Page 34 of Forbidden

I grabbed the last box and bumped the door open with my hip. As I stepped outside, I could hear Jim’s voice, but I couldn’t make out the words except for the last one.

“...cunt,” Jim said.

Shane’s fist connected with Jim’s face. Jim fell to the ground, his hands over his nose. Blood began to seep down his face as he glared at Shane.

Shane’s eyes were wild like an animal ready to attack. I shoved the last box into Shane’s hands as he stood over Jim, but it wasn’t enough. His eyes were glued on Jim. I knew he was waiting for him to make another move.

“Let’s go,” I said.

I grabbed Shane’s arm and pulled. His eyes shifted to me briefly, then back at Jim. He stepped back, put the box inside the trunk, and then got into the car. I drove away as quickly as I could.

My body began to shake and I couldn’t focus on the road. My dad only lived a block away, but I was too confused to get there. I stopped the car in front of the neighborhood park.

“Are you okay?” Shane asked.

“I’ll be fine. I’m just shaken up.”

Shane’s hands cupped my face as he looked into my eyes.

“I’m sorry I lost it back there,” he said. “That guy is a fucking asshole. He’s lucky all I did was punch him.”

“What happened? I was leaving a note for my mom when she came into the house.”

“Your stepfather got out of the car and asked if I was your new boyfriend. When I said I was just a friend, he said it didn’t matter who I was. That he was going to warn me about you.”

“Warn you?”

“Yeah, warn me about how irresponsible and lazy you are and all sorts of other things. He was just talking smack. I know you were supporting them, he probably thought I didn’t know anything.”

“He said more than that, didn’t he?”

“I don’t want to tell you.”

“Tell me. I need to know.”

“He was talking about how pretty you were. Then he said...”

“Tell me. I think I know what he said. I heard the last word.”

“He misses the smell of your...”

“Cunt,” I said. “It was something my mother used to say to me. Well, kind of. She used to say that she hated me and that I was a slut and that men could smell me like a dog in heat.”

“She’s a fucking bitch.”

“Sorry you had to hear all of that. At least it got us out of there quick.” I smiled.

“You’re taking it well.”

“I’m used to it, unfortunately. But it’s one of the reasons why I left. I couldn’t take it there anymore and I think after this, I’m going to promise myself to never see him again.” Just the promise alone was enough to put me at ease. “Can you tell me something though? What did it feel like to punch him?”

“After what he was saying about you, he deserved more than just a punch. But it did feel good.”

“I bet it did. I've always wanted to punch him, beat him, clobber him with a two-by-four.”

“And they call me a bad boy,” he said with a laugh. “I think that makes you a bad girl. I’ll have to remember that for next Saturday.” He cocked his brow at me with a half-smile.

“Mmm, I’ll make sure to remind you.”

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