I'll Carry You Away

“I’m going to kick that motherfucker’s ass!” I shouted.

Rami grabbed me by the arms and held me back.

“Don’t, Sander! Let’s not get arrested tonight. Here,” she said.

I was glaring daggers at the asshole just casually walking away. Rami was trying to conceal her amusement.

“Jesus, Sander. Take it easy,” she said.

I ripped myself out of her grasp.

“It’s not fucking funny, goddammit!” I snapped.

A sober Rami would have tried to console me, but a tipsy Rami just giggled.

“Chill out, man! I…”

Something—or perhaps someone, caught Rami’s eye, and she stared after it.

“I’ll be right back,” she said distantly, and left me to stand alone, soaked and fuming.

I stared after her. Was she fucking kidding me?

“Rami!” I shouted, but she disappeared into the crowd.

I growled and slammed my shot glass down. I wanted to break it, but I wasn’t paying for it, either.

“Here, hun,” someone said.

I jumped and looked to my side to see a blonde woman with some paper towels. I smiled slightly and thanked her. She was a short woman, probably older than me, with her hair pulled into an undo, sunglasses sitting on her head, wearing a white tank top, black leggings, sandals, and too much makeup.

“You want me to go talk to him? He’s usually not that big of an asshole,” she said.

I rubbed a paper towel in my short, beer soaked hair. I hadn’t noticed her behind the bar, so I figured she was a regular here. She looked too overdressed to be a barfly, though. Maybe she knew the guy.

“Right,” I said coldly as she helped me clean up.

“I think your friend might have ditched you,” she said, “Here. Let me buy you a beer.”

I smiled and shook my head. I was far too pissed to try and be civilized.

“Thanks. That’s okay. I’m probably just going to walk home and take a shower,” I replied.

She immediately grew concerned.

“Alone? It’s nearly midnight,” she said.

I cut my eyes at her. Was she serious? I looked like a criminal, and on top of that, a looked like a guy at a distance. No one was going to mess with me.

“I’ll be fine. I was supposed to walk home with the little Smurf,” I said jokingly, “But it’s cool.”

Which was a lie. I felt pissed and a little bit betrayed. Rami was probably just chewing the guy out, or maybe she had seen someone cute or something. I just wanted to go home. Whether she was coming or not, I was leaving.
The nice woman smiled and looked in the direction Rami had taken off in.

“I’ve never seen you guys in here before,” she said.

I nodded and wadded the towels.

“We just moved out here. This was Rami’s attempt at getting me out of the house and out of my funk,” I replied.

She nodded.

“Well, I’m Valary. You can just call me Val, though,” she replied.

I smiled.

“Sander,” I replied, “Well, Alexandra, but no one calls me that. And that’s Jacqueline, but she goes by Rami. Ramirez. Rami.”

Val smiled and nodded.

“Cool,” she replied.

“Well, if you see her, could you tell her I bounced?” I asked.

Val nodded.

“She thing, Sander. And hey! I hope you didn’t get a bad impression of this place. It’s one of the coolest bars in town,” she said.

I nodded and began to walk away.

“Maybe next time,” I replied.

Val waved.

“Yeah. See ya, Sander,” she said.

I thanked Val and went on my way, preparing to trek home alone in my stinky, wet clothes. I really didn’t want to go alone. I wanted Rami as soon as I walked out the door.
***

“She doesn’t need to be walking home alone.”

Val looked over her shoulder to see the man the voice belonged to. She smiled at him, then looked back to the door.

“No. Why don’t you go after her? You’re not too drunk yet, are you?” she asked.

He set his drink down on the bar and shook his head.

“Nah. I’m good. I’ll go see if I can find her. What was her name? Did you catch it?” he asked.

"Sander," Val replied, watching her friend walk by her, fishing his car keys out of his pocket, “Be careful. Call me if you need me."

He turned and smiled at her.

“I will. Hey! Find her friend she came in with. If they’re the people I’m thinking of, then she’ll need a ride, too,” he said.

Val nodded, then said her goodbyes to her friend before parting to track down the drunk girl with the blue hair.
***

I put my hands in my pockets and stepped from the curb and onto the asphalt of the packed parking lot. As I walked, I noticed a black car’s reverse lights illuminate. When I noticed it was a BMW, one that could possibly belong to the asshole who almost flattened me (and who I was still holding a grudge against), I snarled.

“Better watch it, motherfucker,” I snapped.

Apparently, the windows had been down, because whoever it was had heard me, and they revved the engine in response. I jumped and stared at the back window. I was so pissed now, I was seeing red around the edges of my vision. I angrily lifted a combat boot-clad foot and kicked the California license plate. I really didn’t give a fuck anymore.

“Dumbass!” I shouted, then took off running before they could chase me down and call the cops.

“Hey, wait!” the driver called, the voice obviously male, which only heightened my fear and increased my speed.

I tore off for the sidewalk and ran down it for what felt like miles. I eventually had to stop, slowing to a stumbling stop in front of an old gas station across the street. I gripped the pole to a speed limit sign and tried to catch my breath. I didn’t know how long I had been running, and when I looked up at my surroundings, I slowly realized that I didn’t know where I had been running. I just let my feet guide me. Unfortunately, they were wrong.
I looked around, trying to make sense of where I was and trying to suppress the urge to puke from the pain in my side. My mind was hazy from the alcohol I had consumed, and fear was beginning to mix with the slowly subsiding buzz. Thankfully, I hadn’t had as much as Rami, but apparently, I had enough to get myself lost. To add to that, I didn’t know my way around Huntington well enough to just dive in. Especially in the dark.
I turned my head and looked up at the poorly lit, dirty gas station across the street. It was the only light source in this area, and unfortunately, the only building. A large, sand colored car that looked like it was from the 1970s, and was sporting oversized rims, was being loaded by three loud and shady looking guys. Shadier than the guys at Johnny’s. God, I wished I had gotten a ride. Maybe there was a bus stop somewhere. Or maybe I could just find PCH by myself. If I could find downtown, I could find the highway, the condos, and eventually, the house. I wished that Rami and I had taken a tour of the town.

“Hey, baby!” a guy shouted from the car.

I looked up, like an idiot, to see the driver waving at me.

“Hey! Come over here,” he shouted, then laughed, “I just wanna talk to ya.”

All of my mental alarms began ringing. I was in huge trouble, and should never have stopped running. I wished I had had a car. I wished I had taken then bus. I wished I had let Val buy me another beer.
The car pulled up to the street and I took off running. I had no idea where I was, or where I was going. I just hoped I’d run into a cop. Well, I guess I can’t do that. I’ve been drinking. Fuck!
I slid around a corner and ran down a dimly lit street full of abandoned buildings most likely crawling with rats and crack heads. Druggies and the homeless. Druggies like the scary men following me. I thought I had lost them, but headlights from behind me and a couple of cat calls confirmed how wrong I was. I was kicking myself pretty hard. Why hadn’t I stayed at the damn bar?
My legs and mind were on autopilot, my only thought being to find a well-lit parking lot of a store, or a place in the pitch black alleys to hide. Wearing almost all black and sporting black hair, I hoped I was camouflaged. I ran down the first alley that looked like it had a way out and stumbled into it. I almost fell flat on my face, but I managed to find my balance and barreled down the cluttered alleyway. I flew behind a dumpster, falling on my ass and jabbing myself in the back with a broken mop handle. I curled up in the corner and tried desperately to catch my breath, but every time I tried to heave in precious oxygen, my diaphragm spasmed and it felt like I couldn’t take in all the air I needed. I coughed into my jacket sleeve, creating a loud, dry cough that was sure to give my location away. I really needed to quit smoking.
I covered my mouth and wadded myself up, trying so hard to regulate my breathing and control my heart-rate. It was then I wondered if I was having a panic attack. I had never had one before, but now was as good a time as any. I curled into a ball and remained absolutely still. Maybe they were so fucking stupid and burnt, they’d think I was a trash bag. That’s how I felt. Like a fucking stupid piece of trash, who can’t run because of their smoking habit and the alcohol buzzing through their veins, getting chased by the trashier men of Huntington Beach. The trash men were coming after the garbage. Dammit, I wanted Rami!
I felt someone grab my arm, and being too deep in my own thoughts, I gasped and unraveled my limbs.

“Hey, baby! Where ya runnin’ off to?” the guy in front of my asked.

Two other guys flanked him. One smoking a cigarette. The other with a repulsive grin on his face.

“Please, just leave me alone,” I pleaded.

“Aw, now come on! Don’t be like that! Why don’t you come with us?” the first guy asked.

He tried to grab my arms, but I yanked myself away from him.

“Don’t fucking touch me!” I screamed.

“Please, God, let someone decent have heard me!” I prayed.

The guy growled, then backhanded me across the face. I gasped in shock, totally not expecting it.

“Don’t you be talking like that to me, bitch! I’ll kill ya!” he threatened, “Look at me!”

I kept my head down, trying to think of a way out of this.

“Look at me or I’ll slap ya again! Don’t think I won’t!” he shouted.

I froze, not knowing what to think or what to do. The man with the cigarette shoved the guy out of the way and reached out to grab me.

“Come on, you whiny little cunt! Get the fuck up!” he growled.

At this point, my panic attack, if that’s what this was, set in full force. I knew it had as I went into this fit of tears and hyperventilation. I tried pleading. I tried fighting. All that got me was a cut on my arm and a punch in the stomach.
When I was down, and one of them tried to rip my jacket off, a pair of headlights shined down the alleyway, and a car roared in. A figure stormed out of the running car, a baseball bat in his hands.

“You fucking touch her again and I swear to God, I’ll fuck I’ll three of you up in a split second. Move your asses! Back the fuck up!”

The guys held their hands in the air and slowly backed up.

“Get out of here!” he shouted.

The men looked confused.

“GO!” he roared, voice cracking.

Frightened, the men quickly turned and took off. The man who saved me ran over to me and knelt down beside my doubled-over form. I was trying to control myself, suppressing the tears and overwhelming urge to let go of my stomach’s contents. The pain in my stomach, though subsiding, was terrible, and I was shaking violently, which didn’t help the situation.

“Come here, sweetheart, before those cock-sucking motherfuckers come back. Here,” he said softly.

Not being able to think or care, I raised my arms, putting them around this strange man’s neck and letting him lift my scrawny butt effortlessly off of the concrete. He carried me out of the alley and to his car, where he gently set me in the passenger seat and helped me buckle up before jogging over to his side and sliding in. I looked around, the pain now bearable. The car was dark, with the dashboard lights being the only light source. I never saw my rescuer’s face, but he had a nice car. Leather interior. Smelled thickly of leather and, well, man. Tobacco, leather, and cologne.
The man slid into the driver’s seat, the small car barely able to accommodate his long legs. He shut the door, put the car in gear, then backed out of the alley and sped towards the nicer side of town. It only took about five minutes before he pulled in to the parking lot of a gas station and parked the car.

“Are you okay? Your arm’s bleeding,” he said.

I didn’t process his words until I felt fingers touch my arm. I flinched and shot into the passenger door with more force than needed. I winced and grasped my shoulder.

“Dammit! Don’t touch me!” I snapped.

“Sander, I’m not going to hurt you,” he said.

I felt my blood run cold. My eyes widened and I stared at a dimly lit, pale face and shining labret piercing. The man reached up and turned on the lights above the rearview mirror, allowing me to finally see his face. The lights were shit, but the face was unbelievably familiar. Pale skin, with a tad bit of stubble, long, thin black (or maybe extremely dark brown) hair, kind blue eyes, and faded handcuff tattoos around his neck. When I put the tattoos, the piercings, and the voice with the face, I felt my heart jolt.

“Oh my God! Now I know I’ve drank too much,” I popped off.

He didn’t reply, just stared at me, curiously watching me as I propped my arm up on the door and put my hand on my forehead. When he didn’t reply, and I didn’t wake up from the nightmare I just knew I was having, I turned my head and glared at him. This wasn’t real. I’m dead in a ditch somewhere.

“How do you know my name?” I asked fearfully.

And the name I went by. Not my full name, like most strangers knew.

He smiled, and all the pain I was in was briefly forgotten.

“Val is one of my best friends. I saw what happened at Johnny’s. I was going to offer to give you a ride, but I’m the ‘dumbass.’”

I stared at him in horror, then looked at the steering wheel to see the BMW symbol. I felt my jaw go slack.

“Oh my God! I’m so sorry about that. I feel like such a piece of shit,” I said, looking away from him.

To my surprise, he just laughed.

“It’s okay. I would have done the same thing,” he said.

I looked at him, then laughed humorlessly and shook my head.

“This is fucking crazy,” I said.

He just laughed at me.

“You probably think I’m a bat shit crazy nutcase,” I said, glancing up at him sheepishly.

He smiled.

“No, absolutely not. You know who I am?” he asked.

I shyly nodded. I felt my entire body flush. I’m sure the blush was apparent on my face.

“I’m…I’m a huge fan. I’m sure you guys hear that a lot, but…”

“No, I understand,” he replied.

“I just never thought I’d be attacked in an alley in a town a barely know and get saved by the fucking Rev,” I popped off, manners out the window.

He just laughed at me.

“I’m glad I was able to find you. They could have killed you,” he said softly.

I glanced down at my lap and wrung my hands nervously.

“Listen, I…I owe you big. I’m sorry you had to waste your night hunting me down,” I said quietly.

He shook his head.

“It wasn’t a waste. Trust me, Sander,” he said.

I looked back up at him.

“I’ve seen you around town a few times. One time being at the gates of the condos,” he said with a cheeky grin.

I felt horrified.

“Oh my God! Rami thought that was you! I feel like such a dumbass,” I said, then sighed, “Thanks for chasing me down, um…”

He smiled.

“Jimmy,” he said.

I smiled slightly. I wasn’t sure what he went by and what he preferred to be called by fans. I felt honored to have permission to call him by his real name.

“Jimmy,” I repeated, “Um…thank-you.”

He smiled sweetly. My God, he was so much better looking in person!

“You’re welcome. Here, I'll take you home. Where do you live?” he asked.

“PCH,” I replied.

Jimmy looked up at me in surprise.

“Holy shit! Were you the girls who bought that house on the beach?” he asked excitedly.

I shyly nodded. Jimmy grinned.

“Wow! My sister was looking at that house, but I’m glad you guys got it. It’s a cool place. I thought I recognized you! I walk by there every day. Well, almost every day. We’re neighbors!”

I smiled.

“I guess so. I was wondering who was the weirdo walking the beach every night,” I said jokingly.

Jimmy laughed and proudly puffed his chest up.

“You’re looking at him. The one and only,” he said.

I just smiled and shook my head. We soon calmed down, and my nerves came back.

“Um, thank-you,” I said quietly.

Jimmy smiled warmly, then reached over and hugged me, making me jump and freeze. I should have expected it, really. Jimmy was known for being extremely friendly, but in the peak of the moment, I had forgotten who I was talking to.

“I’m covered in beer,” I warned him.

That made him hug me tighter.

“I don’t care. Beer is my friend, and so are you,” he said.

He pulled back and smiled at me, while I stared at him like he was crazy. He ruffled my nasty hair, then turned and started the car. I was still in a daze. What was going on here? One minute I’m running for my life, the next, I’m making friends with one of my heroes from one of my favorite bands. Never in my life did I think I’d get a chance to say hi, much less receive a hug from him or get a chance to take a ride with him, nevermind the circumstances. Needless to say, I was a little starstruck.
On the way home, I tried to contact Rami. Unfortunately, the beer that had been spilt on me had destroyed my cell phone. Jimmy let me use his phone, but Rami had a thing about not answering calls from numbers she didn’t recognize. I tried twice before leaving a voicemail and giving his cell phone back.

“Maybe she’s already home. Val may have given her a ride,” Jimmy said.

I nodded tiredly, not realizing who he was talking about.

“Hey, listen. We’re off for a few more weeks before we go in for writing and shit. Maybe I could give you a tour of Huntington? We can make a fun day out of it?” he suggested.

I stared at him in shock.

“Are you serious?” I asked in disbelief.

Jimmy smiled.

“Yeah. I don’t mind. I’ve been trying to get the balls to talk to you, anyway,” he said.

I felt my jaw unhinge.

“Me?” I asked in disbelief.

Jimmy nodded.

“Not trying to sound like a creep. It’s just that, I see you and your friend around town and every since I almost hit you, I’ve wanted to say hi. Apologize for not watching where I was driving. I wanted to make it up to you,” he said.

I just stared at him in disbelief. The man didn’t even know me!

“I think saving my stupid ass makes up for it,” I said.

Jimmy stubbornly shook his head as he turned onto the highway, heading in the direction of my house.

“Nope. We’re going to go on an adventure,” he said.

I stared at him, smiling.

“And how do you know I’ll agree to it?” I challenged.

Jimmy smirked.

“Because no one can say no to me,” he said cockily.

I raised an eyebrow at him. Was he serious?

Jimmy cracked a smile.

“What kind of neighbor would I be if I wasn’t nice to the newbies?” he asked.

I smiled and sighed.

“I guess so,” I said.

Really, how could I pass this chance up?

Jimmy smiled excitedly.

“How’s tomorrow? Say, ten or so?” he proposed.

I nodded.

“Sure,” I said as he turned into our driveway, “You know where I live.”

Jimmy smiled and parked in front of the vacant garage.

“I wonder if Rami made it home?”

Jimmy glanced up at the house.

“I see a light on,” he said.

He pointed to the window, where I could see lamp light. I didn’t remember leaving it on when we left.

“Oh good,” I said, then unbuckled and turned to him.

“If you guys ever need anything, just let me know,” he said.

I stared at him in surprise.

“Okay,” was all I could think of to say before my manners kicked in, “Thanks.”

Jimmy smiled.

“You’re welcome, Sander. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said.

I smiled and opened the door, thanking him and saying goodbye before shutting the door and walking up to the porch. Jimmy waited until I walked inside and waved before he backed out of the parking lot.
I opened the door and entered the foyer, my mind in a haze, my body in pain, and my clothes disgustingly sticking to me.

“Rami! I’m home!” I called out.

It only took seconds before I received a reply.

“Sander? What the fucking fuck? Sander, it’s two in the morning! I’ve been worried sick! Where the fuck have you been?” Rami ranted from upstairs.

I let my back hit the closed door and sighed. My mind was still back in Jimmy’s car. Never did I think he would save me. Little did I know, there was much more in store.

Notes

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Chapter written by: sharpiewashere