Sneaking Out

"See ya later Laura, have fun at prom." I told my friend after she dropped me off from work.

"Bye girl, I'll make sure to call you tomorrow." She told me.

I smiled and waved at her as she drove down the street. Man I envied her…I wished I could be close to being done with school so I could go out and live a life different from the one I had. It had been three months now since my cousin started wrestling and already, he was a sensation with the crowd. Sure a lot of people hated him, but he helped ratings go up and that's all the company needed.

As for me, working with Mark was becoming more fun by the week. Whenever we closed together, he would always play some heavy metal while we got things cleaned up. Boy did I enjoy showing him my fun side. I was sweeping the floor one night and actually started dancing with the broom. Mark was laughing his ass off watching me. Some nights I actually let him give me a ride home if Laura was still working. At first I was a little nervous about riding on the back of a motorcycle but, it turned out to be a blast. He called me every other night too just to check up on me and listen whenever I was real upset with John. Once night John came home completely drunk and shoved me into the wall.

It was the scariest day of my life but I didn't tell Mark all about the shoving. Instead, I just told him how John called me a whore, and told me that college wasn't going to help my already feeble mind. Talking to Mark always made me feel better though, so I was able to sleep through the night.

"John! I'm home!" I yelled when I walked into the house.

He came around the corner and folded his arms, "Where the hell were you? School was over five hours ago Kat!"

I sighed and walked up to him, "I went to work...like always."

"Oh yeah? Well next time would you at least tell me when you're not coming straight home? I had Vince McMahon over here and he was dying to meet you."

I sat my bag down, "Meet me? For what?"

"Well he was thinking that maybe you could be my ringside girl." He said. "You know, to help cheer me on and stuff."

I rolled my eyes and went to walk past him, "No thank you."

He suddenly gripped me up by my arm making it hurt at my shoulder blade. "don't you walk away from my when I'm talking to you."

"John stop!" I yelled as I tried to get free, "You're hurting me!"

He sighed and let go of my arm. "You should think about it Kat…being at my side will be fun."

"Not if you keep putting your damn hands on me like that." I said.

He stepped closer to me, giving me a very intimidating stare that made me shake with fear. "You better watch your tongue, otherwise I might have to rip it out."

I blinked a few times before picking up my bag and running upstairs. I had no idea what was happening to my cousin. He wasn't the loving guy that took me in and cared for me like his own anymore. He was almost like a monster…

As soon as I got to my bedroom I locked myself in and then pulled out my diary. I was about to start writing in it, when a jolt of pain went through my arm, the very same one that John grabbed. I took off my little jacket and looked at it, only to see his handprint indented into my skin and a bluish mark forming on my shoulder.

"Damn it." I whispered before closing my diary and putting it back in its hiding space. I then grabbed my cell phone and went into the closet to call Mark.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Hey Mark, sorry to bother you but…I need someone to talk to." I said.

He chuckled, "Oh trust me, you aren't bothering me at all sweetness."

I giggled, loving the little nicknames he always gave me. "Ok. Well…John is at it again."

"Oh man really? What did he say this time?" he asked.

I sighed, "He apparently had his boss over here and he wants me to be his new ringside girl."

"Ringside girl? You could get seriously hurt doing that shit." He said. "Did you tell him no?"

I nodded and whispered, "Yeah…"

"And what happened when you said no?" he asked almost sounding as if he knew what was going on."

I stuttered a little, "W-well…Um…"

"It's alright Kat, you can tell me." He said. "Remember I'm here for you."

I took a deep breath, "Ok, he grabbed my arm when I was trying to go upstairs and now there's a bruise forming on my shoulder."

"Damn Kitty, can you move your arm at all?" he asked.

"Yeah it just hurts to move it." I said as I wiped tears from my face.

He sighed, "Alright listen, go down to your kitchen and get some ice to put on it. If it still looks bruised I'll take a look at it when you come in tomorrow."

I sniffled, "Alright…"

He was quiet for a moment and then asked, "You're scared to be around him aren't you?"

"Yeah and he makes it worse every day." I said.

"Listen, if it gets any worse, let me know. I'll have you meet me somewhere and maybe you can stay at my place for a night or two. How's that sound."

I gave it some thought, "Well…it sounds risky but I'm willing to do anything right now."

"Ok, well let me know if things get any worse. I don't want him hurting you like this Kitty." He said. "You don't deserve that."

I smiled, "Thanks."

"You're welcome." He said. "What are you doing right now?"

I sighed, "Sitting in my closet."

He sighed, "Oh my. Well are you up to doing something tonight since you don't have class tomorrow?"

I bit my bottom lip, "I could but I'd have to make sure John doesn't see me escape."

He laughed, "Well, get yourself dressed and I'll meet you at the park in a few minutes. Ok?"

I smiled, "Ok."

Once I hung up I opened my door to my closet and then turned on the light inside. I wasn't too sure what to wear at first until I spotted my tan skirt that stopped mid-thigh and showed off my gorgeous legs. I then changed into a black tank top with spaghetti straps, put on a white long sleeved jacket, and let my hair down. Once I got myself all together, I made sure that my bedroom door was locked and I snuck out of my window. Lucky for me, John was in his bedroom so sneaking out was easy. I climbed down the side of my house and then walked down the street towards the park. I know what you're thinking…how could I sneak out and go meet some guy who was my boss? I didn't know either…maybe I was just too distraught over John's funky attitude.

I didn't see anyone when I got there, so I sat down on the bench and waited patiently. Finally after a few minutes, he pulled up behind me in his truck. I smiled and went over to his side of the truck. He rolled down the window and smiled at me.

"Hello there," he said.

"Hey." I said.

He smirked and then motioned for me to get in his truck.

"Uh I don't know…my parents always taught me not to ride with strangers."

He laughed, "Very funny, now come on."

I giggled and went to the passenger's side to get in the truck. He watched me with a cute smile on his face as I opened the door and climbed inside. I had to hide my amusement at his choice of night wear. He had on a pair of black silky pants and a white beater that showed off those gorgeous tattoos. I could also smell his after shave and man was it intoxicating. I could definitely get use to being around a man like himself.

"Where are we going?" I asked once I closed the door.

"To my place for a little bit, is that ok?" he asked.

I nodded, not really caring at this point where I was going. All I wanted to do was get away from John.

"You cold?" He asked once we were heading down the road.

I shook my head, "No I'm ok."

"How's your shoulder?" he asked.

I sighed heavily, "I didn't get to put ice on it so it still hurts."

He nodded and then turned on some soft music. I couldn't help but to sing along with it while imagining myself playing a guitar. I had gotten so lost in singing that I didn't realize that Mark was smiling at me.

"You've got quite a voice on you girl. I should take you out to the karaoke bar sometime." He said.

I shrugged, "Well I do want to sing at some point in my life, but John doesn't want me doing any of that."

"It seems to me that John doesn't want you doing much of anything." He said. "I'm so sorry that you're going through all that."

"It's not your fault silly." I said.

He smirked, "True, but I still feel sorry for you."

I smiled and glanced off to the side as we pulled into a driveway of a large house. It was so beautiful with a big porch swing and a small garden growing near the porch.

"Wow, this is your place?" I asked.

He nodded and put the truck in park, "Yep. Come on I'll show you around."

I smiled and hopped out of the truck, ready to see what his place was like. He took me up onto the porch and unlocked his door. I jumped when I heard two big dogs barking as the door opened.

"Don't worry, they won't hurt you." He told me as he walked inside. They jumped all over him while wagging their tails. The smaller one instantly ran over to me when I walked in. I stood frozen for a moment while he sniffed my legs and then started wagging his tail.

"Go ahead, he won't bite." Mark said.

I bent down slowly and gently began to pat his head. He tilted his head back and licked my fingers before trying to jump up and lick my face.

"oh my, you're a feisty one aren't you?" I asked him. "What's his name?"

"Pain." He said.

I looked at him in shock. "Pain? Now Mark how could you name this poor dog pain when he doesn't cause any pain?"

He laughed, "Because I'm strange like that."

I shook my head and stood up, looking around at the big house. "It's so nice in here."

"Thank you." He said. "Come here, let's go sit in here."

I followed him and his dogs to the living room where I spotted a huge couch in front of a long flat screen television set. The dogs laid down on the floor while we got ready to sit down on the couch.

Mark sat down first, turning the TV on right after. Just as I was about to sit down, he gently grabbed my hand and directed me down right next to him.

"You're always so far from me." He said with a smile.

I chuckled, "Yeah because you're my boss remember?"

"True, but when you're here, think of me as one of your closest friends." He said as he glanced at me.

"Um Mark, close friends don't sit this close to each other." I said.

He laughed, "Yea well…we do."

I blushed a little and then unzipped my jacket, causing a little pain to my arm. I winced and gently placed my hand on top of it.

"Oh yeah, let me see that bruise." He said as he started helping me take the jacket off.

Once we got it off, he moved my hair out of the way and closely examined it. "My goodness…what in the hell was he thinking?"

"I don't know," I said as I tear fell from my face. "I hope things don't get worse. I can't handle another night like this."

He sighed and then got up to get me an ice pack. When he returned, he not only had the ice pack, but a glass of water and a big white pill.

"Here, take these and leave this on your shoulder. It's going to be cold but it should help reduce the swelling." He said.

"What kind of pill is this?" I asked him.

"800mg of Ibuprofen. Don't worry I'm not going to hurt you Kat." He said.

For some reason, I really seemed to trust this man but I couldn't figure out why. I took the pill once he got up to go to the kitchen again and then placed the ice pack on my shoulder. When he came back he had some soup for me to eat.

"Here, you'll need this since you took that." He said.

The soup was amazing, almost the best tasting soup I had ever had. We watched a movie and talked amongst ourselves while I ate. Just a few minutes after I ate, I started to feel drowsy as hell.

"Mark I think I should go." I said as I yawned.

He shook his head, "No, you need to rest Kitty."

"But what about John?" I asked.

He smiled, "John won't even notice you're gone. You have to work in the morning remember?"

"Oh yea." I said as I leaned against his warm body. He gently placed his arm around me and kissed my forehead, slightly catching me off guard.

"Goodnight Kat." He said.

I yawned once more, "Goodnight."

Mark had this strange power over me that I couldn't quite figure out, but it didn't bother me too much. Now that kiss to my head…I had to question that one…What did it mean?