15. Gang up
1669 Words
Emily
Bianca marches straight up to me like she owns the entire rink. Her two silly minions stick close behind her like loyal little attack dogs.
She stops right in front of me and looks me up and down slowly, her nose wrinkling. “And what are you doing here?”
Her voice is loud enough for the nearby hockey players to hear.
I roll my eyes. “And how is that your business?”
Her lips curl in a nasty smile. “Didn’t I tell you Damien is my boyfriend and yet here you are.” Her eyes narrow sharply. “You seem to have a f*****g death wish.”
My patience is already thin today and this girl is testing the last strand of it.
I shrug.
“Well I’m here,” I say. “And there’s nothing you can do about it.”
The second the words leave my mouth her hand swings across my face.
Pain explodes across my cheek and my head jerks sideways so hard my neck cracks. My eyes water instantly and bright little sparks flash across my vision.
“f**k!” I gasp, grabbing my face.
The sting burns like someone just branded me.
For one stunned second I just stare at her.
Did this crazy witch seriously just slap me?
In public?
In front of all these idiots?
Anger hits me so fast my hand moves before my brain even catches up.
Smack.
My palm connects with her cheek and her head snaps to the side.
“How dare you,” I snap, my cheek still throbbing like hell.
Bianca loses her entire mind. “You f*****g b***h!” she screams and launches at me.
She grabs a fistful of my hair and yanks so hard a sharp pain shoots across my scalp.
“OW!” I shout, stumbling forward while grabbing her hair right back.
If she wants to pull hair then fine. Two can play that game.
We start shoving and grabbing at each other like two wild animals. She tries to claw at my face with her nails and I jerk my head back while throwing my arm up to block her hand.
Her nails scrape across my wrist instead and it stings like f*****g hell.
“You touched my man!” she screams.
“I did not touch your man!” I shoot back while trying to push her away.
She swings at my face again and I duck but her hand still clips the side of my jaw.
Pain shoots through my teeth and I hiss.
Behind her the two minions jump in like they have been waiting for their moment.
One of them grabs my hair from behind and pulls so violently my eyes water again.
“Jesus Christ!” I yell, grabbing at her arm.
The other one lunges for my face with her nails and I throw both hands up to shield myself.
“Back off!” I snap.
They are absolutely aiming for my face like it is a group project.
Bianca is still trying to slap me while the other two pull my hair and swipe at my cheeks.
“Jack, aren't you going to separate them?” Someone nearby shouts.
I glance over for half a second.
Jack is standing with the other hockey players watching the whole thing like it is entertainment.
He laughs. “Why would I get involved in a f*****g chick fight?”
Unbelievable.
The three of them shove me backward at the same time and I lose my balance.
My back hits the floor hard and the air rushes out of my lungs.
“s**t!” I gasp.
Before I can even sit up Bianca is on top of me again trying to slap me.
Her hand smacks against my shoulder and another one hits the side of my arm.
Pain spreads across the spot and I grunt, curling slightly while trying to keep my face covered.
One of the girls yanks my hair again and my scalp burns.
“GET OFF MY HAIR!” I shout, blindly kicking my leg out.
My foot connects with something and one of them yelps.
Bianca tries to grab my chin to force my face up but I twist my head away and shove at her shoulder.
My arms are basically glued to my face now because I know exactly what they are trying to do.
Protect the face. That is the mission.
Someone in the background yells, “Holy shit.”
Someone else is laughing.
My hair is getting pulled, my arm throbs when someone hits me, and Bianca is still yelling something about staying away from Damien.
I try shoving her again but the two other girls grab my shoulders and push me back down.
My head bumps the floor and I groan.
“This is insane!” I cry out.
Then suddenly the weight on me disappears.
Two of the girls are yanked off me so fast they stumble backward.
I blink up from the ground, still clutching my hair and breathing hard.
Bianca is dragged away from me too.
A furious voice cuts through the rink. “Are you f*****g crazy?”
Damien.
He is standing there gripping Bianca’s arm and glaring at the other two girls like he might actually murder them.
His jaw is tight and his eyes are blazing with anger.
Bianca jerks her arm out of Damien’s grip.
“Are you kidding me right now?” she snaps, pointing straight at me while I’m still sitting on the damn floor trying to untangle my hair. “This b***h came here after I warned her not to.”
My scalp still hurts like hell and my cheek is throbbing, but hearing her call me that again makes my blood boil.
Damien’s voice turns sharp immediately. “Don’t call her a b***h. Her name is Emily and she’s my girlfriend.”
The entire rink goes quiet again.
Even my brain pauses for a second.
Bianca’s mouth falls open. “Damien...” she starts, but he cuts her off instantly.
“Shut up Bianca.” His tone is cold enough to freeze the entire damn ice rink.
“I already told you it’s over. I don’t want anything to do with you anymore. The next time you pull something like this I’ll make you regret it.”
Bianca looks like she might explode.
Meanwhile I’m still on the floor trying to process the fact that he just called me his girlfriend in front of this witch.
Damien finally turns and looks at me sitting there with my messy hair and stained shirt like I just crawled out of a war zone.
I immediately look away because suddenly I feel this weird mix of embarrassment and anger creeping up my spine.
This whole situation is humiliating…. I'm pathetic.
He sighs and glances over at Jack. “And you were standing there and couldn’t even do anything?”
Jack shrugs and laughs.“What? Am I supposed to involve myself in a girls fight?”
Damien stares at him with pure disgust. “You’re really a f*****g bastard.”
Jack grins like he’s proud of that title.
Typical.
Damien turns back to me and extends his hand.
I stare at it for a second then look away.
“I can handle myself.” My voice comes out a little sharper than I expected.
And look, I know technically none of this is his fault. But also it is his fault.
If this man did not exist in my life I would not be getting slapped and jumped by angry cheerleaders today.
Before I can even argue further he suddenly bends down.
The next thing I know I am lifted straight off the ground.
Bridal style.
“What the hell!”
My arms instinctively grab his shoulders as he picks me up like I weigh nothing.
“Damien, what are you doing? Put me down.” My cheek burns hotter because now everyone in the rink is staring.
This is so embarrassing I might actually pass away.
He completely ignores me.
Like I did not even speak.
He bends down slightly with one arm still holding me and grabs my bag from the floor before straightening again.
Then he starts walking.
Just like that.
Carrying me through the rink like some angry caveman who just claimed his prize.
Ryan’s voice calls out behind us. “Damien, where are you going? We’re supposed to start practice.”
Damien does not even bother looking back.
He just keeps walking.
I glance up at his face….He looks f*****g furious.
His jaw is tight and his eyes are dark like he is five seconds away from punching someone through a wall.
Okay now I’m slightly concerned.
He carries me straight toward the locker room area and pushes through the doors without slowing down.
At this point I stop protesting because honestly my cheek hurts, my arm hurts, my hair probably looks like a bird’s nest, and I am so damn tired.
We reach the hallway of the changing rooms and he walks straight to that same private door from the other day.
The one where he pinned me against the bed and completely ruined my ability to think normally today.
My brain absolutely remembers that room.
He pulls a set of keys from his pocket and unlocks the door before pushing it open.
Then he walks inside and kicks the door shut behind us.
The moment the door closes he sets me down on a chair.
Well. Not gently.
More like drops me onto it.
“Ow,” I mutter, rubbing my arm.
He turns around and looks at me.
His eyes scan my messy hair, my face, my stained shirt.
Then his gaze snaps back to my face. “What the hell was that?” he suddenly yells.
The sharpness of his voice makes me flinch.
I blink at him. Hold on.
Why is he yelling at me?
- Writer
