Between You And Me
Chapter 8
By: Sarah
I stood there, undetected for a minute. I couldn�t see Benji�s face, but I could see Farah. She smiled at him and walked toward him.
� Benji�you gotta understand where I�m coming from�� She started saying. I suddenly couldn�t breathe. Everything was happening in slow motion. I watched Farah as she slowly started lifting the edges of her shirt up, revealing her stomach. I hadn�t meant to make any noise, but I let the door swing open too far. It bumped against the wall, and although it made a soft sound, it sounded like an explosion in the quiet room. Farah looked startled and then she looked up, towards me. Benji spun around on the bed. I was caught in both of their stares. My heart started pounding in my chest and my hands were shaking.
� Oh god.� The words escaped from my lips before I could stop them. I looked to Benji and he had this horrified look on his face. Then I looked at Farah. She looked almost frightened at first, but then I watched as her lips curled into a smile.
� Nic�what are you doing home so early?� She asked, as if I hadn�t just seen what was about to happen. Benji slowly stood up and took a step toward me. No, no, I wanted to scream. How could he do this to me again? With her. I�m not sure what happened next, but all I remember is turning and running from his house. Running from whatever was about to happen in his room, in his bed.
I climbed back into my car, shaking all over. I sat there for a second before I saw his front door open up and Benji stepped outside. I swallowed hard and started the car, then drove away without looking at him. Everything was suddenly hurting so bad. He had left his vacation in Hawaii with me early so that he could come back home and fool around with Farah? It suddenly all made sense. How rude she had been to me, how distant he had seemed at some points. They were both thinking about each other. When she saw me with Benji it made her mad, and that�s why she was suddenly so rude to me. My heart sunk into my stomach. I had believed everything he had said to me. Those times he�d kissed me and told me he loved me�the time that he told me he�d never hurt me again. Those nights where he was inside of me and I let myself get so close to him. All the moments that we were together, and he�d hold my hand and make me feel like I would never have to worry again. All that was a lie. And I hated him.
How long had this been going on? Ever since he�d gotten home from the tour? Longer than that? I felt dirty all over. Every place he�d ever touched me started burning. I licked my lips, and I could almost still taste him. I started driving and I just didn�t stop. I had no idea where I was going to go, but it didn�t matter. I wanted to get as far as I could from him. From her.
� Oh god.� The words escaped my lips in jagged, raspy breaths. My chest was heaving and I was having trouble breathing. I just didn�t want to go on knowing I was without him. Ironically, it started raining outside a few minutes later. Pouring was more like it. Even with my wipers on full speed, I could hardly see anything. It didn�t stop me though, I kept driving. My heart couldn�t take to be anywhere near him.
About forty five minutes later, I was somewhere in Aberdeen, the rain having slowed me down. I had no reason to be there except that it wasn�t near Benji. His name was like acid on my tongue, in my veins. I hadn�t stopped crying, but by now I was more weeping then crying. Tears slid down my face in big, hot drops. I wasn�t making any noise, but my whole body was shaking. The air had turned cold outside and the heat in my car had been broken for a while. Finally, I realized that there was no way I could get home, crying, cold and in the rain. I pulled over into a deserted parking lot and parked. I grabbed my cell phone and started dialing the first number I could think of.
It rang once, twice, three times.
� Please�.please�� I whispered, hoping he�d pick up. I let it ring two more times before he picked up.
� Hello? Nic?�
� Joel.� I said, my voice hoarse and weak.
� Nic? What are you doing�are you calling from your cell? Why aren�t you in Hawaii?� He asked. His voice sounded crisp and clear despite the loud rain pattering outside.
� I�m not in Hawaii because I am in Maryland.� I cried. He laughed for a second before realizing I was upset.
�What�s going on, Nic?� He asked, his voice panicked.
� Joel�did you know? Tell me you didn�t know�tell me you haven�t lied to me too.� I cried, tears running fast. Joel was quiet for a second.
� Nic, what happened? I don�t understand��
� BENJI AND FARAH.� I yelled. I didn�t mean to yell at him, but I couldn�t help it. � I went over to your house to surprise him, Joel. He was there, with HER.� I yelled through my frustrated tears.
� OH shit, are you serious?� Joel asked.
� Did you know?!� I asked.
� No, Nic, I didn�t. Are you sure you saw��
� I know what I saw. I thought�� I took a deep breath. � I thought he loved me?!� I sobbed. Joel was still quiet.
� He does��
� I don�t understand!� I gasped.
� Where are you Nic? Why is it so loud?� He asked, worried.
� I�m somewhere in Aberdeen. I�m somewhere near that old shopping center with that Chinese food place.� I said, looking outside, squinting through the rain.
� Nic, that�s a really shitty part of town.� Joel said.
� I know�but I had to get away.� I said. Almost as if on cue, something loud and heavy banged against my car door. I jumped, and hardly had time to register what was happening. My car door was thrown open and rain started falling inside. I yelped, leaning away from the shadow at my door.
� NIC? Nic what�s going on?!� I heard Joel screaming in my ear. Suddenly, I was being dragged out of my car. It was so unreal and sudden, that I didn�t even know what was happening at first. The rain and my hair were in my eyes, making it hard for me to see. All I knew was someone really strong had pulled me out and smashed me up against the back of my car.
� Help me!� I screamed, my voice already weak. I looked up at whoever had grabbed me and felt even more scared. I had no idea who it was. I started fighting back, but he had a strong grip on me.
� Stop fighting.� He said, his voice deep and rough even over the loud rain. I felt something hard and cold being pressed into the wet, exposed skin on my stomach. I froze. A gun?
� Please�please�don�t hurt me.� It was all I could manage to say. I never thought that something like this would ever happen to me and everything felt completely surreal. He grabbed me by my arm and held me down hard against the cold, wet metal of the car. Reaching down, he grabbed my phone from my hand. I jerked backwards, scared out of my mind.
� Where�s your purse? Get me your fucking purse.� He said, his voice urgent and angry. I gasped slightly, trying hard to pull away from him. �If you run, I�ll fucking shoot you.� He said. I nodded and went back into my car. My mind was racing, looking around for something, anything to help me. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I cursed myself for not carrying mace with me. � Take the keys out of the ignition.� He said after a second. I started crying then, my heart racing. He still had the gun pressed hard into my back, so hard that I was afraid I�d have a bruise later. I climbed back out of the car, the rain soaking me down to the bone. He grabbed my purse and shoved me hard against one of the abandoned buildings nearby.
� Please, just let me go. Please, you can have whatever you want. You can take my car, I don�t care.� I cried. Suddenly, I realized I would give anything to be back at Benji and Joel�s house.
� Just shut up.� He said roughly, smashing me against the wall. I winced in pain, my whole body shaking from fear and the cold rain that was soaking through my whole body. I looked at the man that was robbing me, trying hard to see what he looked like. It was too dark to see his face, but he was a lot taller than me, and probably at least sixty pounds heavier. � Get on the ground.� He said. I froze, his words echoing in my head. What was he going to do?
� Please�please..� I kept saying it over and over again, through my tears.
� Get on the fucking ground!� he yelled. I nodded and slowly bent down, the ground beneath me was wet and muddy. I sat down but then he motioned for me to lay down.
� Oh god�oh god�please don�t�� I cried, my words not making any sense. I felt the dirty water and mud running underneath me, along with this mans gun jabbing me in the back.
� Now, I want you to count to 500 and don�t you dare get up until then. If you do, I�ll shoot you.� He said. I swallowed hard, my hands freezing in the ice cold water. I nodded though and a few seconds later, my attacker ran over to my car, and started searching through it. It only took him a few seconds before he grabbed my Cd�s and a few of my spare clothes in the back and then ran off. I laid there on the ground, crying, the rain and mud around me running over the rocky pavement. I knew he was gone but I just didn�t have the strength to get back up.
It took me a few minutes before I was able to pull myself up. I was shaking badly and I was covered in rain and dirt. I wasn�t crying anymore though, I had no tears left. I walked slowly over to my car, and went to open the door. It was locked.
� NO!� I screamed, quickly trying the other doors. They were all locked and I had no key. I started crying again, wrapping my arms around myself. He had taken my keys along with my purse and my cell phone. I had no money and I was deserted in some vacant shopping center. Sobbing, I fell against the car, doubled over in a mixture of panic and distress. I don�t know how long I was standing there, but it seemed like forever. I had sort of made up my mind that I would just sit there and die in that parking lot. There was no reason for me to keep going. No Benji, no purse, no money, and that fucker had also stolen all my Cds.
All the sudden, a car came driving up and skidded to a stop a few feet in front of me. I jumped back, not sure how scared I should be. It wasn�t raining as hard anymore, but I was already cold enough and wet enough that it didn�t matter.
� NIC?� A voice shouted, as the driver�s door opened. I felt my insides go weak as I recognized the voice.
� Joel? Joel?!� I cried, walking toward the car, my legs wobbly. He jumped out of the car and ran towards me.
� Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.� He just kept saying it over and over again. � What happened?!� He asked. I fell into his arms, and he didn�t even seem to mind that I was soaked and covered in mud.
� Some guy�robbed me. He took all my stuff.� I cried into his chest. Joel grabbed me pulling me toward his car. Opening the back seat door, he pulled a blanket out and wrapped it around me, then pushed me into the passengers seat. He ran around the other side and got into the drivers seat, turning the heat up on full blast. I was shivering all over, and dripping all over his perfect car interior.
� I�m sorry.� I said, looking at the mess I was making.
� Hey, shh, it�s ok.� He said. � Are you alright?� he looked at me, knowing that I wasn�t.
� I am�I�ll be ok. I think.� I said, holding my oncoming tears back.
� Oh god, Nic, you�re covered in dirt.� He said. He grabbed a shirt that he had laying in the backseat and reached forward and starting wiping my face off.
� Joel, Joel, what am I going to do?� I cried, pressing my face into his hands. He pulled me toward him and hugged me, letting me collapse against him. I took the shirt from his hands and pressed it my freezing cold face. It took me a second, but then I realized that it was one of Benji�s shirts that he must have accidentally left in Joel�s car. I started crying even harder� it smelled like him.
Joel rocked me back and forth, just sitting there in his car for a few minutes. I couldn�t stop shaking.
� What do you want to do, Nic?� He whispered. The rain had started pounding against the windows. I pulled away slightly, staring down at Benji�s shirt.
� I don�t know.�
� Do you want to go to the police? Or do you just want to go home?� He asked. Home� Where was that? Home to the apartment I shared with Farah? Or home to Benji?
� He stole a bunch of stuff from my car.� I said, my voice shaky. Joel nodded, both of his hands on my shoulders, rubbing them gently.
� Alright, lets go to the police then.� He said. He quickly threw the car into drive, and got back onto the road. He had the heat up, full blast; the radio turned almost all the way down. �Are you alright?� He asked, glancing at me. I nodded, my heart rate slowly returning to normal.
� I think so.�
� God�you can't believe how scared I was, Nic. When I heard you start screaming�� Joel said, shaking his head. I swallowed and nodded.
� I don�t know what I was doing out there. I was just driving and then�I had to pull over and calm down�� I rested my head against the window, staring blankly out the window.
� Do you�want me to call Benji?� Joel asked. And almost, as if on cue, Joel�s cell phone started ringing. I glanced at it, the little green screen. Benji�s name was flashing in black digital letters. Joel looked at me and I nodded. He picked it up and answered it.
� Hello?� I could faintly hear Benji�s voice from the other end.
� FUCK! Joel where the fuck�� Benji started yelling. I cringed. � Where the fuck are you? I�ve been trying to find you all night.� He asked. Joel rolled his eyes.
� I�m in Aberdeen.� He said.
� What? What are you doing there?� Benji asked, his voice frantic.
� Picking up Nic---�
� OH fuck, fuck! You have Nic?! Is she ok?! Let me talk to her, Joel. Let me talk to her��
� Calm down, Benji�� Joel muttered into the phone. I bit my lip, wondering if I could talk to him now.
� Joel�I fucked up, you don�t believe��
� No, no, I believe you.� He said, shaking his head as he turned the wheel.
� Please, just let me talk to her.� He asked. Joel looked at me, asking me with his eyes whether I wanted to talk to Benji. I nodded and Joel handed the phone over to me. I was shaking and my hands were still cold.
� Hello?� I said, my voice soft.
� Oh god, Nic�� Benji cried. He sounded terrible�almost as bad as I did. I didn�t reply. �Nic, nothing was happening�nothing��
� I know what I saw�� I said, my voice shaky.
� No�no�god you know I would never cheat on you. I love you so much��
� Don�t, don�t say that to me, please.� I shook my head. Benji moaned softly.
� She just came over��
� Benji, I don�t want to know why she came over. I don�t want to know any of it. I can�t believe I trusted you�I can't believe I actually thought you weren�t going to do that to me again. And with Farah! Of all people�� I said, tears falling down my face. Joel glanced at me, seeing how upset I was getting. He reached over and gently took the phone from me.
� Listen, Benj, we�re going to the police station�Nic was robbed.� Joel said.
� What!!� Benji exclaimed.
� Just calm down. Everything will be ok. I�ll call you later.� He said. Benji started saying something else, but Joel cut him off, quickly hanging up. I cried into my hands, the tears falling faster than before. I wanted to believe him. But all the signs pointed to No. There was no reason for her to be there�. No reason for them to be in his room�
We rode in silence for a few minutes until we got to the police station. Joel climbed out and then walked around and opened my door for me. I had put his sweatshirt on, trying hard to get warm. He threw his arm around me and we stood in the rain for a few minutes, hugging. I buried my face in his warm, dry shirt. I wasn�t crying anymore, but I was so close to it. He held me for a few minutes, and then kissed the top of my head.
� Come on, Nic. Let�s get this over with so I can take you home.� He whispered.