CHAPTER 13

"I know something is bothering you, Evlyn. Please let me know. I'll help you, "Shayirah inquired, concerned. I can sense her concern about me, but something is holding me back from telling the truth.

"I told you it's nothing," I answered, staring blankly at the road. I'm well aware that my response will not satisfy her.

"No. Something must have happened. You're trying to hide something. That's obvious. Just let me know what went wrong. I might be able to help you, "she urged. I made the decision not to speak to her, so I remained mute and avoided looking her in the eyes. But, instead of giving up, she asked me the same question over and over again, which caused me to lose control.

"UGH! WHEN I SAID NOTHING IS BOTHERING ME MEANS NOTHING HAPPENED. Which word do you find difficult to understand, huh? Even if something bothers me, why do you want me to tell you? what do you mean to me, huh? just leave me alone," I burst out of anger. I'm not sure what made me say words like that to her.

Her eyes welled up with tears as she was startled. She shifted her gaze to the front and avoided making eye contact with me. I let out a sigh as I realised what I'd done.

I close my eyes and let my right index and middle fingers caress my right brow to calm.

She was the one who kept an eye out for me.

She protected me from my coach,

but what did I do in return? Shouting at her.

When I peered in the rear-view mirror, Shivaay gave me a disappointed face. His eyes told me that I was the worst person on the planet for not being appreciative of others. I swiftly shifted my sight away from him.

In that split second, I realised I'd made a huge mistake. I gulp down my saliva in regret before placing my left hand on Shayirah's right shoulder to comfort her. "I'm... sorry... I'm sorry... I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I'm sorry. It's just...I'm not in a good mood, which is why I exploded. I realise it won't justify my actions, but I'm really sorry," I apologized. I noticed her sniffling after I said those words, which caused tears to fill up in my eyes.

She smiled and nodded. "It's all right; just explain why you didn't accompany us to the green room. What were you doing at the time? "She inquired as she cupped my hands in hers. I looked at Shivaay, who seemed addled by my erratic behaviour. I took a deep breath to get the courage to tell her what had happened while ignoring his presence because it would be embarrassing for me to tell her what had happened in front of him, whom I had only met a day before.

"Well," I began hesitantly, "as you know, I told you yesterday that I needed to go somewhere, so I asked you to go first and back up for me." She hummed as if to indicate that she was paying full attention to me. "That day, I heard a scream and followed it until I found myself in an abandoned building. When I witnessed the scene in front of me, it literally crushed my heart. I saw a girl begging on the ground, and two boys were assaulting her and touching her in inappropriate places. She pleaded, but they were disinterested in listening to her".

FLASHBACK

I saw two boys assaulting the vulnerable girl lying there. My blood was boiling because they were handling her inappropriately. The moment I witnessed this scenario, it drove me to the dark period in my life and it flashed in front of my eyes. I shook the memory away and I made the decision to help her in any way I could. Before approaching the scene, I examined whether they were stronger than me. As soon as it was evident that I could take them down, I shoved one of the men who was holding her dress away.

"Hey, who are you?" asked the individual with the mark on his cheek.

"By the way, since you came to us, we're going to enjoy full entertainment today," he sneered, as his guy with the beard laughed beside him. I locked my anger gaze on them.

Both of them had lustful looks in their eyes as they stared at me.

Perverts.

The way they look at me causes my fists to clench, and I became larger and larger, swelling with wrath. I keep my fury in check and lean down to support that girl in standing up. The guy with the beard yanked her away from me before I could grab her hand.

"HEY!" I yelled at him and took a deep breath to calm myself down before continuing. "We can settle this by you people letting her leave this place," I stated angrily. That guy shoved the girl just hard enough for her to stumble and fall with a thud. They began to laugh at me. Well, it appears that they are dismissing my threat. I snickered at their oblivious.

"What are you going to do if you don't?" I was taunted by the person with the mark on his right cheek.

"What are you thinking about yourself, girl? Saviour?. You are just a mere girl," the guy with the beard said, taking a moment before adding, " so don't try to act like a man by provoking us." As I listened to his remarks, molten wrath erupted within me.

Just a mere girl.

He had crossed his limits. I was glaring at them, expecting that my wrath would set them on fire. Because of my lack of control, I allowed my rage to take control of the situation. Without responding to his vexing remark, I deliver a hard push kick to the centre of his body, i.e. under his rib cage. He winced and slumped to the ground, grasping the region where I had kicked him.

"Oopsie. Don't underestimate me, guy. " As a sneer formed on my lips, I warned them.

The other man rushes up to me, ready to punch me, but I leap from a considerable height and land a 360° kick on him before he could even lift his hand. That is, indeed, one of my favourite kicks. I alter my posture as soon as my feet touch the ground, gazing forward with my head slightly down, right-hand high, and left-hand low. My body was angled 45 degrees to the slide, and my feet were roughly shoulder-width apart on the ground. The man with the cut on his right cheek was knocked out by my kick, which was directed at his head.

The guy with the beard groaned and tried to stand up, but I kicked him in the groyne before threatening, "Don't try to do any nasty things to any women or else I'll stab you in your dick-nity next time." He shrieked and curled up on the ground.

I dashed over to the girl and immediately retrieved an additional jacket from my backpack to cover her. She was inconsolably sobbing and trembling. I wrapped my arms around her and comforted her. "Thank you so much for your help. I begged God to send someone before I lost my self-esteem and dignity. I'll be eternally grateful to you. " She spoke with a cracked voice due to her incessant crying.

" It's all right. You don't have to thank me. I simply did what felt right at the time. Now, get up, and let's get you out of here as fast as possible, "I urged as she took a stand. When I was ready to escort her out, she abruptly stopped and walked over to those guys, kicking both of them in the groyne to vent her rage. Then she turned her heel towards me and grasped my hand.

I happily smiled at her as we exited the building. I sped up to a cab and instructed her to take a seat inside. "Hey, I'm hoping you make it home safely." Once, fairly shortly after she settled into her seat, she gave me a reassuring smile.

"Um... To ensure your safety, I would like you to file a police report against them. and I hope it will help other girls rescue themselves from them. By the way, the choice is entirely yours. Take care, " I cautioned, a little anxiously.

"I'll think about that," she said, nodding. Thank you very much for your kindness; I will never forget you. Bye". I grinned and handed her some cash to pay the driver, which she gratefully took as her belongings were missing. Then, I dashed across the road to go to the stadium soon after sending her off.

FLASHBACK END

" That was when I got myself into an accident and sprained my feet," I explained. They were both shocked after hearing the first part of what happened. It's not a mere story as it seems like but it is a factual incident. Moreover, girls can be hazardous if they are out of control, dude. Is that correct, ladies?

"What?! Did you get yourself into an accident? Why didn't you inform me yesterday? Right away, I would have alerted our coach. " Shayirah inquired as she examined my leg. Shivaay and I have exchanged glances at each other in the mirror. Essentially, Shivaay and I were speaking through eye contact, as he wanted to inform me that he now knows why I had raced in front of his car the day before." That is the reason. That is why I did not inform you because you would inform the coach "I chuckled.

"Tell me about what just happened. What did you do? Why didn't you accompany us to the green room?" she inquired, her voice anxious.

I turned away from them and stared out the window since I didn't want to face them before I started explaining, "Uh... Because of my injury, I was dragging my feet behind you guys. Then a thug dragged me to a corner and slammed his hand over my lips. He was most likely a buddy of one of the men I thrashed the day before. I tried to break free, but he twisted my hand and stepped on my injured leg. He didn't leave me, despite my pain. He warned me and rushed away from the spot when he heard footsteps here and there." I rant while crying and wiping my tears every now and then.

"When you guys shouted my name, I...I heard you and Kaviliya. You...you're so close to where that goon has been holding me captive. I tried to reach you guys, but I couldn't speak since he was covering my mouth with his hand." I stammered and flicked my gaze to Shayirah, hoping to catch a glimpse of her reaction. "Oh, my goodness! I...I should've seen you were nearby. It's entirely my fault. I shouldn't have returned when I couldn't find you "she spoke as a wave of remorse washed over her.

"Hey, It's not because of you. You are completely unaware of what has occurred. Don't put too much pressure on yourself." I gave her my word of assurance. "No. It's entirely my fault. You're still crying because you're recalling everything, "she confirmed.

I let out a sigh and replied, "I'm not crying because he harmed me. I'm crying because I can't seem to defeat him. I just can't get over the notion that I did nothing while he abhorred me. In front of him, I felt vulnerable. I didn't fight him "As wrath rose within me as a result of how I felt in front of him, I kicked the seat out of nowhere, causing Shivaay to jerk in front and glare at me through the mirror.

Oops, I accidentally kicked his seat.

"Ah!!," I exclaimed, flinching at my folly of kicking with my damaged leg. Shayirah attempted to calm me down, but all I did was clench and unclench my fist. I felt like destroying something out of frustration, but I couldn't because I was in someone else's car. I didn't look up when the car abruptly came to a halt. I just wanted to cover my face since I felt humiliated because I couldn't fight for myself, so I buried my face in my palm.