Mantis

18. What Alexander doesn't know

I let go of his arm and carefully rolled onto the ground, feeling a persistent, stabbing pain practically all over my body. Victor groaned heavily and sat up with visible effort, then slowly stood up, brushing off his clothes.

– You held a knife to my throat – he gasped, wiping sweat from his forehead with his sleeve. – Holy shit! – he exclaimed in a slightly hoarse voice, looking at me with a mix of fear and shock. – You held a knife to my throat. You could have killed me. You carry a knife in your boot? Are you okay? – he finally asked, looking at me with concern.

– I'm fine – I lied, overwhelmed by the all-encompassing pain, trying to steady my breath. –What about you? What are you even doing here?– I attempted to stand, but my aching body refused to cooperate, so I gave up for now. – Why were you following me?

– I wanted to talk.

– Talk? For fuck's sake, talk? – I scoffed, disbelief heavy in my voice. – Are you insane? You follow me all the way from the hospital and sneak around in the dark to give me a heart attack? Then you'd talk to me?

– I was hesitating – he muttered, clearly remorseful, though it did nothing to help him in this situation. – That's why I didn't approach you right away, but... I was calling out to you...

– No, that changes everything – I snapped dryly. – When someone is running after you in a dark tunnel and calling out to you, the first thing you think of is to stop and greet them. You never think about perverts...

To my immense surprise, Victor smirked slyly.

– With your self-defense skills, it's more likely that perverts should be afraid of you – he muttered, massaging his arm, the stupid smile still on his face.

– This is not funny – I scolded him.

Victor immediately sobered up.

– I didn't mean to scare you – he said, contrite. – I wanted to apologize for what happened this morning and... explain myself.

– Lurking in the darkest corner? – I groaned, trying to stand up, which was not easy because my left hip hurt suspiciously, not to mention my ribs, which stabbed me with pain with every deep breath. – Great. Brilliant idea. Knock some sense into that stupid head of yours! How do you even know where my classes were?

I glared at him and tried to get up again, grimacing in pain.

– Wait, let me help you. – Victor rushed over to me, and I shot him an angry look, clearly indicating that I didn't want him to come any closer. – Don't be silly – he said in a tone as if talking to a small child, but he didn't take another step towards me. – I just want to help.

– Yes, you always just want to help,– I growled, glaring at him. –And then it turns out that...

– I didn't mean it that way – he interrupted, looking at me with remorse. – I wouldn't have forced myself on you. I wouldn't have hurt you. I was momentarily overwhelmed, started listening to my dick, thinking I could persuade you if you felt me. I know, it's stupid and immature. I shouldn't have done it. Now I don't even know why I did it, I don't know what drove me, and if I could turn back time...