I such a klutz? This would have been much easier if Gary hadn’t found out.
She rubbed her arms to bring some heat to them and tried to persuade Gary not to be angry. “I slipped and hit my head.” She stopped and spread her hands out on the table. Her nails were stained from the blood on her forehead. What am I doing? she thought. Why am I covering up for Sebastian? “I’ll be okay. Please don’t make a big thing out of this.”
“A big thing!” Gary raged as Vince appeared with a first aid kit he’d found up in the bathroom. “Where did you slip? At Sebastian’s? And why are you home so soon? Something must have happened. Oh my God!” He fingered the tear in the side of her dress and Scarlet winced . “What happened?”
Scarlet could feel tears forming, and strained not to let Vince see her cry.
Seeing how upset she was, Gary took her hands in his and knelt beside her. “What did Sebastian do to you?” he asked softly.
Her sobs grew louder and she threw her arms around him while he nestled her within his comforting grasp.
“Please don’t be mad Gary, things just got a little out of hand.”
“A little out of hand?” He held her back from him and looked at the cut on her head. “Look at yourself, you’re bleeding, shaking, barefoot. Did you walk home?”
“Ran.” She began hiccuping between sobs and felt like a silly child who had gotten hurt doing something she knew she wasn’t supposed to be doing.
Gary jumped up, almost knocking Vince and his medical accoutrements over, and started to pace in front of the two while Vince dabbed at the cut on her forehead with a wet cloth. “I’m going over there. I can’t believe this! You have to tell me exactly what happened.”
Between loud sniffles she explained as best she could. "…and then we started to dance. He was so charming. I had no idea.” She paused and blew her nose into the tissues Vince had handed her. Gary chewed madly at his gum as if he was pumping up his machine gun to fire at Sebastian.
“Like I said,” she continued, “he was very nice, and then he started to kiss me—which I didn’t mind at first—but he started to get so rough, and he wouldn’t stop. So I kicked him. And then he pushed me away and I hit the table. I don’t think he tried to push me into the table. I’m sure he feels bad—”
"He feels bad!” Gary paused in his pacing. “Please, Scarlet, after what he just did to you, don’t give him any mercy.”
“I ran all the way home.” She looked to Vince, who was at least giving her a sympathetic ear without beating his chest like an angry chimp. “I’m glad I don’t live any farther away, otherwise I don’t think I would have made it.” She felt the bandage and thanked Vince for his kindness. “I’m tired, I want to go lie down and just forget this whole night.”
“Fine, you go lie down. I’m going to kill that bastard.” Gary pounded the counter with a fist, toppling the empty pop can into the sink. “I can’t believe he actually thought he could pull that crap with my sister. What the hell was he thinking?”
Vince agreed, smacking a fist into his hand. “I think we should go over there and give him a piece of our minds.”
“No!” Scarlet pleaded, “I don’t want you to do that.” She wasn’t sure why, but it seemed to make sense at the moment. She wanted to talk to Sebastian before Gary became involved. Maybe he hadn’t been feeling well, as she’d thought. There had to be a reasonable explanation for the way he had acted. “Just leave it alone. I don’t want to blow this out of proportion. I just want to forget about tonight. Please?”
“I’m not going to let him get away with this, Scarlet. He thinks he can treat any woman like dirt and that’s just fine and dandy. Not by me, it’s not.” He had taken to pounding his chest now as if to enact Scarlet’s image of an angry chimp.
“Gary, for me, please, just wait. I promise I won’t see him again.” She
She rubbed her arms to bring some heat to them and tried to persuade Gary not to be angry. “I slipped and hit my head.” She stopped and spread her hands out on the table. Her nails were stained from the blood on her forehead. What am I doing? she thought. Why am I covering up for Sebastian? “I’ll be okay. Please don’t make a big thing out of this.”
“A big thing!” Gary raged as Vince appeared with a first aid kit he’d found up in the bathroom. “Where did you slip? At Sebastian’s? And why are you home so soon? Something must have happened. Oh my God!” He fingered the tear in the side of her dress and Scarlet winced . “What happened?”
Scarlet could feel tears forming, and strained not to let Vince see her cry.
Seeing how upset she was, Gary took her hands in his and knelt beside her. “What did Sebastian do to you?” he asked softly.
Her sobs grew louder and she threw her arms around him while he nestled her within his comforting grasp.
“Please don’t be mad Gary, things just got a little out of hand.”
“A little out of hand?” He held her back from him and looked at the cut on her head. “Look at yourself, you’re bleeding, shaking, barefoot. Did you walk home?”
“Ran.” She began hiccuping between sobs and felt like a silly child who had gotten hurt doing something she knew she wasn’t supposed to be doing.
Gary jumped up, almost knocking Vince and his medical accoutrements over, and started to pace in front of the two while Vince dabbed at the cut on her forehead with a wet cloth. “I’m going over there. I can’t believe this! You have to tell me exactly what happened.”
Between loud sniffles she explained as best she could. "…and then we started to dance. He was so charming. I had no idea.” She paused and blew her nose into the tissues Vince had handed her. Gary chewed madly at his gum as if he was pumping up his machine gun to fire at Sebastian.
“Like I said,” she continued, “he was very nice, and then he started to kiss me—which I didn’t mind at first—but he started to get so rough, and he wouldn’t stop. So I kicked him. And then he pushed me away and I hit the table. I don’t think he tried to push me into the table. I’m sure he feels bad—”
"He feels bad!” Gary paused in his pacing. “Please, Scarlet, after what he just did to you, don’t give him any mercy.”
“I ran all the way home.” She looked to Vince, who was at least giving her a sympathetic ear without beating his chest like an angry chimp. “I’m glad I don’t live any farther away, otherwise I don’t think I would have made it.” She felt the bandage and thanked Vince for his kindness. “I’m tired, I want to go lie down and just forget this whole night.”
“Fine, you go lie down. I’m going to kill that bastard.” Gary pounded the counter with a fist, toppling the empty pop can into the sink. “I can’t believe he actually thought he could pull that crap with my sister. What the hell was he thinking?”
Vince agreed, smacking a fist into his hand. “I think we should go over there and give him a piece of our minds.”
“No!” Scarlet pleaded, “I don’t want you to do that.” She wasn’t sure why, but it seemed to make sense at the moment. She wanted to talk to Sebastian before Gary became involved. Maybe he hadn’t been feeling well, as she’d thought. There had to be a reasonable explanation for the way he had acted. “Just leave it alone. I don’t want to blow this out of proportion. I just want to forget about tonight. Please?”
“I’m not going to let him get away with this, Scarlet. He thinks he can treat any woman like dirt and that’s just fine and dandy. Not by me, it’s not.” He had taken to pounding his chest now as if to enact Scarlet’s image of an angry chimp.
“Gary, for me, please, just wait. I promise I won’t see him again.” She
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