Sometimes, distractions don't work. Sometimes, your mind has a will of it's own and forces you to obsess about things that you don't want to even think about. For example, Tyler. Despite all of my attempts to get the hot mysterious guy out of my head, nothing had worked. Not school, not movies, not even flirting with other guys. So, after beating flannel guy at the shootout three hours ago and since then being bored in my apartment, I finally decided that enough was enough.
"What are you doing?" Carly asked me as I left my room later that day, dressed up to go out. Jess was also looking at me with a weird expression on her face.
"Going out." I said simply.
"To Dave's, I'm assuming?"
A slow smile creeped up on my face. "Yes."
"To see Tyler?"
"Yes." I looked back and forth between Jess and Carly's disapproving eyes. "I'm sick of waiting. I'm just gonna ask him out already."
Jess smiled. "Really?"
"Yeah, fuck it. If it doesn't work out I just won't go there anymore." Plus, if he rejected me I could finally move on.
"You go girl."
"Wait, I can come with you." Carly said as she stood up from the table. I walked over and put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks.
"No, you have a test tomorrow. You need to study."
"But we never go out alone." Carly protested.
"Yeah, but there's nothing to worry about. Nothing will happen to me." I assured them. I had taken self-defense classes before and wasn't too worried about my safety. Then again, I never was.
Jess and Carly exchanged uneasy glances. It was Carly that looked at me first, nodding with a smile. "Go for it. Call us if you need anything."
I agreed, then was on my way. Tonight, for the first time in forever, I had decided to wear heels. I was still in jeans, and a nice blue shirt, but heels. I figured, go big or go home, right?
Wrong. Heels killed. I regretted my decision about ten feet into my walk but I kept going cause I was in a fuck-it attitude and nothing was going to stop me.
Thursday nights, while not big party nights, sometimes had a decent crowd in this town. Bars often had specials that ran all night long, like two dollar beers or cheap wells. Tonight, Dave's happened to have dollar wells so I didn't even need to pregame.
When I stepped into the bar, I immediately felt a chink in my confidence. I had never been out by myself, ever. I didn't really know what to do with myself. The only thing I hoped was that Tyler was even working tonight, cause otherwise this would have all been for nothing.
After taking a quick glance around, I noticed the establishment was only a little more packed than on Sunday's. All of the tables were full so I took a seat at the bar. Feeling completely vulnerable, I looked up to see Tyler was one of the two bartenders. I took a deep breath and smiled at the other bartender as she asked me for me order. It was a girl, with black hair and a tight tank top. She had at least five piercings in each ear and one on her nose and lip.
"Rum and coke, please. Two of 'em." I had a feeling I was going to need a lot of alcohol to get through this.
"Coming right up."
As she was making the drinks, I glanced around the establishment. The crowd seemed to be mostly men, which I supposed was typical for a sports bar but made me slightly more nervous.
The bartender handed me my drinks so I handed her my card. Right as she pushed them toward me, a guy about twice my age decided to sit down next to me. I kept my gaze forward, quietly sipping on my drink while trying to seem invested in the soccer game playing on the television.
"What's a pretty thing like you doing alone in a bar?"
The man reeked of cigarettes and he spoke with a raspy voice. In my peripherals, I could tell that he was a heavy set man and probably weighed over 200 pounds, not much of that being muscle.
"Just watching the game." I replied casually, keeping my eyes forward.
"I'll keep ya company. Can't have strange men coming up and hitting on ya."
I gave him a sideways glance. "Isn't that what you're doing?"
He smiled, showing me his yellow stained teeth. "You're just as smart as you are pretty, aren't ya?"
"Please leave me alone."
"I was just-"
"I said, leave me alone."
Instead of watching him leave, I suddenly felt his big clammy hand on my thigh. I whipped my head around to glare at him, grabbing onto his hand in the process. Squeezing hard, I lowered my voice to a more warning tone.
"Get out or I call the cops."
The man's friendly smile was gone, replaced by a sinister smirk. "You better watch out, missy. No one likes a lady who talks back."
Instead of pushing it further, the man snatched his hand out of my grip and stormed out of the bar. As I watched him, I could feel my pounding heartbeat throbbing in my ears. I shakily took another drink, hoping to calm my nerves.
I had just gone back to watching the tv when I heard a voice. Judging by the deepness of it, my brain immediately who it was. So did the butterflies in my stomach.
"Another round?"
I glanced down at my drink that I didn't even realize was empty. Meeting his eyes again, I nodded. "Yes, please."
Tyler set up a glass and started mixing the drink in front of me. When he was done, he looked at me with his piercing brown eyes, causing my heart to speed up again but for an entirely different reason.
"You alone tonight?"
"Yep." My brain was telling me to say, want to change that? If I had drank more, I definitely would have.
"Why's that?"
I shrugged. "Friends are busy. And I was bored."
"Not the best place to be out alone."
"I can handle myself."
Tyler looked me up and down, sizing me up. When his gaze returned to my eyes, he didn't seem convinced.
"Besides, I came here to do something." I told him, suddenly feeling a burst of courage.
"What's that?"
"Ask you out."
As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them. I felt my entire body tense up as I watched his face for any sort of reaction, with my breath caught in my chest. He seemed stunned for a minute, just staring as blankly as ever. His dark eyes bore into mine, making my cheeks turn red.
"I don't think that would be such a good idea." Tyler said finally. He broke the gaze by doing some stuff behind the bar, still close but keeping busy.
"Why not?"
"Cause I'm not interested."
Like a knife, his words stabbed at my heart. Never before had I felt such blatant rejection, especially from someone I'd been interested in for so long. Usually I gave up quickly if they didn't want me, but for some reason, it wasn't the same for him.
Looking at the drink he made, I quickly grabbed it and chugged it all in one swig. I could feel him staring at me, which only motivated me further.
"Ok then."
Pushing the now empty glass towards him, I hopped out of the bar-stool and made my way to the exit. I felt his eyes trailing me as I pushed open the door before stepping out into the night air. Humiliation at the cold rejection made my blood boil with anger. Anger at myself, for putting myself out there. Anger at him for being a dick about it.
As I had stormed out, blinded by all of the emotions that consumed me, I didn't notice the man that I had pushed away at the bar. It wasn't until he grabbed me and shoved me down the alley that I became aware of the situation I was in. He pushed me against the wall, the bricks rough against my back while his clammy hands were locked on my shoulders.
"You're not so tough now are ya?" He growled at me before moving one of his hands to my waist. I reacted by lifting a knee into his crotch, the hit not enough to get him to back off. He merely snarled and put both of his hands on me again, his rough touch making me squirm.
Thankfully, I knew how to get out of situations like this.
Since the crotch shot didn't work, I slammed my skull into his nose, causing it to break. When he took a step back, I pushed my two fingers into his eyes to blind him. The move only left him incapacitated for less than a second, not enough time for me to make my break. As I was about to deliver a kick to his sensitive shinbone, I heard someone approach from the street.
"Leave. Now." The newcomer was wearing a dark hoodie so I couldn't see his face, but I could see the gun glimmer in his hand from the street light above him.
"Fine, man. No need to shoot." The man grunted as he briefly held up his hands. Then he called me a bitch before rushing past the mystery guy and onto the street.
Then we were alone. Even with the shadows of his hood and the darkness of the alley, I could finally see that is was Tyler. Of course.
I pushed off from the wall and started walking towards the street. Shame from the rejection and anger at him for trying to be a hero made me want to get as far from him as possible.
"You okay?" Tyler's voice resonated in my bones. I walked past him without giving him a second glance.
"I'm fine."
"Let me walk you home."
"No thanks." I turned onto the street and immediately took off my heels. Walking barefoot on a dirty street was surprisingly more pleasant than taking another step in those death traps.
I half-expected Tyler to come after me, but he didn't. So, as I walked home, I drained all thoughts of him, hoping to never have to see him again.
Next chapter is where the action REALLY starts. Hope y'all are ready for it!!