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“Go away,” she calls. Her purse is on the floor near the door, and Renee bends down, snatches it and takes out her phone. She doesn't call anyone with it, though. She just holds it tightly in her hand. “I'm not opening the door so go away.”
“Who the fuck is out there?” I repeat but I’m not heard over the fucker who’s scaring the shit out of her.
“You owe me a fucking conversation,” the man shouts. “You're the one who started all this. You're the one who did this to me. Getting between me and my wife!”
Her voice cracks and her expression falls. The part of her I knew existed when I left comes out. Tears fall freely and she stands right in front of me, staring at the door, screaming, “Leave me alone! I’m calling the cops!”
He pounds on the door. It's so loud that I'm surprised somebody else hasn't come out into the hallway yet. One of Renee's neighbors or a landlord.
“Who the fuck is that?” I say louder and she barely glances at me. She looks back at me with nothing but shame before breathing heavy and facing the door.
“Go away,” Renee repeats. “I'm not opening the door.”
That makes him punch the door even harder. So fucking hard she flinches. The fists at my side tighten and I scream out, “Get the fuck out of here!”
He doesn’t hear though, not over the rampage he throws.
He stops pretending to knock anymore. He slams his fists on the other side of the door, almost screaming in a furious rage. The things he says to Renee make me want to step outside and beat him to a fucking pulp. I reach for the door, but she stops me by throwing her body in front of me. I stop, frozen from the look of pure fear in her eyes.
He shouts her name but all I can hear is her heavy breathing, about ten breaths, as he pounds on the door again.
There's a long silence.
Renee doesn't move. Her shoulder braced against the door.
I’m left in shock and with the need to go out there, to do something, but I’m here on the other side with her. Watching her barely keep it together.
“Who was that?” I ask when it seems like he’s gone. She looks at me with wide eyes. With both sorrow and shame.
She starts to stand up and then shrieks as there’s another pound on the door. “Fucking bitch.”
“Fucker!” I shout and nearly kick the door as if it’ll hit whoever is on the other side. I’m not a violent man but it’s all I feel watching Renee cower.
“Please don’t!” she begs me. I’ve never felt so tormented.
Anger spikes in my blood. If she wasn’t holding the door knob, I would be out there in a second.
Without knowing what to do, I reach in my back pocket for my phone to call the police, but I don’t have it. Fuck!
It's worse this time, even louder, and this time I step forward and wrap Renee in my arms. She doesn't turn around, but she puts her hands over my arms and holds on to me. It’s all I can do, hold her and stare at the goddamn door. She doesn't say anything when the man shouts at her to answer, which only seems to piss him off more. The doorframe shakes so hard that it starts to come away from the drywall in one corner.
I reach for her phone to call the cops but the moment I do, the banging stops.
Heavy footsteps go down the hall.
Renee and I both stand there, perfectly still, until she steps out of my arms and away from me.
She walks into the living room, does a small circle near her table, and checks her phone. I'm ready to catch her if she falls, or hold her again, or help her calm down. I don't know what to say, and I don't know what to do, but I don't want to reach for her again unless I'm sure she wants it. My heart is beating too fast to be safe. I should have chased after him. I should've gotten a license plate.
I should have done more than I actually did. All of the things I should have done seep into the moment as the shock wears off. All in all, it couldn't have been more than a couple of minutes. Sanity and clarity come back to me slowly.
“Renee, we have to call the police.”
She whips her head around, staring at me with wide eyes. “What?”
“We have to call the police. I can make the call since I was in here with you. You have that guy's name, right?”
“Don't call anybody,” Renee says, her voice hard.
