2 Broke Girls x 1 Rich Man [2 Broke Girls TV series x Hollywood]

AN: Lacking PS. C'mon. 1 extra chapter if I reach rank 15.

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The gunfire kept coming.

The sixth shot echoed, then nothing. The lunatic stood there, teeth bared, breathing heavily. His gun clicked again. It was empty.

And then the man in black moved.

He crossed the final distance in a blur, closing in before the lunatic could even process his mistake. One hand snatched the gun clean out of his grip, twisting it with mechanical precision. The stalker yelped, his wrist snapping with a sickening crack, and before he could scream, a punch followed.

Not just a hard punch. 

The man's fist crushed into the stalker's jaw with enough force to echo. There was a wet crack and the sound of teeth scattering across the pavement like pebbles.

The stalker dropped, legs folding under him, body twitching.

Max and Caroline sat frozen inside the car. The window was smeared with condensation from their breath. Caroline had one hand over her mouth. Max clutched the seatbelt across her chest like it was armor.

"That was freakin' awesome. He ain't gonna eat meat again," Max whispered.

"There are bullets flying, and you are thinking of how he won't be able to eat meat?" Caroline said as her left eye twitched. "I nearly peed."

"A girl gotta at least have her last meal, even if it's in mind. I already ate two buckets of fried chicken and kissed Alex goodbye in my head," Max said in a low voice with a nervous grin. Although she wasn't showing it, she was super afraid. But someone gotta be tough in this situation. She even managed to put the key in the key hole and next planned to start the car and slam the accelerator. 

Then tires screamed in the distance.

A black car tore around the corner of the parking lot and drifted into view, wheels screeching, engine howling. It spun into a perfect arc and slammed to a stop just feet away from the downed stalker. The door flew open.

Alex stepped out.

"MONEYBAGS!!!" Max yelled from inside. 

At that moment, for some reason, both the girls' fears disappeared. 

Alex locked eyes with Max and pointed a firm finger at the car. Stay inside.

Max didn't argue. She simply gave a thumbs-up.

Alex took in the scene fast. One man was unconscious and bleeding. One man standing with a gun in his hand.

His instincts flared. He could tell that the man before him was dangerous, and that dangerous man was too close to his girls. He just acted on his instinct.

Alex dropped low, shifted his stance, and launched forward with a burst of speed. His eyes were on the gun and he was ready to dodge in case that man shoots. Except he didn't.

John was about to say something, but it was too late. He was forced to counter.

Their bodies collided hard.

Alex moved first, fast, and low. A sweep toward the legs, meant to destabilize. John sidestepped, spinning out of reach and countering with a strike toward the ribs. Alex twisted like an acrobat, letting the fist graze his side, then ducked and launched a jab to the throat.

John blocked it with the back of his forearm, eyes narrowing. 'This guy needs security?!' 

Alex spun, dropped into a crouch, and lunged upward with a strike aimed just under the chin. John stepped back smoothly, his footwork flawless. He predicted Alex's move. But Alex wasn't following a pattern. His focus adapted to each breath, each shift in weight.

A punch came in. Alex blocked. Another. Duck. Turn. Palm to the sternum. Disarm attempt.

John grunted and twisted, locking Alex's wrist.

Alex let the force slide across his forearm, using the momentum to reverse the grip, twisting them into a brief grapple that ended with a forceful shove.

They separated, and both were breathing heavily.

John adjusted his stance.

Alex cracked his neck and squared his shoulders. He had dodged bullets before and even killed a few in the blink of an eye, but the man standing before him was on a different level. That brief encounter made Alex realize just how skilled this opponent was. Aware of his abilities and sensing the danger level, Alex decided to give it his all to take the man down.

But then, Rachel's voice crackled through Alex's earpiece.

"He's ours."

Alex didn't react. He just held eye contact with John.

John gave a single nod.

Alex lowered his stance and finally gave a nod.

"I didn't know," he said. "You're with us. I saw you with the gun near them, and I just reacted."

John gave a small shrug and glanced toward the still-twitching stalker. "He pulled a weapon."

Alex looked at the shattered figure on the ground: Broken wrist, shattered jaw, mouth full of blood and regret.

"Good call," Alex muttered, before turning toward the car. "Sorry about that."

Max flung open the door and nearly launched herself into him. Caroline followed, shakier but holding it together.

Alex caught Max mid-sprint and held her tight. Her fingers clawed into his back. She was shaking, her voice muffled against his chest.

"I'm sorry. I should've stayed with them. I should've listened," she whispered.

Alex pressed his hand to her head and whispered back, "You're safe. That's all that matters." He looked at Caroline and extended her arm. She quickly went in for a hug. 

They hugged for a moment before Caroline let go and spoke.

"We didn't know he followed us. He was there. He had a gun."

"I saw," Alex said, eyes still locked on Max. "Next time, you don't leave the guards. Got it?"

Max nodded. She didn't let go.

Behind them, John holstered the weapon and turned to leave, but Alex stopped him.

"Hey, you ain't just gonna leave like that, are you? C'mon. You saved my girls, for that, I owe you a big one," Alex said as Max pulled away, but still hugging his arm.

"I was just doing my job," John answered calmly.

"That punch was freakin' awesome. Free cupcakes for life, only for you," Max said as she gave a thumbs up to John. Then he looked at Alex. "And you... Never knew you could fight like that. I mean, I saw you punch that guy back then at the shop, but this... Like, what are you? A super ninja? A secret spy? I love Super Spy. Tell me you are a spy with cool gadgets. Give me one."

"Yeah, well. Who knows?" Alex winked at Max.

Then he looked at John.

"You look really familiar. Have we met before?" Alex asked. 'I could be wrong. But that guy looks like John Wick. Like a carbon copy of Keanu Reeves.'

"I don't think so," John replied.

"C'mon, let's go grab some drinks," Alex said, and noticed the assigned guards running toward them. They looked slightly beaten up, but alive. "And they show up after the show is over."

[Titan HQ – 11:47 PM] [Dining Hall]

After they arrived, Rachel told Alex about John and that he's their new security head. He was investigating things in secret and was able to respond to the situation quickly. Alex didn't say anything or react. The thought of John Wick and all those assassins, and now finding out that Rachel is somehow related to them, was a little too much surprise for him. Then he concluded that his parents are also involved with the High Table. 

For now, he decided to just focus on Max and Caroline's safety.

As for Max and Caroline, they drank and ate very little before going to sleep.

What about those lunatics?

Well, they called the cops on them after breaking their bones and erasing the footage.

Present time...

Rachel sat at the head of the dining table, her blazer off, sleeves rolled to the elbows, a whiskey glass in one hand. Her other hand tapped idly against the table as she watched the two men across from her.

Alex sat with a lowball glass of his own, swirling the ice. His tie was gone, top button undone. Across from him sat John. Perfect posture. A man at peace with violence.

The silence between them wasn't awkward. It was heavy with aftermath.

"They're asleep?" Rachel asked, sipping.

Alex nodded. "Max passed out in under five minutes. Caroline tried to pretend she wasn't tired, but she was out the second her head hit the pillow."

Rachel looked toward the hallway that led to the residential wing. "We should have seen it coming."

"I did see it coming," Alex said. "The problem is it happened faster than we could intercept."

John leaned forward, setting down his now-empty glass. "He was one of the early-stage fanatics. I've seen the pattern. Follows everything online. Builds a shrine. Convinces himself he's special. The gun wasn't even the worst part. He was trying to deliver a message."

"What kind of message?" Rachel asked.

"That she belongs to him," John said. "That she 'chose' him by becoming visible."

Alex leaned back, expression hardening. "How many more like him are out there?"

John didn't hesitate. "Too many."

Rachel set her glass down. "Then we contain it. If this is becoming a cult-level situation, it'd be too dangerous for them. We need to track and take them down before this goes any further."

"I'll handle that," John replied.

...

[Next Morning – 7:13 AM] [Max's Room]

Max sat bolt upright in bed like someone had pressed a panic button in her dreams. Her breathing was steady, but her heart wasn't. It thudded hard against her ribs, like it hadn't realized the night was over.

Her eyes darted to her right. Caroline, still wrapped in blankets, slept soundly, her hair a mess of blonde waves against the pillow. Peaceful. Untouched by the chaos for a moment longer.

Then the memories surged in.

The creep.

The parking lot.

The gun.

The way her whole body had frozen.

The man in black.

Gunshots.

A hard punch.

Finally, a brief fight between Alex and that man.

She rubbed her eyes and slumped back onto the mattress with a long, low sigh. Her arm draped across her forehead like a woman in a melodrama, but there was no audience or punchline. Just the buzz of a headache blooming behind her eyes and the thick, fuzzy fog of last night's vodka shots still sitting in her skull like regret marinated in citrus.

"…Ugh," she muttered. "My brain is soup."

She lay there a moment, letting the ceiling settle into focus. It was a nice ceiling. Expensive. Custom-painted. She'd helped pick the trim. But right now, it was just another part of a world that suddenly felt... too open. Too exposed.

Her phone buzzed once on the nightstand. She didn't move. She didn't want to know. Not yet. If it wasn't Alex, or Rachel, or a cat video from Claire's "Emergency Mood Folder," she didn't want it.

Across the room, a gentle snore rattled from Caroline's pillow fort. Max turned her head and stared at her best friend. Grateful. Aching.

"…I nearly got us killed in a clearance aisle," Max whispered.

She sat up again, slower this time, rubbing her temples with the heel of her palms. She mumbled to herself. "Arg! So, this is what celebrities deal with. Alex also probably deals with lunatics; no wonder he learned how to fight. Dang! We are freakin' famous."

She took a deep breath and decided on the spot.

"I ain't gonna give up now. I endured so much to just turn back. But I'm gonna need a one-on-one private lesson with Alex on how to fight. I think starting with grappling would be awesome. We will grapple each other, he on top of me and my legs around his waist, then... Hehehe!" She stopped mumbling and started to imagine the situation where Alex, obviously, shirtless and sweating, was pinning her down as she was trying to pin him down. Their sweaty bodies pressing against each other and...

Her eyes fell on the door as Alex walked in, shirtless, just like her imagination. He was carrying a tray of breakfast.

"Hey," Alex said with a smile as he placed the tray on the bedside table and leaned forward, kissing her forehead. "Good morning."

From her side, Caroline raised her arm. "Mine?"

Alex clucked and went to the other side, kissing Caroline's cheek. "Good morning, Caroline."

"Wait a minute!" Max's right eye twitched a bit. "You were awake this whole time?"

...

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[6 advance chs] [All chs available for all tiers] [No double billing.]

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