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My stomach dips and for a second I think he’s here for me when I realize that the officer didn’t even take my name.
“I hear he’s been at it again?” he huffs to the man behind the desk as I sit up and crack my eyes open.
“Yeah,” the officer who brought me in replies. “Over a girl.” He tilts his head over to me and I brace myself for what’s about to come.
He spins slowly, his eyes landing straight on me. “Ava?” He frowns, his eyes squinting and filling with anger as he scans my face.
“You know her?” the officer behind the desk asks.
“Damn straight I do, that’s my little sister.” I smile at how he calls me that and then wince when my eye throbs with the movement. It still feels weird how I’m considered part of their family and, to be honest, I’m still getting used to it even after all this time.
“I didn’t know you had a sister.”
“Long story,” Charlie tells him and steps towards me, dismissing him. He crouches down and looks at my eye, his thumb and pointer finger resting on my chin, moving my face to the side so he can see it better. “What happened?”
I look around not wanting to talk to him out here, not when other people can hear me. Sensing my unease, he stands up and holds his hand out. Taking it, I let him pull me up and then follow him into an office.
Sitting down in the chair that he waves at, I chew on my lip as he perches on the edge of the desk in front of me.
“So?” He raises a brow. “What happened?”
“Well...” I clear my throat. “I met Jackson.”
He smirks at me, his brown eyes creasing at the corners. “I can see that, darlin’.” He crosses his feet at the ankles. “Care to elaborate?”
“Well... I went to a bar-”
“You went to a bar?” He gasps, his feet planted firmly on the floor as he stands up.
“Yes,” I say, rolling my eyes at him and then wincing at the movement. “Anyway, I recognized Jackson when I was there but I couldn’t place where from and then when Scott said his name-”
“Scott?” He frowns, balancing back on the edge of the desk. “The roommate’s boyfriend?”
“Yeah, so I went over to Jackson and kind of introduced myself. Then when we were walking out, Scott tried to stop me and he, err...” I look around the room, noticing all the framed pictures and certificates on the walls.
“What did he do?” Charlie asks, clearly trying to restrain himself.
I stop and stare at him for a minute. Charlie is the person I talk to the most, conversation is never stilted with him and I feel like my mouth takes off when I talk to him because I’m free, I can say what I want without fear of saying the wrong thing, without fear of anyone knowing how messed up my past is.
“He grabbed my arm,” I whisper, looking down and hating how I sound. It shouldn’t be a big deal that he did that, I don’t want it to be a big deal. “Then Jackson told him to let go and he did.” I say, bringing my eyes back to him. “But then Scott punched Jackson and he just stood there and took it.”
I bite my lip, not wanting to say anything else because I know Charlie won’t be happy, but the fact that he can already see that obviously something has happened to my face and the raise of his brow I get when I don’t carry on, is enough to get me talking again.
“When he went to punch him again, he well... he hit me.” I point to my face and huff as if it’s no big deal.
“Motherfucker!” Charlie grits out, his fist banging down on the desk making a pot of pens tip over beside him.
I nod, agreeing with him and used to his outbursts, Charlie’s harmless, all bark and no bite as people say. I may be scared of a lot of things right now but that doesn’t mean that what Scott has done doesn’t make me angry. I’m angry, so angry, and I really don’t want to see his face in my apartment again.
“What’s going to happen with Jackson?”
“I’ll get him out,” Charlie says as he scrubs his hands down his face. “Wait here while I go and get him and then we’ll take you home.”
“Okay.” I smile when he squeezes my shoulder gently and plants a kiss on the top of my head before he walks out of the door.
It’s just my luck that the first night I decide to go out and face my fears so that I can pull the post-it notes off my wall, is a night that I get into trouble.
I wake up groaning and holding my hand to my head, I need painkillers and some ice. Rolling out of bed with my eyes still closed, I wave my hands in front of me and try to walk to my door.
