Mercifully, he missed by a mile and it was enough to unbalance him. While he wobbled about, I stepped forward and gave him one good shove, sending him backwards, landing on his ass in the dirt. I heard a gasp behind me, but I didn’t allow my eyes to leave the guy in front of me. That was the quickest way to ensure you got your ass handed to you…something I was not about to let happen.
For a moment there was a look of complete shock on his face but it was soon replaced with pure, unadulterated anger as he fought his way back to his feet. It’s amazing how quickly you can sober up when you’re angry.
Wiping his hands across his thick thighs, he spat on the ground, sending a huge white glob landing only centimetres from my dusty boot. This guy was really starting to piss me off. “Fucking pretty boy. Thinks he can tell me what to do,” he mumbled as he came towards me again.
Throwing an unexpected right hook, he caught my shoulder, and the vibration shuddered through my body. That was all it took to break the strangle hold I had on my wavering patience. I didn’t need this shit. Not tonight. I was already tired and cranky and aching, I didn’t need this asshole making it worse. Planting my feet, I stepped towards him and threw a punch. The moment I connected with his jaw, I knew I wouldn’t need another. He wobbled and wavered before toppling to the ground with a loud thud.
Risking a look behind me, I saw the shaken woman putting her phone back in her pocket. “Derek is on his way now.”
“Derek?”
“The local cop.”
“Oh. Shit.”
I didn’t know what to think. I’d just laid out a guy I didn’t know in a parking lot. I thought I was doing the right thing, sticking up for a seemingly defenceless woman, and she’d thanked me by calling cops. Or cop. Whom she obviously knew well enough if she called him by his name and had his number on speed dial. I did not need this shit. Not tonight. And in a town this size, I was almost positive by the time I woke up in my shithole tomorrow everyone would know. They’d know the new teacher in town was trouble. A reputation I didn’t need. Yet it was exactly what would happen. God knows with my shit luck these days, it’d be what I’d get.
Dropping my head, I ran my hand through my damp hair. If only this town had a pizza delivery service, I wouldn’t be in this fucked up situation. Instead, I could be slumped in my chair, cardboard box in my lap, eyes barely open. But no, that would be asking too much. Instead I’d had to go out and endure people just to get a feed. Now I’d ended up in a fist fight. What a clusterfuck.
Taking my eyes off the slumped form, still sitting in the dirt shooting me death glares, I spotted the paddy wagon pull in next to my bike. At least the lights weren’t flashing or the siren blaring. Maybe, just maybe I could get out of this with some small hint of diplomacy.
“Jenna! Are you all right?” he asked as he made a beeline towards her, reaching out for her hand.
Curiosity got the better of me and I couldn’t take my eyes off their interaction. I hadn’t been sure they knew each other at first, but now, seeing them together, it was unmistakable.
“Derek, I’m fine,” she attempted to assure him, shrugging him off.
Seemingly satisfied with her answer, he turned and saw me for the first time. I don’t know what he saw. I couldn’t place it. There was something there. A wariness maybe. Whatever it was, I didn’t particularly like it. It was probably the leather jacket and the bike. People always assumed I was trouble because of the bike and the leather. I was just glad he couldn’t see the tattoos. Surely, if he spotted them I’d be fucked. The last thing I needed right now was to make an impression on the local cops as a troublemaker.
“Want to explain this?” he asked me pointedly, his eyes darting between me and the clown still on the ground.
“He swung first. I repaid the gesture,” I offered defiantly. I hated judgmental assholes, and Derek was proving to be one of them.
He took another step towards me, sizing me up. His jaw ticked, and I could see the annoyance there. I could have backed down. I should have. I was just too annoyed to do so. All this shit for a beer. It really wasn’t worth it.
“Derek,” the woman’s voice was soft and snapped me out of my rage-filled thoughts. “That’s not the whole story,” she offered, stealing a glance at me around her precious Derek. Part of me didn’t give a shit what she told him as long as I could get the hell out of here, but then the other part, the rational part, the part that wasn’t thinking like a Neanderthal, hoped she’d help clear my name. A bad reputation was the last thing I needed before starting work on Monday.
“Wanna fill in the rest?” Derek asked. It came out as more of a challenge and I raised my chin defiantly.
“Oh my God, you two. Stop it!” Jenna scolded. “Derek, listen to me. I was taking the trash out and Paul here…” She pointed to the guy who’d been on the ground but had now somehow managed to find his feet. “…followed me out. He asked me out and didn’t like my answer. This guy…” She pointed at me. I was the nameless fool in this situation and that realisation brought an unexpected grin to my face. “He appeared when I needed him, and helped me get through to him.”
She didn’t really say anything, but it was enough. Derek quickly caught the gist of what had happened and softened towards me. “This correct?”
“Pretty much.” I shrugged, trying to act as nonchalant as possible.
“Paul?”
“What?” he snapped.
“That true, Paul? You try and get too close to Jenna?”
“Oh shit, Derek. You know me…”
I watched as Derek’s gaze drooped and he shook his head. “Yeah, Paul, I do.” His words were laced with sadness and I had the overwhelming feeling that this wasn’t the first time Derek and Paul had had this conversation. I hoped it was the last, but I wouldn’t put money on it anytime soon. “Come on. I’ll drive you home,” Derek offered as he reached out and wrapped his fingers around Paul’s elbow, leading him towards the car.
After settling him in the backseat and slamming the door shut, Derek turned back to where Jenna and I stood, unmoving. “Jenna, take care. And if you need me…call.”
“You know I will,” she promised before shuffling inside.
For a moment Derek and I just stared at each other. It was pathetic and childish, but I wouldn’t be the first to relent. If this was a pissing contest, then I would win. “Thanks, man. Jenna’s like a mother to me. I’m glad you were there to watch out for her.”
His words nearly dropped me on my ass. It was not what I was expecting. Not at all. Unable to form words, I offered him a small nod of understanding.
“See you around…”
“Nate.”
“See you ’round, Nate.”
He climbed into the driver’s seat and fired up the engine before pulling out of the drive, sending a cloud of dust sky high. After coughing up the lungful I’d inhaled, I shook off the last twenty minutes. It was kinda hard to believe that it had only been that long, it felt like a lifetime. I needed that drink. Now more than ever.
