The Mistake

Bruised

Run. I screamed in my mind as the three dim figures melted in and out of the light, running towards us. But I couldn't move. Either I was paralyzed by fear or the painstaking anxiety in me, but I couldn't move. "Sam!" A strong hand grabbed me by my sore wrist and yanked, the sudden pain I felt and urgency of it snapping me out of my daze.

My heart still throbbed loudly in my ears, but I was running, getting pulled along by Nick. I didn't dare look back. "Get in." He hissed and almost pushed me into the front seat. My breathing came in short gasps as I looked out the window. The blonde man with the gun pointed it upwards as he got closer and screamed something at us, but I couldn't tell what. I heard a door slam. The engine revved and suddenly the car was moving, the guys running towards us slowly fading into nothing more than shadows in darkness.

***

Nick

I didn't look at her as I peeled the car away through the street. I glanced over my shoulder, just to make sure they wouldn't follow us. My gaze threatened to wander off to Sam, but I was afraid of what I'd see, so I focused on the blood on my knuckles instead. Most was of the guy's lying unconscious on the ground now, but I was sure the skin on my knuckles had split.

I didn't even think when I saw Terence pinning her against the wall, I just knew what they could have done to her if I did nothing. My body reacted, a sudden surge of anger and adrenaline coursing through my veins. But the anger I felt then had turned and distorted into something new, something that made my stomach churn.

Sam didn't run, she didn't try to fight him off as far as I could see, she just stood there with wide eyes as they grabbed her body. If I weren't there, they could have drugged her, or worse, raped her. The thought made my jaw clench and my eyes glossy with newfound anger. Now it was because of Sam. I slammed on the brakes as soon as we were far enough from the alley. I heard her gasp quietly from beside me, but I still couldn't turn towards her. I would lose it.

"What the hell were you thinking?" I growled. I waited a second for an answer, and when none came, I forced my eyes to peel away from the dark street and to her. My eyes widened when I saw one hand of hers clutching the sides of the leather seat, the other covering her right cheek. She was shaking, and her breath looked strangled, struggling to calm herself.

Without thinking, my hand reached out to turn her cheek towards me, firmly but gently, and her breath hitched. Her hand finally released from her cheek, and she looked down defeatedly. I sucked in a breath when I saw the bright red scrapes that were drawn over her  right cheek, and my stomach churned.

"Sam-" I croaked out and gulped, not wanting to continue, but not letting my hold on her jaw go. Her eyes darted to me, a blur of different emotions going through her pale face. Confusion, hidden anger, embarrasment, fear. "Where else are you hurt?"

She had calmed down a little now, her breath wasn't ragged, and her hands weren't shaking as much, but she still said nothing, she just shook her head. I was growing irritated from her silence, desperate for her to tell me what else they had done in the time I had missed, and I took my hand away. "Jesus, Sam, do you have any idea what those guys could have done to you?" I snarled at her, my eyes wide with anger, and a muscle in my cheek twitched.

Taking me by surprise, she turned to me and spoke up, "And why would you care?" She said in a low voice, but the sharp tone was still there.

"It's called being a decent human being," I said, but I wasn't finished. "Why the hell did you run off like that? What were you thinking?"