4 a.m. // Jeggy

Chapter 24

Please pick up, please pick up, please pick-

"Peggy?" John mumbled into the phone, exhaustion in his voice. I sighed, relief washing over my body once I heard his voice.

"John. Did I wake you up?" I asked, realizing that he was probably still asleep since we'd gotten back so late.

"Maybe... but I needed to wake up anyway, so it's fine. Is something wrong?" He asked, his voice still tired as he waited for my answer.

"Uh, I actually need your help. I'm kind of a far walk from home and don't freak out or anything, but I'm in kind of a fair amount of pain and I don't know if I can walk all the way home." I said quickly.

"Where are you? I'm leaving now." He said, suddenly a lot more awake than he sounded before. I could hear him walking quickly down his stairs, calling something to his mom before I heard a car door open and him turning the keys.

I told him what street I was on and he said he'd stay on the phone with my until he arrived. After a few minutes of walking and skirting around an explanation, I saw his car coming up the street and I waved at him before we hung up.

He stopped next to me and unlocked the door, greeting me again. I saw him give me a look up and down, scanning the visible damage. There were little cuts from James's nails on my arms, accompanied by bruises and red marks. My exposed neck was covered in dark hickeys that James had given me, and I saw the puzzle pieces connecting in John's mind as he realized what was going on.

"What happened?" He asked anyway, driving into town and parking in some random store parking lot so we could talk.

"He came to my house this morning. Told me that I should know to come over without him telling me to and then forced me to go with him. I think the rest is a self-explanatory..." I said softly, looking down at my hands which were sitting in my lap.

"My God, Peggy. Do your sisters know you left or why?" He asked.

"I told them he wanted to have brunch and talk about our relationship. They know I'm gone but not really where or why." I explained.

"Peggy... we need to do something about this. You've been dealing with this long enough, I can't just sit back and let it all happen." He said after a moment.

"John, I don't know how to end this. He has too much power over me, he knows too much about me. What if he finds out about you and does something to you?" I asked, finally looking up and meeting his eyes. He shrugged.

"I've learned how to fight by now. And why don't I just go with you so he knows about me now sooner than later? If he's got a problem with me, we can work it out then and there." He said. I shook my head, reaching out to put my hand on his arm but afraid of him getting mad at me. I knew he wouldn't, but after James... I don't want to risk anything.

"If he hurt you, I would feel so guilty about it. I can't let you do that. I can take it from him, I've done it before." I said.

"Don't worry about me. I don't mind a little bit of pain if it means you're safe from him." He said, looking at me. I couldn't help the bad feeling I had about this.

"I just think it's risky, having you get involved too. I don't want you to be possibly threatened or anything." I said, fidgeting with my hands a little. He reached across the center console and took one of my hands in his.

"Peggy, it'll be okay. I promise. Do I have your permission to help?" He asked gently. I considered for a moment, going through the pros and cons in my head before finally sighing and giving him his answer.

"Yes. You can help." I told him softly. He smiled a little bit and kissed my hand after glancing up at me for permission.

"Okay. We need a plan, but first... I need some caffeine and you look like you do too. Let's go somewhere." He said. I agreed and he pulled out of the parking lot, driving down the street for a few minutes while we listened to the radio, before he pulled into a cute little cafe.