Burn

Rae’s feet pounded against the pavement, music pulsing in her ear drums as she ran. Her body was covered in a sheen of sweat as she pushed through the last few minutes of her three mile run, hair swinging in it’s high ponytail. She neared the house and slowed as she arrived at the gate.

It was extremely early in the morning when she started from a nightmare, the same one she had been having for a week. Deciding she wanted to run out her irritation, she had thrown on some sneakers, running shorts and a sports bra. Walking into the yard, she was glad she had gone for the morning workout.

Walking up to the steps, the door to the house opened and a tired looking Trystan walked out, sliding sunglasses on her nose. She waved to Rae, keys jingle in her hand as she juggled her purse and her bag. She was leaving for the weekend to visit her parents and would be back in two days.

Kissing her on the cheek, Rae wished her best friend a safe trip and instantly went upstairs, needing to clean the sweat that covered her in thick layers. Something about sweat lingering on her skin always bothered her severely, so she instantly hopped into the shower, yelping when it wasn’t even warm enough.

After washing and humming through the entire shower, she walked into her room, in high spirits. The nightmare was long behind her, and she felt better. She tried not to think about the fact that the same nightmare had been visiting her in her sleep, ever since she had received a text from Leon that was watching her still.

Rae knew exactly what was going on. Leon wanted to scare her, wanted her to know that if Harry didn’t plea on his behalf, that he was not going to be happy about it. That irritated Rae more than anything, because she did not like being a bartering chip or feeling like a victim.

And yet, she did feel slightly like a victim. She was having terrible dreams that Leon would strangle her. Though the blonde boy hadn’t come near her in a week- at least that she knew of- it seemed he was bothering her even in her sleep.

It was becoming blindingly obvious that she needed to tell Harry. She wanted to tell him, but there were several obstacles she had to overcome before doing just that. Firstly, she had to figure out how to tell him without him going absolutely mass murderer and finding the other boy. That would be very difficult. Secondly, she had to master telling him without him blowing up for not telling him right away. That was a given. And thirdly, she wanted him to know that she didn’t feel like it was his fault. She hated feeling a like a burden to him.

Changing into jeans and a shirt, she heard the door down stairs open and close. Harry’s shuffles could be heard down stairs and she exited the room, trotting down the steps towards the kitchen, where she heard him fiddling around.

When she walked around the corner, she reeled, flinching backwards to see Leon smiling at her as he leaned against the counter. Fear did not bubble up in her throat like she thought it would. Anger was there instead as her heart beat quickly, her hand clutching the door frame.

“Yeah,” he said, nodding his head and shrugging his shoulders. He seemed totally relaxed, as if he knew no one was going to walk in. But Harry was supposed to be coming over. “Harry got busy at work. Thought I’d stop by to see if you were alright.”

Rae glared at him. “Get out of my house.”

“I quite like it,” he continued, ignoring her as he walked around the kitchen. Her breath came short as he neared her kitchen knives, but he continued to walk past them, paying them no mind. So he didn’t want to kill her. “Very nice marble counter tops. I was just telling my brother-"

“That you’re a fucking psycho?” she interrupted, crossing her arms. She tried to match his casual posture, leaning against the frame of the door and watching him as he paused, arching a brow. “Can we cut this whole cliché, movie stalker thing? Tell me what exactly it is you want, and I’ll relay it to Harry.”

“What?”

“I’m not stupid. You’re trying to provoke him, so tell me what it is you want, Leon.”

Leon stared at Rae for a long time. Rae couldn’t tell if he was angry at her, or if he was annoyed. He looked somewhere between annoyed and surprised. She knew it wasn’t the answer he had expected, which is why she gave it. “You are very interesting.” Rae tried not to shiver, remembering how Harry had said the same exact thing to her. “Fine, you want to know what I want? I want absolute surety that Harry is going to be on our side for this court case. He isn’t very easy to persuade.”

She smiled unkindly. “Have you tried saying please?”

He didn’t react. “I’m a very persuasive person, but it seems he’s being a proper pain in my ass with it. So, my only way to persuade him is through you.”

“You want me to ask him?”

Leon laughed, a single, loud burst of noise. “God no. I’m going to threaten you. Because now you know that I can get in your house, I can follow you, and I can hurt you.”

“I’m quite scared.”

He smirked at her and nodded his head before launching himself over the counter with agility she didn’t know he had. He pushed her back into the wall, his eyes wild with rage as she yelped from the collision behind her, but she had reacted just as he did. Rae threw her palm up, smacking him directly in the nose with it, making him yell out in pain.

Leon’s eyes tears and she knee him right in his groin, shoving him away from her as she bolted around the counter grabbing one of the knives tightly in her hand and facing him where he was doubled over, clutching both places she had harmed him. She reminded herself to thank her father for the self defense classes.

“Now get the fuck out of my house,” she seethed, holding the knife tight as he glared up at her, a small trail of crimson blood going down his lip. “Or I’m going to ask questions second. Oh, and I’ll get the fucking message to Harry. Loud and clear.”

He strained, grimacing in pain. Rae could feel the hatred coming off of him, but he wasn’t going to come near her when she had a weapon in her hand, gripped so hard that she wasn’t even trembling. “You’re going to wish you never did that.”

Rae didn’t respond, stalking after him as he walked out of the house, slamming the door. It wasn’t until he was out of her yard that she dropped the knife, the weapon clattering to the floor. Trembling hands covered her mouth as breaths of terror and fright came out in small, quick gusts.

Pulling out her phone when her hands had steadied some, she dialed a number, trying not to burst into hysterics when the adrenaline wore off. She had just been attacked in her own house, something she only ever saw in movies. “Rae, can I call you back? I’m really-"

“Leon just showed up in my house,” she said, her voice very hollow. It resembled the sound of her talking through the Styrofoam cups through strings long ago. “He’s gone and I’m fine, but I’m terrified.”

Silence. She could practically see his face turning purple, the veins in his neck pulsing as he clenched his jaw. She knew his fists would be knotting and she hoped that he wouldn’t break anything in her home when he got there. “I’m coming now. Lock the doors.”

“Okay.”

Hanging up, she did just that, running around like a mad woman and locking every door, ripping curtains closed and locking the windows, even. Though she had tried her best to show no fear, and she tried to rationalize that he was there because he wanted her to be scared, it just could not erase the feeling of vulnerability.

But it wasn’t Leon’s presence in her house that was making her tremble, that was making her eyes stings as she tried not to cry. It was the image that kept coming up in her mind, the feeling that was welling up inside of her.

When Leon had attacked her, for a brief moment she could picture what it must have been like when her mother was attacked for money, when her mother was killed. And it was so sickening to Rae, that she had to sit on her couch, breathing in deep. She tried not to imagine if that’s what it felt like to her mother, tried to shove the image of her mom helpless against the wall, no defense training like Rae.

The girl could not get the thoughts out of her mind, could not help but feel like for a moment, she had relived what her mother had gone through. She felt dirty, she felt like somehow she had been violated, that Leon could make her feel that way. She swore that she would never let someone make her feel that terror her mother had felt before her death.

It must have been longer than she thought, her sitting on the couch with her head in her hands, shaking, because Harry’s pounding on the door startled her. for a flicker of a second, she thought that Leon was back. But she expelled the poisonous thoughts with a flick of her head, bolting to the door to let Harry in.

Harry’s huge frame filled her door way immediately as he slammed the door behind him, locking it. She was startled when he grabbed her face, examining it. His eyes were lit like coals, dwindling as they began to pick up heat and flame to life. “Did he hurt you? What the fuck happened?”

Harry was half dragging half carrying her by her arms to the living room, sitting her down on the couch. She realized he was trembling too, but unlike her, it was in rage. “I’m fine,” she stated, shaking her head as he continued to examine him. His hands were a bit rough, his anger seeping through a bit. “He didn’t hurt me, he got mad when I said some things though, and sort of-“ she cut off, breathing hard as her throat tightened.

“Rae?” his tone was very dark, more angry than concerned. She held up a hand, pushing his hands off of her as she shook her head. Tears finally spilled over, washing down her cheeks and leaving a salty path. “Rae, what did he do?”

Rae covered her face, crying into her hands then. Rae kept seeing her mother’s face over and over, wishing that she had never been taken from Rae’s life the way she had been. Sobs escaped as she heard Harry holler at her, “Dammit Rae, tell me!”

“He shoved me against the wall but I hit him,” she cried, more annoyed with his yelling than anything. She was explaining it as if she were in trouble, crying all the while. “And he left because I hit and kneed him.”

“Did he hurt you?” she shook her head, crying into her hands again. Harry was very unsure of what to do. He never had to console a crying girl before. Seen plenty, sure, he made girls cry all the time. But never actually wanted to comfort them. “Please stop crying. He’s gone, alright? And I’m going to kill the bastard for thinking he could touch you.”

“I don’t even care about that!” she practically yelled, throwing her hand in the air in her frustration. She shook her head, leaning back into the couch and pulling her knees in. “he made me feel like her, my mother. Is that what it felt like, when she was attacked? I never wanted to feel like that, never wanted to know what it was like!”

Harry was at a loss for words. “I… I’ll take care of him, do you understand? You’re not his to touch. You are not his to go near. I won’t allow it.”

"No," she murmured, shaking her head and looking at him. He gave her a questioning look. "Don't touch him. The last thing you need is a way for him to get out of this court business... no. We'll take him down through the court system."

"You're right... but I still want to kill him."

The words were only slightly comforting. But she also knew that she would say the same thing if someone had touched Harry. She was his, and he was hers. There were no questions about it. They were untouchable to other people, though neither were really sure how that had come about. They belonged to one another, in the only way they could ever belong to someone.

After a long time, Harry relaxed his posture only slightly, pulling Rae into his chest and holding her while she cried, quieter now. She sniffed as he held her, his muscles still wound tight like a snake lying in wait. Harry was ready to strike, and she could feel it. She just didn’t want to be around when it happened.

When Harry struck, destruction followed.