Chapter 6

Say checks her watch again to see how much time has left for their role-playing plan tonight. It’s half-past nine. Her phone rang and she answered fast.

"Nick isn’t here yet, Lilac. Is this the time he really goes out of his night class? And are you sure, he will pass by the parking lot because I don't think he has a car? Why can’t you make up a better plan? ”

“Nick rides a motorcycle, Say.” she overhears Tori in the background and Cheska.

Say was on a phone with her friends. Her friends are in some place with the ‘actors’ who will perform their plan tonight. She was in the parking lot alone.

“He would know that my car machines are working well. If he had a motorcycle, for sure, he knew machines. And Nick won't think that if my car machines break down, my dad's bodyguards will not pick me up. ”

“Just stay put, Say. The backup guys are just out in the corner waiting for the protagonist to come and play his unwanted role.”

“Fine. But 15 minutes more and I’d back out already because –"

She paused her words when suddenly, she saw some six or seven men approaching her. They were tall, big for college students.

“Lilac, Nick is not yet here but there are already men approaching me. They are about six-seven. Did you hire them to perform the 'plan' today? ”

“What? No, Troy's friends are still here. Who might they be? I'm going to send them over now if ---"

"Hi, Miss ... Did your car break down?"

Say did not hear Lilac's last words because the men were already in front of her. They don't wear USAI uniforms nor does it look like college students from night class. The one in front of her now has a grown beard, grinning maniacally. Say held her phone tightly when she talked to Lilac again.

"L-Lilac ... they're here ..." she whispered shakily.

Another man forcibly took her cellphone and smiled foolishly. “Miss, my friend just asked you a question. He asked you did your car break down?"

She acted not afraid of them and took back her cellphone, which they gave easily. But now, everyone surrounded her, grinning like a devil looking at their pawn.

“I AM FINE. DO I LOOK LIKE I NEED YOUR HELP? YOU CAN LEAVE ME NOW.”

"Dude, she is pretty brave! I like girls with guts...Like the girls here from St. Agustin Internationals. “

“Pretty miss, if you have a car issue, you can just ride with me. I have a car - it's just parked somewhere. Come!"

Say smell them not only of smoke and liquor but of different ones. She wanted to scream for help but she knew they would just assault her if they see her weak. She tried to find a way to get away with them.

“Why can't you answer? Are you excited yet to go? Then let's go."

“Don’t worry, we will not go anywhere other than heaven. HAHAHA! “

“Don’t you dare touch me…” She tried to step back but someone was at her back.

The guy with long hair suddenly held her wrists and pulled her. And before she can’t think of other ways, Say already slapped the guy’s cheek.

“I just told you not to touch me!”

“Fucking shit…”

For a few seconds, the man in front of her was stunned by her strong slap. He touched his reddening face and glared at her.

The next moment he grabbed her hair and pulled her while her psychotic friends just looked and laughed. They were now dragging her.

“NOO! NOOOO!! Let me go! ”

And when she thought the devils are about to feast on her, someone she didn’t expect to come, plays an angel to save her.

“Say?”

“Nick! Oh, Nick! ”

***

From his evening shift cleaning the gym, Nick should've gone home directly. The way to exit the university is on another street but instead of going there directly with his motorcycle, he thought he could drive and pass to the parking space first to check if his other co-working student Anjo has completed his work, so he can say his goodbye.

Instead, what he saw was a grim episode between some intruding frat boys ganging up on a girl. The moment he recognized the voice of Say De Plaza, he felt his heart struck with fear. No matter how self-absorbed and spoiled the daughter of the governor is, she still doesn't deserve to be hurt. He would’ve helped anyone who is in that same situation but seeing how hurt Say was, suddenly he seemed to want to crush any man who hurt her.

“Let go of her!”

“Do not interfere in this. This woman slapped me, so I should just get --AHHHH!”

When the bearded guy didn’t let her go, he pulled and wring the hands that were grabbing Say’s hair and punched his face with his other hands. “I SAID, LET HER GO!!!”

Suddenly the rest of the gang surrounded him - ready to retaliate. He looked at the teary-eyed Say, “Run! Go and find someone…”

“Nick, I--”

“I said run and --”

Before Nick can complete his words, an incoming flying kick went to his direction. Just an inch before it gets to his torso, he swayed out of its way and instead gave the frat boy a fast left and right hook. The other guy retaliated and kick him from behind. The rest of the guys started to help as Nick hears the fearful, crying voice of Say.

“NICK!!!” She shouted grimly when Nick rolled to the floor from a kick of another guy from the back. He instead tripped the guy’s leg and punched his face.

***

Say doesn’t know what to do - she was told by Nick to run and look for help but instead, she’s just here watching horrifically the onslaught of 6 men against one.

When Nick rolled and fell to the floor from a kick of another guy, she shouted his name aloud in fear of what’s going to happen. She doesn’t want him to get hurt! She tried to help him get up, but he blocked and pushed her back, away from the men.

She can’t help but just hope someone will come instead to help them, but God knows, she won’t ever leave him alone now!

And then Say just realized what is happening now is a mirror copy of her friend’s scheme against Nick. A scheme she approved herself. Only the stupid plan was halted by a real circumstance now - that would have been almost the same role they would play tonight.

They planned that once Nick ended his evening cleaning shift and passed by the parking lot, she would be there and Troy's male friends would play the role to assault and hurt her, and then Nick would save her. When Nick sees she'd be grateful, that will be when she will start to get close to him, win his heart, invite him to her debut as her special last dance and finally dump him horribly on the stage.

But that night, real blood emerged from the faces of the strangers and Nick. Six against one but Nick was good in infighting, and their fight was almost fair. A rushing man with his close fist run to get to Nick, and she saw him prepared to block it.

Then she saw a glimpse of a knife in one of the fallen guys from the back. She shouted horrifyingly.

*****

“NICCCKKKK! KNIFE AT YOUR BACK! Oh, my GOOOOD!!! NICKKKK!”

Nick suddenly lost his attention to the man who rushed in and looked at one of the men who had fallen and was now approaching him with an ice pick.

A right hook to his jaw came as Nick focused instead on the incoming dagger. Before it could go to his liver, he quickly grabbed the knife causing his hand to bleed while holding it.

That was when they heard a mobile siren from the university security and the noise of people running towards them.

"Say!!!" Tori, Lilac, and Cheska shouted at the same time.

“Hey, trespassers! Freeze!”

The University guards immediately arrested the trespassers and Nick saw Say's friends ran to hug her. In a couple of minutes, the security car with the frat boys left them.

“Say? Are you okay?” Cheska asked sympathetically.

“Girl, I’m so sorry about what happened.” Added Lilac.

“Say?” Tori asked when Say still hasn’t answered any of them.

Looking at how many friends are comforting Say now, Nick knows he doesn't need to console her anymore. She was hurt, stressed, and was still terrified. Her friends being there is enough, so he stepped onto his motorbike.

Nick did not expect what would happen next.

“Oh, Nick...”

He heard footsteps and the next thing he knew, the beautiful Samantha Yvette De Plaza wrapped her arms in his body, her head in his chest, and is weeping. He thought heaven embraced him. His heart pounded uncontrollably just with her warm arms in his body.

She’s hugging me...the Queen is hugging me...

"Nick... Nick... I'm so sorry..." She was weeping in his dirty shirt and is still hugging him tightly. Then, she suddenly looked at him and touched the wounds in his face.

Nick felt like his heart leap. The most beautiful girl at the university is holding him, hugging him now.

Her tears were dripping from her beautiful hazel brown eyes. Tears flowed through her small nose. Her lips were forming something like uttering some words but Nick's mind was out of nowhere.

Those lips. Those little pouty lips are talking to him now…

“Say!”

Nick suddenly woke up from dreaming to see Say's friends in front of them as well. He didn't know Say and her friends have been asking him questions earlier.

“I’m really so sorry Nick...”

“That is okay –I—"

“It wasn’t okay. They had a knife! You took the knife! And –“, her eyes widened when she saw his hand was bleeding."You have a wound on your hand!"

“This is nothing, Say.” was all he could tell her. Say was no longer hugging him, but she was checking his wounded hands and his forehead.

***

Say barely knew what to say or do in front of his savior. If Nick hadn't come on time, something unfortunate could have happened already to her. Her friends were worried about her, but her eyes were only on Nick now. Nick was hurt trying to save her. His forehead and fists bleed from the dagger earlier.

She readily went to him, hugged him, completely uncaring what will her friends think.

“Here’s my hanky, let me wrap your hands with this.”

“Thank you.”

"Nick, you also have a wound on your forehead..." she touched the side of his forehead and eyebrows with blood dripping on it. And then her hands froze when she felt Nick's hand follow and touched her hands where the wound is. She became more tensed when Nick held her hands looked at her closely.

“I should be the one asking you questions now. Are you in pain somewhere? Have they done something to you before I came?” He worriedly asked.

“N-no. You came... Thank you, Nick. I… I don’t know what those guys could do if you hadn’t come on time. I... I am...scared.”

“Shhh...Don’t be.”

And she felt Nick's big arms enveloped her, hugging and comforting her.

By the grace of whoever the gods are at that particular moment, she didn't know how long she let Nick hug her.

She felt safe in his arms... How good it felt his warm arms are in her back. She could feel his breath in her head while he leans over. If it wasn't for her friends who suddenly asked her something, she wouldn't have objected if she and Nick just hugged until the next hour.

“I think it’s time for us to leave, maybe we can have some hospital check Nick’s wounds?”

“No, I’m really okay. If you’re all going home, could you please drive Say to -- “

“I’m going with you.”

“What?”

Her friends and Nick looked at Say at the same time. She doesn’t know why she blurted those words out.

She really felt bad for what happened with Nick moments ago, and she thinks she shouldn't leave him just like that. Her friends didn’t object. Within seconds her friends were gone.

Then, there were just the two of them.

That’s when she doesn’t know anymore what to say to Nick. He was just standing close to his motorbike waiting for her. Should she tell him she needs more comforting and hugging?

“Are you sure you want to ride with my motorbike? We can call Steve or Gino to pick you up and --"

“You lost your phone.” she countered lightly.

He smiled remembering the phone that fell from Say’s rooftop. “But you have your phone.”

She sighed heavily, she doesn’t have any excuse to be with him more. “I...I thought…I --”

She saw him sigh then looked at her thoughtfully.

"Okay ... here." He handed her his helmet. "Hold tight, and don't sleep with me on the ride home, my queen."