“Actually, I’m not telling you. Mind your own business.” I had been polite to him before, but that was just crossing a line. In fact, I wasn’t sure why he was still insisting on sitting next to me after I turned him down. There were plenty of other empty seats out there.
I heard him mutter “bitch” as he turned around, and I rolled my eyes at Annie, who gave me the ‘woah, what’s with that dude’ look as the professor walked in and began her lecture.
I realized halfway through class that I was completely and totally exhausted. Maybe the weekend had been harder on me than I thought. When the professor let us go, I begged off from going to the gym with Annie that afternoon.
“I just don’t have it in me today. I’m so tired, I think I’m just going to go grab a coffee, then go home.”
“Yeah, of course. Don’t worry Julianne, I get it. Go home, get some rest. Take care of yourself, ok? Say hi to your mom for me.”
“I will, thanks Annie.”
I shot her a grateful smile then went off the other way, taking out my phone to text Michael to come pick me up an hour early.
I headed towards my favourite coffee shop, a couple blocks off campus. As the next set of classes were getting started, the streets were pretty empty, but I decided to take a shortcut through a small alley anyway, just to get there faster.
Suddenly, I heard a voice behind me.
“Hey, Julianne!”
I turned to see Oliver coming towards me.
“What do you want?” I asked, instinctively pulling my jacket closer towards me.
“What the fuck do you think you were doing, disrespecting me like that?”
There was rage in his eyes, he came closer to me, and I started looking around to see if there was anybody around. Nope. I was alone in this alley with a guy that I had a bad feeling wasn’t here for a friendly visit.
“Disrespecting? You’re the one who decided to come in on a conversation you weren’t invited to.”
Tina’s warning resounded in my head. Her friend had been right, Oliver was a bad dude. I just hoped he was more bark than bite.
“It wasn’t enough that you had to turn me down, when I wanted to do something nice for you and take me out, you have to treat me like garbage, too? Do you even know who I am? I squash bugs like you, your poor American ass wouldn’t have a clue who I am.”
I didn’t have to take this from an asshole like this.
“I know exactly who you are. You’re a sad sack of shit who can’t take no as an answer from a woman.”
As soon as the words came out of my mouth I wondered if I hadn’t made a huge mistake. Was poking the bear really a good idea? Still, I’d said the words, and as much as I was starting to get scared for my safety, I was glad I said them. Someone had to.
Oliver took a threatening step towards me and I yelled out “HELP!” as loudly as I could.
“No one’s going to come and save you, you little bitch,” he growled as he cocked his fist. I knew what was coming. I shouldn’t have said what I did. Yes, I should have. No matter how badly this was going to hurt, I bet my words hurt him a lot more. I braced for the impact, but it never came.
Instead, when I opened my eyes, Jack was wrenching Oliver’s arm behind him.
“Ahh, shit!” Oliver cried out, and I heard a snap and then a scream. Jack let go of Oliver and shoved him into the brick wall of the alley, his right arm limp at his side, at a strange angle.
I couldn’t stop staring at Oliver’s arm, even as Jack grabbed him by the collar and punched him square in the face. Blood began spurting from his nose and he cried out in pain.
“See? Maybe if someone beats the shit out of you you’ll stop doing it to women,” Jack growled in his low, husky voice. “Not as fun when someone fights back, is it? You ever come close to my little sister again and I’ll make sure you come out of it with way worse than just a few broken bones,” he threatened before shoving him into the wall once more.
Then, without another word Jack took me by the arm and led me out of the alley.
When we were back in the street he looked me in the eye.
“Are you ok, Julianne?” There it was, my real name again. I nodded, mutely; I didn’t trust my voice. Had I seriously just seen what I thought I did? Jack had just beaten up the guy that was going to attack me.
“Holy shit,” I finally whispered.
“Come on, we’re going to get you a drink.”
“I was going to the coffee shop down the block.”
“You need something stronger than coffee, you’re so pale people will think you’re in the Chess club.”
I curved a corner of my mouth into the slightest sliver of a smile at Jack’s joke. He was right though. My legs felt like they were stuck in cement. I felt like I was going to puke. The last few minutes had been some of the craziest of my life.
Practically dragging me to a dive bar down the road, Jack put me in a booth.
“Hey, Rosa, two beers and two shots of whiskey, pronto! And a pack of ice.” he yelled out to the waitress behind the bar.