Luke had trouble gripping onto the steering wheel -- his hands were sweating so much. He couldn't tell if the unusual amount of sweating forming in his hands was from nerves or how irate he was at the moment.
Who the fuck did Tyler think he was? Luke could not believe a man could be so shitty that he would say such revolting words to someone he is supposed to love. Not to mention, he had the fucking audacity to blame what happened on her. Just thinking about it made him want to bash Tyler's skull into the fucking concrete.
Seeing Brielle so upset and vulnerable made Luke's heart shatter. She was such a sweetheart, she really didn't deserve anything that has happened to her. He couldn't help but admit that it felt pretty good that Brielle came to him for comfort, though. It showed that she was comfortable showing such an emotional side of her. But the fact that someone said something that hurt her so much that she would be in such an emotional state made him want to punch a hole into a brick wall.
And that's what made him nervous -- the fact that he was so angry. Luke was definitely not the best at containing his anger, and he was almost sure he wasn't going to be able to if he saw Tyler. And he felt horrible making that promise to Brielle knowing that he wasn't going to keep it.
God, of course Brielle would make him promise that. He just could not fucking understand why she so keen on not wanting him to get into a fight with Tyler. Especially after today, Tyler deserved to have the shit beat out of him.
But he wasn't going to question or argue with her. The last time he brought up her defending Tyler it did not end well, and the absolute last thing he wanted to do at the moment was make her even more upset.
Luke's beat down car pulled into the shop parking lot, and he heard Brielle take a deep breath as it did. She had been bouncing her leg the entire ride, which was a habit he also acquired when he was nervous.
"You okay?" He asked once he parked the car.
"I'm as okay as I'm going to get." She sighed, rubbing her eyes. She didn't know it was possible for them to become sore from crying so much.
"Ready?" Luke had already unbuckled his seatbelt -- he was ready to confront this punk ass.
He was also kinda excited to see his best friend.
Brielle weakly nodded, and Luke didn't waste any time jumping out of the car. He waited for her as she hesitantly repeated his actions and exited the car. Brielle gave him a small nod to indicate that it was okay to start walking.
Luke started to make his way to the entrance, with Brielle following behind. Although he was halted seconds later when he heard Brielle's weak voice.
"Wait," She squeaked, which made Luke immediately turn around.
"What's wrong?" He took a few steps so he was standing right in front of her.
"I don't wanna do this," Brielle admitted as she covered her face with her hands. She hated herself for being so emotional.
Luke forced her hands from her face and put her arms around him as he pulled her in for a hug. Her height was perfect for resting his chin on her head.
"You don't have to go in. You can sit in the car or I can go drop you off somewhere else while I'm here," He suggested as he felt a few tears leak through his shirt.
"No, I wanna be there when you talk to Calum." She mumbled into his shirt.
"It's gonna be okay." He attempted to soothe her, running his hand up and down her back.
Brielle had to admit, Luke telling her it was going to be okay with his smooth voice and him rubbing her back was extremely comforting.
"I'm sorry for getting your shirt wet again." She apologized, looking up at him this time.
Luke thought about commenting about how it didn't matter since soon it would be covered in her ex-boyfriend's blood, but he refrained.
"Don't worry about it." He said as he smiled at her.
She still made the effort to dry it as she patted slightly on the wet spot.
"Come on." Luke removed her hand from his shirt before turning around and continuing to walk to the shop, this time with Brielle directly next to him. He looked down at her hand and thought about intertwining it with his, but loses his chance once she grasps her own hand and lets her arms dangle in front of her.
The bell above the door rings when the two of them walk in. Calum, who was at one of the registers, notices them almost immediately.
"Luke?" Calum called out from behind the counter. He somehow managed to have a big grin on his face while also looking confused.
"Hey fucker!" Luke yelled, a little too loud, before making his way to him.
Brielle followed Luke closely as he walked towards Calum. She didn't see Tyler and of course she was relieved, but it also made her quite nervous. Where could he have gone?
"What the hell are you doing here? With Brielle?" He questioned, gesturing to her. Calum was too focused on the fact that Luke was here, to ask her why she was gone when he got out of the bathroom.
"I gotta talk to you about something," Luke stated as he leaned his elbows against the counter.
"Did something happen?" He asked, glancing at Brielle before looking back at Luke.
"Yeah. Can we talk in the back room or whatever?"
"Uh, yeah." Calum hesitatingly responds, kind of nervous over the fact that his best friend who he hadn't seen for a few weeks and his co-worker who ditched work this morning were suddenly standing in front of them. He was completely unaware they even knew each other.
He nodded towards the back door, and Luke looked at Brielle before following Calum. She noticed how Calum just completely abandoned his register, although she didn't say anything.
The break room was completely empty as the three of them walked in.
"You want something to drink?" Calum offered, but Luke shook his head almost immediately. Brielle gave Luke a glare, even though she was behind him and he couldn't see. She could've used a refreshment after crying possibly all her tears.
"How do you guys even know each other?" Calum sat at one of the round tables, and Luke and Brielle sit next to each other across from him.
"It's a long story," Luke stated, avoiding that subject. He wasn't sure if Brielle was okay with him going into detail.
"Oh. It's crazy that you guys do."
"Yeah."
He opens his mouth to talk again, although closes it and rethinks what he's going to say.
Luke hadn't really put much thought into how he was going to bring up Tyler to Calum. He realized how stupid it was to think that he was going to walk in here and just have him fired.
"I feel like I'm about to be interrogated." Calum scratches the nape of his neck, and Brielle could tell by his facial expression that he was uncomfortable. God, she was uncomfortable too. She had yet to see Tyler, and all she could worry about was where he was.
She was also confused on why Calum hadn't brung up the fact that she completely bailed on her job this morning. Or the fact that she hadn't said anything since she arrived.
Before anyone could open their mouth to break the silence, the sound of the door to the break room opening causes all three of them to immediately turn their heads. Brielle almost instantly grabbed a hold of Luke's hand once she saw who it was.
Of course Tyler would walk in now.
Luke hadn't even gotten close to being able to start the conversation with Calum.
"Brielle?" Tyler stopped in his tracks after he got a glimpse of the three of them sitting at the table. His eyes widened once he saw Luke. "Wait, aren't you that fucking boxer?"
Luke snickered as Tyler referred to him as the "fucking boxer." Though his snickering stop once an idea came into his head.
"Can I talk to you outside?" Luke asked, trying to sound as neutral as possible, though his eyes darkening contrasted with his tone. Brielle looked over at him with with a confused expression, but his glare was completely focused on Tyler.
"....Why?" Tyler asked as he stands in the same spot. He had just walked in and all of a sudden this stranger who almost beat the hell out of him now wanted to talk to him alone.
"I just wanna have a man-to-man talk." Luke shrugged, talking as nonchalantly as possible.
"Luke, what the hell is this all about?" Calum asked looking as confused as ever.
If Luke could just get Tyler alone, he could probably frighten him enough so he wouldn't come around Brielle again. Or at least he could convince him to quit his job so Brielle could work here in peace. As bad as it sounds, Luke was very good at convincing people to do things by scaring them.
"You're not going outside with him, Luke," Brielle said. Luke mentally groaned at Brielle's defensive attitude for Tyler.
"I'm just gonna talk to him, Brielle." Luke assured her, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb.
"Why do you need to talk to him?" Brielle asked.
Jesus Christ, she was making this was more difficult than it needed to be.
"Yeah, seriously. I don't even fucking know you," Tyler added.
"Can we just fucking go outside?" Even though Luke was trying to avoid snapping, how difficult the two of them were making things was annoying. He was doing this for Brielle, yet she was ruining his plan.
"Luke, we came here to talk to Calum."
Luke shook his head in frustration, giving up.
"It's whatever. I don't even have anything to say." Luke huffed, letting go of Brielle's hand and slouching back in his chair.
Brielle had to admit she felt offended once he let go of their grip.
It was quiet for a minute, the only sound being the chair screeching against the floor as Tyler sat down next to Calum. Luke didn't even look affected by Tyler joining the table, as at this point he was just looking down at his lap.
As Tyler sat down, Calum made the decision that he didn't want to be a part of whatever was going on anymore. He mouthed an "I'm gonna go" to Brielle in which she nodded in response.
Brielle gave Tyler an addled look as he joined the table. Even looking at him made her stomach turn. She looked over at Luke for his reaction to him sitting down, but his eyes were still set on his lap.
"I'm sorry about this morning," Tyler started as he kept his eyes on Brielle, avoiding any contact with Luke.
Brielle chuckled harshly as she shook her head. She had so much to say to Tyler. And all he had to say was sorry. She found it humorous that he thought one word was going to make everything okay.
"Sorry?" She repeated. "You think sorry is gonna fix all of this? Do you know how fucking terrible it is to know that someone I used to be in love with would do what you did to me? And you had the nerve to fucking blame it on me!" Brielle exclaimed, the previous sadness she felt now converting into anger.
"Oh, and let's not fucking mention how you bragged about our little date with your stupid fucking friends. I can't believe how fucked up you are!" She added as she leaned forward in her seat. Even though she was more angry than sad, she couldn't stop a few tears from forming in her eyes.
Luke's head shot up once Brielle mentioned something about Tyler bragging to his friends.
Why hadn't she told him about this? Could Tyler possibly get any shittier? He placed a hand on her back when he noticed her glossy eyes.
"I'm sorry," Tyler repeated.
This time Luke was the one to chuckle as he leaned up from his seat.
"You're fucking pathetic," Luke stated in a cruel tone.
Tyler seemed unaffected by Luke's insult.
He had his eyes focused on Luke's hand that was placed on Brielle's back. He hadn't noticed their previous hand holding since it was under the table, so this was the first of their "affection" that he had witnessed.
Since Brielle and Tyler dated for most of high school, and she had yet to date anyone after him, he never had to deal with her being with other boys. She never even flirted with other guys while they were together or allowed them to flirt with her (that is, until Tyler started to fuck up.)
So seeing another man touch her, even in the most simple way possible, set off something inside him.
"So, you fucking him now?" Tyler asked, nodding towards Luke.
Brielle fought off the urge to smirk, knowing that he was jealous. She could tell from how quick his demeanor changed.
"So what if I am?" Brielle retorted, raising her eyebrows. She surprised herself at how confident she was in her answer.
Luke let his mouth hang open at Brielle's response. God, how he wished it was true.
"Doesn't surprise me. You were always so easy."
Luke almost immediately stood up from his chair, startling Brielle at how quickly he got up. "Don't fucking talk to her like that."
"Luke, stop." She pleaded, tugging on his shirt for him to sit down.
Again, Tyler did not show any response to Luke's actions.
"I'm sure if this little blondie wasn't there to be your knight in shining armor that night, you would've eventually gave in." He spat, making direct eye contact with her.
Her face saddened. She couldn't believe that this was the boy she thought she would marry some day.
Luke didn't say a word. At that moment, if his eyes were a weapon, the piercing look in them could have caused serious destruction.
He continued to walk around Brielle's chair and over to the other side of the table as he towered over Tyler. Tyler was still seated, looking up at Luke with a confused expression.
Luke grabbed the collar of his shirt, forcing him to stand up.
"Do you find pleasure in being a fucking jackass? Do you?" He gritted through his teeth.
"Luke... stop. You promised me," Brielle said cautiously, standing up and placing her hand on Luke's free arm.
"You heard the girl." Tyler smirked, knowing Luke wasn't going to do anything.
Luke continued to glare at him as he let go of his shirt.
"Thank you." Brielle tightened her grip on his arm, trying to pull him back towards her.
Tyler kept that same smug look on his face, relieved that Luke didn't start anything. Although that relief was not long lived.
"Pussy." Tyler muttered under his breath, but he would soon regret that.
And though Luke had been able to contain everything up until now, he was not going to let anything, even Brielle's ear-piercing scream, stop him from contacting his fist with Tyler's jaw.
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also i would like to remind u that if ur reading this book then ur a great person and u deserve to have boxer!luke protect u