Sparring Partners [18+]

Chapter One: Making New Friends

"Hey, what do you say we get out of this dump and head back to mine?"

I edged away from the pungent stench of the drunken stranger's breath, my upper lip curling. Sat in the grimy leather booth of the pub, my dark blonde hair fell out from behind my ear as I quickly turned to shoot the guy a disbelieving look, my hand clenching around my empty glass.

"You've got to be joking," I scoffed under my breath. I had barely known him for five minutes. I gave him a quick once over under the dim lighting, glowering at his dishevelled hair and lipstick stained cheek. Just the sight of him had my stomach turning.

I was sitting stiffly on the outside of the booth, listening in on the nonsensical ramblings of my roommate's friends, drinking far less than anyone else. Sarah, my roommate, was already drunk and busy sucking face with a guy named Callum, or maybe it was Carson, leaving me to fend off the advances of his wingman. I knew she was drunk, purely because she had never been so confident sober. She'd done this enough, though, for me to know I didn't have to intervene. She hadn't drunk too much yet, she never went home with anyone, and either myself or one of her other friends always made sure she got home safe.

"Come on, babe," the idiot beside me purred, his words slurred as his hand raised limply to tuck the stray hair out of my face. He took the chance to stroke his fingers, a little too roughly, against my cheek and I had to restrain the ever-growing urge to strike him in the nose. I bet he'd look far better, teary-eyed and dripping blood.

Pushing down any violent urges, I knocked his hand away lightly and shoved on his chest to create some distance between us. It didn't work. He rocked back towards me, sitting even close than before. With the new proximity came a tight feeling in the back of my throat, one that was hard to swallow around. I wanted to scream; I wanted to scream right in his face, and I wanted to scream at the room for not noticing or caring about this fuck-face's actions.

I knew I shouldn't have caved under Sarah's insistent pleas for a night out. I hated hanging out in large groups and I especially hated hanging out with the dick-head's on her University course. I should have stayed home and caught up on sleep - instead I was stuck in a grimy working men's club filled with poor students surrounded by dodgy looking men. This wasn't the pub we usually frequented - that one was closed for refurbishments - though it wasn't much different aesthetically. In a small city like this, in our area, all the pubs seemed to be the same run-down establishments frequented only by locals or poor students looking for a cheap and quiet night out.

Sighing heavily through my nose, I glared down at my glass, wishing it would instantly refill just by the power of thought. I needed another drink to get me through this torture. If I wanted another drink though, then it would be at the expense of my already suffering bank account - and also at the risk of my safety if Mr 'I Don't Understand No' stuck around. I wouldn't put it past him to wait until I was drunk to make his next move.

A sharp jab to the throat would cut that idea off immediately. But unfortunately, people these days were just so extraordinarily idiotic that he'd probably try it, anyway.

As the guy leaned back in to try his luck once more, I had just about given up any hope of having a peaceful evening. My heart was already hammering away in my chest, but I didn't let my nerves show. Instead, my gaze shifted away from the guy's leering stare and I glanced around the cheap, tightly packed bar as if I expected anyone to help me. All the while, my body tensed, awaiting his next move. Perhaps upon my clear disinterest his ego would bruise enough that he would move onto someone else, or give up entirely. But given that he had been unsuccessfully trying his luck with me for the past fifteen minutes without sign of stopping, that seemed like a stupid thing to hope for. The guy was far too drunk to understand and the fact that his friends had let him get in such a state without intervention was appalling.