A Girl Named Callie

<Jasper> A Boy Who Protects Those He Cares For

Chapter 10

<Jasper Coven>

"Another hard day in the studio?" Benji asks as I sit down at the bar.

"When have I ever had an easy day at the studio?" I sigh and gaze longingly at the bottle of tequila behind the counter.

"Fair enough. Wanna try my new west coast margarita? Benji chuckles as he picks up the bottle of tequila.

"Do you even have to ask?" I chuckle as I look around Treble Clef. Hollywood's finest are mingling in various shades of rich and famous, the lights dancing off their obnoxiously bejeweled outfits. I smooth out my own ripped jeans and t-shirt, the lights catching the chain hanging from my waist and the silver rings on my fingers. I hear Benji set down a glass behind me and I turn, coming face to face with the biggest margarita I've ever seen.

"Are you sure this isn't the Texas margarita?" I ask, swirling the straw around in the glass.

"It's Texas-sized for a Texas boy." Benji chuckles and wipes his hands off on a rag.

"So, what makes it a west coast margarita?" I ask, taking a long swig of the drink.

"That's a secret I'll never tell." Benji winks and I shrug, continuing to drink my margarita.

"Are you gonna drink that all alone?" I turn and see Aleia slipping into the barstool next to me.

"Well, I'm not gonna let it go to waste." Aleia gives me one of her bewitching smiles and takes the straw from between my lips. She places it slowly between hers and looks directly at me as she drinks it.

"So, this girlfriend situation." She says as takes the straw out of her mouth. "How serious is it?"

"What girlfriend situation?" I ask, even though I know exactly what she's talking about.

"Clearly, Jailey isn't as serious as the paps like to make them out to be." Aleia grins, running her finger slowly up and down my bicep.

"What was your first clue?" I roll my eyes and take another long swig of my margarita.

"Well, she's not here with you."

"She's at the studio," I reply with disinterest.

"Good, then she won't see this." Aleia smiles and leans in, placing her red lips on mine. I place my hand on her waist and continue to kiss her the way I had the first night we met. All sweat and alcohol and dark lighting two years after Callie and I had lost touch. My fingers tangle in her hair as we continue to kiss. I feel her move into my lap, one hand on my face and the other wrapped around my waist.

"What the hell are you doing," I open my eyes and see Aleia being yanked away from me by her hair. "Jefferson, let me go." Aleia's eyes are filled with tears as her boyfriend continues to pull her away by her hair.

"I go on tour for a few months and this is what you do, you bitch." Jefferson says, still dragging Aleia by her hair. One hand still on her hair, he squeezes her chin with his free hand and brings her face a mere inch from his before he starts screaming at her again. "I do everything for you, buy you everything you want, let you live in my house,"

"That house is unlivable, Jefferson," Aleia cries out, her neck bent back as her boyfriend forces her to look at him. "You're never there and when you are you just yell at me and hit me. I hate it and I hate you."

"What the hell did you say?" Jefferson spits, his grip on her hair tightening. I watch in horror, my mind flashing back to all the times my father did the exact same thing to my mother. I remember the tears in her eyes. The small, silent movements she made so that my father wouldn't break her neck. I remember watching her whisper, trying to keep his anger at bay. Watching Aleia trapped in his grip, hearing the painful sound of his hand hitting her skin as she whimpers. It makes me shudder, but for whatever reason, I can't move from my seat. The atmosphere is almost silent, all the dancing and clinking ceasing as the entire club watches the ensuing fight. The only sounds are Jefferson and Aleia's voices and the generic beat of the song still pulsing throughout the building.