𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬 [ 𝐡.𝐬]

CHAPTER ONE

Normally when you go to a club with friends, you look after each other. Lilly and Lucy had completely ignored me since we arrived. I decided it would be good idea to leave. The guilt I felt for leaving the other girls in the club alone was non existent, they failed to treat me as a friend and I had pretty much had it with them. Cold air hit my face it gripped at my clothes and under my brown, long straightened hair, trying to attack. The car park was mostly empty, I suppose people plan to get drunk and can't drive. I haven't had a glass of alcohol in my life. That further proves my unsuitablity with clubs. Climbing into my little red polo car I cranked up the volume of the radio, blasting Rihannas "bitch better have my money" through the speakers at almost full volume.

Some people come into your life at the time when you think you're meant to be part of their life. When you're having a hard time and so are they. That doesn't mean that they are the right people for you. I thought about my friends at the club and their lack of loyalty towards me. I turned up the music even more to block my thoughts. the car sputtered a little and i hit the wheel, warning it not to break down. my financial stability wasn't too good at the moment and the last time my loyal little car broke down I couldn't afford to fix her.

A large group of men run across the road in front of me. They seemed to be worried about something, or rather worried about being caught. My stomach dropped. Hoods. Black clothes. I was always told not to assume, but right now it was almost the only thing I could do. I had lived in this town for almost 5 years and knew most the alleyways like the tattoo on the back of my hand. When I first arrived here a colleague offered to show me around the town and give me some background information. I hadn't learnt much on that trip, other than all about her personal life, but I did learn that the alleyway they had scattered from was a dead end. I swerved into a nearby bus lane, my heart clawing in my chest like a lion trying to escape from its cage.

The crowd ran off into the distance, my music was still dramatically loud and I hit the dashboard randomly trying to turn it off. Grabbing my keys out the ignition and my phone from the chair beside me I crept out the car. The night seemed both darker and colder compared to the night outside of the club. I could hear a light moan of pain in the distance and my legs turned to mush. I should turn around and head back to the car. I was scared.

Spinning on my feet to head back to safety I heard a clutter down the alleyway and decided that if I was here right now, and I was going to be the only one who passed for hours, whoever, or whatever they ran from. Was made for me. Completely contradictory to my previous state of mind.

My phones torch only pierced the darkness a meter in front of me and it caused shivers to run up and down my spine as if it was a slide and the cold and fear was a small child. Led across the floor, face all red and a line of blood trailing from his nose to his chin, was a man. Probably no older than me, maybe in his early 20's. A knife had been chucked across the floor beside him. A sudden breath caught in my throat and I had to take a moment to regain my composure. I fell to my knees beside him, tracing my hand along a shallow cut on his flesh.

Flinching from my cold touch the man suddenly sat up, deep terror in his eyes, buried there like death. He took one glance at me and relaxed.

"hey" I whispered, I pulled his head down to my lap, I couldn't see how injured he was. "how did you get into this mess?" He stirred again, trying to lift his head of my lap with no success as I was adamant at holding it down.
"you're not safe ere'" he croaked, pain jumping into his speech, "you need to go, don't take me to the hospital" and at that his eyes closed again.

I gave him a shake on the shoulder and he stirred again. "Help me get you up" I spoke softly stroking his forehead. I gripped my hands under his armpits, he did his best to help me move him to a standing position. We slowly limped our way to my car, my phone between my teeth and the end of my tight dress around my upper thighs. As we made it to the thin light of the street I noticed the pale colour of his face, deciding that wasn't his natural colour I almost pushed him into the passenger seat and cautiously sprinted around the car to my side.

"no hospital, you're not safe" he repeated again and again as I drove slowly down the road to my flat. He had come around slightly since I got him in the car and a small flickering light had started in his eyes. Pulling into my usual parking space and looking across at the man, he had his hand on the door handle getting ready to climb out . I went around to help him, locking my door behind me. He was still limping and putting most of his weight on me as we made our way across the dimly lit carpark to my flat, but at least we could see where we were stepping. We climbed across the lobby and towards the elevator. The science in the elevator as it climbed the 10 stories to my apartment was comforting, and although I hardly knew this man, I felt safe with him.

As we reached the old rusty door to my apartment I hesitated, I was letting a complete stranger into my house, he could be a rapist or a vicious gang member. I looked across at him, he looked so soft. His brown hair fell around his ears and he looked well presented. He was wearing a suit. All my inner thoughts told me he was surely a good man and I fumbled for the correct key in my pocket. If I knew I was going to have a visitor I would have tidied up a bit. There was dust everywhere and a strong smell of curry still lingering from last night. I shrugged and pulled him along the flat to the bathroom.

He slumped on the toilet seat, his back bent over. He had passed out again and I figured this was the best time to clean up his cuts and bruises. Starting with an alcohol wipe I gently cleaned his deep wounds and lightly ran over his scrapes, I noticed a deep gash in his shirt and blood crusting around it. Part of me wanted to run away. I had dealt with this before but this felt different. I slowly unbuttoned his shirt and let it pool around his hips on the toilet seat. Cleaning up the wound and putting a bandage around his torso to keep it from collecting bacteria or opening up more, that's what you use them for, right? I stood back to look for more scratches and to also admire my work. I hadn't noticed it before but the man had a pretty solid body, a lot of muscles and bruises that had been there for weeks. Ink covered his skin like a black and white colouring book. My eyes connected to a set of ferns on his lower stomach, he has the same tattoo as me on my hand. I ran my finger along the leaf pressed into my skin.

I gave his sholder a poke, surprisingly his eyes opened and he waited for me to rap my hand around his waist before lifting him up and taking to my bedroom. The sheets where clean and he practically fell on them. Pulling the sheets up around his ears. "what's your name?" I questioned him.
"harry, yours?" his voice was week and I could hear him drifting off.
"andromeda, but you can call me ed or Anne"
"thank you Anne"

I observed the bruise mark on the side of his face, I worried about concussion and refused to leave the room throughout the night. I sat on the floor, pulling my dress around my knees and rocking back and forth like a seesaw. I had pulled many allnighters before.