Comet! (an Ell Donsaii story #5 ) (24 page)

“Hah! ‘Belle’ likes him so much she got her ‘aunt
’ to sponsor his music career. But h
e thinks of ‘Belle’ as a buddy who happens to be a girl. Meanwhile, he idolizes this nonexistent ‘Ell’ girl, the gymnast and dancer that he’s never even had a conversation with! We form our own triangle! How messed up is that?!”

Emma
grinned and
shook her head, “I hadn’t thought of it that way. You
are
your own messed up little triangle! You really should visit one of his shows as ‘Ell” and meet him so he can fall in love with the real you.”

Ell got a far away look and leaned on the balcony, turning her eyes up to the stars. “I don’t know. I kinda want him to fall in love with ‘Belle,’ not
t
his infatuated weird idea of ‘Ell’ that he thinks got him started on his music career by dancing at his show.”

Emma laughed, “You want him to fall in love with the ‘fake you?’”

Ell blushed and looked down, “I guess. Crazy huh? Enough about me. Tell me about
your
love life. How’s the hunt for
‘
Mr. Kenner
’
going?”

This time Emma turned and looked out over the town, “Ah, not that great actually.”

Ell frowned, “Why not? Cute girl like you should have them lining up.”

“Yeah, sometimes. But we’ve talked before about how guys are intimidated by girls with advanced degrees. Lotta guys that are gung ho fade once they find out I’m not
actually
a waitress anymore.”

“Hmmm, I got some advice once… that maybe applies. It was from an older guy.” Ell looked a little distant for a moment, then turned back to Emma, “He seemed to think…” Ell colored up, “He thought that my looks would intimidate guys.” Ell she said in a rush that was almost a mumble. “Which is embarrassing, ‘cause I really don’t think I’m that great looking even though a lot of people make kind of a big deal over my looks
…
But anyway, he told me that guys would have a hard time asking me out because, they’d… they’d be afraid of getting ‘shot down.’ He said I had to make it obvious to guys that I was
open
to the possibility of their asking me.”

Ell turned back to Emma but Emma was staring back out over the town again. She said, “Yeah, maybe I’ll have to try that someday.”

Ell leaned back, “Someday? Why not now. ‘No time like the present’ and all that.”

Emma turned to look intensely at Ell
wondering if she should mention her
increasing
crush on Roger.
After all,
Ell had just told her that she wasn’t really in love with
Roger
. She just thought of him as a “friendly boy” after all.
“Because
, it’s complicated
…
I don’t know how to say…
”

The girl at the little table to Ell’s right
plaintively
said, “But Sam, I didn’t. I swear! I didn’t.”

The young man sitting across from her snarled without raising his voice, “Don’t
lie
to me
Bridget
. I saw it with my own eyes.”

“You saw me
look
at him?”

Out of the corner of her eye Ell saw the young man nod.
A
sharp emphatic nod, laden with freight.

“I can’t even
look
at other men now?” the girl said incredulously.

“Not
that
way.”

“Not
what
way?
” Ell saw the girl’s brow furrow.
“
Matt’s been a friend for a long time.
Am I supposed to
act
like
he’s not
even
there!”

“Look, you little
bitch
,” he hissed,
“
Don’t
even
try
to pretend this is nothing
. You know
exactly
what I’m talking about.”

Ell turned to see if Emma had noticed the spat and saw her focused on the man with laser like intensity. Ell
glanced around. S
he could tell that several other people had noticed the couple
and their
fight
,
though
most people
were trying to ignore what was going on.
Ell whispered to Emma, “Hmmm, makes me think maybe I don’t
want
a boyfriend.”

Emma said, in a conversational tone, “I had a boyfriend like that
asshole
once. Shortly after a conversation like
that
one
he gave me a black eye.”

Ell cringed inside. Surely the young man had heard Emma? She glanced at him and saw him glaring at Emma. She turned back to Emma and said quietly, “You’re speaking loud
ly
enough that he can hear you.”

Again in a carrying voice Emma said, “I don’t care if
he
hears me. I want
her
to know that it’s time to get the hell out of that relationship.”

The man
stood violently and Ell felt her zone starting to drop over her. She tamped it down a little. Emma cringed back a tiny bit, then stood bravely back where she’d been, still staring the man right in the eye. He, still staring at Emma, reached a hand out to the girl saying, “
Bridget, l
et’s get the hell out of here.”

The girl definitely shrank back
from him
, pulling her hand
out of
his reach, “No! I
don’t
want
to leave with you when you’re in this kind of mood Sam.”

“Sam” transferred his
intense
gaze to the girl. In a voice dripping sarcasm he said, “Well
I’m
leaving Bridget. I’m sure that by the time
you’re
ready
to go, I’ll be in a
much
better mood.” He turned to stalk through the crowd.

“Sam?” Bridget cried plaintively after him.

Ell saw the crowd, whose attention had been drawn to the little drama turn away as if afraid of getting involved.
While she wondered what to do
,
Emma stepped over and sat in the chair Sam had vacated. “Hey Bridget.” Emma took the girl’s hand and patted it.

Bridget’s eyes filled with tears and one
ra
n down her cheek. She glanced fearfully over her shoulder in the direction Sam had vanished. Without looking at Emma she said, “I wish you hadn’t done that. He’ll be
awful
later tonight.”

Emma moved her face into Bridget’s line of sight, staring wide eyed at her. “For God’s sake,
don’t
go
back to him. Good riddance. I can tell you from experience that your life will be
ever
so much better without him.”

“This date was supposed to be for our one year anniversary,” Bridget
mumbled
.

Aghast, Emma said, “You’re married?!”

“No
...
one year since we met.”

“Oh! Thank God! In the future you can celebrate it as the day you got rid of him.”

The girl sniffed, “But it won’t be
...
he’ll be waiting for me outside. I’d better go
...
the longer he has to wait, the worse he’ll be.”

Emma put a restraining hand on the girl’s wrist. “
Bridget
, do you
want
to keep on with this relationship? Ask yourself, ‘Tomorrow, will I be glad I went back to him?’”

Bridget shook her head. “No. Tomorrow will be just as miserable as tonight and on and on. But if I don’t go back it’ll be even w
or
…” She trailed off without completing the thought.

Fiercely
Emma said, “We’ll go with you when you leave. We’ll help you get to the women’s shelter. We’ll help you get out of this situation.”

Bridget sniffed and wiped her nose on the back of her wrist. “Why are you
sticking
your nose in our business?” She looked Emma in the eye for the first time.

“Because… Because
no one
helped me when I was in your situation. And I swore… I swore…
Swore
that I wouldn’t turn away if I ever saw anyone in my situation
.” Emma’s eyes glistened and she stared fiercely around the crowd that was fixated on the drama playing out before them, locking eyes with several
people who
glanced away in shame. She wiped the corner of her eye with the back of her bent wrist.

Bridget dropped her eyes to her table and whispered, “He’ll hit… he’ll hit you too
,
you know?”

“He’s
already
been hitting you girl?”

Bridget swallowed convulsively and nodded jerkily.

Emma hissed, “You
so
need
to get out and get out
now
! This kind of guy just gets worse
and worse… then
someday you end up dead.”

Bridget glanced fearfully over her shoulder as if she was afraid that Sam might be there watching. “You really don’t want to be with me when I leave… He’s gonna be
…
he’ll
be
horrible!”

Emma glanced around the staring crowd. “Let’s go in the bathroom and plan.”

In the girl’s bathroom Emma turned to Bridget, “Do you have an audio video record of him hitting you?”

Bridget shook her head, “He always acts sickly sweet right up to the moment he unplugs my AI.” She sniffed and pulled a paper towel
out of the dispenser
to wipe her nose.

Ell wandered to the back of the bathroom. “Barrett? Are you outside Top of the Hill?”

Allan patched the question through to Barrett
. A moment later
Ell heard
Barrett in her earpiece,
“Yes. Do you need me?”

“No, but can you look around outside for this guy?” Ell had Allan send Barrett a snippet of video of Sam.

“Can do. Is he a threat?”

“Well, not to us. But he’s a threat to his girlfriend and Emma’s trying to help her get out of her situation with
him
.”

“OK.”

As Ell walked back over to Emma and Bridget, Emma looked up and said, “Ell, can Bridget wear your jacket?”

Ell blinked, “Sure.” She pulled it off.

Bridget said, “I appreciate your helping but I
really
don’t think you guys should get involved. You’re gonna regret it.”

Emma held out her hand, “Gimme your jacket girl.”

Bridget shrugged out of it. Emma turned it inside out and handed it to Ell.
Bridget stared, “Why don’t
I
wear my jacket inside out?”

Emma said, “Because he’s gonna look closely at people your height and wonder about the one with the weird jacket. He’s not going to look at the tall girl with the weird jacket.”
She folded the sleeves back on
Ell’s
jacket to expose the tiny Bridget’s hands.

As Ell put Bridget’s jacket on, Bridget sniffed and tremblingly grinned, “Not even the tall girl with the weird jacket that has short sleeves?”

Ell grinned as she looked down at her wrists extending well beyond the sleeves.

Bridget glanced up at Ell’s face, then stared. “Oh my God!
You’re
Ell Donsaii!”

Ell nodded somberly, “Last time I checked.”

Bridget looked back and forth between them. “Thank you.” She whispered.

Emma cleared her throat, “OK, next. Your hair.” Emma held up a tube of
dark red
lipstick.

Bridget frowned at it
.

Emma said, “Take off your headband.”

When Bridget had done so Emma started running the lipstick through her pale blond hair.

Bridget watching in the mirror, giggled as
dark
red
dish
streaks appeared in her hair. “You’re making a terrible mess!”

Emma raised her eyebrows momentarily, “You’re right, better take off Ell’s jacket.”

Bridget blinked a moment
,
then took off the jacket and handed it back to Ell. Ell started to take Bridget’s back off too.

“No, no. I just don’t want you to get lipstick all over Ell’s jacket. Here run your fingers through your hair to get the lumps and streaks out.” Bridget and Emma started running their hands through Bridget’s hair and smearing the lipstick through it.
Bridget pulled out a comb and ran it through her hair. When they were done it looked like
someone had done
a particularly bad job of dying
her
hair red.