“Tek!” I shout. His eyes stare, but he doesn’t see me. He’s completely gone.
I try again. "Tek! Oppa! Stop!" but there’s no pause, no recognition, and he pushes me so hard I crash into the open car door.
I lunge after him, catching him in a bearhug from behind; locking my forearms above his elbows before he can land another hit.
“He didn’t hit me,” I yell in his ear. “I’m fine. Just look at me.”
He doesn’t hear me, his body vibrating with every breath.
He throws his weight forward again, nearly bucking me loose, but I hold on, squeezing until his shoulders fold in. He twists, wild-eyed in my grip. There’s zero logic in him right now. No Tek at all. Just a wild, rabid animal.
"Tek, it’s Carey." I try again, my voice cracking, "Look at me. You have to look at me. You’re scaring the shit out of everyone."
Shawn screams again, “He’s gonna kill him!” And I want to tell her to shut the fuck up, piss off, be anywhere else right now, but I can’t drop my focus for even a second.
I manage to back Tek up a few steps, then push in front of him, blocking his line of sight to the driver. He tries to barge past and I force him against the back door. With all my strength I hold him with one hand and slap him hard with the other. But he still doesn’t see me. I do it again, his neck cracking as his head flies to the side.
As though he’s moving in slow motion, he turns to me, blinking.
There’s a flicker of confusion.
I plant my hands on his cheeks. “Are you back with me?” I ask, not caring who hears or sees. “It’s over. Nobody got hit. I’m fine, Tek. You didn’t lose me, okay?”
He grabs my biceps, rough, but not to hurt me, more testing to see if I’m real.
“You’re okay,” he whispers, like it’s a fact he still isn’t sure if he believes.
I nod, and take one of his hands to place over my heart so he can feel it hammering away. “See? It’s beating. I’m alive.”
Tek closes his eyes and breathes in deeply. When he opens them again, I can see that he's back with me fully. But then he pushes me aside. “Tek,” I call out to him. But he doesn’t look back. His mission has changed from kill, to run away.
I go to follow him but the driver starts complaining.
I spin back; “Get the fuck out of here,” I curse as he pulls him self up. “You’re lucky you didn’t kill anyone, so I’d count my blessings and keep your mouth shut.”
Movement across the street catches my attention, and I watch for a second as Liv and the old guy from Watersons’ help the woman inside the shop. She’s safe, now I can get back to Tek.
I run inside Teken Ink and am instantly met with Shawn. “He’s fucking crazy,” she barks at me, like I have anything to do with his behavior. But… I guess I do. I guess I’m the cause of it. He snapped because he thought he lost me too.
“He’s not crazy,” I snap back at her, “He’s just—” But I can’t finish the thought because as I scan the shop I don't see him anywhere.
I sprint to the back room and find him rummaging through his locker.
A second later he has his truck keys in his hand.
“Where are you going?” I ask, but he just stares blankly past me, his jaw clenched so tight I can see the veins in his neck. “Don’t you dare run away.”
His eyes meet mine for a flash, then they’re gone.
He tries to get past me but I grab his hand that’s holding the keys. “You’re not driving.”
He shoves me, but I step straight back forward and slap him a third time.
“Don’t fucking do this,” I growl, my finger in his face. “You don’t get to lose control like that then run away from me.”
Tek stares at my finger, his shoulders wide. But he’s forgetting his intimidation doesn’t work on me.
“Anywhere you run, I’m going to follow.”
