house, not that its not absolutely lovely, for most of the day. Gates of Syn opens next Friday night. I don’t think I could be happier right now. I was applying some makeup, not too much, a little mascara and dark shadow to match my Dark Side of the Moon tank. I don’t wear makeup often. My dad always made me wear it, so I kind of got out of the habit when I left. I wasn’ t bothering to hide my scars either. They are fading, but are still very noticeable. I would have the guys around, and they always make me feel comfortable with myself.
I got busted in Brian’s bed last week Went in there after several failed hours of sleep. It worked the night before. I don’t like being here alone. Even with the house locked down, I missed the security of having them around, and for some reason just being able to smell him on his pillow was enough to calm me to sleep. I’m really trying not to get attached to him, but I’m finding it harder and harder. I’ve heard about his womanizing ways. Hell I’ve waited on a few of his “ventures” at the diner I worked at while they sobbed cause they though they had something “special”. I don’t want to get hurt again. I’ve been broken enough. I don’t want to be beyond repair.
I walked out of my room shutting the door behind me. I could hear the chatter of the guys while they waited for me. I skipped down the stairs deciding to just skip the last three steps altogether. I landed at the bottom on my feet with a loud thud causing some of the guys to jump a little. I started to giggle at their slightly surprised faces before their wonderful smiles dawned their faces. “Someone’s in a good mood.” Brian said as he snaked an arm around my waist. I looked down at his hand and back up to be greeted by shit-eating grins from the rest of the guys. “You get to be my girlfriend today.” Brian said with a grin before planting a quick peck on my cheek. “Lucky me.” I said sarcastically rolling my eyes. I heard a few chuckles as Brian looked at me with fake hurt. I smiled wide, and placed my arm around his waist before planting a kiss on his cheek. “Lets do this shit.” I said with a grin hearing a few more chuckles as we walked out the door.
It only took about half hour to get to our first stop. Good thing there are a lot of pool halls around. Can’t keep hustling in the same place. Brian and I were going in first. The guys would be short to follow. We wanted to make it look like it was just the two of us. He was going to be “teaching” me how to play. There were quite a few people in here. Most were spread out. I saw a large group towards the back. We found 3 empty tables near the bar and stuck claim to the middle one. I couldn’t help but feel eyes on me. Looking around I didn’t notice anything. I shrugged it off. Probably just someone staring at my scars.

Jim’s POV:
Shit. Shit. Shit. I was not expecting them to walk through that door. And why the fuck does that man whore have his arm around her. He better not try to get into her fucking pants. I’ll fucking kill him. Shit calm down Jim you don’t have much room to talk. You let them hurt her. “What the fuck are they doing here?” I heard Corey bringing me out of my self scolding. I just shrugged, but it quickly became clear when we saw the rest of them walk in moments later. “They’re hustling.” I said. Duh Jim you should have known that. “You think they told her about you?” Sid asked. “Hope not.” I mumbled focusing my attention back to Gates and Tammy. He had her pulled against his chest, his hands resting on her hips while her’s were draped around his neck. She looked happy as they stared into each others eyes. I heard a low growl escape Corey when Gates planted a kiss on her lips. I know its all part of the act, but they sure did make it look convincing. I couldn’t help but notice how angry and jealous Corey looked as he watched till they pulled away. He’s been acting kind of weird lately. I think he’s grown an infatuation with her. I seen him a few times in his office watching the recording of her torture. Yea, he records the shit. He asks about her past a lot. He pretty much knows everything, from the kind of relationship she had with me and the others, to what the 4 of us did to Officer Simmons. Tammy doesn’t even know what we did to him. She’s not a vengeful person, and its not something she would have approved of. Looks like they roped in some suckers. Oh if only they knew how good she is.
I need to get out of here. If she sees me and knows shit could hit the fan. I noticed Corey and Sid move closer to them. What the fuck are they doing. I started to make my way to the door. I could hear Tammy making a side bet with the suckers she was playing. I paused when I noticed Corey and Sid walk over and join the bet. She didn’t seem upset, or like she knew who they were. That set my mind at ease. I did notice Gates go whisper something to Shadows. I seen him shake his head in response before Gates made his way back over to the game.
She sank the last two balls in one shot clearly pissing off the people she was playing. I started for the door again when I heard one of them yell at her. On instinct I turned. “You fucking bitch hustled us!” one of them shouted as he went to lung at her. I started to storm over, but stopped when I seen Gates, Shadows, and The Rev get in between them. I sighed and went back to the door. I glanced back to see her talking to Corey and Sid with a smile on her face. If only she knew. Then it happened, her eyes connected with mine as I went to walk out the door. Fuck go Jim go.
I was almost to my car when I heard her voice behind me. “Jim?” she asked if not sure it was me. I turned to meet her gaze. A smile came across her face as tears threatened her eyes. “It is you.” she cried throwing herself into my arms. I couldn’t help but hug her back. I could feel her sob silently, and I squeezed her tighter. Despite the circumstances I was happy to see her. “I’ve missed you so much. You have no idea.” she chuckled into my chest. “I have a pretty good idea. Probably as much as I’ve missed you.” I said wholeheartedly. It was true I did miss her. “So much has happened since I last saw you.” she said pulling away enough to look up at me. I frowned a little even though I already knew. “I hope nothing to bad.” I said. Her smile faded as the tears threaten again. I just pulled her back in for a hug as she let them flow. I saw Gates watching our interaction intently from the window.
I pulled away and cupped her face in my hands as I wiped the tears away. “I wish we had longer to catch up, but I really have to go.” I lied. I didn’t have to go I just didn’t want anything coming out. I wanted to rebuild our friendship before she found out. Maybe then she’ll be able to forgive me. She nodded and pulled away. We exchanged numbers before she started to head back inside. “Wait!” she called out. I turned to face her again. “I got hired as a lead guitarist in band for Synyster Gates new club he’s opening,” she started to explain, “It opens next Friday you should come watch us play.” she said with a wide smile. I returned her smile. “I’ll be there.” I said before climbing into my car and driving off. At least she’s getting to do what she loves.

Corey’s POV:
I know it was just an act, but I couldn’t help the rage that flowed through me when I saw him kiss her. I wouldn’t be surprised if that whore has already tried to get into her pants. I’m going to seize an opportunity. Time to see if she knows. I motioned for Sid to follow me. I could see Jim looking at us confused. I’ve talked to him a lot about her. I wanted to know everything he knew, and the more I found out, the more I watched her torture, the more I wanted her.
“Babe what’s it called when you want to make a bet outside of the original?” I heard her ask Gates as we got closer. “A side bet.” he repied. “I wanna do that.’ she said. “For what?” one of the suckers she was playing asked. They were playing teams, and Gates went first. It was her turn, and she only had 2 balls left. “I bet another grand that I can end this game right now.” she said. She had the 15 ball at the left side pocket, and the 8 ball at the bottom right corner pocket. “I’ll take that bet.” I said walking up. “Me too.” Sid said. Gates glared at us. I’m sure he wasn’t expecting us to be there. She smiled that beautiful smile at us. She must not know. “See we have some takers. What do you say guys?” she asked the men playing. Gates made his way to Shadows and whispered something to him, Shadows replying with a shake of his head before Gates made his way back over.
She finally convinced the guys to take her bet. “Hold on to this for me?” she asked me handing over the money. I took it to hold for the winner. Lining up her shot, she nailed the 15 in bouncing the queue ball off the top bumper just before it rolled back tapping the 8 ball in. I saw Jim making his way to the door. Probably didn’t want her to see him. “You fucking bitch hustled us!” one of them yelled lunging at her. She smirked at them as Gates, Shadows, and Rev moved to block them. “Is there a problem here?” Shadows asked calmly as me and Sid made our way behind her.
I tapped her shoulder, she turned to face us. “I believe this is yours.” I said handing the money to her. Smiling again she took the money from me. “Thanks. Sorry for taking your money.” she said. We smiled at her. You couldn’t even see what we did to her anymore. They must be taking pretty good care of her. The other scars are still there, but you could tell they were faded more. “I’m Corey,” I introduced myself as she shook my hand, “this is my friend Sid.” I said. “Tammy.” she replied shaking Sid’s hand."Oh nice do you have the Decepticons on the other hand?" She asked admiring the tattoos on Sid's hands. "You know Transformers?" He asked with a wide smile. "My brother and I use to watch the cartoon every Saturday morning." She said returning his smile. We tried to keep our faces from falling, so she wouldn't catch on about what we knew. Lucky for us she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. It was Jim. They made eye contact before he ducked out the door. You could see the realization in her eyes as soon as he walked out. “Excuse me.” she said not looking at us as she ran out the door after him.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Gates hissed at me as soon as she was out the door. I smirked at him “Making friends. What does it look like.” I said calmly. “Stay the fuck away from her.” he seethed. “Well as you can see,” I said motioning to the window, “that’s going to be quite impossible.” I finished as we made our way to the window. Tammy and Jim were hugging. “I don’t care. Stay away from her.” he said looking out the window. “And if I don’t?” I asked cocking a brow. “I’ll tell her who you are.” he replied. “Go ahead. Just remember you tell her who I am, you tell her who he is.” I countered motioning to Jim. He sighed. He knew I was right. “See you around.” I said leaving him at the window.

Notes

Oh Corey what are you up to? Saturday morning cartoons were so much better when I was a kid.