Promises (Jack Gilinsky)

Chapter 11

Charlotte's POV:

I can't say anything right now. All I can do is look at Tony. I don't know why though. Probably because I'm too scared to react.

"What's wrong Charlotte? Did I scare you?" He says sarcastically.

"What are you doing here, Tony?" I ask, trying my best to sound angry instead of scared.

"Well, I had track and field and as I was walking to my car, I saw you. So, I decided to come say hi."

"Well, I just came to get my math textbook, and I really don't want to be near you right now." I try to open my door again, but his hand is still on the handle.

"You see, Charlotte, I like you. We were interrupted by Cameron and Shawn when I tried to tell you this earlier, so I'm telling you now."

"The only thing Cam and Shawn interrupted was you pinning me against a locker. If you like me, then that's too bad, because I'm not going to date someone like you."

Tony positions himself so his hands are rested on the car on both sides of me. There's nowhere for me to go.

"Let me guess. Jack told you to stay away from me because I'm a bad person, when in reality, Jack is just like me."

"Jack never mentioned you. And you are nothing like Jack." My voice is starting to get shaky, but I still have a demanding tone. Now, Tony's face is inches from mine.

"You think that Jack's some good guy who never does anything wrong. Well, I've known Jack for years and he is an awful person. He's going to hurt you and you don't even care."

"Don't talk about him like that!"

"Charlotte, if you would've cooperated earlier, then none of this would be an issue." The look on his face is terrifying me, but there's nothing I can do. He has me stuck and there's no one around to see.

I'm about to yell for help. I know that if nobody comes, then something and is going to happen. But, right as I open my mouth, I hear footsteps. Before I can turn to look who it is, Tony is tackled to the ground. I quickly step away from the car to see Jack and Tony on the ground. Jack stands up quickly before Tony can and looks at me, his face filled with concern. "Charlotte, are you okay? Did he hurt you? What did he do?"

Before I answer, Tony stands up, and he even angrier than before.

"What the hell, Jack!" He screams.

Jack diverts his attention away from me and turns to Tony.

"What the fuck were you doing?!?" Both boys are yelling at eachother now.

"It's none of your business what I was doing!"

"You had Charlotte pinned against the car. I think it was my business."

"No, it wasn't Jack. Quit trying to protect Charlotte from me when you're no better."

"I am not like you. I would never do that to Charlotte, or any girl for that matter."

I can't stand watching these two yell at eachother. I want to do something, but I'm too scared to. Then, something even worse happens.

"Why don't you stop defending your little whore and mind your own business?!?" Tony yells. This pushes Jack too far. The next thing I know, Jack's fist comes in contact with Tony's face. When Tony looks at me, there's a steady stream of blood running out of his nose. "You shouldn't have done that Gilinsky." With this, Tony walks to his car and drives away.

"Are you okay?" Jack asks me. I can tell he's trying to hide his anger,
But he's not doing a very good job.

"Yeah," I say at a loss for words. I can't believe what just happened. Me and Jack are both in shock.

"Did he hurt you?"

"No." I don't know why, but for some reason, I'm still mad at Jack. He just saved me from Tony and I'm still mad at him for trying to protect me. Wow, I'm pathetic.

"Here, let me drive you home." He offers.

"But my car's here."

"You can just drive it home after school tomorrow."

We go to Jack's car and he opens the passenger side door for me. We have to wait for Johnson and Sam because they rode to school together. For a few minutes, neither of us say anything. I know Jack is still worried about me and wants to make sure I'm okay, but because of what I said at lunch, he probably doesn't want to ask. I decide to break the silence. "Thanks for what you did, Jack."

He gives me a small smile. "Well, I wasn't just going to leave you there."
I laugh a little.

"I'm sorry for getting mad at you earlier. I know you just want to protect me. I should be thankful for that."

Jack sighs. "No, Charlotte. I'm the one who should be sorry. I overreacted and I was just acting like I could tell you what to do and you would do it. I feel like such a jerk now."

"You aren't a jerk. If you hadn't acted that way, who knows what would've happened?"

He smiles at me again. I love seeing him smile. It's so much better than him being angry at me. Then he laughs and shakes his head at me. "You're just lucky coach let me leave a little early for being the only one that didn't screw up the drill."

"Oh, so that's why you're out here before everyone." I say, finally forgetting about what had happened.
Jack nods his head at me.

"Charlotte, will you please just try your best to keep your distance from Tony? It would make me feel so much better of you stayed away from him. I would hate myself if he hurt you and I wasn't there to stop him."

"Of course, Jack. I wouldn't go near him again for all the money in the world."

A few seconds later, the back doors open and Johnson and Sam get in the car. "Hey Charlotte. What are you doing here?" Johnson asks.

I look at Jack, wondering if I should tell them what happened. I decide it would be best not to right now. "I left my math textbook here, so I walked from my house and Jack offered to give me a ride home."

We pull out of the parking lot, with the Jacks and Sam talking about the big game next week. The whole ride home, the only thing I think about is what Tony said to Jack as he left.

"You shouldn't have done that Gilinsky."