Page 66 of Losing Control
Michael.
He found me?
How the fuck does he know that I am here?
“You’re going nowhere near her,” Cal says, and I can hear the determination in his voice. I hastily step back and hide behind the wall, keeping my ear pricked so that I can hear what is going on as I try to calm my racing heart.
“Why the hell not?” Michael asks, keeping his innocent façade in place.
Cal scoffs. “Are you seriously going to stand there and make out that you’re innocent?” Cal says, and I hold my breath, waiting for Michael’s response.
“Look, I don’t know what she has told you about what has gone on, but she’s not in her right state of mind. She’s been behaving oddly for months now. I’m worried about her,” Michael replies.
The sheer anger that I feel as I hear Michael speak each word is indescribable, and if I weren’t so scared of what he might do, then I would march right down there and tell him what I thought of him. If only I wasn’t such a coward.
“Please don’t try and patronise me,” Cal says. “I’ve known Lucy since we were kids, and I believe every single word that she has told me, so nothing you say will make a blind bit of difference.”
I risk peering round the wall and see that Cal’s jaw is clenched as he holds his defiant stance.
“You still have a thing for her, huh?” Michael says, his tone changing to add in more of an edge. Cal laughs at his question.
“Only someone with your mentality would ask me a question like that. I don’t need to explain myself to you, and neither does Lucy.”
“I knew that you didn’t like me from the word go, and now you have made Lucy push me away.”
“Michael, I don’t have time for this.”
“Why? You too busy fucking my fiancée?” Michael sneers and I cover my mouth, disgusted at how vulgar his words can be. “LUCY!” he starts to shout and my whole body convulses.
Cal won’t let him in here.
No need to panic.
No need to be afraid.
It’s easy to say those words inside of my head, but actually putting them into action is another matter entirely. Of course I’m going to panic, and of course I’m afraid. Who wouldn’t be?
I breath in through my mouth and back out again, slowly, to try and regulate my racing heart.
“You are, aren’t you?” Michael continues, and I sink to the floor, my knees pulled up in front of me, my head resting back against the wall as I try to keep focussed on my breathing.
“You can think what you like,” Cal retorts which is going to do nothing to dampen Michael’s temper. “Lucy and I are friends, good friends and nothing will ever change that.”
“Everything was fine until you came back. Lucy and I were happy, excited for our future, but the minute you showed your face everything changed. She changed. You changed her.” Michael is on one and I know that this is just the start. This is just him building until he loses it. “You ruined what we had together.”
I peer round the wall again and see that Michael has come into view and he is standing near enough nose to nose with Cal.
My heart thumps and all thoughts of regulating my breathing have gone. Cal doesn’t look fazed in the slightest, but I am petrified that Michael is about to hurt my oldest and bestest friend.
“I didn’t do anything, Michael.”
“You fucking did,” Michael says as I see him shove Cal. Cal stumbles back slightly, but not as much as I would have had Michael shoved me. “You should have stayed away. You didn’t need to come back.”
“Get out,” Cal says, but I know that it will take something more for Michael to leave.
“I’m going nowhere until I have spoken to my fiancée.” He advances towards Cal again, I can see his hands are clenched into fists. I can’t let him hurt Cal. I won’t let Cal take a hit for me.
Before I can stop myself, I move on shaky legs down the first few steps. Neither of the men notice me to start with, so I walk down a couple more. Michael spots me before Cal does, and his focus shifts. Cal is no longer his target, I am. I walk to the bottom step and Michael starts to come towards me, but Cal beats him to it.
