Married to the Bad Boy (5 page)

With that said, he stood up and walked over to me with rage in his eyes. I took a step back from him with flash backs of my stepfather giving me the same look before he would punch me to the ground.

“Kami, I’m not going to fight you with this. We got married and we need to act it. Once school’s out, we will figure it all out then,” he replied with annoyance in his voice as he took a step closer to me, only for me to take one away from him till my back hit the wall next to the door I came out from.

I thought back to the night when I was pressed against the wall right before I got hit. I closed my eyes, waiting for Brandon to do the same, but when I felt him caress my cheek, I knew he wasn’t going to harm me. “Kami, open your eyes.”  When I opened them, I found myself swimming in his chocolate brown eyes once again. “Listen to me. It doesn’t matter how frustrated I get. I would never harm you. I never want to see that look on your face again when we’re fighting about something. I’ve never hit a girl in my life, nor would I ever plan to. If a girl would ever try to hit me, I simply pin her arms above her head till she calmed down, but I would never hit her back.”

He held my face in the palm of his hand, looking at me with certainty in his eyes. “I need you to have some kind of faith in me and know I will keep you protected from anyone who will try to harm you.”

I stared into his eyes, thinking if I was about to give him what he wanted. Faith. I haven’t had faith in someone in such a long time I was unsure if I would be able to now, but he hadn’t given me a reason not to. “I’ll try, but it might take some time.”

He leaned his forehead against mine, still looking me in the eyes. “That’s all I’m asking. Now come on. It’s time for dinner,” he said, pulling me out of the room down to the dining area. 

At dinner there was little talk about Brandon and me getting married or what had happened to cause all of it, but we talked about simple things. His mother had offered to go shopping for me for some new clothes since there was no point in me bringing stuff from my old home here. His father said that he would talk to us both alone about this arrangement in the morning after he came back from getting my school stuff.

Aside from that, it was a simple and peaceful dinner with no fighting, which was really new to me. 

When dinner was finished, Brandon wasted no time in telling them goodnight and pulling me back into his room with him. When he lay down on the bed with his arm over his face, I just stood there looking around, starting to feel uncomfortable again. “Uhm, Brandon, where am I sleeping?”

He sat back up looking at me with a small smile playing across his face. “In here with me.”

I felt my heart rate speed up, thinking how I’ve never shared a bed with a guy before, besides the fact I hardly ever slept in my own bed due to the beatings I would get that caused me to black out.  “Isn’t there a guest room, I could sleep in?” I asked uneasily.

“Yes, there is a guest room, but I want you to stay here with me. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of room on the bed for us to share. I just want to know you’re safe at all times and it would help me sleep better if I knew you were beside me,” he replied as he moved some covers around. “Now come on. I want to relax and watch some TV before I go to sleep. We both had a long day and need the rest.”

Not wanting to start another fight, I did as he asked and walked over to the other side of the bed and got in. He turned on the television hanging on the wall across the bed. As I got under the covers, I turned my back to him, trying to not think how awkward I felt being in bed with a guy I just married all in one day. As I pulled the pillow closer to my face, I felt the covers being pulled over my shoulder. Closing my eyes, I drowned out the noise in the room and felt him place a soft kiss on my temple.

“Good night, Kami.”   

“Kami, wake up.”

I felt someone shaking me from the darkness that was swimming around me.

“Come on, open your eyes. It’s just a dream. Wake up.”

When I finally opened my eyes, escaping from the nightmare that was dark and wicked, I found Brandon sitting up over me. I felt the tears run down my cheeks and I turned my back to him, not wanting him to see the tears coming down my face.

“Hey, are you okay?” He asked from behind me, but not moving to come any closer.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a nightmare. Sorry for waking you up,” I replied in a soft voice, not turning to look at him. 

I closed my eyes and thought how the dream felt so real. I had been in the perfect white room with an aura of peace when a dark cloud swirled around me. I ran to try to escape, but it was faster as it sucked me into darkness. I became defenseless in the blackness, being unaware of what could be lurking in the cloud. That's when I started panicking and was awakened.

I never remembered having any nightmare or dream before tonight. When I normally slept at night, I had been blacked out from being beaten. I don’t even recall the last time I even dreamed. Was this my punishment now, having nightmares, so that I’d be too scared to close my eyes? 

How can I stay strong and get past this point in my life if I’m too scared to go to sleep? Even Brandon wouldn’t be able to save me from the demons that plagued my dreams now. This dilemma I must fight on my own. I have been trying to prove to myself that I didn’t need anyone in my life before Brandon showed up. The one thing I was certain of was that in a few short months I’d be out on my own with no Brandon in sight. I just hoped this taught me how to be on my own and not rely on someone else for help.

“Kami, don’t do this. You’re shutting me out and hiding again,” he said after some time. “You said you wouldn’t hide from me anymore.”

Wiping the tears off my face, I turned to face him and found that he was still sitting there looking at me. With the darkness in the room, it was hard to make out his facial expression, and this made it easier to talk to him.

“It was just a nightmare, Brandon. There’s nothing to talk about. It’s not like you can protect me from them.”

“No, you’re right. I can’t protect you from the thoughts your mind creates, but I can show you the virtues in the world, so that maybe you can forget the cruelty,” he stated, pulling me up into his arms. “There’s no reason for you to have nightmares as long as I’m by your side.”

I lay my head on his chest, wishing I could always feel this protected, but I couldn’t ask that of him. This marriage was only going to last till the end of the school year, then we would be going our separate ways and I would be alone again.

Thinking that it would be best not to get too attached, I pulled away from his hold and got out of the bed to put some space between us. “Brandon, that’s nice and all, but we know where this is going. When school’s over, we’ll be getting a divorce and going our individual ways. Maybe it will be best if we try to put some space between us and not get so devoted to one another.” 

I watched as Brandon gets up from the bed and walk over to me, only for me to take a step back which made him stop. “Have you forgotten we’re married? It’s too late for the ‘devoted to one another,’ we’re bonded together now. Yes, I agreed to this till the end of the school year, but you never know what could happen after that. For all you know we could still be friends or even go to the same college.”

“That’s not the point,” I insisted. “I don’t think it’s smart if we get attached to one another. I need to stand on my own two feet and try to do things on my own. I appreciate you wanting to protect me, but we need to see the bigger picture here.”

“Bigger picture,” he repeated with anger in his voice. “What bigger picture? All I see is you trying to close up on me again.” 

“That’s not it, I just don’t want to get attached that’s all,” I responded, taking a step to him and placing my hand on his arm as he looked down at me, but was still unable to make out his facial expression. “It would just be hard for the both of us if we became too close.”

“Alright, if space is what you want, fine. Just know I will be there in the shadows watching over you though,” he declared, “As long as we’re married, I will be by your side, but I’ll try to give you the space you want.”

“Thank you. Now can we please go back to bed?” I asked, letting out a yawn as I walked by him, only to find him wrap me in his embrace. “What are you doing?”

“Hugging you good night,” he said in a calm voice, pulling me closer to him. “I know this isn’t giving you space, but it helps me to know that I’m doing my job right protecting you.”

We stayed like that for a few seconds till we both turned back to the bed and got under the covers. As I turned my back to him once again, I thought back at the wedding and how he wanted me to be more open with him. And now we just agreed to give one another space. It wasn’t that I was ungrateful of Brandon wanting to keep me protected, but I didn’t want to take the chance of getting my heart broken.

“Kami,” I heard him speak. “What do you want me to do the next time you’re tossing and turning in your sleep while screaming?” 

“Try to wake me up,” I replied. “I don’t ever remember having nightmares before, but that one was like my mind was trying to tell me something more dangerous was coming my way. That’s just because I’m in a state of peace right now, it doesn’t mean something frightening is coming out to get me.”

“Then I’ll have to make sure to stay a few steps closer to you to make sure that doesn’t happen then,” he answered as I felt his arm wrap around my waist, pulling me to him. “I vowed to keep you safe till graduation and I’ve never broken a promise before, so you don’t have to worry about someone harming you while we’re together.”

“Thank you, Brandon. You’re like this guardian angel that showed up and it’s nice knowing that there’s someone to try to keep me safe from all the crazy things out there,” I said, starting to close my eyes, feeling sheltered while wrapped in his arms.

“You’re welcome, Kami,” he said as he moved some of my hair out of his way, lying down behind me with his arms still embracing me.

When the sun finally came up, I found myself in his arms still. It seemed that in the middle of the night, I had turned in my sleep and was now facing him, with my face pressed up against his bare chest. When I tried to move a little to get out of his hold, he tightened his embrace, making it almost impossible to move out.

“Kami, go back to sleep,” he simply said, with his eyes closed. “It’s too early to be up and I would like to sleep in today.”

“Brandon, we have to go to school, though,” I said, trying once again to push myself away from him when I started to feel more like a prisoner. “Can you please let me go?”

“We’re not going to school today. I think we deserve it after yesterday,” he told me as he loosened his hold. I moved out of his hold and he turned to lie on his stomach, burying his face into the pillow. “Please go back to sleep, Kami.”

“No, I’m going to school with or without you,” I declared with finality, moving to get out of the bed only for him to grip hold of my arm, pulling me back into the bed and leaning over me.

“What part of ‘we’re not going to school today’ do you not understand?” he asked, looking down at me with my heart beating speedily. I lay there, waiting for him to do to me what my stepfather would have done.

 “Brandon,” I said in a shaky voice, “please let me go. I don’t care if you don’t want to go to school, but I have to go if I want to get into a decent college and get my inheritance.” That was when he rounded off of me and back onto his back before getting up and walking off to the bathroom, but saying something about me being stubborn and how I wasn’t right for wanting to go to school today. 

Walking out of the room, I found Brandon’s mom standing there laughing quietly. “I’m sorry, but that was the best thing I’ve ever overheard. Brandon never listens to anyone, and then you showed up and put him in his place. I think I’m going to enjoy seeing you two married.” I just stood there with a questioning look on my face, wondering how long she had been standing there listening to us.  “Here, I brought this for you to wear since you don’t have any clothes. Maybe we can go shopping for some new clothes after school if you like.”

Taking the clothes, I turned to see Brandon walking out of the bathroom still in a pair basketball shorts. “I don’t know,” I answered, turning back to her, unsure since I’ve never really gone shopping before. When it came to clothing, Mandy normally just gave me clothes that she didn’t like anymore and since she was bigger than me, they were baggy.

“I’ll let you think about it while you’re at school. Till then I hope this works,” she said as she handed over the clothes. Taking them, I thanked her and walked back into the room, forgetting why I was going out there to start with.

Brandon was throwing clothes out from his closet by the time I closed the door and saw him pop his head back out. “You know, she always wanted a daughter and was disappointed when she found out she was having a boy.”

“That can’t be true, Brandon. I’m sure she loves you just the same,” I told him.

“I was only kidding, Kami. Calm down. She always did want to have another child, but something happened and she wasn’t able to have any more after she had me.” There was sadness in his eyes. “I guess she wants to experience bonding with a daughter.”

I just nodded my head in understanding and walked into the bathroom to change and get ready for school, wondering what the day was going to bring me. How was the school going to take us getting married and what would the student body say once they found out?