After Hours

The wind whistles loudly around me, its cold fingertips raising goosebumps on my pale arms. It wasn't really a night to be wearing a sleeveless dress while sitting on a park bench in the middle of the night, but then again, that isn't exactly what I thought I'd be doing when I was getting ready. I'd been getting ready to go surprise my boyfriend after my vacation ended early, but he wasn't the only one surprised when I walked in on him and my best friend wrestling naked on his couch. And not only was he not ashamed of what he had done, but he dumped me right there and then.

A crunching of footsteps near me brings me out of my thoughts and immediately has me alert.

"W-Who's there?" I stutter into the darkness. Silence answers me as the footsteps get closer. I reach for my pepper spray when the footsteps stop.

"Boo!" a voice shouts near my ear. I shriek as I spray the pepper spray wildly in the direction of the voice.

"Argh, shit Lacey! Who even carries pepper spray anymore? This fucking stings!"

Hearing his voice, I stop spraying. Of course he would be here to taunt me in my darkest hour. I brace myself for his harsh words. I wonder how he'll insult me this time. He'll probably use this break, telling me I deserve to die alone. It's not like I haven't heard it before.

"Shit Lacey, are you crying?" he asks instead. My hands immediately go to my face to find it wet. Now I look like the mess I try so hard not to be.

"W-What are you doing here Mason? Are you going to insult me now. Tell me how I'm so pathetic that Joshua was nice by cheating on me with my best friend, or how I'm lucky that Tasha pretended to be my friend at all? Don't hold back, I've heard it all."

All I hear is silence. Then I hear shuffling, before feeling Mason sit next to me on the park bench. I cringe at the proximity and scoot away from him. He just scoots even closer and wraps his arm around me while making noises.

"Mason, what are you doing?" I'm beyond confused. Is he trying to...soothe me?

"I'm comforting you?" He says, but it sounds like a question.

"Why? Are you going to insult me after I stop crying? Do tears unsettle you because they make you feel like the bully that you are?". The thought of him touching me has me pushing him away from me. His hands envelop mine as he tries to quell my struggles. My skin tingles where it meets his but anger clouds my mind enough for me to ignore them.

"Lacey, stop it for fucks sake! I'm trying to help. No girl should ever be treated like that! No one deserves to go through that, especially not you. You deserve the best and I'm sorry. I'm sorry that Joshua and Tasha betrayed you like that. I'm sorry that you've just had your heart broken. But most of all, I'm sorry that I hurt you so bad you're scared of me. That I've planted such doubts in your mind that you verbally beat yourself up-"

"Hah, you think you're the reason I dislike myself? Don't flatter yourself." I scoff. "Did you ever think to consider why I avoid attention? I get mistreated enough at home, I don't want more. I've been abused, Mason. I've been beaten down so much that I simply cannot get back up. So never think that you're the reason for this, because you should know you aren't that important."

"Shit, Lacey, I'm sorry. I didn't know you had to go through all this. I never would have been mean to you if I had known."

"And that is exactly why I didn't tell anyone. I don't need your pity" I spat venomously before walking away. I managed ten steps before I heard him.

"You're going the wrong way" he called out. "Can't you see?"

I stopped walking. 'No I cannot see' I said in my head. 'My eyes are photophobic so right now, in the dark night, I cannot fucking see!'. Warm hands landed on my shoulders and began steering me in a different direction. I just went with it because I couldn't see five feet in front of me. Worry gripped me as I realised I didn't know where we were going.