Kiss Me at Midnight

Part 5

                "Henry!" I shouted. Whether he couldn't hear me, or was ignoring me, I wasn't sure. But he walked up to the front door and pressed the doorbell.

A few moments later, my mother opened the door. She looked terrified, and she shared some tense words with him, but I couldn't understand anything. He nodded, and gently moved her aside. She grabbed Henry's arm, almost pleading. He moved past her, into the house. My mom shut the front door in a panic.

What the hell am I doing, sitting here? I just let him walk into my house, with my abusive father waiting to smack the smile off anyone's face, especially a young guy poking his nose where he believes it doesn't belong.

I threw off my seat belt and ran to the front door. I heard something heavy crash inside. My hands fumbled as I pushed the front door open and darted inside.

"No! Stop! You'll kill him!" I heard my mother shout from upstairs.

Dread filled me as I took the stairs two at a time. I couldn't let Henry get hurt. This whole thing was a terrible, horrible idea. How stupid was I to-

"Henry, stop!" my mother screamed. Wait... Henry?

I threw open the door to my mom's room. To my shock and horror, I saw Henry, his fists wrapped around the collar of my father's shirt. He wasn't just holding him in place- he had his head and shoulders hanging out the picture window, as if he were going to just toss him out like a bag of garbage.

"Henry." I whispered, my heart pounding. I was definitely shocked by his actions, but I was far more worried about what would happen to him if he tried to kill my dad. "Don't do something you'll regret."

"I'd gladly go behind bars forever if it meant this man never hurt you again." He said, adrenaline rushing.

My dad looked half-nervous, half-smug. His dark brown hair hung down past his ears, and it looked as if it had been a while since he'd washed it. A scruffy beard adorned his face, and he reeked like stale beer.

"Listen to her, boy." He said, his hands gripping at Henry's wrists. "You throw me out this window, and there are two outcomes. Either I die, and you go to prison forever, or I live, and I come after your ass with everything I got."

Henry's face was turned away from mine, so I couldn't see his expression. He leaned in slightly to my dad and whispered something I couldn't hear.

My father's face blanched. His breath became heavy and quick. He nodded slightly, and Henry let go of him. He glanced once at me and my mother, and then ran from the room. His footsteps echoed down the hallway and I heard the front door slam as he left.

My mother and I looked at each other, confused. What had Henry said to him to make him leave? Was he coming back?

"Are you both okay?" Henry asked. My mom nodded, but I just looked at him. He took my hand and led me from the room. Once we were out at his car, I pulled my hand away and stood firmly in my spot.

"What was that?" I asked, exasperated.

"I... I wanted to protect you." He said, his hand still on the door handle. He faced away, but I could see a slight reflection of him in the car window. "Katelyn told me about your dad, about what he put you and your mom through. He's a monster. I couldn't stand the thought of him getting away with it. Or the thought of you being hurt again."