THE MORNING AFTER - CHAPTER 2
As it is with all couples, things could get pretty heated in a matter of minutes. This was the case with Danny and Lindsay. The latter kicked the door shut, focusing all her energy on the man she was madly kissing, swiftly disposing of his shirt and exploring his toned abdomen with her hands. Danny, meanwhile, breathed in the vanilla scent of her shampoo and pressed his lips to her sensitive neck. Kissing her collarbone, he proceeded to run a hand down her left arm. The exchange ended as swiftly as it had begun. Danny jerked away suddenly, eyes alight with puzzlement. Breathing heavily, Lindsay cursed inwardly, instinctively knowing what the problem was. He found it.
Danny's voice was etched with concern. "Lindsay, what is this?"
She shifted her eyes to her arm, where his thumb slid over a medium-sized scar near her shoulder. Wincing slightly, she avoided Danny's stare and answered in a plain tone.
"I cut myself."
CSI skills taking over, Danny was not convinced. "You cut yourself, or someone cut you."
Lindsay shook her head. "No, it's not like that."
He refused to drop the issue, almost forcing a proper answer from her. "Did someone hurt you?"
She took a step back. "I'm fine, really. It was nothing."
"Montana," he pleaded with her now. "Tell me what that scar is from. It's almost two inches long. Were you attacked?"
Realizing Danny would continue to ask questions, Lindsay dropped her shoulders. She knew that sooner or later he would see the scar, and she would have to tell him the gruesome story. Retrieving their shirts off the hardwood floor, she tossed Danny his and threw hers over her head.
"Sit down and I'll tell you."
FLASHBACK
"He's looking at you! Wave back!"
Lindsay hesitantly raised a hand and returned the greeting. The handsome young man in the parking lot flashed a brilliant smile at her before getting into his car. Lindsay's heart skipped a beat, and she could hear her friends giggle uncontrollably behind her. They were situated under a large oak tree near the front of the college campus, enjoying a break from their normally crazy schedule.
"You two would be so great together," Nicole stated. "You should ask him out."
Lindsay's long ponytail swayed from side to side as she shook her head. "He doesn't even like me."
Hannah shrugged. "You don't know that. He always seems to be eyeing you. Can't say I blame him; you are one hot chick."
Lindsay blushed visibly, and her friends threw another fit of giggles. They all knew she had a major crush on Matt Branson, one of the guys in their class. He had wavy brown hair, stunning blue eyes, and a firm jawline. In other words, he was gorgeous. She constantly daydreamed about him, but she never spoke to him in fear of saying something embarrassing. When they did speak, it was an awkward 'hello' and never an actual conversation. Matt, however, never seemed to keep his gaze off her. She could feel his piercing eyes burying into her skin, and all she wanted was one chance to be with him. To her, he was Prince Charming.
---
"Get away from me!"
Lindsay tore from his grasp, hot tears of rage streaming down her cheeks. Matt held his hands out pleadingly, trying to reason with the angered young woman.
"Baby, it was an accident. You have to believe me!"
Lindsay's entire body shook with fury. "Believe you?! How am I supposed to believe you when I saw you with my own eyes, Matt?"
"She means nothing to me! You're the only one I want."
"Yet she was worth sleeping with!" Lindsay could barely control her rising temper. "How could you do this to me? We've dated for nearly a year. I thought you loved me."
False tears rimmed Matt's eyes. "Lindsay, I do love you. She came onto me. I tried to stop her, but she wouldn't let me leave."
Her blazing eyes stared directly into his. "You think I'm stupid?! You think I'm just a child's play thing to toss around? It's over Matt! We're through. Now get out before I call the police."
Like an autumn breeze, Matt's attitude shifted in an instant. Face flushed with blood, he took an advancing step. "No one speaks like that to me an' gets away with it. You need to learn to hold your tongue."
Lindsay's eyes widened in horror as he grabbed a knife from its holder, brandishing it cruelly in front of her. Spittle sprayed from Matt's mouth as he spoke between clenched teeth, "No more smart comments, eh? I'll teach you to defy me!"
With that he lunged, but Lindsay was swift and leapt nimbly to one side. However, she was trapped up against the fridge, and Matt knew it. Snarling evilly, he threw himself at her again, wrapping his large hands around her wrists and struggling to keep her still. Lindsay's heart pumped furiously in her chest; the blade was only inches from her throat. Somehow managing to wriggle one of her hands free, she clamped it down on the knife-wielding wrist and bravely pushed, not prepared to go down without a fight. The blade was now hovering over her arm, and Matt drove the edge into her skin. Stifling a cry of pain, Lindsay watched as the sharp metal dragged over her shoulder, instantly creating a deep gash. Matt's eyes were shrouded in blood, breath coming out in hoarse rasps as he continued to drive the blade into her.
Realizing her life was in serious danger, Lindsay did the only thing she could. Thrusting forward, she slammed her forehead into his, immediately knocking him out cold. Struggling to keep conscious, and with a fresh wound on her skull, she snatched the phone from the wall and dialed 9-1-1, staunching the flow of blood with a tea towel.
"911, what's your emergency?"
Lindsay's voice was frantic; she was unsure of when Matt would come around. "My boyfriend just attacked me with a knife! He's unconscious at the moment, but please hurry! He tried to kill me!"
"Alright ma'am, police units are on their way. Just stay with me until they get there."
Lindsay cursed as she glanced down at her wound. The once white towel was now completely red, and she could feel her senses starting to swim from the loss of blood.
"Please…hurry…"
END FLASHBACK
Danny was thunderstruck, but he wasted no time in comforting Lindsay. His muscular arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her in, gently pushing her head onto his chest. Teardrops fell from her eyes and dotted his shirt, but he didn't care. Rubbing a hand through her brown locks, he allowed her to calm down in the silence that had followed her terrible narrative.
"I'm so sorry, Danny. I should have told you."
"No, Montana. Don't do that. Don't apologize for something you didn't do. It's not your fault."
Lindsay sniffed. "I was foolish, thinking he loved me."
He tilted her head so they were eye-to-eye. "What you did was very brave and heroic. Matt is the foolish one here, not you. He's nothing but a scumbag."
She smiled faintly. "I didn't mean to frighten you."
"I never noticed the scar before, even that night on the pool table." He sighed and kissed her hair, motioning for her to rise. "C'mon Montana, you should get some rest. It's been a long week."
Lindsay grew visibly calmer, knowing that Danny would be there to protect her. They made their way to the bedroom, where he once again shielded her in his embrace. It was the one place where she felt truly safe.
---
Not a word of the ordeal was spoken after that night. Though she was happy to have finally admitted everything to Danny, a part of Lindsay could not stop thinking about Matt. She had forced herself to forget everything about the young man who had nearly killed her, but now that it had been brought up she constantly found herself looking over her shoulder. Matt had not tried to contact her for many a year; he had been under house arrest for getting into more trouble with the law. Lindsay had no idea where he lived, or even if he was still alive, and she preferred to keep it that way.
Several days after her terrifying account, Lindsay was home late from another long shift. She had the night to herself, as Danny was still at the lab. The hallway lights flickered as she made her way to her apartment, unaware that someone was watching her. Almost immediately after unlocking the door, a large hand clamped down over her mouth, muffling her instinctual screams. Lindsay struggled in their grasp, but she was at the disadvantage as they had sneaked up from behind. Dragging her into the apartment, the stranger slammed the door shut, tossing Lindsay onto the floor like a rag doll. She whirled her head around and gasped in shock.
"It can't be."
A/N: The flashback was supposed to be in italics, except that FF took out a paragraph for some unknown reason, so I had to leave it in regular font. The plot bunny enjoys reviews :)