Blue, beady eyes bore into the side of Harley's face, their owner unrelenting in his stare. Mr Maybank's unhinged dominance suffocated Harley where she sat and so she wondered if this was why JJ spent so much time at John B's. He must have felt suffocated, too.
Did he feel afraid, Harley questioned herself. She had felt a power shift the second Mr Maybank opened the door and it hadn't left since. Her heartbeat had been beating warning rhythms nonstop and her palms had moistened considerably. Harley had to remind herself that Mr Maybank wouldn't hurt her, despite his vibe and appearance, after all he was a dad. Parents didn't hurt their kids, they loved them unconditionally, that's what Big John had told her.
"You still seeing that Rafe boy?"
Finally, Mr Maybank spoke up. Once Harley had walked inside, he had pushed her to sit down whilst getting a glass of water for her. The same glass sat untouched on the small coffee table packed with car parts. She noticed how he didn't use the coasters that were perfectly placed for him to grab, how annoying. JJ's home clearly lacked a woman's touch, the same way the Chateau did and still does, occasionally.
Harley didn't know what to say. She didn't like talking about Rafe and their relationship, but it was worse because she had just been with him. He had helped her.
"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue." The joking undertone to the statement had been lost.
"No." Harley replied stiffly, fiddling with her hands in her lap. "I'm not with Rafe anymore."
"Probably for the best. A boy like that doesn't need a girl like you." Mr Maybank didn't give Harley a chance to express her offense. "Girls like you, turn into weak women that have families they can't handle."
"What?" Harley stared at the man puzzled. His words felt extremely personal, so much so that she wondered if that had been what happened with JJ's mum. She couldn't handle the family she had, or could she not handle the stifling air that oozed around Mr Maybank.
JJ never spoke about his mother and Harley never asked. John B had mentioned that JJ's mother had left him the same way his own mother had left him. It was one of those things John B had spoken about that Harley couldn't decipher a safe way to respond other than sorry. She had wanted to ask a million questions, like why your mum would abandon you, but she could see the hurt in John B's eyes and thought better of it.
Mr Maybank's laugh felt cruel as his cold eyes mocked her. "Don't worry your pretty, little head about it." His laughter died down, leaving a waning smile. "When's the next time you'll be seeing Rafe or Barry?"
Harley's eyes flittered around as she sat confused. "I'm not with Rafe anymore," she reiterated softly. "And Barry and I aren't friends." She hardly ever saw Barry around the island and when she did, she kept her distance where possible.
"That's not what I asked ya though, is it?" The fake softness in Mr Maybank's eyes faded a little. His hardening stare made Harley shake her head, since he seemed to expect a response from her. "I asked when's the next time you'll be seeing those boys. Not everyone is friends with their dealer, Harley. You must know that."
She did, but Barry wasn't her dealer. She didn't do drugs unless forced to. "I won't be seeing either of them."
"Why do I feel like you're lying to me?"
"I'm not." Harley stopped fidgeting and sat up, finally mustering the courage to look Mr Maybank in the eyes for longer than two seconds. "I'm really sorry, Mr Maybank, but I don't understand what it is exactly you want from me."
There was that laugh again. It made Harley want to shrink away, but instead she feigned a smile and tried to keep her confidence. "Call me Luke. All I'm asking for here, is for you to get me a deal with Barry. That's all. Not hard at all, because I know you still talk to that rich, blonde bastard. I've heard him talking about you."
Harley sighed quietly. For some reason Luke wasn't understanding that Harley had no ties to Barry and didn't talk to Rafe the way he kept accusing her of. He didn't want to hear anything other than yes, and she didn't want to lie about being able to get him drugs or whatever he wanted.
Harley stood up and rounded the coffee table, the furthest route away from him and stepped toward the front door. "I'm really sorry, but you have the wrong idea. So, I think I should just leave before JJ comes back and hears what you're asking of me."
Harley had thought that was the end of it. She had turned her back to JJ's dad and gone for the door. She could taste her freedom and feel her escape on the tips of her fingertips, until they were aggressively stolen from her.
"You're not going anywhere," Luke spat. He grabbed her elbow and yanked her back.
Harley hadn't expected it and yelped when she almost tripped over her Converses. She tried to straighten and pull away from Mr Maybank but his grip wouldn't budge.
"I really think you should just let me go. I don't have any contact with Barry. I can't get whatever it is that you want. Rafe dealt with that stuff. I don't want to be a part of that."
Mr Maybank huffed out his annoyance. All false pretences had been wiped from his hard features. "Sure, you're kind of pretty, but my son must have you around for some other reason. He's too much of a wimp to go at it with any girl. So, that leaves the drugs, sweetheart."
Harley shivered at his implications and frowned at how he spoke about his own son. He didn't seem like a very nice dad.
"Please just let go."
Mr Maybank refused. He began to manhandle Harley. He started to rummage through her pockets, ruffling her clothes. She tried to pull away, but every time his grip got tighter. It was like having her arm stuck in a clamp. She cringed when his hands brushed over her hips and ass, his hands diving into her pockets.
"I don't have anything on me!" Harley finally yelled.
The split second of silence that followed, haunted Harley. It was like being thrusted into the dark tunnel of a roller coaster before you explode into the light, fearing for your life as you drop hundreds of feet. Only this time the explosion of light that followed this silence was coupled with a burst of pain. She hadn't been prepared for an adult to punch her, especially with such brute force.
Harley cupped her cheek in blind pain. Her eyes screwed shut as her cheekbone and jaw pulsed.
Mr Maybank growled as he rammed the air out of Harley's lungs. A surprised and sharp wheeze whistled passed her lips. Nausea rushed over her in waves, she could still feel his fist slamming into her stomach. He held Harley up against the wall, her legs unstable. Mr Maybank's hateful glare terrified her, so did the way he spoke. "Don't raise your voice at me. No wonder my son is friends with you. No manners, just like him."
Harley was nauseated further by a throbbing that started at the front of her head and slowly worked its way around to the back. She couldn't tell if it was because of the blow she had taken to the face or not.
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. Please, let me go." Harley quickly resorted to begging and apologising, because that's what she used to do with Rafe. Something had told her that was what she had to do then, and now she felt the same way. "Please, I'll leave and get out of your way."
The edges of Harley's sight turned to that odd swirl and blend of colour like an Edvard Munch painting. Déjà vu cunningly crept up on Harley, her mind too preoccupied from escaping JJ's violent father.
"Why? We were having a fine time before you messed it up." He was smoothing down Harley's hair now, the way a child would heavily pet a dog without an ounce of care for gentleness.
"Please, I just want to go home," Harley whimpered. She shivered when her brain showed her a warped image of her being held up in a similar position, a time before she ended up in the Outer Banks. She felt sick, so she lied. "I'll... I'll speak to Barry."
That caught Mr Maybank's attention. His eyes lightened. "When?"
"Tomorrow."
"How?"
Harley hesitated. "I..." why was he asking so many questions when her mind felt like it was falling into a bucket of paint. "I... what?"
Mr Maybank's ounce of patience had worn too thin. His hand shifted and latched onto Harley's dark strands of hair. She yelped as her neck was pulled uncomfortably.
"I said how? Do you need his nu..."
Harley stopped listening. The familiarity in her feelings petrified her and the way her vision kept streaking amplified her panic. She wanted, no needed, Mr Maybank to leave her alone. She needed him to stop shouting. He smelt like beer and whiskey; his hands felt too rough. It was like sensory overload.
Harley retaliated by lifting her foot and slamming the heel of her Converse into the centre of Mr Maybank's foot. He howled out in pain almost immediately. His grip fell from her hair as he hunched to reach for his foot. Harley tried to run for the door, but his other hand coiled around her waist and drew her in before swinging her back into the wall. He was quick to smack her across the face.
Harley swayed and fell over. She groaned, her body not liking the flurry of torment. She bucked her leg back and kicked Mr Maybank in the shin, not taking a second to be proud of the yell of pain she caused him. She scrambled to her feet and rushed in the opposite direction. She slipped into the closest room and locked the door.
At first, she didn't care that she had trapped herself in the small room. She fell on her bum as she backed away from the door, tears dancing in her eyes. Mr Maybank banged his fists against the wood yelling profanities and horrible words at her. She pushed herself back into a small cabinet, though that didn't seem to be enough. She felt too vulnerable out in the open in her state of panic.
Somehow, she had gotten in the bathtub and drawn the blue seashell curtain. That's when things got worse. The twisted images in her head reminded her of the time she'd been held under the water in a bathtub. The yelling. The silence and then sensory overload over and over. She could see the hatred roaring in someone's eyes directed at her. She felt so small.
Her hands flew to her ears as she tried to block out reality, but she couldn't block out her mind. Her chest felt like a hundred cinder blocks laid upon it, her heart trying to run its sprint in the shrinking space.
⚓️
Harley had been so consumed by trepidation that she hadn't heard the scuffle outside of the bathroom.
Harley had been gripped by the tough hands of fear, so much so that she hadn't heard the banging against the bathroom door stop. The ruckus had turned to a scuffle in the hallway between JJ and his father. The young blonde had been baffled by his dad's shouts and the animosity in the way his fists and body hurled at their bathroom door. As soon as JJ made his presence known to his dad and he questioned his actions, Luke set his sights on his son.
At first Mr Maybank had began yelling about some useless girl in their bathroom leaving JJ dumbfounded. Somewhere between Mr Maybank throwing missed hits at JJ and his shouting, he dropped Harley's name. That's when he fully registered that he had passed Harley's car outside and she hadn't been in it.
Worry set in. JJ had thought he heard wrong until his dad said it again, that was when JJ really tried to fight back. He wanted to get to Harley and make sure she was okay. He hadn't heard a peep from the bathroom, and he hoped that was because of the loudness of his dad.
Once JJ managed to silence his dad and get him pinned on the floor in a daze, he rushed back to the bathroom door. He thanked the higher powers that he knew how to pick a lock. He slammed the door shut behind him and locked it again before his dad could get to him.
Blue eyes frantically searched the small space for a pretty brunette but came up short. His ears picked up on soft sobs and faint murmuring. He noticed the shower curtain was closed.
"Harley?"
JJ stepped closer and pulled the material back. Harley sat curled up, cradling herself in the centre of the bathtub. Seeing Harley so small and vulnerable was a shock to the system. He hadn't seen her a slave to her emotions for a year now. The last time he could remember her like this was when she had spent the night in John B's room and woken from a nightmare. Even then, she'd been ruled by frustration and anger, not fear.
Unsure how to proceed, yet riddled with worry, JJ crouched down and rested his arms on the white porcelain.
"Harley..."
He reached to touch her shoulder, but she didn't react to his movements. She remained unreachable in her state of panic.
Not knowing what to do or say, JJ opted for physical contact as comfort. That's what he would have appreciated. He carefully stepped into the bathtub and sat behind Harley, managing to guide her back into his chest. He wrapped one arm around her in a hug and placed his other on her left hand and rubbed her tender skin with his thumb.
All of the times JJ had found himself in a position similar to Harley's, when things with his dad escalated too quickly, he only ever wanted somebody to tell him things would be okay. He craved that reassurance and affection. So, he gave that to Harley. He told her everything was okay now, over and over until some tension released from her body. When he was able to hold her hand, he let her know that he was there for her.
A safety net fell around them. Their own bubble of comfort and safety in the gloom that doused the Maybank house. It took time, however Harley calmed down. JJ's dad had gone quiet which made things easier. Harley had eased back into JJ's chest, both his arms wrapped around her.
JJ tilted his head and peered into Harley's red tinged eyes, the gloss of tears had worn away.
"How are you feeling?"
Harley cleared her throat before replying, "I'm okay."
A pregnant pause followed. JJ didn't believe Harley, and Harley didn't believe herself.
"Did he hurt you?" He murmured into her hair. He had noticed the angry red splotch to her right cheek, but wanted verbal confirmation.
Harley seemed to hesitate. She didn't seem sure. JJ didn't know if that was because his dad hadn't touched her and she was surprised or if she didn't know how to respond. She was obviously thinking it over, he just didn't understand why.
"You can tell me, Harley. Did my dad hurt you? Even if he just grabbed you too roughly..."
She nodded stiffly.
Anger began to seep into JJ's bones again. Something had clearly happened, though he had hoped his dad hadn't had the chance to lay a hand on Harley. He still didn't even know why Harley was in his house. She had rarely been to his house and even then, she had never been inside. He never wanted her to meet his dad.
"Where?" JJ asked as calmly as he could. He unwrapped his arms a little in case she wanted to move and show him. "What did he do?"
"He punched me. In the face and my stomach."
Guilt wormed its way into JJ's thoughts and found itself a home. "Can I see?" Once he had permission, he lifted Harley's top. Her abdomen matched the sore red discoloration on her face. JJ could already picture the bruises Harley would wake up to and the pain she'd feel. She had done an okay job at masking her pain now, but with experience JJ knew how she'd be feeling.
JJ traced his fingertips on the edge of her stomach. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be. It wasn't your fault." Somehow Harley managed a smile and that made JJ admire her more than he already did. He thought she had the prettiest smile, and to smile through such a situation was crazy. But the kind of crazy that showed how lovely a person Harley was and that made his heart leap.
"You must be tired. I know I am." JJ managed a smile too, if Harley could, so could he. "Let's go to my room."
JJ sat them both up. Harley made no attempt to stand. He noticed that her eyes were already on the door and the longer she stared, the more rigid she became.
"It's okay. He's probably passed out on the couch by now. But I'll check first, okay?"
"Okay." Harley nodded.
To stand, Harley had to use JJ and the wall as support. He noted her grimace when she had to bend forward.
Like promised, JJ checked the coast was clear before taking Harley by the hand and leading her to his room.
In better circumstances, he may have cracked a flirtatious joke or made a sexual reference. Right now he was content to just be able to help Harley feel better. He locked his door extremely slow whilst Harley changed into the clothes he had offered.
She looked hot donning one of his black t-shirts.
"Your dad can't get in here, can he?"
"No." JJ reassured as he slid under the covers beside Harley. They both laid down facing each other. "He can't. I promise. He's too dumb to know how to pick a lock."
JJ couldn't help himself, he reached out and softly ran his thumb over Harley's cheek and jaw. He never thought he'd be the type to love physical touch, but he almost yearned for it when it came to Harley. Maybe she had rubbed off on him or she had helped peel back a layer JJ was yet to uncover about himself.
Harley snuggled her way into JJ's arms and rested her head on his chest. "You were right. I'm really tired."
Moments after her words, Harley fell asleep. Now that JJ knew she was okay, he let his mind relax. He let himself melt under the sweet brunette in his arms.
So because we've had a lot of drama, the next chapter will be sweet and calm.
Hope you're enjoying the story. Don't forget to comment and vote :)