The Future

Don't Go

Smiling, I dropped my hands as I met Kirstin's eyes in the mirror. "And I think we're good," I said. "You are free to go for the day."

She chuckled, standing. "Thanks, Little Red. Is Scooter coming?"

"He should be here soon" I replied. "I figured he would be here already though."

"Scene must be taking longer than they thought," Kirstin commented, before sitting down on the small couch at the back of the trailer. It was something my team had added, making room for it. Not all of us were on set at once, especially with Ralph as a cameraman.
They had all been extremely supportive when I had told them about Ralph, and didn't even push for details. All they knew, and wanted to know, was that I didn't want to be near Ralph or let him know I was nearby. And they helped however they could; not needing me on set, never leaving me alone in the makeup and hair trailer, and making sure that if they weren't around, someone else was. So, as I spent so much time in the trailer, they had put together a makeshift couch/bench. It was sweet, and fairly comfy actually.

"How are you doing, though?" Kirstin  asked. Taking a deep breath, I sat beside her. "I'm okay," I told her.

It had been three days since the party, since I had first seen Ralph. And once the filming had really started, when I started working and spending more and more time with Kirstin , she asked what had happened. She mentioned that Scott had been off since that night, and had said that if I didn't feel comfortable telling her, that was perfectly acceptable.

But I did feel comfortable with Kirstin. She was such a good girl, and was someone I considered to be a good friend. So, I told her about Ralph. I didn't tell her the details, because while it was not only close to me, but it felt special to Scott now. Maybe someday I would tell Kirstin all the details, but not now.

Since I had told Kirstin though, she had become even closer to me. And I guessed that she had probably talked with Scott and my team, adding herself into the rounds to keep Ralph away.

It warmed my heart, to watch all of them help me so much.

"Really?" She asked.

Smiling, I nodded. "Yeah, really. I have you, Nicole, Jake, Chester, Jenni, Candice, Avi, and Scott," I replied, my mind stuck on the last person I had mentioned. "With all of you, I'll be fine."

Kirstin smiled, nodding slowly. "Good. I'm always here, okay?"

"I know, trust me," I replied, smiling.

"What are you two doing?"

We both turned, smiling as Scott stepped into the makeup side of the trailer. Standing, Kirstin slapped Scott's shoulder. "Well, I'm gonna go rest," she said, smiling. "Night!"

"Night!" Scott and I cried as Kirstin shut the door behind herself. I laughed softly as Scott fell into the chair, spinning to face me.

"How was filming?" I asked, grabbing the make up wipes.

"Same old, same old," he replied, closing his eyes. "We're all getting pretty excited though."

"I know we all are," I agreed.

"So, question real quick," he said, peeking at me through one eye.
"Shoot."

"Is there a special creamer you prefer in your coffee?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Scott, you don't have to get me coffee every day."

"Just answer the question," he responded.

-/::\-

I stepped out of the trailer, holding the phone to my ear. "Got it, Jake," I said. "You go sleep, rest. Okay? I've just got to get some stuff for filming tomorrow...So, I'll see you tomorrow morning...Goodnight," I laughed, shaking my head before ending the call, hearing Jake begin to rant.

"Mitch?"

I turned as I heard someone call my name, stopping as I came face to face with the man that I had been trying to avoid for four days.

"Ralph," I whispered, feeling my stomach clench, and my nerves spike.
"I've been trying to talk to you for days," he said, sliding his hands in his pockets as he moved closer and closer to me. "But I could never find you."
I stepped back a few steps, trying not to stumble, or let the fear leak into my voice. "I didn't want you to know I was here."

"Well, you tried," he replied, shrugging, an arrogant look lining his face. "But I found you."

"What do you want?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"To talk," he stated, his fake smile falling.

"I don't want to, Ralph," I responded, trying to stay strong.

"Well we're going to," he replied, his voice deepening as he continued towards me.

I backed up until I hit a wall, flinching as he grew closer. "Where the hell did you go?!" He yelled, holding out his arms, only about two feet away from me now. "You thought you could just leave me?!"

"I couldn't stay," I whispered, feeling the tears stream down your cheek. "Why?! Because you're so much better than me?!" he screamed.

Instantly, my mind went back to the night that he beat me, the night he raped me, the night I ran away. His words from that day echoed in my mind.

"You worthless bitch! You think you can be better than me?! Well you aren't! And you never will be!"

I tried to shrink back even farther, feeling him move closer to me.

"Hey, asshole!"

I looked up as Ralph spun, both of us watching Scott rush straight towards me.

"What, you trying to protect this little whore?!" Ralph asked, an edge to his voice.

Scott didn't slow as he got closer, and I watched in shock as Scott swung his fist, connecting it to Ralph's jaw.

Now from what I still remembered about Ralph, he liked to play sports, liked to work out. He was fairly fit, and I had never seen anyone take him down inside or outside of any sort of sports game.

But when Scott punched Ralph, he fell faster than I had ever seen him fall.

I gasped as Ralph hit the ground, seeing blood coming from his mouth. Scott reached over to me then, wrapping his hand around my wrist and pulling me towards him. For how hard Scott had punched Ralph, he was gentle with me, his touch soft and protective and strong.

Shielding me behind him as Ralph stood, Scott glared at the man, a certain fire in his eyes. "You ever come near Mitch ever again, you ever talk about him again, I will personally make sure your face is plastered all over missing posters," Scott stated. "That's a promise."

Before Ralph could reply, Scott pulled me back away from him, keeping an arm around me. I could feel myself shaking, my nerves getting the better of me. I just couldn't stop thinking about his words, the echo of his words from so long ago building on the words he had screamed moments ago.

Before I knew it, Scott was sitting me down on my bed in my trailer. "How did we get here?" I asked softly, looking down at the soft cushions beneath me.

Scott crouched in front of me, reaching up slowly to cup my cheek. "I led you here," he whispered. "How do you feel?"

"I...." I looked down at my hands, one of Scott's clasped in mine. As I thought for a moment, the thought hit me: Ralph wanted to hurt me again. And he would have, if it hadn't been for Scott.

I could feel the tears well in my eyes again as I looked back up at Scott's eyes. "Don't go," I begged, my voice breaking.

Part of me couldn't grasp what had happened, or even how I felt fully. All I knew was that I didn't want to be alone.

No, it wasn't even that. I didn't want Scott to leave me. Right now, no one else would calm me as much as he did.
"I'm not going anywhere," he whispered. Scott moved to my side slowly then, wrapping his arms around me. He laid me down on the bed slowly, holding me close as I let the tears overcome me.