Where feet may fail

15 - Flashbacks

🎶Falling - Harry Styles🎶

Deciding we should celebrate with the guys too, the eight of us all go out to a bar tonight. We all changed into something a little more fit for a night out. I myself went with ripped jeans, a white tank top, and a dark green thin jacket for if it gets a little cold at night. My hair into my signature half-up, half-down hairdo, and I'm ready to go. 

At the bar, we all order some drinks. After our toast to Abby and Zeke, the guys start talking with each other and we girls start our own conversation. We sat at a table somewhere in the middle of the bar with people all around us. It's Saturday night so I guess it's normal for it to be this busy. 

After a while and a lot of laughter, I decided to get another drink. While I walk off I make eye contact with Enzo. He clearly doesn't like that I'm going to order drinks by myself out of his eyesight but I really couldn't care. This is Morro Bay for crying out loud, nothing ever happens here. 

Finally getting my way through the crowd I now reached the bar that is also very busy with people ordering their drinks. I wring myself between to people, now trying to get the bartenders' attention. While trying to stand up straight I bump into someone on my left. 

"Shit!" The man curses. "Fuck, I'm sorry," I say as I hear glass shatter and when I look to my left I make eye contact with Romeo. His eyes immediately soften and he shoots me his million-dollar smile. "Skylar right?" He asks and I nod. "And Romeo. It's nice to see you again. Sorry about your drink." I chuckle nervously, he shakes his head. "Not a problem, bump into me anytime you want." I frown at his comment and he laughs awkwardly. 

"That doesn't sound right, does it?" He asks and I laugh, shaking my head. "What can I get for you?" The bartender catches my attention and I turn to him. "A cosmo please, thank you." I smile at him. "And another beer for." Romeo cuts in, the bartender nods, and I give him a surprised look. "Oh, so I'm paying for your drink now?" I chuckle, making him laugh and shake his head. "Well you did spill my last, but no. I'm paying for yours."

"Oh you really don't have to, it's okay," I tell him but he refuses. "No please, I insist. No beautiful lady should ever pay for her own drink." He winks at me and I blush. Jeez, he's a flirt. 

When the bartender comes back with our drinks Romeo, like promised, pays for the drink and hands me mine. I thank him and take a sip when somebody bumps into me, nearly spilling my drink. "Maybe we should go outside for a second, then we can talk like normal people." He suggests and I hesitate for a second. 

I'm here with my friends, I can't just leave them. But I guess a little chat won't hurt anyone. I'm in need of some fresh air anyway. Romeo leads me outside and I take a deep breath, closing my eyes. All of a sudden I feel a presence close to me and I open my face to see that Romeo is now standing next to me, very close might I add. 

Our faces only a breath away from each other, makes me swallow hard. "You're beautiful." He says and I let out a shaky breath. This is so different than when I'm with Enzo. With Enzo, I feel these butterflies in my stomach. I feel this heat creeping on my skin but with Romeo, I feel nervous. The bad kind. 

I'm taken off guard when his lips press against mine and his arms circle around my waist. Where did his drink go? I know where mine went. Out of shock a let it fall and it shatters on the ground. Great, yet another drink wasted. I stand completely frozen for a second, not knowing what to do until finally my brain catches up with my body and I try to push him away. 

Our lips detach but his arms are still firm around my waist, making me uncomfortable. "Romeo please let me go." I try to sound stern my voice comes out shaking. I need to get out of here. Instead of kissing me again, his nose finds my neck and he inhales deeply before starting to kiss and suck it. "Romeo please get off of me." 

I start to push harder but he doesn't budge and now I'm starting to panic. Flashbacks fly before my eyes as I once again am reminded of what it feels like to do something without my consent. Hot tears start to stream down my face and I start moving like a crazy person. "Romeo get off of me!" I scream at the top of my lungs.

He comes back up and before I can even react, his hand is around my neck and squeezes hard. I gasp for air as my hands start to claw at his. His eyes soften and confused I look at him. "Hey hey hey, it's okay yeah. If you don't make a sound I won't squeeze any harder. Now be a good girl and shut up, okay?" He tells me with his sweetest voice, making me more uncomfortable than I've ever been. 

A sob escapes my throat, making him roll his eyes but before either of us realizes what happens next, Romeo has been pulled away from me and I collapse to the ground. Couching while gasping for air, I sob when I feel the tender skin of my neck. It hurts to even touch it. When I look back at Romeo I immediately recognize Enzo laying on top of him, beating him. 

When I look up I see Zeke, Ryker, and Isaac run outside and their eyes widen at the scene in front of them. After them, follow the girls and at that point, I start sobbing uncontrollably. I don't want them to see me like this. Crawling I back away from the scene while Isaac and Ryker pull Enzo off of Romeo and Zeke leads the girls back inside. Thank god for that. 

When Enzo is standing straight again, off of Romeo, Romeo looks completely beaten up. You can barely recognize his face. Enzo and I make eye contact and he doesn't hesitate to come near me. His steps confident and determent. 

I can only watch him as he comes closer and carefully pulls me up to stand. I sob against his chest while pulls me into a tight hug and shushes me. "It's okay... you're okay." He whispers in my ear and after a little while I finally calm down. 

"You want to get out of here?" He asks and I nod. "You want the rest to come along?" 

"Come along where?" I ask, confused I look up at him and he smiles back sweetly. "To the beach, to catch our breaths." He whispers and after a while I nod. The beach sounds nice right now. Being surrounded by people I love and trust sounds nice right now. To just forget. 

I don't know what'll happen tomorrow. If I have to go to the police or if people will have questions but for now that doesn't matter. I'm happy it doesn't. And I thank Enzo for helping me get my mind off of things. 

☼☼☼

A silent walk later, with the eight of us, we finally arrive at the beach. It's completely empty and you can see the bright stars shine bright. I inhale and exhale deeply and I listen to the calming sound of the ocean. The wind caressing my face. 

The guys decide to make a fire, while we watch them struggle to make it. A man's job, they said. They failed, so we helped. We couldn't stop laughing. 

When we all settled down, the girls of course snuggled up with their boys and I couldn't stop resisting snuggling up to Enzo. So I did. I took my place between his legs and his arms went around me. At this point, I didn't even care what everybody else was thinking. I just wanted to be comforted right now. 

The warmth of the fire and Enzo's body surrounds me and I move closer to him. We watch the fire while we share stories about the past, present, and future. And I couldn't be more at peace right now.