Scum

I smiled to myself while studying the crowd. My eyes slowly wandered away from the center of activity and towards the edges of the field, where I found there the same two young men who harassed me earlier. This time they were cornering a young girl who appeared to be a few years younger than myself.

I got up and looked around for a familiar face. I wanted to find someone who could intervene in what appeared to be a bad situation, but I couldn't find anyone in the thick throng of people. Left with little choice, I sighed in resignation and then walked over myself. The girl saw me approach from behind the men and her eyes lit up.

"Hello boys", I said. They turned to face me, but kept the girl cornered between them.

"Hey new girl. Did you change your mind about hanging out with us?" the one who seemed to be the leader asked. I smiled humorlessly.

"Sadly, no. I'm here for the girl who's standing behind you".

"I'm afraid she's busy having fun with us, although you're welcome to join", the leader replied. His lackey chuckled.

The girl was holding what looked like a cup of punch, but she didn't seem to be enjoying herself in the slightest. Instead, she seemed nervous. Afraid, even.

"She and I need to have a private talk. Please leave us", I said firmly.

"Not gonna happen", the leader said with a smirk.

An angry red haze spread along the edges of my vision. My hand shot out at a blinding speed and grabbed his neck while I moved forward so that I was standing side by side with him, and I placed my leg behind his. I pushed forward with my arm and he lost his balance, tripping over my leg to fall to the ground on his back. I went down after him, kneeling on his chest with my right knee, my fingers never letting go of his throat.

"You will leave now if you don't want me to hurt you", I growled while panting heavily, more out of anger than exertion.

The lackey moved to pull me off the stunned man. I used my left hand to swat away his outstretched arms. A moment later the man on the ground recovered his senses and tried to push me off. I let go of him and hopped away to stand between the girl and the two of them. Fighting two together would be difficult, especially if I was trying to hold one of them down. That would limit my movements too much.

Just then a group of what appeared to be parents and grandparents came running.

"What's happening here?" the one who was in the lead demanded angrily.

"Nothing", the two men said in unison.

"Is that true?" The question was directed at me, but I was too angry to formulate an answer.

"Yes", the girl behind me whispered.

"Fine then", the leader of the elders said. "The two of you, get out of here" he spat at the two men. I noticed then that the one I attacked had red marks around his neck. I must have squeezed it tightly without noticing what I was doing. He and his friend turned and walked away brusquely, although not before sending dirty looks in my direction.

"I apologize for their behavior", the leader said to me. "Now, the two of you had best get back to your friends. It can be unsafe for young women to be alone, especially when there is drinking going on".

I nodded. The girl thanked me and immediately ran off, but I waited for the elders to leave before moving. I found William wandering around, looking for me.

"Where were you?" His voice was a mixture of worry and offense at being abandoned.

I grabbed a full cup of punch from his hand. My whole body was shaking and the cup splashed all over our hands and the ground, but I paid it no mind and quickly drained it. It provided little in the way of refreshment.

"What happened?" William asked. The worry in his voice now completely overshadowed whatever other emotions he might have been feeling. I told him. His face grew stiff as I spoke, and there was anger burning behind his eyes. I remembered that he had sisters, one of which, the one who opened the door for me that morning, was nearly as old as the girl I had rescued.

Retelling the events allowed me to see myself more clearly, and I understood why I was so mad. The way they seemed to be forcing themselves on that girl, and especially the smug way that they refused to leave her alone when I intervened, reminded me of father's confrontation with Trevor. I couldn't stop Trevor, but I could stop these two scum.

"I want to go home", I said when I finished. I was feeling tired. Drained.

"I'll take you there", William offered. "Those bastards might want to get back at you". I nodded.

I felt that I could trust William, and more than that, I wanted to trust him. William wasn't Trevor. He was the farthest thing from Trevor. He was kind, considerate, protective, and caring. Besides, he was right, those scum might follow me and try to attack me on my way home, and having William there could deter them from trying. Even if they tried anyway, it would be good to have him there to fight alongside me, to protect me. However, even if there was no danger, at this moment I simply wanted the comfort of his company on the long walk back to my little house.

The sun was already setting when we left the party, and some of the people were building a bonfire at the center of the field, to provide light by which to continue the celebration. When we finally arrived home the sky was already dark and spotted with stars.

I stood close to William, my face turned up towards his and my hands clutched above my heart. There, at the foot of my home, in the shadows cast by the trees, I looked directly into his eyes and allowed him to kiss me, and for the first time in a long time, a man's embrace gave me warmth.