When We Were Us

The after-party

I did not think I would survive Hanna's 'birthday party' but I did. All in all, it was a pleasant yet still uncomfortable affair. My introvert self had had enough socializing for the day but Finn wanted to go out for more drinks. I was exhausted from the trip but I couldn't say no. So Finn and I went to his usual haunt. It was over-crowded as usual and Finn knew half the people. After greeting what felt like hundreds of people, we made our way to a table where Finn's friends, including his best friends Kay and Sara, were seated. They were already drunk and were quick to push drinks to our faces. Finn obviously didn't mind and he drowned everything he was handed. I was more careful at first but although I could easily fool his friends into thinking I was drinking ( I was actually hiding the shots or handing them to other people), I couldn't do the same under Finn's watchful eyes. So I drank a couple of double shots, which may not have been a big deal for Finn's friends but it was enough to get a lightweight like me drunk. And the weird thing? For the first time in my life I actually enjoyed the feeling. I let go of all my inhibitions and danced with Finn and his friends. I was actually having fun in a bar, me!

Soon it was time to leave. I gave Finn a look and it was enough for him to gather that I wanted to go home. He put on his jacket and helped me put mine on as I was too wobbly and uncoordinated. Finn and I were walking towards the door, which was quite a feat due to overcrowding,  when I felt someone grab my breast. I was shocked. Although the bar was overflowing with people, I quickly identified the guy who did it. He was right in front of me so I pushed him, or at least I tried to. I was so drunk and weak that it probably felt like a caress to him. The guy turned around, smirked and winked at me. I was outraged. But before I could say anything, the guy's gaze ventured towards Finn.

"Hey, Finn." The guy said.

"Hey." Finn answered back. Shocked, I turned around to face Finn.

"You know him!?" I shouted.

"Sort of. Why?"

"He just grabbed me!" I said. Finn looked furious. We both turned around in search of the guy. We saw him heading out. Finn ran after him, me after Finn. Everything happened so fast. I don't know whether Finn and I were shouting or the fact that we were running but all hell broke loose. Words of a fight spread and in a matter of seconds half the bar was outside.

Finn grabbed the guy by the collar, cursing at him and asking him why he did what he did. Finn's friends intervened and separated the two. While Finn seemed agitated, the guy was eerily calm.

"What is wrong with you?" Kay shouted at Finn.

"He grabbed May." Finn said.

"I didn't." The guy said calmly. "Maybe I accidentally grazed her as I was passing by. It's so crowded inside."

I wanted to scream. He was lying! It wasn't a graze, it was a grab. Plus his hand stayed on my breast for too long for it to have been just a graze.

"See, it was an accident." Kay said. I looked around at the faces surrounding us, those of Finn's friends and those of curios strangers. I could tell everybody thought it was an accident. I shrinked under their accusatory glares.

"You shouldn't have told Finn. You know how he gets." Sara said.

"But..." I said.

"Hey, May, is it? It was an accident. I'm sorry." The guy said.

"See. He even apologized!" Kay pointed out. Finn was still agitated and looked like he wanted to punch the guy.

I 'stepped out' of myself for a second and saw the scene from an outsider's point of view. There was the guy, composed, calm and apologetic. Then there was Finn about to lunge at the guy any second and being held back by three people. And there I was shaking and hysterical.

I started reconsidering my actions. I was drunk after all. Maybe I had stumbled into him? Maybe it was an accident after all. But I caused such a commotion and almost got Finn into a fight.

Just accept his apology, I told myself.

"From now on, if you think someone has touched you, just tell me." Sara said. If I think.... As if I were delusional. I didn't think, I knew. I looked at the guy. It was almost imperceptible but he winked at me again. That's when I snapped and lunged at him. Finn's friends were too busy holding Finn back. Two of his friends were even holding the guy back just in case, although he was calm from the beginning. Nobody expected it. I landed a punch on the guy. His calm facade dissolved. He came after me, calling me every bad word imaginable. Commotion broke again. Finn somehow slipped past his friends and was just in time to stop the guy from grabbing me. It took Finn one punch and the guy was on the floor. This time Finn's friends pulled both Finn and I away. Kay was furious.

"What is wrong with you two?" He shouted at us. "It was an accident. He apologized."

This time I stood my ground.
"It was not an accident. He grabbed me on purpose and winked, twice!" I said. Kay stayed silent, seemingly reconsidering.

"You should learn to control your girl." He told Finn. There was a moment of shocked silence. Finn lunged at Kay and the two started fighting. I did not expect this. I jumped to separate them but Sara, who was much bigger than me, held me back. The remaining of Finn's friends who had followed us dragged Finn and Kay away from us and turned a corner.

"We can't leave them be. They'll kill each other!" I told Sara as I struggled to get free.

"They're brothers. They'll resolve it." Sara told me. I calmed down so Sara let me go. She convinced me to wait for them instead of going after them and exacerbating the situation.

After five minutes, Finn and Kay came back arm in arm and laughing. I ran and hugged Finn. He kissed me on my forehead.

"Are you okay?" He asked me. I nodded.

"Are you?" I asked.

"Yes. I can't even begin to imagine how you girls must feel, having to deal with dicks like him everyday and never getting the benefit of the doubt. I hate the fact that nobody believes the girl. I'm so sorry that happened."

I teared up. I had been feeling so frustrated thinking that everybody blamed me for the fight. I wasn't expecting an apology from Finn but what he said was just what I needed to hear.

"I love you." I blurted out. Finn broke out into a smile, the biggest I've ever seen.

"I love you, May." He told me and suddenly everything (the awkward picnic, Finn's mother's dislike of me, his sister's confrontation, the fight) disappeared into the background. Nothing mattered except for the fact that I loved Finn and Finn loved me back.