(Before I even start, wanna give a shoutout to my girl KatelynBB for givin me the courage to post this. And go check out the babysitter if you're not reading it already, i am so addicted to that story. Also want to say thanks to MollyHighland AND RollinsInTheDean DeeMarie426 and everyone who's been following my story, you guys are sweethearts and I'm real glad y'all are enjoying the story so far)
I think-I think when it's all over,
It just comes back in flashes, you know?
It's like a kaleidoscope of memories.
It just all comes back. But he never does.
I think part of me knew the second I saw him that this would happen.
It's not really anything he said or anything he did,
It was the feeling that came along with it.
And the crazy thing is I don't know if I'm ever gonna feel that way again.
But I don't know if I should.
I knew his world moved too fast and burned too bright.
But I just thought, how can the devil be pulling you toward someone who looks so much like an angel when he smiles at you?
Maybe he knew that when he saw me.
I guess I just lost my balance.
I think that the worst part of it all wasn't losing him.
It was losing me.
- Manage Stories-Taken from I Knew You Were Trouble When You Walked In by Taylor Swift
CHAPTER TWO, PT FIVE
an unlikely friendship
She glared at the man her mom was practically leaning on with disgust. For the second night in a row, the creep was over here, with her mother, and for the second night in a row, he kept accidentally touching her. If he kept it up, she was half tempted to accidentally break his nose. Thanks to Jon's sparring sessions, which she'd become a part of, mostly out of interest, parts of her liking the thrill of watching this whole other side of him that took over in the ring.. Suffice to say, thanks to his sparring, her getting into it occasionally, picking up things, she was pretty damn sure that if her award winning pitching arm didn't break the guy's nose, then a well aimed punch would.
It shocked her just how much she'd changed as a person since she moved here. Before now, she'd never once have considered raising her hand to an adult, she'd been raised to respect them. But this guy, he obviously didn't think that respect had to be earned. Just thought, and wrongly, apparently, that if he was banging mommy, then he could touch daughter all the hell he wanted.
It didn't help when her aunt and uncle were sitting right there in the damn room, just as drunk if not worse than her mother and this unknown bastard were.
"You hearin me, girl? I told ya to grab me another beer."
She gave him a dirty look, got up and grabbed the beer, throwing it. She'd just been getting progressively sicker of his shit the more she had to sit here and listen to it, or take it.
He caught it but when she walked by, he slapped her on the ass hard. "Ain't you got any respect?"
"Not for you, not really." she said quietly, calmly.
Her mother glared and then standing, exploded drunkenly, "I.. I'm fi-finally fu-fuckin happy.. I f-finally found s-somebody since your daddy's gone and you're gonna treat him l-like a damn human being, girl or.. Or.."
"Or what, Mama? You gonna run off and leave again? Stick me here with my aunt and uncle? If you are, I really wish you'd do it, stop trying to drink yourself into oblivion."
Her mother's hand connected with her face sharply and she glared, grabbing her jacket, storming out, slamming the door to the apartment behind her. She walked down the hallway, pushing down on the elevator, sinking down into the floor by herself, her head in her hands as she processed what just happened. She hadn't meant to say it, not like that at least, but it'd come out. And her mother was acting like she used to when she'd run away, bail out and leave her with just her father for days, sometimes even weeks and months it felt like, at a time.
The elevator slid open but she hadn't heard it, and she felt arms going around her as she smelled the familiar scent of his cologne mixed with slight sweat. Jon hugged her against him stiffly as he asked, "ya alright?"
"Where'd you come from?"
"Heard the fight. Snuck out and caught up to ya. Stopped the lift to catch ya. What the hell happened to ya?"
"It's nothing I.."
"No, didn't sound like nothin, damn it."
He made her look at him and she sighed as she said "I just managed to piss my moms off, that's all.. Bought up something nobody in my family is allowed to mention."
"What?" he asked, brow raising. He'd been operating under the delusion his friend had a rather cushy and princess like existance. Now he was finding out it wasn't and this intrigued him, it made him want to..
His brain wouldn't allow him to finish what knowing what he'd just found out made him want to do. Because last time he'd tried to help someone he cared about out, she took it and twisted it, told the whole damn school a lie about him. Then there was his baby cousin. God only knew he hadn't been enough to stop CPS from taking her.
"When I was little.. Sometimes my moms would leave for long stretches of time, it'd just be me and my daddy. She'd always come back, and my daddy would tell me she'd be alright. He'd never talk about where she went or why she left.. And tonight, she was drinkin and this guy and.. I just shouldn't have said it, she never woulda hit me."
"That asshole's over there again? I don't like that fuckin guy."
"Me either, Jon.. But apparently she does. She's been screwin him since she bought him home from the bar on the corner last night." Giselle admitted as she leaned against him, looking up. "Thanks.."
"For what?"
"Comin down here. Wanna go for a walk or something?"
"Yeah.. I was gonna ask ya that. Not a good idea to go back until that ass is gone." Jon muttered as his hand found her cheek. She winced when his hand ran across it, the imprint stung.
"Ya sure ya don't need ice?"
"Nah. I'm good. Somebody's doing a damn good job of toughening me up." Giselle smiled sheepishly as they walked out of the elevator and into the chilly night, down to the park like they usually did when one or the other just wanted to talk.
Lately though, neither one would admit, but neither could deny either, they seemed to be getting a lot closer, more comfortable with one another. And they were starting to see each other in an entire new light.
