Page 13 of Run to Me
Tina laughs, scooting to the edge of her seat. Clearing her throat, she sits up tall and presses her palms to her knees. “It all started with a man named Cole. He was very plain and ordinary looking. Like every other thirty-something-year-old, he yearned for more than the life he had. The white picket fence, wife, and adorable baby boy no longer satisfied him.” She takes a breath before continuing, everyone eyeing her closely with intense gazes, including me. “It started with picking up men at clubs for nothing more than innocent conversation, but quickly turned into dirty hook-ups in bathroom stalls and the back of his blue pickup. His wife learned of his endeavors and threatened to leave, but he wouldn’t have that, so he started hitting her, leaving her weak and helpless after every fight.”
“This doesn’t sound like a ghost story to me,” one guy says.
“You guys wanted scary and that’s what I’m giving you. Now, can I keep going or not?” She shoots me a smile, a glint in her eyes. Gnawing fills my stomach. I have a really bad feeling about where this is going.
“Yes, please do,” Gabe encourages and I scratch at my knees nervously. This story sounds like one I’ve heard before, and that’s because it is. She doesn’t have to talk much longer for me to know what direction she’s heading in, mentioning men kept in the basement as sex slaves. The moment she brings up the emotionless boy who was too eager to make his dad proud, I shoot up from my chair and head through a grouping of trees. A mixture of laughing and yelling fades in the distance. I don’t have to look to know the person jumping to my defense is Nate.
Footsteps trail behind me, leaves crunching loudly the closer they get. “Jace,” Nate’s whispers mix in with the slight breeze.
“Go back to your friends,” I say, pressing my face to the tree bark, suppressing my tears. They won’t see me cry. They can never see me cry. No matter what. Crying was also against the rules, and I wait for my father to pop out at any moment to remind me with his closed fists or by dunking my head in the dirty sink water.
“If you want to go home, we can.”
Sniffling, I lift my face and shake my head. “No. This is supposed to be the highlight of your whole summer.”
A hand rests on my shoulder and his lips press to my ear. “No. Spending this time with you is. Let’s get out of here and camp out in the old tree house instead.”
Turning around, I swipe hair from his face. “I won’t let them chase me away every time. Besides, we don’t have to see them after this.” I hate the idea of them ruining this for him.
“You sure?”
“Yeah. It’s not like I haven’t heard it all before.”
“You shouldn’t have to hear it at all. Ever.” Wrapping his arms around me, he buries his face in my neck. Holding him closer to my body, I turn my nose into his hair, inhaling the fire smoke mixed in with his shampoo. If only we didn’t have to move for the rest of the night. I’d be perfectly content right where I am.
“How about I grab my swim trunks and we go down to the lake together. Just us.” He pulls away, eyes twinkling with hope.
“A different area from where Rick and his flavor of the week are, right?”
He laughs. “Definitely. Come on.” He drags me back to camp and the rest of the group is right where we left them, gathered around the fire, telling stories. They’ve moved on from the last one, not paying us any mind.
“I’m going to walk ahead,” I say, before parting ways with Nate at the tent. I quickly pass the drunk, hollering idiots, staying in all the lit up areas as I walk onto the path leading to the water. Crossing over a small bridge, I stop halfway at the sound of a high-pitched scream.
“Wait,” a familiar voice says through the trees behind me. Nate. Stomach lurching, I pound my fists against my thighs as I stomp toward the shouting voices. Gabe has Nate pinned to a tree, Nate squirming beneath his hold and pounding his fists against Gabe’s muscular chest. Despite Nate’s eagerness to get away, Gabe doesn’t let up, sliding his hand up Nate’s shirt.
“I thought you said you liked me.”
“Please, let me go. I’m supposed to meet my brother at the lake,” Nate protests and Gabe laughs, undoing the tie on Nate’s swim trunks. “I’ll let you go once we’re done. You want this too. I know you do.”
Gabe is bigger than me, his muscles and large build are usually intimidating, but him ignoring Nate’s objection triggers something fearless inside me. Marching forward, I grab him by the neck and yank him back so hard he loses balance and lands on his ass. “What the fuck, asshole,” he spits.
“He told you to let him go.”
“This is none of your fucking business. If he really wanted to, he could’ve gotten away. Right, baby?” Gabe shoots Nate a pleading look.
“Don’t fucking talk to him.” Turning to Nate, I cup his face with my hands, lowering my face a little. “You okay?”
Nodding, his bottom lip curls in a little. Fingers grab at my shirt, forcing me to turn around, and I dodge the fist coming toward me by ducking my head. Gabe groans when his hand is met with the tree and all it does is anger him more. He tries to hit me again so I grab his wrist and twist it so hard he screams in agony, something snapping under his skin.
“What the fuck did you do that for?” He clutches his arm to his chest. “I think you broke it.”
“Good. You should probably leave and get that looked at.”
“You know what? He’s not even worth all this trouble.” His jaw clenches and he rushes off through the trees, heading back to camp.
“You sure you’re okay?” I ask again, reaching for Nate’s shoulder, peering deep into his shiny eyes.
“Yeah. I am now. Let’s go swimming.”
