Face the Music (22 page)

“Please tell me you’re kidding.  You are not wearing that,” she said, not hiding her irritation.  “You look like a lumberjack.”  She went to my closet and sifted through my clothes.  “The jeans will work if you’ll pull your pant leg down
over
your boot, but you are not wearing that shirt.”  She handed me a light pink
cowl neck
sweater.  I
knew better than to argue
.

We got to the restaurant a little before seven.  Busty female servers, all wearing short miniskirts and tight, low-cut tanks, bustled around the room.  The guys weren’t there yet, so we took a seat at the bar and ordered a round of drinks.  The stench of cigarette smoke was choking, burning both my eyes and my nostrils. 

The place was a sore excuse for a restaurant.  A trashy looking woman
on the stage performed
karaoke.  She wore leopard print pants and a tight shirt that looked
like
it
was two sizes too small.  Her singing wasn’t any better than her outfit. 
Turning back to the bar, I grabbed my beer and took a long swig.  I would need the alcohol if I planned on surviving through this night.

When the guys finally showed, they were fifteen minutes late.  I was about to suggest leaving when Emily spotted them
and waved them over
. 

“Allie, remember John?”  I faked a smile and shook his hand.  Then I saw his brother.  Matthew was over six feet tall and built like a linebacker.  He had dark brown eyes and jet black hair that was gelled back in a messy yet stylish way, and I felt my resolve to have a bad time start to diminish.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. 
Matthew was kind of cute. 

As the server escorted us to a table, I spied Jake.  He was sitting on the far end of the room with a few
guys I recognized from work.  We made eye-contact, and h
e gave me a thumbs up.  Thankfully, Emily didn’t notice.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that any intelligent conversation with Matthew
was out of the question.  In spite of bei
ng good looking, he was a world
-class
idiot.  At
some point in the conversation
he told me he went to college in Iowa and studied Marine Biology.

“Iowa, huh?  Don’t you need to be near the coast for that?” 

Emily glared at me.
  I glared back, and s
he kicked me from under the table.

“Well, I’m just saying, if you’re studying marine life, you would need to live near the ocean, right?  Does Iowa even offer a program for that?” 

Our meals came.  My cheeseburger was sensational, but the best part was that all conversation ceased while we ate. 

Once our plates were cleared
,
Emily convinced John to help her pick out a karaoke song.  I grabbed her hand under the table and si
lently pleaded for her to stay. 
I did not want to be left alone with Matthew. 
Having a conversation with a wall would have been more
stimulating
. 
She laughed and went with John anyway.

I didn’t stick around to watch their performance.  The smoky ai
r was really bothering me, so
I told Matthew I needed some fresh air and
went
outside. 

It was the second week of March, and the dark skies were clear.  I stood in the parking lot awhile and gazed up, admiring the stars.  I found Cancer, the crab.  It looked more like an upside down Y to me, but I’ve never
had
much of an imagination.

Heavy footsteps approached from behind.  Matthew was heading my way, holding a lit cigarette.  He put his thick arm arou
nd my shoulders and blew
smoke in my face.  I coughed and waved my hand in front of my nose.  He didn’t take the hint.  “The stars are out tonight, huh?” he
said, glancing up at the sky.

I didn’t bother to respond to such an obvious observation. 

“You know, I had a great time tonight.  It was really nice to meet you, Amy.” 

“Allie,” I corrected.

“Right.”  He took another drag and blew more smoke at me.  I tried to take a step back, but he h
ad a tight grip on my shoulders.  He spun me around to face him and
reached up to tuck a piece of hair beh
ind my ear, but I pulled away.

A tight-lipped sneer spread across his face.  “Hey baby, don’t be that way.  Come on, you had a nice time too, right?”  I quivered as he ran his fingers through my hair.

“Matthew, look,” I paused, trying to find the right words.  “You’re a real nice guy and all, but I don’t think…”

A devilish light flashed in his eyes.  “What’s wrong?  I’m not good enough for you?  You think you’re better than me
, college girl
?”  He
pinned
my wrists
behind my back
and shoved me towards the cars, hissing in my ear, “John told me all about your little sister, how she likes to give it up.  Even got her a kid, huh?  How ‘bout the big sister, you like to play too?”
  His free hand pulled at the collar of my shirt.

I struggled to free myself
,
but his grip only tightened.  “You got some fight in you.  I like that.”  He dragged me behind a black minivan, and I tripped over something and lost my footing.  He
yanked me back up
to
my feet.

“Ouch!
You’re hurting me
!” I shrieked. 

He backhanded me across the face. 

The sting brought tears to my eyes.  “Are you crazy?  Let
go
of me!”

He continued to push me
across
the parking lot
towards an abandoned
garage
. 
I had a pretty good idea of what
his
intentions were, and it scared the hell out of me.
 
My mind raced as my eyes scanned the pave
ment, searching for a way out.

I tried to kick him.  He shoved me, hard, into the side of an Explorer
, and then grabbed my hair. 

I screamed. 

He pinned me against his chest, one hand over my mouth, the other wrapped around my waist, and lifted me up off my feet.  “Let’s see what we have
in
here
.
”
  He
grabbed
the collar of my sweater and pulled, ripping it in half
and exposing my bra
.  I could fe
el his smile against my cheek. 
“Impressive.  What else you
hiding
?”  H
is hand
snaked
down my bare belly
towards my waistband
. 
Nausea, combined with sheer panic, consumed me.  I didn’t know if I was going to throw up or pass out.  Maybe both, if I was lucky.

“Matthew, please!” I squeaked.  My heart was pounding so hard I could hardly breathe.

“That’s right, bitch.  Beg for it.”

“Hey!” someone shouted.  “What’s going on?” 

It was Jake.  He laid a hand on Matthew’s s
houlder.  “What are you doing?  L
et go of her!” 

Matthew released his grip and shoved me hard.  I stumbled and fell sideways, twisting the knee of my already injured leg.

“Why don’t you mind your own business, punk?”  Matthew bellowed.  “Can’t you see when you’re not wanted?”
  Matthew easily had fifty pounds on Jake, but Jake didn’t back down.

He
flashed
Matthew
a provoking grin.  “What’s the matter?
Afraid I’ll steal your girl?
”

Matthew threw a punch.  His fist collided with Jake’s nose.  I heard a loud crack and watched in horror as Jake stumbled a few
steps backwards. 
He quickly regained his footing and lunged at Matthew, throwing him into the ground.

The two scuffled, and after a minute Emily was by my sid
e. 
“Allie
!  I heard screaming, w
hat’s
going on?”  She looked at me in horror.

My lungs were screaming for air.  I gasped and then rolled over and puked.
  So much for the cheeseburger.

“Oh my God!” Emily shrieked
.  She was holding back my hair and trying to pull the sides of my sweater together
.

  John
threw
Jake off his brother and helped Matthew g
et up.  “L
et’s get out of here,” he grumbled.  “These
cunts
aren’t worth the trouble.”  The two climbed into a rusty blue pickup and squealed the tires as they raced out of the parking lot.

Jake rushed over to Emily and me, pinching his bleeding nose but smiling from ear to ear.  A sparkle of exc
itement glimmered in his eyes.
   That sparkle faded to fury
when
he looked at me
and my torn sweater
.
  “What the fuck?”  He turned towards where the pickup had been, but it was long gone.

“Jake!  That bastard!  Allie!”  Emily
was in hysterics.

“Allie?  Baby, are y
ou okay?”
He shrugged out of his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. 
“I’m sorry; I should have come out sooner.  I saw him follow you out, but I thought it was just for a sm
oke.”

I tried to get up
off the ground but struggled.  M
y leg really hurt
, and I was shaking so hard that I couldn’t seem to get my feet under me
.  Jake
picked me up and carried me.  Sobs heaved in my chest
.  He held me close and ran his fingers through my hair.  “It’s a
ll over. 
I’ve go
t you now.”

***

Friday morning I hobbled down the hal
l towards my classroom.  M
y books
were
piled into my
leather bag
, which
was
slung over one shoulder, and
I
was having a
terrible
time balancing the weight with the crutches.  It took quite a bit of effort to keep from falling sideways.
  I counted my blessings, though.  At least I could walk.  I hadn’t suffered any permanent injuries, but the swelling in my leg
was enough that I couldn’t get the boot
to slip on
.