A fist had almost neared my face. It belonged to Bryce who didn't hesitate to raise his hand on me just because I didn't want to take him and his cheating ass back. I didn't care whether he was drunk or his mouth reeked of several drugs but when he raised his hand to struck my face, I jumped back in complete fear.
My heart thumped several times. My breathing became uneven. I opened my mouth, gasping for air. A minute passed, Bryce was stopped before he could bruise my face. The air changed, silence fell between us. It took a second for my vision to recover and for the tears blurring my sight to fall loose over my cheeks.
Adjusting myself, I turned to find King standing behind me. His tall, unimaginable height hovering over my little frame. The veins in his arm throbbed as he held Bryce's hand, stopping him, saving me.
"Didn't mommy teach you any manners?" King looked straight at him. His sudden presence made every nerve in my body tremble. How was he here?
The door behind was thrust open and the cold wind gushed inside the house. It had been a few minutes since I saw King leave the street in his car. How was he here? The question remained unanswered and I cared less about it. He was here, saving me from Bryce and that was all that mattered.
"Who the fuck are you?" Bryce blurted out as he tugged his hand away from his tight grip. His face flushed red in fright and he took a step back from me. His eyes soon landed over mine. "Who is he? What is he doing here?"
I didn't answer.
I felt the need not to.
King moved forward, his dominating aura setting fear in my heart and Bryce's. His hand turned into a fist and it flung through the air before landing over my ex-boyfriend's face. No one saw it coming.
Not me.
My mouth stretched wide open and I slapped my hand over my lips to contain my gasp.
"Don't fucking touch her again." King roared, roared.
Bryce fell on the floor after the impact of the fist. Surprised, he peeled his eyes open and gawked at me while a thin lace of blood slipped down from his nose and onto his mouth. He placed his hand over his face. A large flesh of his cheek had turned red and it surely was going to leave a terrible bruise.
I didn't care much.
He had a lot of audacity to walk into my house, grabbing me and begging me to take him back when it was over.
Really?
I didn't step in nor was bothered to help my ex-boyfriend off the floor. He had ruined a perfect night for me.
Grunting and groaning in pain, he found strength and pushed himself off the floor while I neared King in fear. It was usual for Bryce to get drunk and high before laying the wrong hands on me. It had happened several times, I ignored it as I was too lost in my own world then.
But tonight, I was happy, for the first time and he had ruined it all.
"Wow, Eos," He slammed a hand over the flooring of my kitchen and stood up. He cleared his throat and brushed the dust off his shirt before his hands came colliding together and he began clapping. "I didn't expect this out of you. Already whoring yourself out to other men? It has barely been a month. Where did the promises and swears of your love disappear?" He questioned, clearly gaslighting me.
I stood behind King's shoulder and only peeked at him when I found him trying to near me once again.
"Oh, don't be scared of me. You enjoyed when I was like this." His hands moved in the air.
"I'm not scared of you." I whispered in a low voice, hiding my fear.
"Then tell this man to go away so we can have a face to face—"
Before he finished, I cut him off and said, "I don't want to talk to you, Bryce. It's better if you leave. There is no redemption for you so go away before something worse happens."
I moved aside from King and held the door open for Bryce to leave. He stared at me from the kitchen, his bulging, red eyes running through all of me. There was a lot of rage within him after he had been hit.
King didn't make another move as it wasn't needed but his sudden appearance still continued to surprise me. How did he even know? He was at the end of the street when I found Bryce in my kitchen. By the time our argument took place, he should've been driving across the town roads.
Bryce scoffed and took a few steps toward me—the door—I was unsure. My heartbeat quickened and my fingers tightened around the handle. Suddenly, the cold air gripped me hard and I shivered.
I expected Bryce to leave without getting another bruise over his face but to his own bad luck, he didn't leave. He jumped over me, grabbing my face like a wild animal who had lost his sanity. I screamed loud and hard as his fingernails grazed over my cheeks.
"You're only mine." He said, pushing me to the wall. "And I'll make sure of that." With all his strength, he tried to push me out of the house and take me outside where his car was parked. His intentions were clear and they disgusted me.
I nearly gagged at the thought of ever getting back with him or even showing him the slightest of love after what all he was doing.
"Get—"
I opened my mouth to say something but before I knew it, Bryce was ripped away from me and thrown across the window. The glass shattered at his weight and a loud, blood-curdling scream echoed in the neighborhood before he fell on the garden outside.
My body flinched and I placed my hand over my chest while staring at the blood smeared over the rest broken pieces of glass that had cut him. A drop of tear slipped from my eyes but it was quickly wiped away.
"Are you okay?" King asked, cupping my face.
I slammed my lips shut and nodded while still staring outside. Was he alive? Not that it mattered but I didn't want him to die.
"He's—" I raised my hand, pointing a finger at the broken window where Bryce had been thrown out from.
"He'll be fine. Do you want me to take care of him? I will but only if you wish to." King uttered, standing tall and uninjured in front of him. His breathing was normal, he was barely daunted by it all.
My heart jumped when my eyes connected with his. His irises were a deep shade of red and his pupils were dilated. There was something wild, untamable spread across his face that made fear a little from him.
"No, no," I stuttered, "I just want him to be gone but I don't want him to die." I shook my head several times while trying to wipe the images of Bryce jumping at me.
"I'll take care of him." King nodded before setting me free from his hold. "Go to your room." He continued and I obeyed almost immediately.
My feet picked me up as I scrambled across the stairs and ran straight into my room. I didn't look back in fear of what was going to happen nor did I hesitate to slow down. As soon as I reached my room, I closed the door and sat over the bed.
My eyes narrowed to my white boots. Shreds of glass sparkled over them and without wasting a second, I removed them and threw them aside.
What was wrong with Bryce?
It was over. I never gave him any kind of sign. I was angry for sure, I had my days where I would verbally attack him for cheating on me but there wasn't a single day where I begged him to return to me.
A few minutes passed, I held my phone tight in my hand while waiting for some more time to fly by.
A knock appeared on the door and I jumped up straight. The door was slowly pulled open by King who walked into my dark bedroom.
"He won't trouble you anymore." He said and it sounded promising.
"But he's alive, right?" I chewed onto my lips.
"Of course. I suppose he's your ex-boyfriend?"
"Yes." I nodded.
My stomach twisted, in fear and in peace. It was a strange feeling that I couldn't brush off my shoulders. No one had ever stood up for me as King had done tonight. It was dark yet lovely at the same time.
"I'm sorry for breaking your window. I'll get them fixed by morning." He smiled at me and my mood immediately changed.
"No," I whispered, "It's okay. You saved me. Thank you. I don't know what he would've done to me if you weren't there." I tried hard not to imagine anything.
King pressed the back of his fingers against my cheek and I lowered my eyes to his wrist. He moved his fingers softly and said, "No one can harm you, Eos."
Wearily, I closed my eyes and dwelled into the moment for I knew it wasn't going to last for long. His every touch bought me comfort and it controlled me in a way I had never felt. He moved his other hand over my back, rubbing it while his finger disappeared into my hair.
Without knowing, I fell into his embrace.
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