Hammered

Chapter 3

That night that I had with Demi changed her whole perspective of me. She finally realized that I was not there to critize her or bring her down. She understood that I was not that type of guy. I really wanted to be there for her, but I wanted to be with her even more. I wanted a real relationship with her, but I was afraid. Later on, my feelings for Demi grew. We hung out almost anytime we had a free schedule. I would see her on campus and we would talk for hours in the library. We would study together, eat together, hang out together. The only problem was her boyfriend. Demi told me so much about him and I tried to tell her that boy was not right for her. Day by day, week by week and eventually month by month, Demi would come to my place with swollen eyes under sunglasses or beaten and bruised arms and legs. Everyday I comforted Demi and everyday I tried to get her to break up with her abusive boyfriend. I told her to call the police but she wouldn't listen. I told her to at least tell her parents but the only person she told was me. I felt like I was of some use to her life after she had said that. One Saturday, Demi and I went to my place to watch a movie. As Demi took her seat, I pop the movie in and take my seat next to Demi. We sat in silence and about twenty minutes passed with us saying absolutely nothing. I look at Demi and watch her as she fingers the popcorn. My heart races and I have no idea what to do, I have no control over my feelings. I gulped and tried to slow the pace of my heart. "Are you okay?" She asked. "Yeah. I'm fine." I lied. I stare at her and she stares at me with a smile. Her hand slides onto mine. I just wanted to burst out and say "I love you" and although my heart ached like a thousand fire ants dancing on it, I knew I had to hide my feelings for her because i knew it would show through my face. I hear my phone ringing. It is my mom "Hey. How are you?" She asks. She sounds nervous on the phone but I know the reason why. I have not spoken to my mother in about 11 months. Hearing her voice brought chills to my spine. "Hi mom. I'm fine. What happened?" I ask.

  - "Why do you assume something happened? I can't have a normal conversation with my son?"

  - "Well I haven't heard from you in almost a year. I just assumed something happened for you to call me out of the blue."

  - "Why don't you call me? Why am I the one that calls you?"

  - "I'm not in the mood for this right now mom. I have to go." I hang up and look out the corner of my eye. Demi is staring at me. She stretches her arm out and holds my hand. "The same way you're here for me, I'll be here for you." The sound and thought of that made me smile. I turn to look at her and see a bruise on her chest. "Demi what the hell! I thought I told you not to go near that guy again!" I exclaim. She pulls her hand away from me and covers her chest with her palm. "I didn't go to him. He came to me. I think he's following me and I'm afraid Ryan. I don't know what to do anymore." She says looking at me. Her voice is shaky but no tears are shown. She is trying to hold them in. "Demi, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell." I say.

  - "Don't show me any sympathy Ryan! Be mad at me. Get mad at me because all I'm doing is hurting myself.

  - "Stop, stop. Come on, I'll take you upstairs okay." I lead her to my bedroom and sit her down on the bed. One tear falls from her eye and I can see her scrunch in pain from the tiny cut under her eye. She wipes it away and looks down. Silence fills the room and I look at her. I just stare at her for a while. I want to say something but I can feel her pain. "Look." I finally say. "You're obvioisly not safe at your place, how about you stay with a friend for a while?" I ask. "Ryan, most of my friends live in dorms and the others live far away from campus." She tells me. "I meant, why not stay with me. We practically see each other everyday and the last time I checked, you said you would be there for me." I said smiling. She gives me a small smirk and breathes in. "I don't want to intrude." She tells me. "Demi, you've been coming in my house for months, stealing my food and wearing my clothes. I think you already intruded." She giggles and I lay her flat on the bed. "Just relax. I'll go and make you some tea." I tell her. I enter the kitchen and turn on pour some water into the kettle. I place the kettle over the stove and I walk away slowly. I pause in my steps and think about Demi, what she might be doing upstairs. I try to get it out of my head by walking back and forth. I walk upstairs quietly and see Demi laying in my bed, rolled up in a ball. The blankets cover her up to her waist and she looks like she is waiting for me. I enter the room and she smiles. "I'm having trouble sleeping." She says. "Me too." I reply. I sit down on the bed and look at her with slightly open eyes. I almost had forgotten about the water in the kettle and run downstairs. Thankfully, the water didn't evaporate and as I poured the water into a mug, I felt her arms wrap around my waist. I gulp and feel my heart racing again. I take my hand and place it on top of hers. I turn and give Demi her tea. "Can we stay downstairs?" She asks. "Yeah, whatever you want." I reply. She walks over to the couch carefully, holding the tea in her hands. I watch and follow behind her. I lay somewhat slanted on the couch and can feel her body press against mine. She sips her tea in peace while laying beside me. "Your favorite color is red, right?" I ask. "You remember that?" She asks while sipping her tea. "Yeah. Want to just pass the time and name some things that are red?" I ask her with a smile. "Okay. I'll go first. Roses." She says with a chuckle.

  - "Hmm. I was going to say that. How about crayons?"

  - "Haha, good one. You have such a big imagination." Demi jokes. "Okay, strawberries."

  - "Cherries."

  - "Red velvet cake."

  - "God Demi, don't make me think of cake right now. Um, the heart?" I say with a questioning tone.

  - "Blood." She says.

  - "Isn't blood blue when it's in your body?" I ask.

  - "Yeah. But no one really thinks about blood being blue. Isn't blue your favorite color?" She asks me.

  - "Yes it is." I say. I smile at the fact that she remembers that. We stop the game and talk about our families and crazy things that have happened to us in the past. By the time we were done, Demi's empty tea mug sits on the table and her body is stretched out across mine. I brush my fingers through her soft, delicate brown hair. I lay still, listening to her little snores until I fall asleep. I slowly open my eyes and feel the sun beating on my face. I can hear Demi humming in my ear.

Her quiet and beautiful sounds bring a smile to my face. Her lips press against mine as I brush my fingers through her hair. My hand presses against her butt and I feel my face get warm. Her tongue moves inside my mouth and all I can do is grip her tight. I move my leg up and feel her hands go lower and lower. I wake up breathing heavily. I look down and see Demi, still laying on top of me with her head buried in my chest. "Calm down, Ryan." I say to myself.