Betting On Love ✯ George Russell

🅒🅗🅐🅟🅣🅔🅡 13

♫ You make me really, really good at makin' bad decisions
All my friends know where to look every time I go missin'  ♫

George Russell POV

Alex stayed for a little bit as he tried to console her, but the only thing running through my mind was that creep on top of her as I entered the room. Her eyes were shut together as I pulled him off of her; I punched him so hard he was left unconscious.

Something didn't feel right, so I waited for the text. I didn't see any car following them, but I supposed he would know where she lived if he had been keeping tabs on her. After more than 10 minutes of waiting for the text, I left for her apartment.

I left her in the neighbor's apartment, and I proceeded to beat the shit out of him for installing such deep fear in her. He would've been dead if the cops had taken a few more minutes to arrive. 

I let him get one at me to present the self-defense claim. I might not like Melanie a lot, but no guy would put their hands on her like that if I were alive. Alex would've killed him without a doubt, so I am glad I didn't call him sooner.

"What are you doing?" Melanie asks as I stand up from the couch and turn to her bedroom.

"Going to pack you a suitcase, you are not staying here. Talk to the landlord; you can use my apartment for as long as you want while you find another one. You are not staying here," I say decisively. Nothing she would say would change my mind.

"She can come home. Everyone will be glad to see how she is doing; they will be worried like hell once we tell them what happened in the morning," Alex says, but I shake my head.

"She just went through a home invasion; she needs somewhere peaceful and quiet. She will come to my apartment; she will have dinner with the family tomorrow or whatever; she is getting some rest for the next few hours," I say as I open her suitcase and look at her.

"I am going to my parents; I will talk to the landlord tomorrow. He will see the headlines too, so it won't be hard to convince him to let us break the lease," Nina says, and I open Melanie's closet, which makes her pick the stuff to take.

"I think a few days with George wouldn't harm you. I will reassure everyone in the morning, and you come by for dinner. George will come too, and so will Nina; they will want to see you both too," Alex says calmly, but I see his look of gratefulness, and I smile.

Half an hour later, we were leaving the apartment with essentials. I saw some pictures were gathered around, but we took my car and left; I am glad I kept my drinking low tonight. I left Alex home, Nina went to her parents with her hefty suitcase that I had carried to the door, and I went to my apartment with Melanie.

She took a very long shower while I took a short one. Every time I closed my eyes, I could only see the panic in her eyes after his weight was lifted off of her. What has he done to her?

"Thank you, for everything," I hear her low voice as she enters the kitchen, and I turn around. My shirt fell perfectly on her body, a Williams one still.

"You don't need to thank me, anyone would've helped," it's not a lie.

"He wasn't going anywhere. You beat him up. Why?"

"Why wouldn't I? He talked shit about you at the bar, he stalked you home, put Nina unconscious, and then was getting ready to rape you. Or am I wrong? What the fuck has he done to you?" I ask worriedly, and she looks away.

"Can we not talk about this? Ever? Talking is not our thing, and it's not my thing either," she says as she fills a glass with water.

"Don't make me tell Alex the truth; he would be too worried about you and mad you kept this psychopath hidden from him," I warn her, and her head turns quickly so she would look at me.

"What do you want, George? I've said thank you, I've got nothing else to say. He was controlling, and it didn't last long. I left him on the same day he decided to put his hands on me. I only wish I'd never met him, but now I know better. There is nothing else to talk about," she says confidently, and I nod.

"He put his hands on you. How? Did he beat you? Did he force himself on you? Because those things matter," I am not playing around; my lawyer will ensure he doesn't have a chance of walking around the city for as long as we can avoid. Public opinion will put pressure on authorities to do something about it.

"This doesn't matter to you. You don't know my struggles, and I don't know yours. That's why this is somehow working. If we want to let off some steam, we go to each other, have sex, and go our own way. It has worked, and it will only work if we keep what we've been doing," she says, but I don't like this. 

"He means danger. You've seen what he is capable of. You can't just expect me not to ask questions."

"And you can't expect me to answer them. I haven't told Nina anything, and I won't tell you either."

"I'm sorry. I'm here if you need to talk; you know where things are. I will go to my room, I need to get some sleep," I say as I feel conflicted.

I'm not doing any of this for the bet. She is my best friend's sister; she is the person I know he would hardly survive losing, but she kept such a dangerous secret without ever unloading on him or her best friend. 

I didn't expect her to tell me, but why not them? Why carry this weight around? She has a big family; there is no need to be this guarded about it. I know people sometimes try to blame the woman who is in an abusive relationship, but this didn't need to be public. 

She has such a huge support system, and she just surrounded herself in those walls like a damn high-security prison. I will lose this bet if I don't find a way to turn this around. This didn't come in as handy as some may think. That fucker reappearance will only make her remember why she despises men, and she has an excellent reason for it.