if you read this chapter before, please make sure you've read part 4: keeping in touch, too! take care and thanks for reading!

chapter five: nonbeliever

Anna woke up with a start. Beads of sweat and dry mouth greeted her almost immediately as reality crept in her consciousness.

Images of ghosts, monsters hidden under beds, and bruises serious enough to swell lingered on her mind as she took a lungful of feeling for her phone in the dark, the cold night still clung to her skin. Anna couldn't help but feel like she was just thrown on the rail tracks in front of an oncoming train.

Well, that was weird. Anna hadn't experienced nightmares in ages, but it seemed to make up for lost time as the redhead replayed the dream. It felt like a punishment for the images, unlike any other dreams, didn't leave immediately. In fact, they stayed, wanting to be acknowledged.

Neck stained with bruises and crying silently, Anna saw her again. Elsa – asking for help as the vintage cottage on the fields seemed to come alive in horror – was the star of her nightmare.

In her defence, when she was younger, she didn't really have an idea about what was really happening. Anna had noticed it, yes, but she chalked the bruises up to games and accidents, just like when she was playing football.

But she should've asked still, her mind echoed. Was it possible to feel guilt over something she had no knowledge about? Anna, however, knew what she was getting herself into if she were to entertain that question.

Walking to the bathroom and splashing her face with the freezing water, Anna sighed. There was a childish part inside her chest – maybe it was the younger her – convincing Anna to go back to Sutterton and see what happened to her childhood friend.

It had been more frequent now. The guilt in her nibbling a certain good part of her soul and tripping her so that her days were a little bleeker. Anna was in no way responsible for the little blonde girl's condition but she couldn't help but think otherwise.

In hopes of staving off more unlikeable emotions from bubbling up to the surface, she tapped her screen open and dialled the one person who never failed to calm her down.

After a couple of rings, her call got picked up with a sleepy tone. "Anna?"

"Mom? You still sleeping?"

Yawning, her mother told her no. "I'm just still a little sleepy. Don't mind me. How are you dear?"

"Fine," Anna said, "I accepted Doctor Pablo's recommendation but nothing has happened yet. How's dad?"

"Still sleeping. It's quite early for him but he'll be up soon. He's been given new medications and the transition is still in effect. He's getting more rest, thankfully, but at night he's anxious."

"How are you holding up?" Anna asked nervously, knowing her mother tends to overwork herself concerning her dad. "Hopefully you're getting more rest, too. And tell me if he wakes up, I miss talking to him."

"Of course, dear," her mother chuckled on the other line. "I am just fine, to answer your question. Don't worry about me. If things were any different, you know I will hold up."

"Please don't neglect yourself taking care of dad. You don't have to do that alone. If you want to, I cou–"

"No," her mother interjected, "I don't want you to take care of us. I want you to be able to live how you want without concerning yourself with your silly old parents."

"Mom! Don't say that." Sitting on the floor of the bathroom, Anna forced a laugh out of her throat. "You know I love you two very much."

Her mother's hum was comforting. "We love you, too, but I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for forcing my daughter to stop her life for us. I can do it. Your dad can do it. We still could kick our legs, honey."

Minutes passed by catching up with each other and hearing stories about her dad misremembering which place they were in. Sometimes, he'd think they were still in Sutterton, which was funny and sad at the same time.

Funny, because he used to hate it there, and sad, because he was reliving the lowest years of his life. He still asked about the recession which took his dream job and Anna couldn't help but feel bad for him. In one of her mother's anecdotal stories, a question popped in Anna's mind as her dream straight from Sutterton replayed itself. "Mom, I have something to ask you."

"What is it?"

Anna bit her lip. "Do you remember… Elsa?"

The sound from the other side of the line hushed as Anna held her breath in the same moment her mother did. A couple seconds passed before her mother answered. "The blonde girl you used to play with at our old house?"

"Yeah," was the quiet confirmation.

"Hmm." The moment it took for her mom to answer the question was long. "Yes. She was such a sweet girl, very beautiful. And polite. I remember when you two used to have sleepovers. That's when you stopped making us read you fairy tales before bedtime because you wanted her to do it."

Smiling, she nodded. "I remember that."

"And that one time you had a temper tantrum and threw all your books away. Why did you do that again?"

"I… she changed the ending to a few stories she read to me and I…" Anna laughed humourlessly. "I got mad."

"You guys were so cute. Imagine the thoughtfulness she had for you," her mother commented but she could see her mother shaking her head even without the visuals. "Of course you wouldn't think about that when you were a child but now… it's really sweet. I always thought she was a good influence on you."

"It is." And Elsa was.

Though too naive and selfish at that time, the twenty-six-year-old Anna knew how sweet and kind the small trivial action was. It probably was the nicest thing anyone had done for her, even until now. Elsa was just a year older than her but she was so mature and smart enough to make up an ending satisfying enough for the ginger.

It was an act that should've been cherished before but, alas, there was nothing to do about it now.

"And you used to play behind their house for hours all the time and you'd get mad if we didn't let you."

Anna remembered that, too. In fact, a huge chunk of her childhood consisted of all things Elsa and she missed her a little bit more right at that second as she tapped her fingers on the bathroom floor. "D-Do you have any idea what happened to her?"

"Well, you were too young to see it back then," she started quietly, "But from what I knew, her mom died during a miscarriage and afterwards… her father was never the same." Her mom made a sound of disgust over the phone. "What a vile man."

The intensity in which her mother said those words shocked Anna and she opened her mouth to say something, anything, but no sound came out.

"I wanted to call child's services on him but…"

Her mother trailed off. Anna prodded, "But?"

"But Elsa asked me not to." And in that lonesome, grave voice, their conversation ended.

Anna's alarm rang, startling the auburn-haired woman as she looked at the time. 5:30.

"Aren't you going to be late for work soon?"

Anna wasn't, really. She just liked having a cup from Myer's before facing her day head-on. Saying her goodbyes to her mom, Anna quickly opened her messages, a new text from Elizabeth effectively cheering her miserable mood.

She still remembered their last video call which was on Thursday, five days ago, but was still enthused as their texting didn't diminished in numbers. If only, video-chatting with Elizabeth until two in the morning brought them together and Anna was at least sure that they could be called friends now.

Even if she still hadn't been asked – or asked the blonde herself – for a date, Anna was still giddy.

'I don't really like cold weather. It makes me feel sad and alone and just plain depressed' was Anna's last text.

Elizabeth sent a sad-faced emoji followed by a 'Maybe you haven't found the right cold weather yet. Just sit tight. It will come to you soon :)'

Anna didn't know what was so wonderful about her message but the smile in her face didn't leave for a while

Turning on the shower and clicking her playlist, a soft, gentle voice struck the air. It was the blonde's cover of her favourite song (a coincidence she couldn't help but smile about), and even if Anna never got to spill about her love for Elizabeth's voice to Elizabeth, she kept the thought to herself as she sang along to the lyrics.

I'm walking the long road, watching the sky fall

The lace in your dress tangles my neck, how do I live?

..

Doctor Pablo called her into the office just as she finished her shift. He was already waiting in his seat for her, giving her a welcoming look as she sat before him.

"Ah, Nurse Anna," he clicked his tongue, brushing a finger over this chin as he took her appearance in. "You wouldn't happen to change your mind, would you?"

Pulling her slot on the recommendation had crossed Anna's mind, but it was more of her doubts talking than actual apprehension. She figured it could – and would – be tiring and she had accepted that, refusing to go back on her word. Doctor Pablo's allowance in her decision was much appreciated, but Anna only shook her head. "No. I guess I'm past the point of no return."

"You'll never be past the point of return," he chuckled amusedly at her as the redhead gave him a modest grin, keeping in mind his words. "But I'm glad to hear that from you. Since the expansion of the hospital is due to finish in just a few days, we're going to be a little busy." He nodded at her with a smile. "I trust you could take some time from your duties and help Mrs. Megara break in our new nurses. They were set to train tomorrow and I don't think she could do it alone with all the other duties she has."

"Wait… me?" Anna was stunned. She didn't know the Director trusted her that much. It had only been her fourth month, halfway through her fifth, and her being given such a task was a privilege. A hard one to fulfil, but still, one nonetheless.

"To me, you're the most qualified. You've gotten close to most of our patients, a skill nobody has quite mastered yet. The newbies could use some of your tips to help our residents loosen up around them," Gran Pabbie explained. "And…"

Anna's eyes snapped up to him in attentiveness. He exhaled quite comically.

"I'll be assigning you new patients as soon as next week. I'm looking forward to working with you."

Wait… did that mean Anna would be assisting his patients? Eyes widening marginally, she cocked her head to the side, letting her confusion show in her face.

Doctor Pablo was known as a smart, if a little odd man. Already in his twenty-fifth year in the field of Psychiatry, he had cemented a quite renowned name among his peers. He had his fair bits of patients and was still as dedicated as he started decades ago.

Anna had heard from her colleagues – even if she didn't have the guarantee of the rumour's factuality – that Gran Pabbie had treated the crown prince of a well-known country out of his Mirror Touch Synesthesia (a condition in which an individual feels an action being done to them just by seeing it) in just a three-month program.

It sounded like a hearsay, if Anna was honest, but there was nobody to confirm or deny its legitimacy.

Anna's point was, Doctor Pablo was a huge deal in these parts. He did not look it, the man's permanent wrinkles occupying much of his face and his unsuspecting demeanour not making much impression. Actually, if Anna was not so surprised about the prospect of working closely with him, she would definitely not think about his reputation.

He seemed to understand Anna's shock as he wiggled both eyebrows. "Nurse Anna."

"Yeah?" she answered mindlessly, still worried about what that would mean to her.

"Don't look so scared. The number of patients that you would help me with would only have a maximum of three, and you'd still have the same amount of days off."

Anna gulped. That wasn't reassuring.

The Director was looking at her hopefully. "Don't worry. I think you'll do great."

..

Anna was having a good day until she stepped out of the locker room approximately five days later.

It was only seven-thirty. Anna wasn't running the rounds for the week but as she heard a loud screaming from room 002, she dashed there as if it was her turn.

The scene that caught her attention wasn't pretty at all. Behind her, Eugene was jogging to help when their new nursing aide, Lukas if she wasn't mistaken, was holding a bloody finger as a crying little boy laid on the floor.

"What happened?" Anna asked, but she didn't look twice at the new aide. Instead, she ran to Elliot's side, the boy looking exhausted from his tears.

"He bit me!" he yelled with an enraged frown as Eugene took a look at his wound.

It was Anna's turn to scowl. She didn't like raising her voice to patients, especially distressed ones, and considering the patient was a child only added to the injury.

Shushing the young boy, Anna took him into her arms. Elliot was shaking. He Looked red in the face, agitated, forehead scrunched and lips puckered. It only confirmed that his tears weren't new ones.

He must've been crying for at least a while.

"I was just telling him to eat his food and he had the fucking audacity to bite me," Lukas complained as Eugene sent him an offended look.

The nurse dropped his injured hand and scoffed. "It's just a flesh wound. No biggie."

Anna gestured her hand for them to leave. Lukas's bitching could be heard from the hall. She turned her attention to the crying boy, brushing his hair from his forehead.

"Elliot? What happened?"

The boy didn't take her soothing well. With a hand, he lashed out until he got Anna's arms loose and he ran under the covers for protection, wailing all the while.

Exhaling a tired breath, Anna looked at the mess the room was in. Elliot's food was thrown to the floor and his bed sheets were stained with milk.

It was too early for trainees to interact with patients and Anna wondered how in the hell he managed to sneak inside Elliot's room without Mrs. Megara's eyes noticing.. The boy looked absolutely scared of the encounter, if the loud sobs and hiding beneath his blanket was an indication.

"Elliot?" Anna walked closer to his bed and knelt silently next to him. "What happened? Why did you bite Mr. Lukas like that?"

Her accusation was enough to spur him into replying. With uncontrolled sobs, he screamed, "I-I didn't want to eat apple and he forced m-me to eat it!" Anna's heart broke as she put a hand on the lump where his head was supposed to be. "H-He shoved it in my mouth and I-I bit him 'cause he wouldn't listen!"

Calming Elliot down was done with tight lips and silence. Once the boy had passed out from exhaustion brought upon by crying, Anna fixed the thrown-about food on the floor and his bed and walked out there indignantly.

When she saw Lukas at the infirmary getting treated by a frowning Eugene, her temper flared. "What the fuck was that?"

"What the fuck was what?" he innocently asked. Eugene was quiet as he put the first-aid away and gave an annoyed look, his eyes slanting to the trainee in question.

"You don't just force a patient, a child at that, to do what they don't want to!"

"Is that what he told you? Demon kid won't listen and he has to eat breakfast instead of just tossing it around. What do you want me to do, beg for him, get on my knees?"

Anna was in charge of training half the bit of the newcomers and she actually enjoyed the time she had with her new colleagues but damn, she was so lucky that she didn't have this douche in her team.

"Well, you're a real piece of work, aren't you?" Anna spat, calming her high-strung nerves as she figured an argument wouldn't be worth it.

She didn't know what Mrs. Megara would think about Lukas but Anna knew she wouldn't like what she'd be hearing. Glaring at him one more time, Anna gave a curt nod to Eugene who looked like he'd had enough, too.

..

Courtesy of Lukas, Anna was given overtime work with the team she was training.

Her team wasn't given the privilege to be as bitchy and unmalleable as Lukas – who from what she'd heard got cut off from the program as soon as the Director heard of what happened – she was thankful.

Talking to and reminding them Middleton Psychiatric was, obviously, a hospital and not a free space in which they could do whatever they pleased without consequences was easy. They were pretty understanding and some shared her angry comments to the newly-fired aide.

A group of three nurses and two aides, Anna's team was – compared to Mrs. Megara's – a bunch sent from heaven and as the clock struck seven-o-nine, they were free to go home.

Slamming her car's door just a little too hard, the redhead tried to get over what happened.

Anna rarely got mad, if ever at all. Her cheery and optimistic demeanour prevented that from happening too often but right now, as she remembered Elliot's glum response as she waved goodbye to him earlier, she couldn't help but feel less than chuffed.

The guy didn't even look like he knew what he did was wrong! He just looked unbothered as if he wasn't the one guilty of misconduct.

Driving for a cup of coffee to her favourite spot to alleviate her irritation, Anna sighed for the hundredth time that day as small drops of rain knocked on her windshield. Looking around for an umbrella yielded nothing. She probably left hers in her locker.

Damn it.

But she wasn't going to let a little rain get in the way between her and her coffee. Speeding up to Myer's with just a jacket above her head, Anna smiled as the fresh smell of the café hit her.

Considering it was about to be eigh, the café was empty, save for a few patrons here and there. Greeting and ordering from a different bartender that was definitely not Dill, she sat on the couch gloomily.

Sometimes shit gets tiring.

Unlocking her phone, she quickly texted a message to Elizabeth, hoping to forget the events of the day as she waited for a response. In the few minutes it took to prepare for coffee, Anna didn't receive a reply.

Shrugging, Anna decided to climb up the second-floor of the café to let off some steam alone.

And if fate didn't have enough nuisances to throw at her today, it did now. Anna's mouth hung open as her coffee spilled on a pristine white coat, the liquid quickly seeping into the material. Trying to remediate it with a hand, she brushed the drops off to no avail.

"Shit, I am so sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going and…" Anna bit her lip remorsefully as she met the eyes of her victim.

"It's alrig–"

And was surprised to see a surprised pair of blues.

Elizabeth looked at her uncomprehendingly for a second before recognition sets place in her eyes. Her eyelid fluttered, a smile appearing slowly in her face. "Anna?"

Not knowing if she should laugh about the coincidence or apologise once more, Anna let out a sound akin to a startled dog before clearing her throat in greeting. Wincing, she chirped, "Hey, Elizabeth!"

The blonde looked happy to see her even if her expensive-looking white coat was spoiled dumbly. A man, who Anna recalled immediately from days ago as Jack, ran to their aid as soon as a second.

Upon seeing her, he blanched for a moment before smiling and wiping Elizabeth's clothes before getting swatted by the blonde. Jack asked, "Are you getting your revenge?"

Anna giggled at that, shaking her head. "Believe it or not, it was an accident."

She waited for the blonde to react but all she gave was a confused smile. "You two know each other?"

A beat passed.

Then two.

Anna was looking at Elizabeth curiously, eyes shifting to an open-mouthed Jack. Elizabeth looked genuinely interested in what her answer would be and she couldn't help but feel… baffled.

The man beside them coughed, then laughed forcefully. Anna's gaze stayed locked in Elizabeth and blue eyes wandered to hers inquiringly.

"Uh… no."

Jack clapped his hands in front of him, making the two girls jump. "We met here, El." His mouth moved without opening, crumpling and pointing to Anna and snapping back to normal as he met green eyes. "Uh, yeah, we met here already remember that?"

Unconvinced with what's happening, Anna nodded, going along Elizabeth's momentary lapse in remembering. "Yeah, we did."

As if catching on a joke, Elizabeth bit her lip and nodded with wide eyes. "Oh, yeah."

Yeah.

Elizabeth sighed loudly, looking at the half-empty cup in Anna's hand and the stain in her coat. "Well, why don't we, uhm, have coffee for a bit? I'll pay for yours."

Anna liked that offer. Uttering an apology once again, Anna let a hesitant Jack take both of their orders as he told them to find a seat they'd like.

With the blonde trailing her, Anna invited her upstairs as they waited for Jack.

"How's your day?" Elizabeth asked pleasantly as they settled into their seats. "Are you just about to go home from the hospital?"

"Yep," she smiled. "I had a tiring day and decided to come get my caffeine fix to help my mood."

Elizabeth giggled at that. "I didn't know you like Myer's, too. What a coincidence."

Taking her lips between her teeth, Anna stared at her and nodded slowly, all the while wondering what the actual fuck was happening. "Yeah." She should probably just play along. "We met here, right?" Ah, shit.

Her mouth had a mind of its own. Anna had long known that fact but today, it was hard to reign control of it.

Blinking slowly, Elizabeth avoided her eyes for a moment before nodding at her with the same deer-in-the-headlights gaze she had earlier. "Uh, of course, but… but I didn't know that you… like coming here… often."

That sounded like a good save, but Anna was more interested in Elizabeth's apparent amnesia, but she knew what anxious glances and nervous tics meant as the woman in front of her shuffled meekly.

Anna decided to just let it go.

"I'm so sorry about your coat. Really," Anna admitted with a grimace, looking at the clothing as Elizabeth took it off and placed it to the seat next to hers.

Chuckling, Elizabeth waved a hand off. "It's fine. Don't worry about it. I could just wash it." Anna opened her mouth. "No, really. It's no big deal."

"Fine, but consider your debt paid."

Anna watched Elizabeth swallow minutely, she nodded at her, but Anna was sure she didn't know what she was agreeing to.. "Right."

"What about you? Are you on your way home, too?"

As Elizabeth told her all about her day, which consisted only a few things by the way. Anna was laughing with her minutes later.

"So did he fix your guitar or what?" Anna asked with a smile. Elizabeth's anecdotal narration was amusing. She just told Anna that Jack had mistakenly tripped on her eight-hundred-dollar acoustic guitar and spent almost the whole day trying to hide it from her.

Elizabeth's eyes crinkled on the edges. Somehow, seeing that little detail about her made Anna swoon. "It's still on the backseat of the car, broken. I might just say something about throwing it out so he'd think of ways to actually get it fixed over assuring me that 'it's not that bad.'"

Complete with hand quotes, the blonde mocked him light-heartedly. Anna wondered why she was so enraptured with how pink lips moved and dark-purple eyelids fluttered but she was captivated enough to not question herself right at the moment.

It was this feeling that Anna liked. Talking to Elizabeth never generated awkwardness. Anna was chatty, she'd admit that to herself, but Elizabeth was in a way that it was seamless, natural, like she just knew what to say or what not to and actually, Anna was enjoying seeing the blonde again after all this time..

Even if they FaceTime, like, every two days.

Jack, who was obviously taking his time – or dispatching the butchered guitar, Elizabeth joked – could take another four hours to get their coffee.

"You said you live on… Mayberry Apartments, right?"

Or maybe another eight.

"Mayberry Street," Anna corrected. "On Hillshire Apartments."

"You sure are very comfortable sharing that bit of information with me, Anna," Elizabeth observed with a smirk. "Aren't you scared I'm a serial killer or something?"

"Nah. I trust you," she winked. The action was unexpected by both parties as she tried to keep her cool by making an unbelievably smug smile, an effort not too hard to exert when she saw pale cheeks reddening deeply.

Elizabeth ducked her head and exhaled silently through her nose. "So you live in an apartment?"

"Aye, sir."

"But what about your fireplace?"

"Don't have one."

Elizabeth looked seriously puzzled about that. "But what about Santa?"

Anna cracked up with the offended look on the blonde's face. She shouldn't be this cute. "You still believe in Santa? What are you, twenty-four?"

"I'm actually twenty-seven, thank you very much," Elizabeth clarified with a tickled grin.

Anna's brows shot up. So she was older than her? The auburn-haired woman never expected that. The woman before her, albeit not lacking in maturity or anything – actually, she believed in Santa so scratch that – looked young.

Or maybe it was just good genes. Skin that looked as smooth as porcelain as the mood lighting of the table played in her eyes, Elizabeth was, quite frankly, gorgeous. With the blonde smiling at her playfully, Anna decided that it was both.

"I'm not as young as you are."

Anna blinked at her incredulously. "I'm twenty-six."

"Hmm," Elizabeth tilted her head with a frown, gentle blues glinting on the low light above them, looking every bit like an angel with how nice she looked. "You actually look younger."

"So do you," Anna snorted, shaking her head at the woman, "At least I don't believe in a magic reverse-thief who goes down chimneys at Christmastime."

"Are you telling me you've always been a nonbeliever?" The blonde challenged with a teasing smile. "You believed in him, too, once upon a time."

"Well, yeah, not after growing up and paying my own bills, though."

Elizabeth didn't lose the spark in her blues as she rolled her eyes. "Okay, then."

Anna guffawed at the poorly hidden humour in her action. The night rain outside Middleton had come down in torrents and Anna was thankful that she was dry and warm inside the coffee shop.

With a free coffee coming right up.

And a beautiful lady making her laugh.

"Why? Do you still believe in him, El?"

If Elizabeth's eyes were sparkling, right now they were incandescent, brighter than anything Anna had ever seen. If her day started bad, then it was turned wonderful.

"The kids love him," she answered quickly, but she didn't appear to have thought the words over as she closed her eyes with a grimace for a second.

"You live with kids?" Anna probed, not knowing what to think about the question.

Elizabeth nodded timidly.

Anna gulped the uncomfortableness that swallowed her throat. The blonde looked like she said something she shouldn't.

Wait… does that mean that she's got kids already?

It was not really a deal-breaker to Anna. Why not, right? But she shouldn't even be thinking about it when they were not even dating. Oh, well. She still liked Elizabeth even if she did have kids.

She was saved from introspection as Jack, two cups of coffee in his hands, rushed to their seat, suspiciously dripping wet.

"Anna," he implored, dropping the beverages on the table. Elizabeth looked at him bewilderedly. "You have to see this."

With just a glance to the blonde, Anna followed him back down quickly. Jack led her to the streets outside, heavy rainfall faced unbothered as Anna gasped at what looked like three lunatics circling her car.

The biggest one was holding a small silver hammer and was hitting her side door window with a force of a rhino.

"Hey! Stop that!"

Anna ran closer to them, but not enough to have any possible physical contact. She couldn't believe it. Her newly bought VW Golf being treated like shit was unbelievable.

Jack was quick to back her up. "We already called the cops."

Anna wasn't sure if he was telling the truth but the mention of it made the offenders spring to attention. It only took a moment before she was hit with recognition as one of the hooded gangsters looked up to her.

"Lukas," she murmured, already fuming.

The man immediately chortled at her, tapping his friend in the shoulder. "If it isn't the bitch who got me fired. Eh, we had to follow you here in the rain, y'know, just for a talk."

"You fucking piece of shit. What do you want?" The amount of aggression she was showing was justified as the other guy continued his assault to her car. "Stop that!"

"Just a bit of a revenge," Lukas smirked.

She was about to deck him in the face when Jack grabbed a hold of her arm and stopped her, whispering about how it wasn't worth it. Anna let herself be dragged back but Lukas seemed to think her lunging was a challenge as he advanced towards the pair.

"Anna! Jack!"

Elizabeth sprinted up to them, the woman quickly getting drenched as she observed what was happening. Jack was quick to drag Anna back, yelling for Elizabeth to not get closer.

"Aww, you have a little pity party with you, Nurse Anna?" Lukas stopped in his tracks with a wide grin. "Boys, I think we have a bit of a problem here."

Now Anna didn't know how two scrawny blonds were a problem but Lukas's men snapped up. Whistling, the huge guy stalked closer to Lukas, looking behind the two – to Elizabeth, Anna bristled – and said, "Well, hello there, good-looking."

Anna didn't like that one bit – neither did Jack as he took a warning step forward. "Back up, bro."

Bro was never used as threateningly as this before. Anna didn't know how to react to the angry sneer on Jack's face. The three guys laughed at him.

"Oh, yeah, bro?" the man challenged as he stepped closer to him, "Whatcha you gonna do, bro?"

Elizabeth called for Jack again and Anna actually looked at her this time. She was frightened, hands wrapped around her body as her steps shifted back and forth, in between coming forward or running. Anna was about to run to her side when a loud smack rang in the air.

It was all too fast to see. Jack was already on the ground, holding his face where Lukas hit him.

Oh, shit. Anna didn't realise that this was trouble. Trying to intimidate him, the redhead rushed forward, pushing the guy off of the poor blond. Anna didn't retract in time, though, as Lukas grabbed her by the arm, pulling her over.

With adrenaline running in her veins, she readied a fist for him but was surprised as a vigorous punch hit her target before she did. Lukas lost his grip on her, falling to the ground, knocked out cold.

Anna couldn't believe how his two friends ran as soon as he hit the ground. Jack was still lying on the asphalt, his nose bleeding. Her eyes drifted to the blonde next to her, shaking her left hand in the air slowly. When Anna heard her speak, she stopped believing in anything for a good while.

"Well, that's bound to hurt in the mornin'."