If You Read This...

To Fix This

I nearly tripped over my feet as I flew back towards my apartment. They were moving faster than the rest of me, making it hard to keep the backpack I had thrown Rory's stuff in centered on my back. I flailed around, petrified, like a monkey in a desperate attempt to escape a hungry jaguar.

I wondered if I had made the right choice; leaving Rory there. But I asked, begged rather, for him to come with me. He refused. I don't think it's possible to kill a ghost anyway, so whatever he told me to run from, can't hurt him. I hope.

About half way through my walk back home, after I had calmed myself down and slowed my pace, I saw Ivy leaning against the wall of a book store. She was holding a bag filled with what appeared to be two books, and was typing something on her phone.

I held my head down, hoping she wouldn't see me. I didn't want to talk to her and risk the chance of explaining what had happened today. I began to speed up and glanced at her to make sure she was still looking at her phone.

She wasn't. But she wasn't looking at me either. She was looking straight ahead, at a man. A man I had never seen before. He was older, maybe thirty or forty. He had his hands placed on the wall, on either side of her neck. She stood, stiff as a dead mans body

Eager to find out who he was and what he wanted, I crept over to the book store. I was sure to stay far enough away that he wouldn't notice me, but close enough that I could be there if something happened. To top it off, I pulled my phone out of my pocket, swiped to the phone pad, and dialed in the numbers "9-1-1." I hovered my thumb over the green "cal button," so all I had to do was push and help would be on the way. If we needed it.

"Haven't you heard what happens to pretty girls who walk the city streets alone?" The mans voice was sharp. He drifted his hands from the wall and into her short, red ringlets, pinning her head against the wall. She winced.

"My boyfriends inside and he's not afraid to kick your ass!" She growled through clenched teeth. She formed a fist and brought it up to her cheek. Ivy was brave. Braver than anyone I knew. Not in the sense that she never got afraid, she had had fears. But she never gave into the fear. Her brain was like a dictionary, she always had a definition ready for any situation that approached her. She was single, she was alone. And her bravery and quick wits  where no match for his thirsty arms.

"We're not inside, darling." He pinned her free arm up against the wall.

"Stop!" She wailed.

I pushed the button.

"Hey!" I called, "I thought I heard my girlfriend say to leave her alone!" I got right up in his face. He was at least a foot taller than me, and could no doubt take me out with a single punch. But I needed to be brave too.

He dropped her, "sorry. Didn't realize." He started to leave. I explained what had happened to the cops on the phone.

Ivy collapsed into my arms and started sobbing.

"Theo!" She gasped. She couldn't seem to catch her breath.

"Hey, breathe." I hugged her close to me. Like a friend, not a predator. "Just breathe."