"You stupid slut!" he yelled at her, knocking his fist into the wall before turning his eyes back to glare at her. "I wasn't enough for you? You just had to go and drop your pants for some other guy..didn't you?"
When she didn't answer him, he walked over and yanked on her long aburn hair until she yelled in pain. "I didn't do anything," she sobbed as the pain in her head intensified.
He released the grip he had on her before snickering. "The only thing that you did was sleep around on me. Let me tell you something..you don't do that shit to me...Riley Burns! I won't put up with it, you little whore," he seethed at her. His hand rared back and came in contact with her jaw, and she cried out in pain. He didn't apologize, only laughed at her as he watched her sit there, shaking and crying. "You deserve that, Em. Let me tell you something..the next time, I might not take your actions so lightly," he told her before grabbing his keys and walking out the door.
Once she heard the door shut, she cried out all of her fear and anger. How dare he treat her the way that he did, when she hadn't done anything but have lunch with a friend. Standing up on her shaky legs, she stood up and walked over to the mirror that was in her living room. She could already see a dark spot forming on her cheek where his hand had contacted her skin. She touched the spot and winced when a throbbing shot through her face.
Grabbing her make-up compact off the table, she applied some in hopes of covering the bruise. After covering it as much as she could, she grabbed her waitress uniform and headed out the door to work, the one place where she could escape him. On the way to the small diner where she worked, she thought of a way to get away from him. She knew that if she left, he'd find her, and the consequences would cause her so much physcial pain that she didn't know if she'd be able to survive.
But she knew she couldn't stay with him any longer. She had hoped that this was all a phase that he was going through since in the beginning of their "relationship", he had been sweet and had never raised his voice at her. As she turned onto the small street that was a few miles from work, she snickered as she thought about how he had changed. Wanting to push all thoughts of him from her brain, she turned on the radio and smiled as she heard the song that was on. "Bye bye bye," she said outloud.
How was it so easy just to up and leave someone? The artists on the radio sung about unreal situations that faced the world today, and she found no way to relate to their music. She pulled the key out of the ignition, and pulled her long hair back into a sloppy bun before getting out and walking to the small door. The familar sound of the bell ringing as she opened the door greeted her, as well as looks from the other people that happened to be in the small restaurant.
She walked behind the counter and smiled at Whitney and Stephanie, her co-workers. Whitney's eyes immediately flew to the spot on her face, and her eyes narrowed. "I told you the next time he hit you I would kill his ass," she whispered to her. "You're staying with me tonight hun..I'm not sending you back to that house so he can get angry and punch on you some more."
"Thanks, Whit," Emily said, before picking up a pen and walking to take an order. Whitney turned to Stephanie as they waited for their orders to come up. "I don't understand men," she told her.
Stephanie shook her head. "I don't either. They are sick if they find women as a punching bag. I just won't ever understand it," she said before shrugging. "I know she's scared to leave him, but that would be the best way."
"I've never been in her situation, so I couldn't tell you how much she's going through. That's something I honestly would rather not go through," she said, looking up as the bells rang out through the packed place. Since it was a small town, there wasn't all that much in there, except for a few major fast food chains, but for "home cooked" food, they usually came to the diner. Whitney's eyes took in five guys that were looking around for a place to sit. She smiled evily at Stephanie before grabbing her pen out. "These guys are mine."
Stephanie looked over at Emily and rolled her eyes as they both watched Whitney walk out from behind the counter and saunter over to the table which the guys were sitting at. "Hi," she told them all, looking around to see what she was waiting on. One guy had short black hair, and looked to be the oldest, the guy sitting next to him had blond hair with a beard. On the other side of the booth, the one closet to her had curly hair and captivating baby blue eyes, while the guy next to him haid spiky blond hair and green eyes. The guy that was on the end wasn't looking at her, so she had no clue as to what his eyes looked like, but she thought all of them looked familar. She just chalked it up to her hoping something exciting would actually happen to her small town. "What can I get you guys today?" she asked them sweetly.
The curly haired one smiled at her before answering. "I'll have a double cheeseburger, everything on it, an order of fries and sweet tea..I don't suppose I could get your number to go along with that, could I?" he flirted with her.
She just chuckled at him before turning her attention to the rest of them. She wrote down the orders that were thrown to her, except the guy that she couldn't see because he was still staring out the window. Since no one else was talking, the spiky blond nudged him, bringing his attention back to the situation at hand. "Oh..sorry. Just get me a bowl of rice and a bottle of water," he told her, not even looking at her. She wrote it down, before smiling brightly at the one that had flirted with her. "I'll be back with your drinks shortly," she said before walking away to join the other two girls behind the counter.
She nudged Emily as she walked by her, and looked over in their direction. "Now that's what I'm talking about."
Emily looked over at the booth, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw him looking at her. His soft blue eyes and dark hair were unlike anything she had ever seen before. He smiled weakly before turning his attention back to whatever he was looking at that was outside the window. "Em?" Whitney asked her friend who was starring off into space.
Emily shook her head and came back to reality. Before she could respond, Stephanie's voice cut her off. "Em..you're orders up sweetie."
Emily nodded her head and grabbed the plate of food, walking back towards the end of the building. On her way back there, she had to pass the booth where they were sitting. She kept her eyes directly in front of her, so that she wouldn't have to look at them as she passed.
Meanwhile, Stephanie looked at the guy with spiky hair and let out a soft whistle. "Now that's what I call YUMMY," she told Whitney, leaning up against the counter.
Whitney, who was in the process of fixing their drinks laughed. "I admit, he's rather nice, but that guy with curly hair is more of my type...flirty and gorgeous..I think we have a winner folks."
Stephanie broke into a fit of laughter before turning her attention back to the cook that was yelling at her. After Whitney had gotten all the drinks fixed, she walked back over to the booth and smiled sweetly at them all. "Here ya guys go. It shouldn't be much longer and you're food will be done."
Justin watched as the waitress walked away from the table, and he couldn't stop from grinning at the guys. "I have some magic working to do," he told them simply before sliding out of the booth and walking up to the counter where she was leaning up.
"I swear that boy has raging hormones 24 hours a day!" Chris said, causing them all to laugh except JC. They all understood what he was going through because at some point in their life, they had ended a relationship on bad terms, just like he had done a few days ago.
Emily was fixing to make it past the booth when a voice stopped her. "Miss..could you do me a favor?" a guy with spiky hair asked her.
She forced a smile and nodded her head. "What would that be?"
"Could you tell my friend up at the counter to stop harrasing your friend and send him back to the table?"
She laughed before nodding her head. She walked away but stopped dead in her tracks when the door opened to reveal Riley standing there smiling at her. "Hey baby," he said, reaching for her. She jumped back and continued on her way towards the counter. She leaned up against Whitney for support, telling herself that she wouldn't break down in public. "What is he doing here?" she asked.
Whitney narrowed her eyes and cast a look of disgust in his direction. "I don't know but do you want me to make him leave?"
"No..I'll make him leave. Cover my tables," she told her before untying her apron and walking over to him. Stephanie walked over to Whitney before sighing. "I wish she'd leave his ass," she mumbled, keeping an eye on the two of them leaving.
"I'm severly confused," Justin stated.
Whitney didn't say anything but just smiled. Her eyes were glued on the girl that she had grown up with. All three of them had been close since there wasn't that many people in their town. They felt like sisters towards each other, and since Emily was the youngest, they both stood up for her. "I swear he better not lay a hand on her..." she mumbled.
"So he's the one responsible for the bruise on her cheek?" Justin asked, feeling anger boiling through him. He had been brought up that anger was not to be taken out on a woman, no matter what had happened. Whitney nodded her head and noticed how he tensed up. "That's sick and wrong. That guy should be taught a lesson," Justin seethed.
Whitney touched his hand and his eyes jerked up to hers. "Calm down, Justin. I just can't believe Riley turned out like that. I remember the little blond haired thing running around my grandmother's yard acting like a normal person..look what happened to him."
Meanwhile, JC continued to stare out the window, and saw her again. She was standing outside under the gray sky with a guy that didn't look to happy with her. His eyes looked over her features, and his gaze came to rest on her face, where he could see a light bruise present. He could already tell where that had came from, and he kept his gaze on her just incase something happened. No woman deserved to treated like the way some men treated them. He couldn't understand why some men couldn't see what a gift a woman was. If it wasn't for them, they couldn't survive on this earth. A woman held the society together, and he wished he could make other men understand that.
The two of them seemed to be arguing and he could tell she was fighting with her emotions because her face was wrinkling up. It reminded him so much of Wendy... the girl that he thought he would be with from now til the day he died, but evidently she had other plans. The other night when she had told him that she couldn't handle the pressure of him not being there had broken his heart. She didn't want to fight for the good thing they had, and it had broke his heart so hard that he had winced in pain.
He pushed his thoughts of her out of his mind, and concentrated on the things in front of him. His eyes narrowed in interest as he watched the guy stomp off and as she cried and sat down in the parking lot. JC was a guy that naturally cared, so he pushed on Lance and slid out of the booth. He walked slowly out the door and stopped a few steps in front of her. "Are you ok?" he asked softly.
She looked up at him, and shook her head no. He walked over to her and squated down beside her. "He's such a jerk," she whispered to the stranger in front of her.
"I'm JC..you can call me that or you can call me Josh," he said, extending her his hand so that he could pull her up. She took it and allowed him to help pull her up. "I'm Emily."
"Do you want to head back to my hotel room and get cleaned up? I'll bring you right back, I promise," he said holding his hands up to show that his intentions were true.
She smiled gratefully. "That sounds like a really nice offer," she said, leaning into his embrace as they walked across the street to the only hotel that was in their town. "What exactly are you doing in this pathetic town?" she asked him as he opened the door for her.
As they walked into the small, simple hotel room he sighed. "Our bus is broken down and it might take a few days to fix, and we ended up here...so we're stuck here probably until Friday."
She chuckled and walked into the small bathroom. "Do you mind if I take a quick shower? I really think it would help me out right now."
He shook his head and relaxed out on the bed before flipping on the tv. "Go ahead..you can do whatever you want."
The door shut and JC sighed. This world was so screwed up, and at times, he wondered what humans were really doing on earth. All they did was fight and take things to extreme, what kind of life was that?
Chris snaked his tongue out and licked whatever it was away. "Sorry, MOM."
"Damn straight," Justin said, placing his napkin on the table one last time. "Man that was the best burger I've had in a while."
"I have to agree..I'm stuffed," Joey said groaning slightly.
"Did I just hear you correctly..Joey..and stuffed don't go together," Lance said.
Joey flipped Lance off setting the table into laughter. Whitney walked over to them and placed their check on the table. "If you want desert..let me know," she said, preparing to walk off before Justin's hand stopped her. "What do you have for desert?"
Chris groaned. "Here we go..another cheesy line."
Justin ignored him and continued to look at her with shinning eyes. "Well lets see..there is pie, ice cream, strawberry cake, and stuff like that," she told him, getting herself prepared for his next line.
"How much does a piece of you cost?" he asked her before grinning evily.
She started laughing. "Oh come on..surely you can do better than that. I'm let down," she said before walking away.
Joey threw some money down on the table to cover the bill and he looked at the other guys. "Are you ready to go?"
They all nodded their heads and headed for the door. They waved goodbye to the two girls that were left, since Emily still hadn't returned. "Damn I hope they come back," Stephanie said, making her way over to clear the table. The majority of the people had begun to clear out since the rush was now over.
"I have to agree with you there," Whitney said coming over to help. She looked out the window and saw Justin motioning for her to come outside. "I'll be damned," she said before walking out the door. She came to stand in front of him and immediately noticed his sly smile that was playing on his face. "What did you do?" she asked him, cocking her hip to the side.
He shrugged. "What makes you think I did something?"
She rolled her eyes before he laughed and held his hands up. "I forgot to leave a tip..so here ya go," he said, extending his hand to her. She reached up and felt money along with a wrinkled piece of paper. He winked at her before jogging across the street to catch up with the other guys. She looked at the piece of paper, and decided to read it inside the restuarant. As she walked back up to Stephanie, who was clearing the last table from the lunch rush, she held up the thin piece of paper. "I got a tip."
"How original," she smirked.
Whitney unfolded the piece of paper. "Here's you're tip.. meet me tonight in front of the hotel at 7:30 and I'll show you how to have fun in a small town. Justin," she read outloud.
"Well the boy is a ball of hormones," a voice behind the two girls said. They turned around to see the guy from earlier today and Emily standing beside him. Emily smiled slightly at the two girls who were standing there giving her a look of curiosity. JC could easily see that the two girls were practically dying to start asking questions, so he turned to Emily. "I'm gonna get going back to the hotel before the guys start getting worried about where I am. I'll see ya around," he told her before pushing the door open and chimming the bell in the now silent building.
Emily started to walk past Stephanie, but she caught her arm and dragged her over to a booth, pushing her down so that she would sit. "I want details about where you went."
Emily rolled her eyes and started to stand up, but Stephanie meant business so she sighed giving up the fight. "He let me go back to his hotel room so I could take a shower and freshen up after Riley came by. That's ALL that happened. We talked for a few minutes and then came directly back here. His name is JC..that's all that I know."
Whitney spoke up. "Do you happen to know how long they are in this town?"
She nodded her head. "Their bus broke down, so for a few days..why?"
Whitney walked away and sat down on one of the stools that was placed along the counter. "No reason..what time do we close tonight?"
Emily narrowed her eyes. "I want some details..something happened."
"Yes something did happen to her," Stephanie informed Emily. "The curly-haired hottie and her worked together and now have a date..you get to walk out of here with that hottie with mysterious eyes and me..what do I get? NOTHING!" she cried, throwing her hands up in the air, before bringing them down and shaking her head. "I don't understand why I put up with this. Next time a table full of guys comes in..they are mine," she said, before playfully stomping into the back.
"What exactly happened with you and Justin?"
"How do you know his name?" Whitney asked, spinning around on the stool.
"I spent almost an hour with JC his bandmate..I should know this. Besides..you already know them. Does the name Nsync ring a bell?"
Whitney's eyes lite up with excitement. "I knew he looked familar! Now what time do we close? At 7:30 I have to meet him in front of the hotel..oh shit..never mind. You're coming home with me and I wouldn't dare leave you there alone in case Riley came by looking for you."
"I'll be fine, Whit. Don't worry about me..I can take care of myself."
Whitney pushed off the stool and squatted down in front of her best friend since the day she had started kindergarten. "Sweetie, listen to me. You're not that strong of a girl, not saying you're a wimp..but Riley has an advantage over you, and we both know how strong his temper is. I'm not leaving you alone. No guy is worth over spending time with a friend. I'm staying home tonight with you and I'm sure he'll understand."
"You know, she could stay with me," Stephanie interrupted from her place, where she was perched on the counter. "In fact..that's whats gonna happen. Since I'm not gonna be gettin any action, you can go out and fill us in tomorrow..infact since I'm in the greatest mood, I'll even cover for you so you can leave early and get ready."
Whitney jumped up and hugged her friend. "Thank you so much, Steph. I have a feeling this is going to be a night that will stick in my mind for a while. But listen to me, Emily," she began, turning serious. "If his ass comes within 100 feet of you, call me and he'll be dead in an instant. I'd go to jail for you and you know it."
"I know it girl," she said, moving to hug her friend. Stephanie soon joined in and the girls went through a quick spirtual healing before breaking apart from each other as the bell rang out. "Hi Mr. Phillips," Emily said, moving to take his order.
Emily's thoughts were ragging around in her head as to what she could do to escape this hell. The only thing that she knew for sure was she wouldn't be able to survive the physcial and emotional damage that Riley was inflicting on her if it wasn't for her friends. They gave her enough support to hold her head up high and show the world that she was strong. With knowing that their love and support was behind her, she could overcome the obstacle that life was passing her, no matter how hopless the situation seemed.