Three beers and three shots of rum, Christine was out on the dance floor. Somehow she had let Leon convince her that drinking more than one beer was a good idea. Sure, she had wanted to do some drinking, but not enough to be throwing up tomorrow morning. It surely didn't help that she was a light drinker, only a beer or two made her cheeks rosy and her problems disappear. Though, most of these thoughts were beyond her. Her drunken stupor had her swaying her hips and moving her arms around to the beat of the music. Safe to say, Christine was having fun.

As she moved, Christine's thoughts had wandered back to Greece. The bar that had looked out to the beach, the music playing. She started getting nauseous. "I need to sit," she told Jesse, who she made sure she stayed next to. She moved her way through the other people. This was exactly like Greece, well with the exception of the indoor venue and how drunk she was. The memories hurt, she was supposed to be having fun back then, and for a while, but the night just turned for the worse. She didn't want to think about it, she couldn't think about it. She shuddered. Her head was starting to spin and she needed to get out. She was heading for their table, but she ended up heading for the door.

Christine had stood out into the cool LA air, it cooled off since earlier. She took in a lung full of air, hoping that the exhale would take her memories with her. She hadn't told anyone about the man that rough housed her as she was trying to leave the club, she kept it bottled up. He had been drunk, and thought he deserved a lot more than she ever lead him on to. With a tight grip around her arm, and butchered English, he had even threatened her. Nothing had actually happened though, because he was starting to make a scene. Another man had stepped in, and before anyone could ask her how she was, she disappeared. Even though nothing happened, it terrified her because she had never felt so hopeless, so defenseless, in her life.

As she was lost in her own thoughts, a hand touched her shoulder. She jumped, almost ready to turn around and throw a punch. "Chris, you okay?" Leon's familiar voice asked. She whipped her head around to make eye contact, her hand clenched into a fist by her side. She just stared at him for a second, the world moved to fast around her, though that was mostly to blame on her intoxication. "Are you okay?" he asked again. "Uh, yeah, I'm fine. I just needed some air," she responded, releasing the tension in her hand. "Oh, good," he said, a silence then fell between them. Christine had turned back around, folded her arms across her chest, and closed her eyes again. "Are you sure you are okay?" Leon asked again. "Yeah, Lee, I've just had too much to drink, thanks to you," she replied. "Do you want me to take you back?" he asked her. She shook her head, "No, you don't have to do that. You have fun, I can take a cab," she told him. "Don't worry about it, I am just about done here anyways," he told her. She gave him a skeptical look. "Fine, just don't ever sneak up on me like that again," she told him. Christine had been fine standing stationary, but the second she wanted to start moving again, her body swayed. "Just stay right here, I'll be right back," he told her. "No, I'll come with you," she said. Suddenly, she didn't feel safe on the sidewalk alone anymore.


Leon pulled the car into the long driveway, before parking in the car. The entire car ride was silent, even the radio was off. "I don't believe you are okay," Leon after they had been sitting there for a few moments. "You don't need to," she stated simply. "I was sitting at the table, and I saw you coming that direction. Then you rushed to the door. It doesn't take a genius to see something wasn't right, Chris," Leon started. She didn't reply. "Can you tell me what happened?" he asked. She stayed quiet still. "Christine," he said her name sternly. "What, Leon? I said I was fine, and for some reason you think that something is wrong. I just needed some air," she lied. Her words were defensive and spoken with anger. Yes, something was wrong, but she wasn't about to pour her fears out, even if she was drunk.

She looked at Leon's face, his eyes were transparent. She could tell what they were saying, even if he wasn't saying anything. He was concerned. "Don't give me that look," her voice softened. He continued to do so anyways, the look could make a person's heart break. And slowly is was breaking away at the tough exterior that Christine built around her own heart. She looked away, and reached for the door handle. "I should go," she attempted to end the conversation. She started pushing the door open, but Leon leaned over her to close it again. "Christine," was all he said. She stared at his hand, she was feeling trapped again. "Let go, Leon," she said quietly, but he tightened his grip. "Please, let go," she said again. She felt his eyes staring a whole into the side of her head. She knew that if she looked at him, she would crack. "Please, Leon, let go," her voice cracked. She was scared. Not because she left that Leon would harm her, but because she was helpless and trapped. She tried holding the tears back, but she felt them coming.

"Tell me what's going on, Chris," he insisted. Christine shook her head at him. "Let go," she said one more time, this time more forceful. This time he finally did. "Thank you," she mumbled before trying to get out of the car. Her legs buckled underneath her though, and she was on her knees. "Chris!" Leon shouted, alarmed, as her rushed out and around the car to get to her. She stayed there crying, and he was next to her rubbing her back.


AN: Hey guys, I am back again. I struggled to write the beginning of the chapter, and I kind of ignored it and put it off. But then I finally told myself that if I couldn't write it, just move on and put what I really wanted to get in there. Writers block sucks sometimes, but hey, you can always get past it. Thank you guys for reading.