even
finish, dashing passed him and into the crowd of students. I don’t remember
exactly how long I ran, but before I even realized it, I was completely alone
underneath a pavilion, isolated from the rest of the students.
I took a moment to catch my
breath, my eyes closed as I leaned myself against the thick cement columns that
held the pavilion aloft. For that fleeting moment, I felt that maybe I was safe
from whatever Michael’s new fraternity pals had in store, that they wouldn’t
bother pursuing me past the crowd of people if it meant having to put effort
into it… but then I remembered that no distance was too great for a man like
Michael, a man who liked making people suffer.
“Thought you could run, did
you?” came that confident voice from only a few yards away.
I turned, my heart kicking
back into overdrive once again as I spotted Michael and his friends closing in
on me fast. I turned to either side, hoping to see a quick way to escape as the
men began to circle around me. Each of them had a smirk on their lips, a wolfish
grin that made my skin crawl and gave a horrifying thought to just what they
might be planning for me.
“Stay away from me,
Michael,” I commanded, my voice faltering as he strolled confidently closer,
his friends spreading out to try to block any escape routes. “I mean it!”
“Or you’ll do what,
Jessica?” he asked, his bloodless lips turning up into a wicked smile. “Scream?
Run for help? Call for Mommy?”
The others laughed, and it
frightened me how quickly Michael had found people who complimented his sick
and twisted mind—minions for his supervillain-level ego.
“Save your blubbering for
your pillow tonight,” he spat, as he drew almost close enough to touch.
“Nowhere to run now, little Jessie. Maybe I should take what I want from you…
You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
He reached out, his fingers
quickly embedding in the fabric of my blouse. I pulled away as he tried to yank
me closer. I felt my top resist for a moment before it gave way, tearing
loudly. If I hadn’t realized how real the danger was before, I knew now, a cold
rush of adrenaline coursing through me at breakneck speeds, my heart thumping
faster than I’d ever felt in my life. I could feel something stirring inside me…
The same feelings that made me ashamed and angry with myself… The feelings that
made me run away from Michael in the first place. My body was betraying me the
way it always did.
“Hey!
What the—”
Just beyond my view I heard
the sound of a scuffle, and then someone falling against one of the pavilion’s
benches with a loud bang .
Michael and I both turned
our heads at the commotion, just in time for him to catch someone’s fist right
against his jaw. Before I could react, Michael had released his hold on my shirt,
sending me reeling until I came right down onto my backside, wincing in pain. I
managed to look up just in time to see Michael stumbling back, his hand
covering the right side of his face.
“Get the fuck away from her,” said my rescuer in
a voice I’d heard whispering a thousand times in my fantasies.
“Richard?” I asked, turning
my head to see my stepbrother more clearly. Sure enough, he stood in front of
me, blocking Michael from taking even one step closer, his fists up and ready
to take another swing.
“What the fuck are you
doing here?” Michael hissed, his face screwed up in anger.
“Keeping creeps like you
from touching things that don’t belong to you,” he growled.
“We’re just having a little
fun. Jessica likes it a little rough. Why don’t you tell your big brother here
how wet you are right now, Jess? I bet he’d love to hear all about it,” Michael
said, rubbing his swollen cheek.
I couldn’t look either of
them in the eye. I couldn’t let my stepbrother know the truth.
“I swear to God, if I see
you lay so much as a hand on her again, you’ll be rolling across the graduation
stage with a pair of broken
finish, dashing passed him and into the crowd of students. I don’t remember
exactly how long I ran, but before I even realized it, I was completely alone
underneath a pavilion, isolated from the rest of the students.
I took a moment to catch my
breath, my eyes closed as I leaned myself against the thick cement columns that
held the pavilion aloft. For that fleeting moment, I felt that maybe I was safe
from whatever Michael’s new fraternity pals had in store, that they wouldn’t
bother pursuing me past the crowd of people if it meant having to put effort
into it… but then I remembered that no distance was too great for a man like
Michael, a man who liked making people suffer.
“Thought you could run, did
you?” came that confident voice from only a few yards away.
I turned, my heart kicking
back into overdrive once again as I spotted Michael and his friends closing in
on me fast. I turned to either side, hoping to see a quick way to escape as the
men began to circle around me. Each of them had a smirk on their lips, a wolfish
grin that made my skin crawl and gave a horrifying thought to just what they
might be planning for me.
“Stay away from me,
Michael,” I commanded, my voice faltering as he strolled confidently closer,
his friends spreading out to try to block any escape routes. “I mean it!”
“Or you’ll do what,
Jessica?” he asked, his bloodless lips turning up into a wicked smile. “Scream?
Run for help? Call for Mommy?”
The others laughed, and it
frightened me how quickly Michael had found people who complimented his sick
and twisted mind—minions for his supervillain-level ego.
“Save your blubbering for
your pillow tonight,” he spat, as he drew almost close enough to touch.
“Nowhere to run now, little Jessie. Maybe I should take what I want from you…
You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
He reached out, his fingers
quickly embedding in the fabric of my blouse. I pulled away as he tried to yank
me closer. I felt my top resist for a moment before it gave way, tearing
loudly. If I hadn’t realized how real the danger was before, I knew now, a cold
rush of adrenaline coursing through me at breakneck speeds, my heart thumping
faster than I’d ever felt in my life. I could feel something stirring inside me…
The same feelings that made me ashamed and angry with myself… The feelings that
made me run away from Michael in the first place. My body was betraying me the
way it always did.
“Hey!
What the—”
Just beyond my view I heard
the sound of a scuffle, and then someone falling against one of the pavilion’s
benches with a loud bang .
Michael and I both turned
our heads at the commotion, just in time for him to catch someone’s fist right
against his jaw. Before I could react, Michael had released his hold on my shirt,
sending me reeling until I came right down onto my backside, wincing in pain. I
managed to look up just in time to see Michael stumbling back, his hand
covering the right side of his face.
“Get the fuck away from her,” said my rescuer in
a voice I’d heard whispering a thousand times in my fantasies.
“Richard?” I asked, turning
my head to see my stepbrother more clearly. Sure enough, he stood in front of
me, blocking Michael from taking even one step closer, his fists up and ready
to take another swing.
“What the fuck are you
doing here?” Michael hissed, his face screwed up in anger.
“Keeping creeps like you
from touching things that don’t belong to you,” he growled.
“We’re just having a little
fun. Jessica likes it a little rough. Why don’t you tell your big brother here
how wet you are right now, Jess? I bet he’d love to hear all about it,” Michael
said, rubbing his swollen cheek.
I couldn’t look either of
them in the eye. I couldn’t let my stepbrother know the truth.
“I swear to God, if I see
you lay so much as a hand on her again, you’ll be rolling across the graduation
stage with a pair of broken
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