Save Me From My Nightmare

The next morning, as the sun rose of Huntington, I scrambled from the bed and scampered into the bathroom to make sure I wasn’t the first person Iain saw when he finally woke from being unconscious. The lock slid perfectly into place with a silent ease, relief washing through my body slowly as I leaned against the door and listened closely to the silence behind it. At last… the feeling of being threatened was washed away for a single moment of pure ecstasy until I heard the imminent groan of a newly woken Iain, rising from the bed and probably rubbing his now sore head. I ran the shower for an excuse not to hear him, slipping from the night dress and jumping in quickly.

He was gone by the time I’d finally gotten from the shower. My hair dripped slowly onto the flooring, leaving little circles of water that followed after the footsteps that padded over the floor. Peeking my head around the door, I listened closely for a long minute to make sure I heard the car reversing from the driveway and down the road. Sighing with relief, I slipped from between the door and frame and grabbed the phone on the bedside table, punching in Zacky’s home number that had been written down on a little post-it by the side of the bed along with everyone else’s numbers. I’d managed to take down everyone’s number before they left, saying that I’d lost my phone.

The ringing of the phone caused me to chew my lip, hoping that he was there to answer. At last, a tired greeting broke through on the other end, making me smile. ‘Hey, Zacky, I was just wondering if Holly wanted to come shopping today, seeing as it’s a Saturday. I think she could do with something to take her mind off yesterday’s drama,’ I said as sweetly as I could, though I wanted to sing it at the top of my lungs after hearing his voice again. There was girlie shrieking in the background, obviously Holly acting excited to play along with it though we’d planned it all out last night.

‘Sure, that’d be awesome. She could really use some retail therapy. Do you want me to drop her off or are you going to come here?’ Zacky said in an unfamiliar, formal tone of voice that I frowned at. Telling him that I would come get her in half an hour, I looked around the messed up bedroom piled with boxes. Iain wouldn’t be happy when he got home, but who cares. Another beating won’t break me. ‘Oh, Keeley, I’m glad you’re back. I missed you.’ Butterflies erupted in my stomach, fluttering around as I repeated the last sentence back at him with a gooey smile on my lips. Putting the phone down, I grinned and bounced around like an idiot.

Once dressed in a simple baggy Misfits shirt with a black ribbed tank underneath, I tugged on my black leggings and slid into my flip flops before grabbing my bag from under the bed. That was where I hid a lot of my things. My old phone, money, cards; pretty much my whole life before Iain was in my bag under my bed. Sighing as I grabbed my new phone too, I slung it over my shoulder and stole the Porsche keys from the side table in the hallway after leaving a note for Iain saying that I had to go see my Mom because she wanted to talk about the wedding. I knew he wouldn’t get involved with my family. They would scrutinize him until he came clean and that would only cause more trouble.

Knocking on the front door of Zacky’s house, I waited nervously for him to answer. There was barking on the other side, a yapping ball of black fluff jumping up onto my shins as soon as the door opened to reveal a tired looking Zacky. His smile was infectious though, making me blush for the first time since I left Huntington. ‘Holly’s just upstairs changing her clothes again, typical girl. Come on in, I’ve just made some coffee if you want some,’ Zacky said, stepping aside to let me in as he wandered through to the kitchen. ‘She’s been so excited since you phoned; she’s like a kid on Christmas morning.’ I chuckled naturally, propping myself up on the stool opposite the island.

‘Well, I just needed to get out the house and thought of her so it kinda went together like marshmallows and hot chocolate. Is there a, um, specific time you want her home?’ I asked, clutching the mug that was handed to me in my hands. Zacky shook his head, telling me to take my time and not to hurry back as he sat opposite me. His hand rested on my knee gently, his thumb smoothing over the skin as I gulped nervously. ‘I’m glad we can be civilized now I’m back, it’s nice to be able to talk to an adult rather than the computer screen whenever I’m meant to be writing.’ He chuckled, making me laugh along as I took a sip of my drink.

‘Yeah, how is that book coming along?’ he asked curiously, gulping his coffee and taking his hand from my knee. I wished he would put it back again, just to feel his skin against mine once more. ‘I read your first one, you have quite a talent.’ Bashfully, I explained that it wasn’t all that good and that I was now trying to do a follow up to it but I had writer’s block. Zacky sighed; about to say something when there was the clack of shoes on the stairs signalling that Holly was bouncing down the stairs. ‘Have fun, and could you help her pack for a sleepover at her friend’s house tonight? I have no idea what girls do at these slumber parties.’

‘Sure thing, we’ll be back at around four?’ Zacky nodded, dipping his head to kiss my cheek but recoiling nervously. Holly was smiling widely, watching us closely as if she was expecting him to do more than just peck my cheek. Cautiously, I gave him a light hug and took Holly’s hand. When I turned around, he smiled at me and made me smile back. ‘We’ll be good girls, don’t worry!’ I called, making him chuckle as he watched from the front door as Holly slid into the passenger seat of my Porsche. Her smile grew as I put the roof down, winking at her as I backed from the driveway and waved in the direction of the house.

Finally, a day without being in constant fear.