My Guardian Angel(48)

I woke up to my notes stuck on my face. I must have been drooling when I fell asleep at my desk. A small blanket was over my shoulders. Jason must have put it there during the night. I swiveled my chair around to go to the bathroom to wash my face when I saw Jason on the floor. He was leaning up on the wall and was sleeping. What was I going to do with him? I knelt down and crawled up next to him. I leaned up against the wall and pushed his head down onto my shoulder. I fell back asleep, feeling safe again when I was with him.

I awoke in bed. Jason must have picked me up and brought me there. I looked around and he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. I could hear soft music playing. I got out of bed as my body protested. Never again was I going to fall asleep at my desk. I headed down the stairs. The sound of the jazz song began to become clearer. That’s when my blood went cold. Memories came flooding back. I leaned against the railing, holding onto my head.

The song kept playing over and over again. It was an LP, which was stuck. I remember the man who attacked me. I remember being on the ground. I remember fighting with him. He was trying to rip off my shirt. My heart began to beat so quickly that I had to sit down on the step. That’s when I remembered him falling over. He was knocked out cold, blood gushing from his head. I had frantically pushed him off me.

“Kass, are you up? I'm making breakfast,” Jason called after me.

I held onto my head, the memories playing over and over again.

“Kassia?” he called out again.

“Yeah,” I answered meekly.

I steadied myself and made my way down. The music kept playing. The sound of that song triggered the floodgates to open.

“Kass?” he asked nervously. I looked up. Those damn grey eyes.

“You were there?” I whispered so low I could scarcely hear myself.

“Kassia?” he asked quietly.

“It was you! I walked in and… you were there?” I cried out. My body began to shake.

“Kass, relax baby.” Jason tried to touch me but I backed away.

“Get the hell away from her!” Darios roared.

I turned to see him with his keys in his hands, as he stood at the front door. I began to hyperventilate.

“Dar?” I breathed.

“Kass?” Darios ran to me, but Jason was the one who caught me.

“Get your fuckin’ hands off her!” he growled as he took me into his arms and carried me to the couch.

All I remembered was Darios kicking Jason out.

“Are you feeling better?” Darios asked me as he held my water bottle.

“Did you know?” I asked softly.

“Yes. That’s why I didn’t want you to be around him,” Darios said ruefully.

“Darios, I know everyone’s kept it from me, but you need to tell me what happened that night,” I pleaded. My brother lowered his head and stared at the ground.

“Fuck! If only I hadn’t left you alone,” he said grimly.

“Dar! Just tell me!” I begged.

“It was the kid’s brother. He was on a bender; he came looking for money. They must have said no, that’s why he lost it and shot them. That’s when you went inside. You saw him,” Darios stopped.

“Saw who?” I pushed.

“Jason, he was hiding. The cops said once his brother came in yelling, he went and hid under the stairs. You found him and tried to take him and leave. I don’t know what exactly happened, but his brother was found dead.” Darios looked at me somberly, his sad eyes telling me how sorry he was.

“Then what happened?” I asked, now crying.

“All I know was you were in our house holding onto Jason. You were cradling him in your arms. You were the one who called the cops, Kass.” Darios breathed. I hugged myself and began to rock my body.

“Dar?” I sobbed. “Did he…did he hurt me?” I knew he knew what I meant.

“No,” he whispered.

“No! Baby girl, he didn’t hurt you.” Darios reached over, took me in his arms, and held me as I cried.





Lost



Darios stayed with me. Well actually, he moved in. He decided I needed him and this time he wasn’t about to let anyone hurt me. He blamed himself for what happened. I tried telling him not to, but he insisted that it was his fault.

“Is that why you won’t commit to anyone? Are you afraid to fail them?” I asked over takeout.

“Drop it, little girl. You might be my sister, but I can still tackle you,” he murmured.

“Don’t you have to work?” I asked.

My voice sounded so foreign to me. For the last couple of days, I was living through the moments, not really dealing with anything. I didn’t know what to think of first. Should I think of the night that scarred me? Should I think of Jason or the fuckin’ stalker who was now plaguing me? My life had become such a mess. A small part of me felt better for knowing about that night, but it was so small I hardly felt it was there if I didn’t look for it. Jason must have known who I was. Why didn’t he tell me then?