La Pantera

Ch.22 Run Little Girl

Song for Chapter: Edge of Seventeen by Stevie Nicks (Reprise)

It was Stevie's last night in California before she headed out to Utah to film Footloose. She walked down the sleazy streets of nighttime Los Angeles, heading to David's house for a party she had been invited to. She was super excited, having always loved Van Halen for a long while now. She smirked as she walked down the dark street, her hands in her pockets. She wore a faded denim jacket with a black tank top under it, skinny jeans , and her boots again. The dark sky twinkled overhead with helicopters and small stars. She made the turn down a private road and made it to the gates of David Lee Roth's mansion. She buzzed in with a "It's Stevie..". The gates opened slowly , allowing her into a new world she had been wanting to experience forever. She knocked on the gigantic door, chewing her lip in anticipation. A butler opened the door , greeting her in a fancy accent. She greeted him back, looking around at the chaotic scene in front of her. There were strippers everywhere, strobe lights going like crazy, people doing drugs, and loud shouting from all kinds of people. The young girl's eyes shot open in panic, seeing lines of cocaine being used.

She backed away only to bump into David. "Hey kid! Happy you could make it!", he cheered. "Thanks....quite the party you got goin'.", she observed, taking notice of a group of women in the back eyeing them. "Those are some ladies I invited tonight..", David noticed where she was looking. "You gonna have sex with all of them?", Stevie smirked. "Yeah....more women the better.", he said casually. Stevie looked shocked by his claim, but composed herself. "You want something to drink?", he asked her. "Yeah...gimme some hard liquor.", Stevie cocked her eyebrow at him. "Sure thing hon.", David went to his in house bar to get her a drink. It became hot in the room for Stevie so she took off her jacket, left in her tank top. She carelessly draped it onto the floor, stealing a cigarette left unattended by a stranger nearby. She puffed out some smoke , loving the burning feeling in her lungs. "Oh yeah.", she hummed, smiling as she saw David come back. "Here you go.", he watched her gulp a sip down with ease. "This shit's good.", Stevie grinned crookedly at him. "Not my favorite personally.", David shrugged. Stevie went back to smoking , puffing some smoke rings into the air , her head tilted back. "You should do that in my mouth.", David chuckled at her. The 6 foot man smirked , his eyes gleaming in the red lighting. Stevie felt her stomach drop at the suggestion, a small voice yelling 'RUN!'. She scoffed to hide her small fear. "Nah...I don't do that shit.", she smirked. "Oh come on....I know how wild you are. Just once.", David pressed on, getting closer to the younger girl. He was 12 years older than Stevie , which she knew about. And she didn't feel like having to interact with an older man again. Not after her past.

"David...please. No.", Stevie saw she was now cornered into an empty area against the wall. Her mind began to race, flashbacks pouring through her brain of the incident. "I love when they play hard to get.", the older man growled near her ear. "I SAID NO!", Stevie growled, punching him hard in the cheek with a right hook. He fell down hard, the big man rubbing his cheek as the teenager ran outside , running away from her memories and from David. Tears fell down her face, eyeliner mixing with them to create black streaks. She panted heavily, looking around for an escape, before running through the woods near the property. It was some time before she stopped, sitting down on a tree stump and sobbing loudly. Her breathing was shaky, her wails loud in the dense forest. Her arms wrapped around her body to block out the cold and comfort herself, her cries shaky. Right now , she wished she had Martin to hold her. She felt alone and scared, just like that night. Martin had held her close and made her better. I wish he was here, she thought to herself. She climbed off the stump , laying on the ground instead and pretending Martin was holding her , curled in a fetal position. "I miss you.", she sniffled aloud.

May 1981

Stevie had come to visit Martin after school, wanting to escape her home for a little bit. The 15 year old knocked on his front door, waiting until his mom answered. "Hey Ms. Banks, is Martin home?", Stevie asked. "Yep, he's in his room.". Ms. Banks kindly answered. "Thanks.", Stevie grinned at her before going into Martin's room. "Hey Teddy Bear.", she teased. "Hey yourself.", Martin smiled at her. She climbed into bed with him, yawning softly as they laid together. The two teenagers laid under the covers, cuddling up to one another. Martin had his arms around Stevie, holding her from behind. They stayed this way for a long while, enjoying each other's company. "I love you.". He whispered after a while.

3 hours later, Stevie woke up in the woods, having slept on the forest ground. She shivered from being cold, standing up and brushing off her body of dirt. "It's gotta be around 1:00.", she mumbled to herself. She looked around , wondering which way was home. She walked in the direction she felt she had come from , before seeing a road. "Yes!", she cheered in relief. She recognized her surroundings and began to walk back home, knowing she needed to pack for tomorrow. She made it back in one piece , sighing to herself as she closed the door and prepared for Utah.