It’s her, the swimmer. Mick looked up as he handed her her towel, and was surprised to see a familiar face. After their last confrontation he had stopped trying to get her attention, and had instead resorted to sulking. He didn't know why it had affected him so much, but it did and he hated it. He had never really been close to anyone, and this sudden attraction to a complete stranger threw him off guard.
Seeing her here, like this, Mick didn't really know what to do. When Mick heard the jeering crowd and the voice he'd heard countless times, he decided that enough was enough. He and James had been friends for quite a while growing up and he knew how he could be. He used to just stand by, not participating but not doing anything about it either, and he finally got sick of it. No one deserved to be treated that way, and James didn’t have the right to humiliate anyone like that.
When he got to the lake, he saw a crowd standing on the shore and a girl floating alone in the water. He could hear James taunting her, but he couldn’t see him.
“That’s enough.” The words were calm but the tone said that he was serious.
James had to have recognized the voice, and he looked over to where Mick was standing, leaning casually against a tree, effectively hiding his clenched fists. “What are you doing here?”
Mick made his way to James, ignoring the many followers as they stepped aside. Mick got right in his face and hissed, “Leave the girl alone.”
“Or what?” James challenged.
“Or I tell everyone what you did six months ago.”
“Let’s not forget who’s been convicted of assaulting an unarmed man.”
“If you’re really that confident then by all means, continue,” Mick stated, never breaking eye contact as James seemed to think it over. After a moment, he called his mindless peers away, and he turned to the girl, summoning her to shore.
That’s when he learned that it was the girl he’d seen before, the girl he’d illogically felt drawn to. He quickly wiped the surprise from his face and prayed that she hadn’t noticed as he finished collecting her things and handed her bag to her. She took it and they silently left the lakeside headed towards the parking lot.
Mick didn’t know what to say, but he felt like he should say something. “Are you okay?” He asked after a moment of silence.
“I’ll be okay,” she answered quietly. “Thank you,” she added a moment later.
“Don’t mention it.” He stopped and spun to face her, holding out his hand. “We haven’t officially met, I’m Mick.”
She smiled lightly, shaking his hand. “Emily.”
He smiled and they continued walking. “So, did you drive here?”
Emily nodded and then realized he couldn’t see her. “Yeah.”
Mick tried to ignore that fact that he suddenly became disappointed. “Okay well, I’ll just walk you to your car then.”
“Okay,” she said. Mick could have sworn she sounded disappointed as well, and he hoped he wasn’t just imagining it.
“Are you okay?” He knew he had already asked her, but this time he was hoping for a different answer. She just seemed so... sad.
