Snapped Strings

Truth Hurts

I was finally able to call closing time and lock up. 11:30 was my favourite time of the day without a doubt, especially now that I had Nat to go home to. I went upstairs and sat down on the sofa as she handed me a cup of tea. "Thank you for helping Bruce," she muttered. "It's fine, really." Nat sipped her coffee and then put it down on the floor beside the sofa. "What's on your mind?" She asked. "What? Nothing's on my mind," I protested. She laughed at me. "If you have a clear head, you're usually already on top of me." Nat winked at me and I felt my cheeks burn. 

"Alright, you've got me. Can I ask you some questions?" Again, Nat laughed. "Of course you can." I took a breath and steadied my nerves with another sip of tea. "Why did you and Bruce break up?" I thought it would be best to start with an easy question. "As you saw earlier, Bruce has more strength than he lets on, as well as a very short temper. When we were going out, he could get angry at anything and snap. He'd never hurt me, but he'd break things like glasses, plates, vases. All sorts. It scared me. Plus we never saw each other. I would be doing gigs every night and he'd be doing lighting and sound up and down the country." 

I nodded slowly, putting a hand on her thigh. "I'm sorry to hear that." She smiled at me and sad, "It's alright; we're good friends. Sometimes he just gets jealous." She sat up and kissed me gently on my cheek. "Next question?" Nat asked. I put down my tea and closed my eyes for a moment. I just hoped she wouldn't put a barrier up. "Why won't you go home?" Her smiled instantly fell away from her face and she backed away from me. The barrier was up. "Do you want me to leave?"

"No, of course I don't!" I took her hand sin my own and held it firmly, trying to prove I'd never want to let go of her. "I just want to understand, that's all. If there's something wrong, then maybe I could help?" In a matter of seconds, her facade broke and her face melted into a flood of tears. She fell against me so I cradled her to my chest. I held her tight, trying to pull the pieces of her back together. "My brother, Clint," she muttered through the gasping breaths and pure emotions falling down her cheeks. "Shh," I said, rocking her gently. "You don't have to say anything." 

I felt so bad, so evil, for causing her to cry. I guessed she had a good enough reason for not wanting to go home, but now I was scared to know. But then I also wanted to help her. It had never dawned on me how hard it was to love someone. "I want to tell you," Nat whispered. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself down. She slid her arms around me and held me back as tight as I was holding her. "Clint had a divorce this time last year. They were childhood sweethearts and got married young. On their fourth wedding anniversary, she left him for some guy called Tony."

Nat sat up and got a tissue, blowing her nose. "This Tony guy is kind of famous so Clint sees him on TV sometimes. Whenever he does, he drinks a lot. Then he gets violent, a bit like Bruce. He doesn't mean it, but he can throw a punch and it will land on me 90% of the time." I gasped, holding a hand to my mouth. "But he doesn't mean it!" she insisted. "Clint just needs a way of healing. He doesn't trust anyone though, and I don't want to go home because I know he'll be there. The longer I wait, the worse it will be though." 

I shook my head at her and pulled her towards me. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" I asked, kissing her on her forehead. Nat sighed. "Well you didn't tell me you were military?" I laughed slightly and she joined in. "Alright, alright." Then an idea hit me. "Hang on, I'll be back in a few minutes," I said, going into the bedroom. Nat looked confused as I left but I knew what I was doing. I was pretty sure I still had my uniform. Sure enough, I found it at the bottom of one of my drawers. I stripped from my work clothes and put on my crisp uniform. I loved the feel of the military clothing; it felt like pure obedience and loyalty. Then I remembered why I left.

"Maria? What on earth are you doing?" Nat called. I shook away the thought and grinned to myself. I put my hair into a tight bun in a matter of seconds and neatly placed my hat on the top of my head. "I'm here," I said slowly. Nat's jaw dropped as I walked into the living room. I stood to attention and saluted her. She burst out laughing and I suddenly felt very stupid. "Fine, I'll put it away." I grumbled. Nat stood up and walked over to me, looking me up and down. Then she bit her lip before kissing me passionately. "No, don't. You look very, very cute."

Nat un-tucked my shirt and slid her hands up my back, finding my bra. "I hope you didn't work too hard today," she muttered, undoing my bra. I held her head in my hands and kissed her with serious force. Gasping for breath, we fell back against the wall and she started to undress me. "I think I have some energy left," I said as I moved my kisses down to her neck. She laughed and then stopped giving me attention. "Why did you stop?" I said, saddened. I really wanted her now. She giggled ad took my hand in hers. "You'd rather use the bed, wouldn't you?" Nat winked and I laughed, following her into the bedroom.