Untrustworthy-Chapter 11/Mark
The white knight.
I sat in Elysa's room waiting for her to get home from her job, sorting through my cards. Jacob had just reintroduced me to someone I knew from the last party when I came in that day, a big man with dark hair. He didn't seem very old, maybe a little older than Arden, but he had an etched face like the evil brother from the Goonies. Dark hair, dark eyes with thick lids and long black lashes, heck he could have stepped out of a movie.
"This is Mark." Jacob had said, and I'd murmured 'hi'. He didn't say anything, just looked at me from out under those dark lashes.
When the door opened I looked up and the greeting died on my lips as Gage entered instead of my friend. The tall blond didn't hesitate at the doorway, didn't ask for anybody like I thought he would. I stared disconcerted as he came over silently until he stood at the front of the bed.
"What?" I asked, my voice coming out harsher from nerves. His ice blue eyes stared down into mine, and his cornflower hair glinted in the room's poor light. Harsh dimples cut into the space between his jaw and his flat cheekbones, his smile scared the hell out of me.
Looking up I could see his pupils were dilated. My heart skipped and I scrambled up and backwards, but he just laughed and grabbed me. He was too fast, too strong, and I couldn't wriggle out of his grip. Too scared to do anything else, I screamed as he jumped on top of me on the bed, holding my shoulders down and pinning my legs under his. He chuckled and I gritted my teeth.
"No one can hear you, not through these walls."
His tongue pried my mouth open and filled it, and when I tried to shake my head free of his lust he clamped my head down with his hand and pushed it down into the bed. I thrilled with panic. The door opened and a few seconds later Gage's body was yanked off mine. I jerked upright in bed and through tear blurred eyes saw Gage in the grip of Arden's new man. Paying no attention to me, Mark growled in the younger man's face.
"You know what Arden will do if he finds you using in the house. If the cops come and bust us because of you, he'll make sure it's your ass that gets thrown to the fire. Stop being such a dumbass." He dragged Gage out of the room, without even a cursory glance in my direction.
For a second I sat there, dragging in ragged breaths. Then I grabbed my backpack and ran downstairs, and trying to escape out the back door ran through the kitchen. Jacob was down there making a cup of cocoa and I smacked into him.
"Woah, woah." He grabbed me, but it was a different hold than Gage's crazed one. At that moment my shaken brain identified him as a friend, and I stood in his grip trembling visibly. "What's wrong?" He asked again.
"I-I almost got raped!" I gasped. Jacob knew this was bad news if it got out, if this was the last straw and I blabbed, so he led me to a stool and was extra nice to me.
"Nothing's going to happen to you. Tell me what happened." He said in a soothing, you-can-tell-uncle-jake tone.
I told him. "Gage c-came in, a-and grabbed me, and I screamed but he wouldn't get off...no one could hear me..." I said disjointedly, calming down as Jacob handed me the cup of hot chocolate he had been making for himself.
"He kissed me," I looked into his seemingly sympathetic eyes, trying to impress on him the shock of being trapped under an older boy's weight and being completely helpless. "Mark must have been passing by...he must have heard me. He came in a-and told Gage to stop and made him leave me alone. But he didn't care about me." I added bitterly. "It was like I wasn't even there at all, he was just mad because Gage was high." For some reason I felt safe in that kitchen with Jacob. Safer even than with my mom, who didn't know what was going on and couldn't protect me from the outside world.
Jacob snorted. "Mark doesn't give a shit about that. He did that for you, stupid." I shook my head disbelievingly. "Don't you remember last night when Royal was talking about Elysa and Mark said, 'you shouldn't treat her like that.' and Royal said, 'why are you such a fucking white knight?' oh wait you weren't there neva mind. The point is Mark has a thing about women, treating them with respect and shit. Mark the chivalrous. He did that because he can't stand seeing women get hurt."
There was a movement and Mark came in. He moved passed us and I knew he had heard every word. Still, I couldn't meet his eyes when they casually swept passed the two of us, I looked down at the floor as he left through the side door.
"Everyone makes fun of him for it." Jacob said once he was gone. "Usually not to his face."
"But Mark beats people up."
"He has to. Arden's got a hold on him like he has on all of us. He actually met him in jail, and I think he has something big over his head. Otherwise Mark wouldn't be here. He's just not that kind of guy. He's on parole right now, but he has to do what Arden says. Don't mind Gage. Coke makes you do stupid things sometimes. It ramps up your sex drive."
I had calmed down somewhat. Even though Gage was still in the house I felt okay with Jacob there. "Do you do it?"
"Sure. Not in the house of course. My brother ain't up for that." Jacob was so sure Arden had me under his control that he didn't mind telling me stuff that would land him in jail. "Yeah I guess I'm addicted." He shrugged, "Who here isn't? And even if it's not drugs, everyone's addicted to something right?"
"Arden? Is he a user?"
"Sometimes, not really. He's got an addiction just like everyone else though." I didn't ask what drug it was. Jacob was looking at me through those hooded blue eyes, Arden's eyes.
"This is Mark." Jacob had said, and I'd murmured 'hi'. He didn't say anything, just looked at me from out under those dark lashes.
When the door opened I looked up and the greeting died on my lips as Gage entered instead of my friend. The tall blond didn't hesitate at the doorway, didn't ask for anybody like I thought he would. I stared disconcerted as he came over silently until he stood at the front of the bed.
"What?" I asked, my voice coming out harsher from nerves. His ice blue eyes stared down into mine, and his cornflower hair glinted in the room's poor light. Harsh dimples cut into the space between his jaw and his flat cheekbones, his smile scared the hell out of me.
Looking up I could see his pupils were dilated. My heart skipped and I scrambled up and backwards, but he just laughed and grabbed me. He was too fast, too strong, and I couldn't wriggle out of his grip. Too scared to do anything else, I screamed as he jumped on top of me on the bed, holding my shoulders down and pinning my legs under his. He chuckled and I gritted my teeth.
"No one can hear you, not through these walls."
His tongue pried my mouth open and filled it, and when I tried to shake my head free of his lust he clamped my head down with his hand and pushed it down into the bed. I thrilled with panic. The door opened and a few seconds later Gage's body was yanked off mine. I jerked upright in bed and through tear blurred eyes saw Gage in the grip of Arden's new man. Paying no attention to me, Mark growled in the younger man's face.
"You know what Arden will do if he finds you using in the house. If the cops come and bust us because of you, he'll make sure it's your ass that gets thrown to the fire. Stop being such a dumbass." He dragged Gage out of the room, without even a cursory glance in my direction.
For a second I sat there, dragging in ragged breaths. Then I grabbed my backpack and ran downstairs, and trying to escape out the back door ran through the kitchen. Jacob was down there making a cup of cocoa and I smacked into him.
"Woah, woah." He grabbed me, but it was a different hold than Gage's crazed one. At that moment my shaken brain identified him as a friend, and I stood in his grip trembling visibly. "What's wrong?" He asked again.
"I-I almost got raped!" I gasped. Jacob knew this was bad news if it got out, if this was the last straw and I blabbed, so he led me to a stool and was extra nice to me.
"Nothing's going to happen to you. Tell me what happened." He said in a soothing, you-can-tell-uncle-jake tone.
I told him. "Gage c-came in, a-and grabbed me, and I screamed but he wouldn't get off...no one could hear me..." I said disjointedly, calming down as Jacob handed me the cup of hot chocolate he had been making for himself.
"He kissed me," I looked into his seemingly sympathetic eyes, trying to impress on him the shock of being trapped under an older boy's weight and being completely helpless. "Mark must have been passing by...he must have heard me. He came in a-and told Gage to stop and made him leave me alone. But he didn't care about me." I added bitterly. "It was like I wasn't even there at all, he was just mad because Gage was high." For some reason I felt safe in that kitchen with Jacob. Safer even than with my mom, who didn't know what was going on and couldn't protect me from the outside world.
Jacob snorted. "Mark doesn't give a shit about that. He did that for you, stupid." I shook my head disbelievingly. "Don't you remember last night when Royal was talking about Elysa and Mark said, 'you shouldn't treat her like that.' and Royal said, 'why are you such a fucking white knight?' oh wait you weren't there neva mind. The point is Mark has a thing about women, treating them with respect and shit. Mark the chivalrous. He did that because he can't stand seeing women get hurt."
There was a movement and Mark came in. He moved passed us and I knew he had heard every word. Still, I couldn't meet his eyes when they casually swept passed the two of us, I looked down at the floor as he left through the side door.
"Everyone makes fun of him for it." Jacob said once he was gone. "Usually not to his face."
"But Mark beats people up."
"He has to. Arden's got a hold on him like he has on all of us. He actually met him in jail, and I think he has something big over his head. Otherwise Mark wouldn't be here. He's just not that kind of guy. He's on parole right now, but he has to do what Arden says. Don't mind Gage. Coke makes you do stupid things sometimes. It ramps up your sex drive."
I had calmed down somewhat. Even though Gage was still in the house I felt okay with Jacob there. "Do you do it?"
"Sure. Not in the house of course. My brother ain't up for that." Jacob was so sure Arden had me under his control that he didn't mind telling me stuff that would land him in jail. "Yeah I guess I'm addicted." He shrugged, "Who here isn't? And even if it's not drugs, everyone's addicted to something right?"
"Arden? Is he a user?"
"Sometimes, not really. He's got an addiction just like everyone else though." I didn't ask what drug it was. Jacob was looking at me through those hooded blue eyes, Arden's eyes.
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