Super Avenged

The first complete thought that popped into my head after I realized that I was once again conscious was: Where am I? Slowly, my eyelids twitched open. I saw Jimmy’s upper torso above me, and above him, twinkling white stars peppered lightly across a velvet night sky. There weren’t very many, because of the light pollution, but there were some stars still.

That solved one mystery. I was outside, obviously being carried by Jimmy to...I wasn’t sure. Was he taking me home? Was he taking me to the hospital? My brain hadn’t quite remembered how to speak yet, so I couldn’t ask him. And he didn’t seem to realize that I was awake.

Wait. Why did I have to come to in the first place? I strained to remember. Okay, so I went to Monica’s earlier that morning. I got a cute outfit. In the evening, Jimmy accompanied me to the art gallery. I chatted with Jackie and Kelly, and then...

...And then Brendan arrived. All in a rush, my memory came back to me, and I remembered everything. I remembered the hurt and anger and pain. I remembered his hand inching up my skirt, and his tongue forcing itself against mine. I remembered the dagger twisting around in my heart. And I remembered not being able to find my breath...

“It’s okay, Miya, calm down,” Jimmy said soothingly from above me. I hadn’t even realized that I was hyperventilating. I was gasping for air, taking in deep breaths that didn’t seem to appease my lungs. I was going light-headed again, and the stars were beginning to fuzz out again.

“Breathe, Miya, you’re okay,” Jimmy whispered. I felt concrete beneath me: he had put me down. His cool hand brushed my hair back from my face. Slowly, as my brain began to realize that Brendan was nowhere near me, and that Jimmy wouldn’t let him hurt me if he was, I began to calm down and my breathing regulated. I blinked up at Jimmy, who looked rather concerned. I looked left and right, but the concrete I laid on didn’t look like a sidewalk...

“Where are we?” I croaked.

“Well, there were still people on the sidewalks,” Jimmy began. “And I knew it would look suspicious if I was walking down the sidewalk, carrying you, so I took you out of the art gallery through the backdoor and stretched my legs until I could step onto the rooftop. I’ve been walking across the rooftops the entire time. We should be at your apartment in a few minutes.”

“What will I say if people start to ask why I suddenly disappeared? And why Brendan got punched?” I asked.

“Just tell them that he came on a little too strongly, you punched him to make him leave, and then you didn’t feel well, so you had me take you home,” Jimmy answered. I nodded. It was pretty close to the truth. “Are you ready to continue?”

“Yeah,” I answered. Jimmy picked me up again and continued home.

A few minutes later, as promised, Jimmy stepped over onto the roof of my apartment building. He gently stood me upright, and I felt strong enough to walk. I took one confident step towards the door leading down into the apartment building, and almost fell over due to my suddenly treacherous heels. Jimmy’s hands on my waist steadied me long enough so that I could pull my heels off. I straightened up and continued on my not-so-merry way.

After walking down a couple of flights of stairs, Jimmy and I emerged into the hallway where my apartment was located. I led the way to my front door, unlocked it, and stepped gladly into my apartment. I dumped my clasp and shoes beside the coffee table before shuffling off towards the bathroom to get ready for bed.

When I stepped out of the bathroom about fifteen minutes later, Jimmy unfolded his lanky body from the couch. We passed each other to trade spots: he would go into the bathroom, and I was heading towards the couch to get my clasp and shoes. Jimmy stopped me, though, and pulled me into a hug. I didn’t respond. My panic was gone now, but my body was still practically shut down, simply running through the motions. Jimmy seemed to realize that, and pulled away abruptly. He brushed his lips across my forehead before disappearing into the bathroom.

I blinked and continued walking forward, dreading the morning. I knew what I would wake up to. My heart was still numb now, but in the morning, I would feel the throbbing wound left from my encounter with Brendan. I probably wouldn’t get much sleep, and if I did, no doubt it would be filled with nightmares starring none other than Brendan.

I snatched my clasp and shoes off of the floor and shuffled towards my bedroom. And the worst part was knowing that I couldn’t prepare myself for the dreadful morning ahead.