Conrad
I had arrived a little early to pick Maya up from work. I glance around, and my eyes fall on a familiar face. Callum! He is across the road, his eyes glued to the office building. He has been texting and calling Maya from multiple numbers over the last couple of days. She is struggling to keep it together, but she is trying so hard.
It is time for me to deal with him. He can’t see me from where he is. I climb out of the car and close the door quietly behind me so he doesn’t hear it. I check the traffic and rush across the road, coming up behind him.
“Callum,” I hiss.
He jumped and tried to start walking away, but he wasn’t getting away from me easily again. I grabbed him to stop him from going anywhere. He flung himself around to face me, an angry look on his face.
“You have two seconds to get your fucking hands off me.” he hisses.
“Or what, you piece of shit? I am not scared of you.” I snarl.
“You should be. Now, leave me the hell alone.”
“No, you will stay the fuck away from Maya.”
“Or what? What are you going to do about it?” he laughs.
I let go of him and stepped into him, “Or I will make you regret ever coming around here.”
“Listen to me, rich boy, what I do or don’t do is none of your fucking business. Maya is mine. She will always be mine. She will come crawling back like she always does. She is too co-dependent and weak to survive on her own, survive without me. So how about you walk away because I am not going anywhere.”
He sounds so confident in his words. He believes everyone he is saying. Standing this close to him, looking him dead in the eyes, he looks evil. You can tell straightaway with some people, and he is one. I think he expects me to back down and be scared of him. I am not.
I grab his hoodie just below his throat, “No, she won’t. She is with me now. And while I am around, you will never get near her again. I am the one taking care of her, protecting her, and that is something you should fear because when it comes to protecting the people I care for, I have no limits. And she doesn’t need you. She is not weak or co-dependant; she is strong, more than you know. If I ever see you again, I will not be held responsible for my actions, you bastard.” I warn.
I watch his confidence fade quickly. He wasn’t so tough now. I let him go before I end up choking the bastard.
“You as much as even text her, you should run because I will find you. I will come for you when you least expect it. I will fucking ruin you and your entire life. Maya is done with you, and you won’t ever have the chance to hurt her again.” I hiss.
Callum backs away from me. Just when I think he is going to walk away, he proves me wrong. I see his arm lift and swing towards me. He didn’t get a chance to hit me, though, because my fist connected with his jaw hard before he could, and he fell backwards onto the ground.
“Stay the fuck away, you pathetic excuse of a human being.” I spit.
A part of me wants to beat the hell out of him, but I know that won’t solve anything. It wouldn’t make Maya feel at ease; it would probably scare her.
“You are going to regret that,” he growls.
“Stay the fuck away, Callum.”
I ignore the aching in my hand and head back across the road. I see her come out of the building as I do. I want to get her out of here before she sees Callum. I will tell her what happened, but once we are away from here.
She glances around, and her eyes fall on me. She smiles and comes rushing over.
“Hey, beautiful.” I smile.
“Hello, handsome.” She coos.
We quickly climb into my car before anyone can see us. I drive away the second the road is clear. I notice Callum across the street, back on his feet. He was leaning against a wall, rubbing his jaw. Serves him right the fucker. Thankfully, Maya doesn’t notice him.
“How has your day been?” I ask and rest my hand on her knee.
“Busy. Callum texted me a couple of times. I ignored them, deleted them and blocked the number. How has your day been?”
“I have been busy too. Are you hungry? We could stop for a bite to eat.” I suggest.
“I could eat a little something. Oh, maybe a cheeseburger and curly fries.”
“Whatever you want, sweetheart. We can stop at the diner on the way to mine.” I smile.
“Yay.” She celebrates.
I smile at her excitement. I concentrate on the road. It doesn’t take long to arrive at the diner and head inside, finding a booth. Maya is set on what she wants. I wasn’t sure. I pick the menu up to decide.
“Conrad, what happened to her hand? Why is it so red and looks swollen?” Maya asks concerned.
Shit, I forgot about it for a moment. I was going to wait and tell when we arrived back at mine. I sigh and put the menu down.
“Callum was outside when I arrived. He didn’t notice me, so I sneaked up behind him so he couldn’t run. I gave him a warning to stay away. I didn’t plan on hitting him, but he swung first, so I swung back before he had a chance to hit me.” I say softly.
“Why can’t he leave me alone?” she whimpers, “And now, you are hurt because of it.”
I reach across the table and take her hand in mine, “I am fine, angel. And don’t worry about him; he shouldn’t come around anymore.”
I lift her hand to my lips and kiss her knuckles.
“I am sorry, Conrad. You didn’t sign up for any of this.” She sighs and runs her fingers through her hair.
“Maya, you are my girlfriend; it is my job to take care of you and protect you. Your past is part of you, but it isn’t who you are. I am not going to run away because you have been through so much. So, please, don’t ever apologise.” I say softly and reach over to kiss her softly.
“Girlfriend?” she asks softly.
“Yes, is that not what we agreed on?”
She nods, “But it is the first time you have called me it.” she smiles.
“Oh, so it is. Is that okay?” I ask.
Maya smiles brightly at me, “It is more than okay.”
I move from my side of the booth and go around to slide in next to her. I kiss her softly. When we part, she takes my hand in hers, caressing and kissing it.
“Does it hurt?” she whispers.
“A little, but it will be okay. It will ease quickly. Don’t you worry about it, beautiful.”
She sighs and nods. I know she will worry. I wish I could take away all her worries and fears, but I can’t. All I can do is be there for her the best I can and help her through it.