Aaron. [Aaron Paul]

Fourteen.

I can only scratch and claw at his arms as they push me harder against the wall. "Tell me where he is!" he spits at me.

I choke and sputter, trying to tell him I have no idea who or what he's talking about. 

In all of this, I feel like I'm back where I was two short years ago. Trapped and helpless, for once again, no reason that I can control. Why'd it have to be me involved in all of this? Why didn't Xander just involve my father and not his entire family (that he left years ago)? 

No matter how lost I get in my thoughts, I am still struggling to break free. 

"Tell me, goddammit!" he hasn't thought how hard to choke me, and since I'm a lot weaker than him, I'm running out of breath. And in the next second - it's the weirdest thing - my knees buckle and my arms stop working. I slip down and hit the ground, too frightened and deprived to move.

But the man doesn't want to quit. He reaches down, grabs me by the collar of my shirt, and pulls his face right in front of mine.

"You can tell me now, or you can make it difficult for both of us."

As he speaks, I cringe under his hot breath. I want to scream Aaron's name, or even Zeke's, but as I'm about to, the man strikes my cheek with the palm of his hand. I yell out in pain, and slide down the wall the rest of the way.

He stands up, annoyed, and then wipes sweat off his upper lip. He towers over me like a mountain and I can only cower and wipe the blood off my cheek with the back of my hand.

Before he can say anything else, I hear the bathroom door open. I'm hoping it's Aaron but when I peer around the man's body, I only see a sweet old lady gasping when she makes eye-contact with the man. "Oh heavens!" she clutches her chest, peering down at me.

I look back at her for only a second before shutting my eyes and letting myself cry. Everything happening is too scary for me. Too much at a time. But I have to tell myself I'm strong since I lived through something far worse than this.

The man grunts, turning around and storming out the door. And that's the end. He's gone - for the moment.

The lady stands there for a second, looking from me to me bloody cheek and then rushes out the door for help.

In that little moment that she's gone, I have a second to condemn myself and stop crying. He wasn't even that scary. I've escaped death before, so this shouldn't bother me. 

It only takes a second to condemn my thoughts, and then the door opens again.

Aaron rushes in with Zeke behind him and they bend down to my aid. Aaron pulls me into a hug and Zeke rubs my back. They kill me with love, but they can't erase the memory. It repeats in my head like a broken record skipping along.

"He wanted me to tell him where someone was," I exclaim, hugging Aaron back tighter. I feel safe in his arms as I breath in the familiar scent of his cologne. 

"Shh, I know, but he's gone now." his hand brushes the back of my head, calming me as the sound of sirens fill the parking lot.

Aaron pulls me away just before the police enter the restroom, and encases my face in his hands. "You are safer than you've ever been, now. I promise you I won't let him hurt you again." Aaron smiles, wiping my cheek.

I have to nod, knowing he's trying to make me feel better about all of it and he gives me one last hug before the police come in and start asking a million questions about our past and what the man looked like.

The whole thing is rather terrifying. Sitting on a cold bathroom floor, laying your head on your boyfriends shoulder as some lady patches up your cheek, and being forced to talk about something that would give you nightmares. But I know if I don't talk then I'll be in danger.

"You know, we can take a break if you want." Zeke whispers and the artist sketches down exactly how I'm describing the man.

"Can we?" I ask.

Everyone nods, "Of course." on of the police man smiles at me, and then I don't hesitate to stand up and exit the bathroom before anyone else does.

There's policeman asking the store manager and that poor old lady questions. I feel bad, getting everyone involved, but I have to remember it's not my fault. It's my father's.

I walk outside and sit down against the ice-box, taking deep breaths. For that small moment of [much needed] quiet time, I manage to think of something other than my bad past. Instead, I think of my birthday and end up pulling out Aaron's card from my bag and reading it over again.

   Dear Grace,
I hope you'll like the present I give you later tonight. :) Happy birthday, lovely. I know I've been busy lately, and we havn't gotten a lot of time together, but let me promise to you right now that I'm going to spend my entire summer with you when school ends. Every second. And we can go on those picnics you always wanted to go on, and I'll let you drag me along shopping. I swear.

Okay, well, I've never been that good at writing birthday cards, so I think it'll be a good idea to just draw you something instead before I ruin it. ily pretty bird happy birthday.

                                                                                               Love Aaron.   (=
(p.s. you're adorable. >.< ) 

"I know it's not the best card you've ever gotten." Aaron's voice scares me from behind.

He's leaned up against the door, looking down at me.

I shake my head, "Yes it is."

Aaron just smiles and sits down next to me. "But no matter how much you believe I filled that card with lies, you're wrong. It's true. Every word."

I drop my head onto his shoulder and he rests his head on mine. And we sit there, finger's intertwined, in a perfect silence, thinking of nothing but each other.