FlyAway *23*

-23-

    Chris slammed the door of Zach’s little Sprint car and walked across the street to the darkened park, pulling down the hem of the dark hoodie she had thrown on before leaving Aaron’s hotel room. Just as he’d said, Matt was sitting at a bench under a thick, tall pine tree in a secluded corner of the playground.
    “What do I have to do to get you the hell out of my life, Matt?” she snapped, stopping a few feet from him with a fierce glare.
    “What makes you think I’m willing to leave you alone?” His wicked, pearly white grin caused her to scowl darkly.
    “Look. I don’t like you. I hate you, as a matter of fact. I’m only here because I figure that if you decide to pull a fast one on me, I get the opportunity to burn your fuckin’ eyes out with this can of Mace here.” She pulled her hand out of her pocket and was pleased to see his eyes widen slightly at the sight of the little canister she was gripping tightly, ready to spray at any time. “Now, either you tell me why else I came here, or you leave this city with a seeing eye dog.”
    He was shocked for a moment, but then his clear, ringing laughter echoed through the park. “Chris, you crack me up.” Matt stood and took a deep, cleansing breath of air. His caramel eyes found hers, and he smiled. “I just want what any man wants. I want to get the girl in the end.”
    “What makes you think that the girl wants to be with the villain?” she asked, shaking her head.
    “The villain happens to be a prince who can take good care of her and her family for the rest of their lives. The supposed hero is a criminal who couldn’t support her even if he tried. Now, Chris, I’m not saying that you should love me because I have money… I just think you should consider your future. You want to be a psychiatrist. You’ll need a way to open your practice. Some funds. A way to support your children if that goes south.”
    “Aaron and I love each other, Matthew. Even if I thought he couldn’t take care of me, it wouldn’t matter. I would be with him if he was still living on the street. It’s not about the money! And even if it was, Aaron is a Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. He has a six figure annual salary. I won’t ever have to worry about a thing.”
    “Your parents would never let you marry him.”
    “Then we’ll elope. I don’t need their approval. They’re close-minded and naïve. They still think you’re innocent and perfect, don’t they? Doesn’t that tell you something?”
    “It tells me that they know what kind of life they want for their daughter, regardless of what they have to deny to themselves to make it seem okay. They love you and they know what’s best for you.”
    “No. They know what’s best for them. It’s about reputation with them. They don’t care about me or what I want or how I feel or what would be best for me. If they cared about that then they’d have believed me when I told them that you raped me.”
    “Chris, that was all a misunderstanding. If I hadn’t done that, you’d have ended up with Dawson. You’d still be in Jersey. You’d still only be, what, a freshman in college? And a bad college, at that. Dawson would be working a dead-end job that he hated. You’d still be working in that stupid bookshop. Your parents wouldn’t be together right now. Did you know that?” He laughed at her startled expression. “They were considering a divorce because they didn’t love each other anymore. Then the whole Aaron scare happened, and… well, they’re still happily married now. Face it, Chris; if I hadn’t stepped in…”
    “So, what, I’m supposed to thank you for raping me? Fuck you.” She shook her head. “They never would have found out about Aaron if it weren’t for you. I’d be happy.”
    “They’d have found out. Kyle was going to show them this.” He pulled something out of his pocket; it was a small, black leather journal with faded silver lettering on the front. It read FlyAway.
    “The journal! Where did you get that?!”
    “I took it from him so he wouldn’t ruin everything. You told Dawson some pretty interesting things, didn’t you? I never knew you were afraid of open water, or that you knew French. You never took that subject in school.” She gaped at him, and a small smile spread across his mouth. “You don’t want your parents to know any of the things you two said to each other. You want me to keep all of this, and your very real relationship with Aaron Dawson, a secret, don’t you?”
    “Yes,” she whispered. If they found out, they’d call the police. Aaron would go to military prison. Kye would go into foster care. She couldn’t let that happen.
    “Then tell your parents that you broke up with your fake boyfriend. That Zach kid is a good actor, but I could tell the truth. You’re going to go back to Jersey with me for the summer. I only want you now as a… a prize, of sorts, Chris. I loved you, once. And damn, you broke my heart. So you’re going to be my happy, loving girlfriend for a summer. Or your boy goes to jail for violating his probation.”
    Kye would be all alone. It would crush Aaron, but she could see no way out. “Alright, Matt. But you have to give me the book.”
    “I’ll give you the book when we get to Jersey.”
    “No. You give me the book before that.”
    “Do you want me to take it to your parents? This is not a negotiation, Crystal!”
    “Don’t call me that! You have no right.”
    “I have every right and I will call you whatever I damn well please!”
    She slapped him as hard as she could and made a grab for the book. Her fingers closed around the binding and she took off running, her feet pounding on the grassy ground. She lost her Mace back where Matt was hopefully still recovering. Chris’ heart was thumping wildly in her chest, and she could feel the adrenaline thundering through her veins. She clasped the book tightly, praying that he didn’t catch her and that the shock was keeping him in place.
    Unfortunately, Matt’s recovery was quicker than she had anticipated, and he kept himself in shape for college football. It only took him a few seconds to catch her and yank her backwards by the hair. A sudden, horrifyingly painful substance jetted into her eyes. The Mace she’d dropped. It seared her corneas and she screamed in agony, dropping to the ground. His fingers were still gripping her hair, and when she fell to her knees he tore out some of her blonde and black locks.
    “Let me go!” she shrieked, tears streaming down her face. “Let go, you bastard!”
    “You shouldn’t have tried to run, Chris! That was stupid of you! You never were the smartest girl. Sexy, though.” He pulled her back up and she felt his mouth crushing hers. She could hardly fight because of how badly her eyes and the top of her head hurt. She felt her lip split beneath his teeth. “Now you’re going to come back to my hotel with me, we’ll get you cleaned up, and we’ll talk about when you’re going to come to Jersey. Got it?!”
    All she could do was sob and clutch the journal to her chest.
---
    Aaron’s eyes shot open as a sharp knock sounded on the door to his hotel. His eyes shot to the clock; it was eight a.m. Zach was snoring loudly on the flower printed couch, his arm hanging off onto the ground. Kye was curled up in other room, her arms wrapped around the brown teddy bear she’d brought from Vermont. Another knock sounded on the door, and the Lieutenant stumbled out of bed and nearly fell in an effort to reach it.
    “Who is it?” he called, groggily.
    “It’s me, Chris.”
    He twisted the knob and unsuccessfully attempted to open the door. It took him a moment to realize that the problem was in the bolted lock above the handle. When he finally managed to get the door open, Chris stood there with a sheepish grin, her dark tee shirt and jeans sharply contrasting her pale face. He was quick to notice the dark gash in her lip and the slight bruising around her eyes.
    “What happened to you!?” He pulled her in and hugged her tightly, slamming the door behind her. Zach began to stir on the couch and looked up, licking his lips sleepily.
    “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. We won’t have any more problems.” She sat on the messy bed and smiled at Kye, who had awoken and now stood in the threshold of the spare bedroom. Her bright teal eyes flicked back up to meet Aaron’s, and she said, “He went back to Jersey for the summer.”
    Shocked, Aaron sat beside her. He stared at the floor, feeling very ambivalent. He wished he could have gotten the chance to teach Kaplan a lesson, but the fact that the blond was gone made him feel much better about being in the city and with Crystal. Zach was staring openly at Chris’ lip, his mouth open and hanging. Kye came in and sat on Aaron’s lap, vying for his attention by tugging on his collar and snuggling up to him.
    Chris slipped a hand into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone, checking to see who had called her. “It’s Kyle. I need to take this.”
    “Let me talk to him,” Aaron said, suddenly. “It’s been long enough.”
    “Just let me for a minute. I’ll lead up to it.” She answered and a smile spread across her face. “Hey. No, I’m alright. I was out with Zach for awhile, and I met up with Matt. No, I know he’s leaving. No, Zach didn’t… He told you what? Well… Kyle, listen… I… No, it’s just… I found Aaron. Well, he found me. I don’t-” She was silent for a moment, then glanced up to meet Aaron’s eyes. “Yes, he’s right here. Zach is here, too.” She covered the mouthpiece and whispered, “He wants to speak with you.”
    “Alright,” Aaron held out his hand, “-I’ll speak with him.”
    “Okay, well… Here he is.”
    Aaron took the little black phone and pressed it to his ear. He was nervous; it had been years since he’d spoken with Kyle, and the last time he’d seen the blonde, it hadn’t ended very well. “Hey, Kyle. Long time no see.”
    “Wow. Aaron. I can’t believe it, it’s really you.”
    “Yeah, well…” He shrugged helplessly. “It’s a miracle, I guess.”
    “You know if my parents found out, you’d be in prison or something.”
    “But I trust you not to say anything… and you trust me not to go after Kaplan, right?”
    “I don’t even trust myself not to go after him, Dawson.”
    “Good. At least we still agree on something.”
    “Listen… my parents want Chris and Zach to come back over for breakfast. They think that she’s dating him.”
    “I know. She told me.”
    “I’m glad you’re comfortable with that, because if that fails, you’re screwed.”
    “I know. That’s what I’m worried about.”
    “Matt told me that Chris was going to move back to Jersey in a few months. Did you know about that?”
    Aaron looked up at Chris, who was stiffly sitting beside him, trying to listen to the conversation. “No, she, ah… She didn’t mention it.”
    “Well ask her about it, because if that’s true she has some explaining to do. I’d rather her be with you against our parents’ wills than to be with Matt with their blessing. That’s what he seemed to be implying. I’m worried that he may have threatened her into it. If that’s the case…”
    “I’ll see what I can do, Kyle. I’m not going to let her get away again. That’d be too much for me. As it is, I’m going to have to leave in a few weeks… I live in Florida now, and I have to go back to set things up for my daughter… Ah, long story. Maybe someday I’ll explain. But I won’t be here for very long to take care of her. If she does go anywhere, I’m hoping it’ll be with me to Tampa.”
    “God only knows, Aaron. I really have to go; my parents are begging me to find Zach and Chris. I’m going to let them know that they’re on their way. Make sure they show up in the next hour or so.”
    “Alright, will do.”
    “Oh, and… Aaron?”
    “Yeah?”
    “Tell her that the test came back positive. She’ll understand.”
    “Okay. I’ll talk to you later.” He flipped the phone shut and tossed it back to Chris. “He said that the test came back positive. Mean anything to you?”
    “Yes!” She grinned broadly. “Nat’s pregnant! I’m going to be an auntie.”
    “Congrats to him,” Zach mumbled, covering his head with a pillow.
    “He also mentioned that Matt said something about you going back to Jersey.”
    Chris’ face paled slightly and she stood. She walked over to the window and stared out, shaking her head. “I had to make a deal with him. He has the journal, Aaron, and pictures of us together. He’s got all of this stuff that… If the police got a hold of it, you’d go to jail. We made a… He told me that I had to move back to Jersey for at least six months, or he was going to give the journal to my parents. I tried to get it back from him but…”
    “Is that how you got that split lip?” Zach asked, suddenly sitting up and alert.
    She nodded sharply. “I can’t go back on it now. If I do, he’s going to send everything right to Mom and Dad, and they… They’ll go straight to the cops. I know Matt; he’ll get you arrested for something, and they’ll look back at your records. I have to do this.”
    “When do you leave?” Aaron asked, gritting his teeth.
    “I… He bought me a plane ticket. In about a month, I go back.”
    “Chris, I have to go back to Florida in a few weeks. If you go to Jersey, I may never see you again anyway!”
    “You have my cell phone number I-”
    “Once I go back and get everything together, they’re going to send me overseas again!” He slammed his fist against the wall. “The only way I’ll be able to talk to you while I’m over there is if you were family.” Aaron’s eyes suddenly lit up and he turned back to face her, grinning broadly.
    “What?” Zach asked, glancing between the two of them. “What’s that look for?”
    “If we got married, we wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. We could keep in contact even after I left.” He took her hand and smiled. “What do you say?”