Behind Closed Doors ✔️

6

It’s been a week since the shop was robbed. Inside, I knew that it was due, so I’m on extra alert this afternoon. The gun under the counter kept catching my attention, so to distract myself, I started sorting out new stock and stacking them in their correct places. 

Then, as if I had summoned him, I heard the bell ring once more. My head instantly snaps to the door and Antony comes into view, chewing on something. I gulp in nervousness before I slowly make my way behind the counter. 

His eyes don’t leave me as I move, and I force myself not to look in his direction. “Moore.” He says in greeting, and I nod my head at him, lowering my hand to curl my fingers around the handle of the gun. I could feel my guts shake as I pulled the gun from off of the shelf. 

I watch as Antony picks up a chocolate bar, using his teeth to rip the packet before taking a bite. I closed my eyes for a few seconds before lifting the gun and placing it on the counter in plain sight, my hand still wrapped around it. 

Antony turns around and glances down, spotting the gun in my hand. A small smirk encases his face and my breath shudders as I try to speak. “You need to pay for that.” I tell him, and he scoffs, taking a step towards me. My fingers tighten around the handle. 

“What, you think that gun is going to scare me?” He asked, raising his eyebrow. 

“I need you to pay for that.” I repeat, clearing my throat and rubbing my palm over my nose lightly. “If you wanna rob a shop, rob a different one.” I state, trying to keep my voice firm. Antony didn’t have to try very hard for people to be scared of him. He was a tough guy with a tall, muscular exterior. He had dark hair and rough features and tan skin. His jawline was sharp and his eyes were dark and his cheeks were slightly hollowed. He didn’t have to try to look scary. 

“And if I don’t?” He asked, in almost a soft voice. “You gonna shoot me?” His lip twitches and I have to look away for a second to compose myself. 

“If I have to.” I answer, and Antony grins, shaking his head lightly. 

“You’re a funny kid, Moore. I see why Fernie likes you.” He says, and my eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “The problem is…” I watch as he lifts his hand slowly and picks something up from an aisle. “She has a really shitty taste in friends.” He says, and I quickly duck as he throws something at me. Yogourt. The creamy liquid spilled all over me and stained my hair, and before I knew it, Antony was lifting me by my collar and smashing my face into the counter. 

I groan in pain, my hand instantly raising to my face, where I think I might have broken my nose. A sharp pain runs through the nerves, and I squeeze my eyes shut to hide the pain. “What the fuck-” 

“You think you can threaten me, Moore?” I hear him spit, and then he’s lifting my head up once more, and my temple is crashing against the counter. “Fuck you, you little shit.” He snides, and I cradle my face as Antony lets go of me. All I can hear are his footsteps descending away from me and the bell ringing once more. 

I blink multiple times, a low groan leaving my throat. I slowly lift my head, looking around. The chocolate bar that he had bitten into was on the floor and the gun… shit. The gun was gone. Fucking fuck. Anika is going to kill me. 

My head throbbed from pain, and I wince as I press my palm to my temple. At least I wasn’t bleeding. At least nothing was stolen from the shop. At least I’m still alive, right? 

At that moment, I realised that Thomas was right. I need to start standing up for myself. I can kind of fight, so what’s stopping me from fighting back? Aside from the initial fear that Antony can over-power me in every aspect, it may not be difficult to punch him back, right? 

I don’t know. All I know is that Antony, for the first time, hurt me physically, and I, damn well, am not going to let that happen again. And I’m getting that gun back.