I stare back him, unsure how to respond. I look back down at my empty beer glass that still has small foam lingering at the bottom.
It gets a bit awkward when he says that. I use the top of my pointer finger to stir the liquid, avoiding having to answer him. I clear my throat, leaning down to the left, reaching inside my purse. I pull out my phone, sitting straight in my chair again to properly look at my phone.
9:04PM.
I didn't expect it to still be so early, otherwise I would've gotten a reason to leave. But it's barely been an hour that we've been here. Harlow and I were out of the house by 8:30PM, and over here by 8:45. He watches me continuing to stare at my home screen for a few more seconds before looking back at his full beer.
"Right, uhm. I should start heading home." I set down my glass, using the counter as support to stand up.
But I lose my balance of my body, his palm immediately shooting to my back. I look at the marble counter for a moment, then I turn to him to give him a slight thankful nod. I pull my lips into a line as I walk to my handbag still lousily lying next to the bar stool I was once seated in.
I bend over, not realizing there are eyes on me. I return to my original posture, spinning around to notice a group of three or four men staring at me with sly smiles across their faces.
"When's she gonna get on stage?" One of them laugh, lightly nudging the one next to him.
I don't bother to reply, I simply mutter, "Fuck you," under my breath.
The man stops laughing, an immediate offense lying in his eyes. I feel almost proud of myself. I would've definitely done this before mom's death, but I think now I'm just even more unbothered. This has happened too many times in the clubs me and Harlow have gone to, so this is pretty normal. Except, Harlow's usually with me when it happens but, oh well. I feel way too confident right now, I just know it's going to come back to haunt me later.
"Excuse me?" He asks with a stern tone.
"I said, fuck you." I laugh a little under my breath. It's okay I'm almost done for the night and then maybe I can go home and actually attempt to get one minute of rest.
He stares, not expecting such a response from me. He huffs, turning to one of his friends, hoping for some additional support.
"Bitches like you need to understand where you stand." He paces to me, "Mind if we borrow her?"
The man suddenly grips my wrist firmly, looking over my shoulder to Harry. I grunt, my heart bouncing in between the walls of my chest. I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have said that. I. Should. Not. Have. Said. That.
I turn, matching my eye alignment with Harry's. There's only one right answer Harry, don't fuck this up. He studies my eyes for a moment, then breaks our gaze. He looks over to the man still holding my wrist and then grins maliciously. That doesn't look promising.
"Not at all. Have at it." He says before turning back in his chair.
Oh my god.
"W-wait. What?" I mumble, one of the other men jumping to my other side.
This is not happening. He did not just leave me with these assholes like that. These guys look fucking crazy. They could rape me. Or kill me. Or something worse. I don't know. The man holds my right wrist tight, while another is grabbing my left. They begin directing me away from Harry, not a glance coming from him as they drag me away. So what was that whole 'I want to keep you' shit? I kick my feet as they drag across the floor, trying my best to free myself from their hold. I shouldn't have been so confident. What do I know about confidence? I couldn't order a salad from a restaurant when I was 8. Why start this whole confident thing now?
I have to think of something. Anything. But my fuzzed mind can't generate a single thought right now. If I'm being entirely truthful, the three men have mutated into about six or seven given my vision.
My breath itches in my throat, a sudden panic rushing inside of me. We make it to the end of the bar, where Harlow, Zayn, and the blonde boy are. There's another empty room next to VIP that I'm guessing which is where they're going to take me. My cheeks feel flushed and my throat feels tight. Finally, my mouth decides to take over.
"Get off of me!" I shriek, wiggling around in their grips. I fidget my wrist around in their clammy fingers, both of my hands breaking free.
I decide to throw my hands against the nearest chair, trying to take a few shortcuts to make me accelerate faster. But my mind is slowly fading and growing blurry. That 22 ounce beer did not serve me well. I somehow make it a little past where Harry is seated, holding onto any surface within my reach. But as I continue blinking rapidly, my senses give up on me. I turn around, hoping to see them far away, but no.
They both glare at me from just a 3 foot distance, looking at me as if they're hunting me. The other man charges at me with fury filling his eyes. His drugged aroma fills my breath as his hand reaches back to harshly grip my arm. But before gets the opportunity, I do what comes first to mind.
I knee him straight in his balls.
He yells out in pain, holding the area where I affected him. I feel safer for a moment, until I see one of the men creeping behind another. He doesn't even look at the man on the floor, simply opening his mouth to speak.
"You bitch."
His knee brushes against the shoulder of the man who's on the floor. I try to use my feet again, but he's very clearly backed me into a table.
He brings his fist behind his ear, ready to launch it straight into my face.
Out of instinct, I squeeze my eyes shut, ready for the impact. The back of my hand flies to my eye to reduce any damage that's about to spread among my face. I can even hear a few bartenders yelling at him to get out. But before he gets the chance, I hear another fist flying through the air.
I swear if Harry decided to save the day now.
I peel my eyes open, expecting Harry in front of me. But it's actually the blonde boy that was in the VIP section with me and Harlow earlier. He connects his fist with the man's jaw, sending him stumbling into another table. A few chairs shuffle around as I let go of the long breath I had held in. He looks down at me, reaching his hand out to me. I hesitantly accept the gesture, holding the table next to me as support for standing up.
"You alright?" He asks, still watching me in the process of standing up.
I fully stand up, dusting myself off before gently nodding back. I notice Harlow rushing to me when she sees me flustered on the ground. She holds her clutch in her armpit, her voluminous curls falling in front of her shoulders.
"Oh my God! Noelle! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" She sounds out of breath, her eyes filling with immediate worry. She clenches onto my shoulders, giving them a light squeeze to make sure there's blood still flowing through my body.
"I'm okay. Don't worry." I switch my gaze to the floor where I expect the man to be lying. But instead I look past Harlow's shoulder, noticing the man and the rest of the assholes walking out the club door in defeat. I turn back to her, "How did you know to come out here?"
"Harry called Niall, telling him there was some fight going down and he needed help." Harlow explains holding my shoulders, piercing her eyes into mine. I cock my eyebrow, wondering who she's referring to, then I see the blonde boy nodding at me.
Suddenly Harry's familiar figure appears behind Zayn. I stare at him with indignation. How could he? I can't believe I gave him so many brownie points at first. What an asshole. He's definitely not the person I thought he was.
"I can drop you both home." He suggests, continuing with the same smirk. "Just so, you know. I can make sure no creepy ass men follow you."
I dull my eyes, sliding my fingers to lock with Harlow. "As if you give a fuck. And I think we're good actually. I'm plenty capable of driving myself home."
He lets out a light chuckle. That chuckle didn't sound too innocent.
"You see, Niall and I are the only ones who haven't had anything to drink tonight. So I'm assuming you know the rules. No drinking and driving." He explains while pointing his finger at me like a teacher, resting his elbow on Niall's shoulder.
Harlow, Zayn, and Niall watch us passive aggressively argue, switching their gaze from me to Harry every time one of us replies back to each other.
"Okay, then I'll be going in Niall's car." I imitate his pose, resting my elbow on Harlow's shoulder.
"He doesn't know where you live darling." He counter argues, more anger building up in me.
"GPS exists."
"Niall's phone just died." He furrows his eyebrows.
"We're not getting into strangers' cars." I scoff.
"Then how will you get home?"
"We'll walk." I raise my eyebrows, wetting my bottom lip. It still tastes like beer.
"Alone at night, knowing those shit heads are still out there?"
We both continue back and forth, my facial expression falling from confident to outwitted. Never judge a book by its cover kids. He raises his eyebrows, then starts reaching in his pocket. He pulls out his keys, jingling them in his hand to gloat. He drops his elbow to the side and winks at Harlow.
He begins walking in a little dancing manner to the club door, running his fingers through his hair with his empty hand. I turn to Harlow, her expression reading, 'What's the matter with you?' Niall and Zayn stare at each other for a moment then they turn to the door. They step together with both of their arms tangled around each other. Harlow and I decide to do the same, our hands staying close together.
As we start following Zayn and Niall, she leans in close. "Who is that? Don't tell me you've never talked before because I know that's a lie."
"I don't know. Just saw him once at some other club." I still lie. I don't want to tell her. He's not that important.
We only met once for the first time yesterday, where he saved me from making an irrational decision, and then I thought he was actually a decent human being but then he was so ready to hand me over to some shady men. So I don't think I need to formally introduce him to Harlow.
The fresh air crashes against my face, a feeling of peace hitting my heart. I watch Harry seating himself in what looks like a black convertible car. It looks extremely old, but I admit, it has a perfect retro look to it. It's a bit rusted, so I'm sure he's driven it many times. I eye Harlow, but she just stares at it in awe. I silently huff, stepping closer to the car. I go to drop my bag in the backseat, but the closer I get, the more the backseat shrinks. Because there is no backseat.
"Wait. This is a two seater?" I thought Harlow would be able to come with me. Harry almost lounges against the seat as I notice he popped a piece of gum in his mouth.
"Yeah sorry, Harlow you can come with me." Niall still speaks up in a reserved, shy manner. My mouth opens to say something, but I decide against it. Harlow looks like she actually enjoys spending time with him, so I guess I can survive a 10 minute drive with Harry. Fifteen minutes away from her must have given her time to get to know Niall.
She lets go of my hand, bringing her lips to my ear before she stands next to Niall. "Good luck."
I sigh a little. What a crazy 48 hours.
I pull the handle, sliding through the gap. I plant myself on the leather seats and place my purse in my lap. I hear the engine start right as Harry pushes the ignition, my eyes glued to my hands. There are little red markings under my thumb and more leading under my knuckles. He gripped me hard. The one under my thumb is almost bleeding. I don't know what to think of Harry. What if Niall and Harlow didn't come in time? I really would've been dragged by those men and possibly killed. I know what these kind of people are like. I've seen loads over the years. But today I was just so fed up. I've barely cried. And I still don't know what to do.
I could cry if I wanted to, but it's just not the same. There's like this uncomfortable feeling at the pit of my stomach that eats me away by the second. I just need affection. Not the one my mom provided. A different kind. A different one than the one George gave me. Touch. Pleasure. Not just sex. True and utter pleasure.
"Oi. What are you day dreaming about méchante fille?" Harry tugs me out of my thoughts, my head finally turning to him. His hand is relaxed against the steering wheel while his head lounges against the head rest.
"What?" I ask in confusion, also letting loose a bit.
"It means naughty girl in French." He explains, looking at me as if I'm already supposed to know that. "Besides the point. Who were you dreaming about? Don't lie to me I know that look."
I stare at the road ahead, just now realizing we're well along the highway. He waits for an answer but I don't know what to say. So I bounce back to the other topic.
"What do you care? You were going to let me die or get raped or whatever the hell those men had in mind to do with me." I thread my fingers through my hair, watching Harlow's car zoom past ours.
"No I wasn't." He blankly states with no backup.
"Yes you were." I shoot back.
"Why would I have called Niall if I didn't want to save you?" He raises his voice a little, catching me off guard. Is that really his 'excuse'?
"Why'd you put me in danger in the first place?" I fire again. He's just so hard to understand. He seemed so helpful and caring on the roof last night, but five minutes ago he seemed so ruthless and unkind.
He scoffs, "Because why not? I wanted to add some excitement to the night."
I remain silent, unsure how to respond. That's his definition of exciting? Fucking prick.
"Just don't talk to me okay? And turn up the music I like this song." I spill, ordering him unknowingly.
He raises his eyebrows and then reaches for the sound system. His ring filled fingers twist the volume knob, the music growing louder inside the car. There's barely anybody else on the road, considering most of London is fast asleep at 9:30 on a Monday night. The lyrics fit into my ears, my eyes slowly drifting closed.
Never pictured myself in a Ford Cortina with some hunk the day after my mom's death.
"Seems like tragedy is all she knows
Baby, it's that look in your eyes
They been telling me she wanna leave
She's been dancing with the devil all night
It's like Hell is where she wanna be
Now, watch her dance in the dark
Watch her dance in the dark
Watch her dance in the dark
Watch her dance in the dark"