God, what was it with this guy? Half the time he was a complete douchebag, and then there were times… I thought back to how worried he had been about his brother. He wasn’t all bad. I knew that instinctively, and maybe that’s why I kept letting myself get pulled in by him. Why I kept answering him when he called or texted. There was just something abouthim.
“A coincidence is a coincidence,” he said with a shrug, before pulling out hisphone.
I narrowed my gaze. Right now, that something about him was all douche. “I don’t believe in coincidences – what are youdoing?”
“I’m ordering you an Uber. I don’t have time to take you home and you really shouldn’t be here–” I shoved him hard and his phone fell from his hand, cracking on the pavement flooring of the outdoor patio. Several eyes shot back in our direction and my face heated. Grayson recovered quickly, bending to pick up the broken phone before steering me to a more empty section of thepatio.
“Are you done?” hesnapped.
“I’m not leaving,” Ireplied.
"Harlow–"
"I'm here with my friend," I snapped. "I don't get to see her anymore. I'm here to havefun." I emphasized the last word because it was the most important. I never got to have fun anymore. I mean, pranking Marv was one thing, but I hadn't seen Erika in over a month and before that we had seen each other five days a week every week. It was a difficult change. Though the guys were great at distracting me, I missed her. I realized that I wasn't being a good friend out here, ditching her when she might need me. I sighed and moved around Grayson, done trying to figure himout.
"Where are you going?" hedemanded.
"Back inside," I said. "Erika's in there alone and I came here with her. Don't worry about me, Grayson. I'll be just fine without you." I turned and strode to the doors leading back into the building. I didn't even have the energy to ask him for the reason he wanted to meet the other day. I knew he probably had something to tell me, but I was so tired of everything he brought with him. The guys didn't seem to care for him. He was selfish, plain as could be, even if he was a good guy deepdown.
When I finally caught up with Erika, she was at one of the bars, flirting heavily with someone. When I caught her attention, she waved me over. Her face was happy, her cheeks flushed, and it was clear she had already gotten herself a drink or two. When she offered me a shot, courtesy of one of the guys, I didn't say no. I took it from her and downed it, letting the liquid fire scorch a path down mythroat.
"Who's your friend?" one of the guys asked, motioning to me. Erika grinned and introduced us. As I shook their hands, I learned that they were all centers at one of the local universities. Some of them were more good-looking than the others. We talked. Erika flirted. Within the next hour, I didn't see Grayson again, but I did take quite a few more shots. When my mind blurred and my stomach cramped, I realized I had to pee reallybad.
"I gotta go to the bathroom," I mumbled to Erika. Surprisingly, she didn't offer to come with me like she usually would. I didn't mind. I didn't like it when she followed behind me to the bathroom justbecause.
I made my way through the club, pushing past sweaty bodies. The hot, stale air was heavy and by the time I made it to the bathroom line, I was panting. The line was much longer now than what Erika and I had experienced earlier, and I had to wait nearly fifteen minutes before I even passed the bathroom threshold. No one came in after me, for which I was grateful. I wasn't drunk enough to not care if other people were in there while I waspeeing.
When I finished, I exited the stall and washed and dried my hands and strode back out into the club. The door swung closed behind me and as I moved towards the crowds of people, behind me, a small, fragile whimper stopped me. I turnedback.
Across the hallway from the women's bathroom was a small alcove where I expected a storage or staff door to be. I moved closer. The whimpering was gone but the small sound of sorrow and fear and pain pushed me to turn thecorner.
A tall man with a short crop of dishwater blonde hair moved his pelvis against someone I couldn't see. Slender, dainty hands, nails painted royal purple, were pressed against the wall on either side of him. As I moved closer, the man stopped grinding and reached a hand up to whoever was in front of him. He dipped his head down and I watched as the small, elegant hands balled into fists so tight the knuckles blanched white. I paused, unsure if I was interrupting something wrong. I turned again to go when that small whimper stopped me in mytracks.
A swell of anger rooted somewhere deep down in me rose to the surface. As I turned back, it felt like everything slowed – as if my entire body was moving against a heavy wave oftension.
"Hey!" I snapped, startling the man. Time spedup.
His face whipped around, his dull eyes taking me in before his lips curled into a sneer. "Mind your own business, bitch," he said before turning back to thegirl.
I stomped up to his back, grabbed his shoulder and swung him around. The woman behind him was pale and skinny – so skinny that it was a wonder her clothes didn't fall right off of her. Her sunken eyes were glazed over, filled with a deeply rooted pain. I fought the urge to flinch just looking at her. Instead, I lowered my voice, and softening my tone as I shoved the guyaway.
"Are you okay?" Iasked.
"She's fucking fine," the man was there again, shoving me back. "Get the fuck out ofhere."
"No," I turned and stood directly in front of the girl, blocking her from him. My hands shook. He was taller than me, not by much, but still...and he was a guy and I was short and not verystrong.
The girl behind me didn't leap up, too embarrassed, I assumed, to try to stop me from squaring off in front of the man who – a moment before had been grinding himself all over her. She hadn't wanted it. How had no one noticed she was back here with him? Where were her friends? I glared at the guy in front of me, taking in the skeletal hollows of his cheekbones and his red, clouded eyes. He was completely strungout.
"No?" The man was momentarily confused by my defiance, but that didn't stop him from grabbing me by the shoulders and throwing me towards the hallway. He shoved me again, harder, towards the end of the hallway. "Stay gone, you little bitch." He turnedaround.
I don't know if it was the alcohol running through my veins or if a wave of brave righteousness swept through me. All I knew was, I couldn't let him go back to her. How did he not see that she didn't want what he was doing? Why didn't he care? I didn't understand how anyone could be so callous. I grabbed his arm and this time, I didn't have to turn him. He turned back towards me with a huff, probably prepared to cut off a warning for him to leave the girl alone or something. But I didn’t have a warning for him. I clenched my fist, pulled back, and slammed my knuckles into hisnose.
He choked, shocked, as blood poured out of his nostrils. He stumbled back, knocking his shoulder into the wall. I moved closer before he could stop me, and grabbed his shoulders with each hand, slamming my knee into his dick. He dropped like a pile of rocks, wheezing with one hand over his bloody nose and one over his injured groin; a pathetic, whiny, mess – whimpering and sniveling with tears leaking out of his eyes. Good, I thought. He deservedit.
I skirted around him, back to the girl. She was exactly where I had left her with her legs slightly spread apart as she leaned against the wall. I approached her slowly, and when I raised my hand, I noticed that my knuckles were scraped, but not bruised and my thumb definitely didn't hurt. I guess Knix and Bellamy's self-defense stuff was reallyworking.
I closed the distance between the girl and me, moving gradually toward her so as not to startle her. She didn't give any indication that she knew I was there. "Hey," I said gently, "my name's Harlow. Are you okay?" She didn't reply, so I tried something else. "You don't have to worry about that guy," I continued. "I don't think he'll be trying anything on anyonetonight."