I turned my attention away just in time to see the room get flooded with cops. Me and the boys knew the drill and we had unplugged and dipped many times before since we played in some pretty shady places. Just as I was about to unplug and grab my shit, I looked up and saw a flash of blond being pushed around in the crowd. I knew right away it was Patience.

Cussing myself, I set my guitar down and jumped off the stage. She was so tiny and I could see her being trampled to death. I made a plan as I pushed through the crowd toward her. I’d grab her, grab my guitar, and get the hell out through the back.

Just as I was about to grab her, she was pushed to the ground. I watched as she tried to get up but was stepped on. Then, there was a cop scooping her up. I pulled back and ran straight into another cop who threw my arms behind my back and cuffed me. I looked over to see Finn shake his head at me as he grabbed my guitar and ran out the back. At least I knew my guitar was safe.

After the cop cuffed me, he pulled me outside. The cool night air rushed through my hair and gave me a chill. The cop pushed me against the car and I found myself right next to Patience. She looked up at me with frightened eyes and I could only imagine how this felt for her.

“First time being arrested?” I asked casually, like we were at a diner instead of waiting to be thrown in the back of a cop car.

“Yes,” she squeaked.

She looked so afraid. For some strange reason this girl played on my conscious and I felt bad for her. I wanted more than anything to unlock her handcuffs and let her scurry home. I wanted to make her feel better, so I said the first thing that came to mind.

“Well, I wouldn’t worry about it. Your dad will have you out in no time.” I shook my head. “Me, on the other hand, I’ll be there for the night.”

I didn’t miss the sudden change in her expression, except it wasn’t an expression of relief. She should have been relieved knowing that her dad would make everything okay for her, but instead, an expression of pure fear filled her eyes. I was about to question that expression, but then I remembered the quarter bag of weed I’d taken out of the ounce and stuffed in my back pocket to sell while I was at The Pit. In that moment, I knew I’d be spending more than one night in jail.

“Shit,” I said out loud.

“What?” she asked.

“I just remembered I have some weed on me,” I whispered. “Looks like I’ll be in jail for a while.”

“Drugs are bad for you.” She batted big blue eyes up at me.

“So is going to the wrong side of town,” I snapped. “But you just can’t seem to resist, can you?”

“You don’t have to be so mean to me, you know? I’m actually a pretty smart girl. I know coming to this side of town isn’t safe for a girl like me, but I also know it’s not safe for my friend Megan, either. If she comes, then I come. It’s called being a good friend, asshole.” She came back at me, then cut her eyes.

A girl had never looked so sexy. She called me on my shit and then threw it back in my face. I had to admit, it was a massive turn-on. The fact that she was in those low-rise, tight jeans and that sexy-ass black top didn’t help matters. Then she did something that someone had never done for me before and blew my mind and pissed me off all at the same time.

“Where’s the weed?” she asked a little too loudly, making me shush her.

“Shit, why don’t just go over there and tell the cops about it instead of yelling it?” I said sarcastically. “It’s in my back pocket. I’m sure they’ll find it, but on the off chance that they’ll find it in their hearts to let us go, let’s not mention it.”

She turned away from me and toward the officers who were still busy bringing out people from The Pit. Most got away, but there were still the weak ones who were caught. That’s what this girl did to me; she made me a weak one. I’d never been caught in a raid before, but stopping to help her got me caught and I was going to go to jail, while her daddy got her off the hook.

“Hey, officer! Can you come here, please?” she yelled across the parking lot.

I couldn’t believe it! After all I had done for her; she was going to seriously tell them about the drugs. What a bitch! A young cop stopped what he was doing and worked his way over to us.

“Ma’am, you’re going to have to wait until we get everything taken care of here and then we’ll let y’all have a seat in the back of the car,” the cop said.

“No, I need to confess something!” she said in a rush. She motioned in my direction and rolled her eyes and exaggerated a sigh. “My boyfriend here is trying to play the hero, but he’s got my weed in his back pocket and I don’t want him to get in trouble for me. I know he loves me and all, but I wouldn’t feel right about it, ya know?” She darted her eyes in my direction, then quickly looked away.