𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭 ✰

𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥

VIOLETTA
January 3rd, 2007 — Wednesday

slam!

Something hit the window beside my head.

Hard.

With my heart thundering in my chest, I sat up and scrambled to move towards the passenger door. My back hit the rough plastic panel and I curled up in front of it, eyes wider than those of a pug as I searched the darkness seeping through the window.

A tall figure stood right outside.

Hooded, wearing dark, baggy clothes. They, he, she, it, shim, whatever that person is, leaned closer to the window to get a good look at who was inside—aka me. It felt like time (and my breathing) stopped when I caught their eyes.

Eyes the color of the western summertime sky, just as strikingly bright as a flash of lightning in the darkness of midnight.

They blinked in confusion a few times and stepped back, the woodland darkness sinking over them like a perfect coverlet.

I closed my eyes and prayed.

Dear God, Father, please don't let this be who I think it is. Please don't- please-

At that exact moment I heard an all too familiar voice. The heavy rain did nothing to drown out the dreadful sound of their voice. His voice. Coming from right outside of my drivers door.

"What're you doing on my property, strange girl?" Odd thing to say. Even odder coming from that boy, of all people. Huh. Who'da thunk it, me finding a spot in the woods leading me to this bull?

"Go away." I said, voice shaky and uneven from pure and undiluted fear.

"Get out of the truck."

"No. You're gonna kill me."

"What? I ain't gonna kill you. Why would you think that?"

A bright light came flooding in, in a huge tidal wave of brightness through the window. A flashlight, one way, way too bright to be legal—at least to my light sensitive terms. "Ah, crap, what in the world was that for?"

"Kinda hard to see when it's darker than my truck tint out here."

Classic teenage boy behavior. Finding any way to slip his truck into casual—or not so casual and slightly threatening—conversation and wave around his probably tiny pecker.

Gosh, Violet, why are you thinking about that? Stop it!

That's lust. And insulting God's children.

"If I get out will you put the stupid thing away?"

"Maaaybe." Kai lazily drawled. His cowboy-ish accent drifting like butter through the windows.

"Yes or no."

Hesitantly he said yes. Very very slowly did I clamber out of my Silverado with shaky limbs and an unsteady wobble to my legs to meet him face to face for the second time within three days time.

Oh how I loathe this man and his simple existence. That's all that's on my mind as he roughly takes me by the hand and drags me towards the darkness behind my truck.

I breathe hard through my nose, aggravated by his errant behavior. Who does he think he is? What does he think he's doing?

He's mumbling to himself while he walks. It sounds like curse words and his own aggravated symphony of complaints most likely pointed towards me and my unrecognized trespassing.

"Will you shut up already? If this situation as a whole wasn't giving me a migraine your random, weird mutters will."

"This whole situation wouldn't be happening if you weren't trespassing on private property, strange girl."

"How was I supposed to know this was your house?!"

"How did you not?! You saw my truck out front! You had to, it was right by the gate!"

"I didn't come by the front."

"So what, you were driving through the wilderness at night? Alone? What are you, stupid?!"

"I am not stupid!" I yanked my hand from his and stumbled backwards, slamming my spine against a tall and baren tree. It ached yet I ignored the dull pain in exchange for focusing on riding the high the adrenaline pumping through my veins so generously gifted me.

"You're acting a lot like you are."

"And you're just the smartest man to ever walk the earth and grace us all with your presence, aren't you, mister combat boots and blue eyes?"

Though it was raining and coming down in sheets so hard it made it difficult to hold my eyes open through the weight of the water on my face and hair, I saw Kai tilt his head back and laugh. His hood drooped down, slowly slipping from his raven black locks as water invaded the black cloth.

His laugh was glorious. Infectious, even, and it sounded like heaven. Like something I wouldn't mind hearing so often in a different setting.

No, don't think that way. You don't like him, Violet. You never have and you never will.

Ugh.

Of course. Of course he's laughing!

He's insane. He has to be. This isn't funny whatsoever yet here he is. Laughing in my face.

Breathing hard through my nose, aggravated and confused, I readied myself to run. When his eyes fell closed I made a break for it and bolted back through the mud and the muck, heart racing and eyes blurry from the rain not an inch from my face. I can't possibly be too far from my truck. We hadn't gotten far from it before I dumped him.

..Turns out I'm wrong. I can't find my way there through the rain, mud, and foggy darkness surrounding me.

God, why is this happening to me? Why is there so many trials and tribulations lately?

I kept blindly running until I heard a branch crack somewhere close behind me. A hand touched my shoulder, tightening when I screamed as loud as my human vocal cord limits would allow.

Said hand spun me around so I faced him again. He gave me that look that held a threat deep inside those gorgeous ocean eyes, his black brows drawn down in unimpressed annoyance. His face is wet and shadowed in the darkness, half covered by the cloak of late, late night.

My flesh desperately wanted to mirror his expression and further his half self-inflicted misery but I went along with what I've learned from my Bible study and did my best to show him some form of respect even as my hands itched to reach up and slap him right across his smug face.

God can do worse than me. He can do worse things to him than I could ever dream of.

God will repay Kai for what he's doing.

He will get what is coming to him in due time.

"That's enough, alright? Now come with me."

nonononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononononono

This can't be happening. This isn't real. It cannot be true. It's all just a dream. It must be. Right?

...right?