My eyes clamp shut, and JJ tenses at the same time I do.
“Leave me alone, Ben,” I spit. “I’m not having this conversation with you.”
JJ’s eyes almost bulge out of his head as he looks down at me. “This is Ben?”
I nod wordlessly.
JJ’s hand swipes across his jaw as he tucks me behind him and steps towards Ben. “I suggest you get the hell out of here and never come near Ivy again. Do you fucking understand me?”
Ben flinches but then laughs. “Who the fuck are you?”
“Her boyfriend,” he grumbles. “And you’re about to be in a casket if you don’t leave her alone. You’ve broken your restraining order, you can go back to prison for this, and you know what? I’m fucking glad about it.”
“I ain’t going back to prison.” He rolls his eyes as if it’s the most ludicrous thing he’s ever heard. God, he’s more delusional than I remember. “I didn’t even touch you.”
My jaw clenches. “You don’t need to touch me to break it.”
JJ steps towards him, fists clenched. I tug on his arm, desperately needing him not to fuck this up for me. “Please, let’s just go.”
“You come near her again,” JJ threatens. “And you’ll fucking regret it.”
Ben laughs, and the sound irks me. I won’t let him win. I won’t let him bring me down for a second more.
“Are you okay?” JJ asks as he checks over his shoulder to make sure we’re not being followed.
Our eyes meet, and I flash him a wobbly smile. “I didn’t think he was going to do anything, but there is always this little thought in the back of my mind that he might. He did it once before, he can do it again.”
“I won’t let him hurt you,” JJ says adamantly.
“I know.”
JJ practically vibrates as we walk home, neither of us says anything more, and I’m not sure what there is to say. He doesn’t remove his hand from mine; he holds me tight. I know he’d protect me in a heartbeat.
When we reach my front door, I slump against it. “We should call the police, or your old case handler, or someone, so we can get the CCTV from the shop and send it off.” JJ drops my hand to brush a few strands of hair from my face. “He can’t be breaking his restraining order and getting away with it. It’s not fair, Ivy. I’ll end up killing the man if he tries to talk to you again.”
My throat tenses at the thought. From the venom in his eyes, it looks like he’s being deadly serious.
“Okay,” I whisper.
The second we step into the house, I’m greeted by my parents. We tell them what happened with Ben on the beachfront, and soon the police are over to take my statement, along with JJ’s.
My dad has been pacing with fury, telling the officers that this is unacceptable and that my safety comes first. JJ is right beside him, agreeing that it’s not fair that I’m the one to suffer from it.
I wish I could lose this chapter of my life and move on, but little things always have to draw me back.
My mother pulls me into a hug. “I knew this was going to happen,” I murmur. “It’s a small town. His parents still live here.”
“Doesn’t mean you have to live with it, honey,” my mum mumbles into my hair before pulling away. “Are you okay?”
I tremble at the thought of how it could have ended, but JJ was there. He never fails to make me feel safe.
“Just a bit shaken up from it,” I admit, my hand trembling.
“Do you want some dinner?” my father offers, now somewhat calmer.
“Not hungry,” I admit. “Gonna take a bath instead.”
“Okay, we’re here if you need anything. Alright?”
