Just Us

Twenty-Five

Chapter twenty-five
Corey

         I screech to a stop. A constant thrumming fills my head as soon as I see his hand on her wrist and it's violent and loud, overpowering any rational thought. He had no business touching her, period.

       I storm out of my car and I catch the fear in her eyes as I rush towards them which gets my mind dangerously quiet. My hand swings without a thought, meeting Tyrone's jaw and he staggers back, releasing Isla who's dead silent. I didn't like it.

         "What the fuck?" The asshole sneers as he grips onto his jaw but my focus is on Isla.

         "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" I ask but her eyes are wide and not on me. It's like she doesn't even see me. "Isla." And before I could get her attention, Tyrone tugs at my shirt, pulling me towards him and right to his fist.

         "Corey!" I hear Isla voice finally sounds and it sends a jolt in me.

         "I don't want any trouble, man." He says after hitting me. After hitting me? Really?

         I know I shouldn't have but the rage inside me left no space for thinking through my actions and so, I lunge towards him. Fists start pounding, mine cracking over his jaw but the fucker's strong. He doesn't fall to the ground, instead, he takes it, throwing a few back as he curls my shirt in his grip, an attempt to have an upper hand.

         Isla cries out my name and then her voice is close, too close. I feel soft hands on my arm in the next second. Then, Tyrone's arms fly out past my body, followed by a soft thud. Fuck me.

         The next thing I know, Isla's on the ground and everything goes blank. "Fuck, Isla. It was an accident. I didn't mean—" My knuckles meet his jaw with a strength I never knew I possessed and he goes out cold, dropping on the ground. There was a pop and it was softer than the sound that came from his jaw. It came from my hand and it starts throbbing but I don't feel the pain just yet.

         The anger in me pulls me towards him, tempting me to keep pounding until he's nothing but a bloody pulp on the ground but I force my legs towards Isla.

         "Are you hurt?" I reach out to touch her but she flinches. Fuck. I pull my hands back, giving Isla her space but I needed to know if she was hurt.

         And then I see it, her little intakes of air that's too much and too fast and the terror that fills her golden brown eyes. "Hey, look at me." But she doesn't, her eyes on the ground, staring at Tyrone.

         Her gaze then drifts slowly to my hands that were planted on the ground at her sides. She stares at the blood for a few moments and then she looks at me and I really wished she hadn't.

         The fear that glazed over her beautiful brown eyes didn't leave. Instead it's directed at me. The same one she had the first day I met her. The look I wished never masked her face again was being cast my way.

It felt like something had broken. All the trust that she had put in me felt like it was breaking apart and in that instant I knew I ruined it. I ruined us the moment I hit him.

         She stares for a few moments and I'm not entirely sure what she sees or if she's even seeing me. Her eyes seemed like they were in a daze, like she was sorting out the thoughts in her head. Then, she shifts her palms that were on the ground and I see it stain red. She was bleeding.

         The fucker made her bleed again and I couldn't stop it.

         "Fuck," I hiss under my breath, raking my fingers through my hair. I look back at Tyrone who's groaning and stirring on the ground. I'm pretty sure he was going to lay there for a while. The sound that came from his jaw was a clear indication of it but I still didn't want Isla around him.