The Post-it Girl

She was the most memorable one-night stand Chase Kingsley had ever encountered.

The previous night, they had met at a random frat party on campus. The house was brilliant— complete with flashing strobe lights, a nice stock of alcoholic beverages and above all else, sexy girls. When the inebriated brunette stumbled into him and visually raped him with her smoky gray eyes, he knew he was a goner.

"Hey there, sexy," she purred, draping an arm around him.

Chase grinned. "Already smashed? The party's just begun."

She smiled under her eyelashes and whispered a string of naughty words in his ear. Then, she tugged him into a bedroom upstairs, marking the beginning of what would be a long, long night...

The following morning, he was shocked to find the other side of the bed empty, with the whole surface covered in hastily scrawled post-its. Chase even found one plastered onto his genitals.

'TINY'.

'Well I beg to differ,' he thought, raising an eyebrow. She seemed wildly excited last night... His eyes fell on his slightly shredded boxers lying on the floor.

Chase's amusement grew as he plucked one off his forehead.

'PERVERTED PERVERT WHO SUCCUMBS TO HIS PERVERSE DESIRES.'

Clearly this girl had never laid eyes on a thesaurus before.

'SHAME ON YOU FOR TAKING OUT YOUR SEXUAL FRUSTRATION ON A POOR, VULNERABLE MAIDEN LIKE ME.'

Chase laughed incredulously. Hello? You threw yourself on me!

'YOUR TESTICLES ARE DEFORMED. SEEK MEDICAL TREATMENT IMMEDIATELY.'

Insulted, he glanced down and crumpled up the post-it.

'EVER HEARD OF A SHAVER, CHEWBACCA?'

…

Meanwhile, on the other side of the campus, a girl by the name of Lauralee Collins was bawling her eyes out.

Her roommate and best friend, Addie, blew a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Laurie, I swear, if you don't shut up the R.A. is going to bang on our door any moment now."

"B-but crying is cathartic!" Lauralee sobbed, trying to stuff a fist in her mouth. Alas, her mouth was too small. "And I can't believe I acted like a slut just a two days after the break-up."

Addie heaved a sigh. "Sweetie, you didn't act like a slut. Anyway, Bob was a total asshole. He was the one who called it off! I mean, the way he treated you..."

"But we dated for two whole years," Lauralee sniffed, dabbing her swollen eyes with tissue. "That's like, ten years for college kids. And I lost my virginity to him." She paused for what seemed like a dramatic effect. "... I loved him."

"No," her roommate said firmly. "You think you loved him because of your inherent little romantic qualities. Its an illusion."

Lauralee scoffed. "Addie, as much as I love you, you're too cynical sometimes. Well fine!" she said when Addie opened her mouth in protest. "Lets not dwell on that. Lets move on to how I acted like a slut." Her face screwed up in a way that looked dangerously close to crying.

Addie hurriedly said, "Well... you helped yourself to a lot of booze. You had a very nice, er, top," Lauralee glanced down at her low V-neck halter top which left little to the imagination. Where on earth did she get it? Her lips trembled.

"And that guy was smokin'!" Addie beamed at her. "He had these super nice blue eyes and natural black hair— what a combination, eh? — and he had washboard abs! It showed through through his white tee!" Her enthusiasm failed to reflect on Lauralee's expression, so she sobered. "Bet it really wasn't that bad, Laurie."

Lauralee drew her knees to her chest and rested her chin there, a contemplative look on her wet face. "But it happened too soon..."

"I thought you wanted it." Addie frowned. "You know, rebound sex and all. Otherwise, I would have pulled you off when you tried to maul him."

"Maul?!"

"Er," Addie cringed, inwardly chastising herself for her slip of tongue. "I didn't mean that! You just seemed so sexually excited that I—"

"Sexually excited!" This brought on a fresh onslaught of tears.

It took a while for her to calm down, but when Lauralee's tears finally ceased, she took a long, warm bubble bath. Half an hour later, she emerged from the bathroom, eyes bloodshot but lips smiling triumphantly.

"I swore to myself, in that bathroom, that after two whole days of crying over Bob Berzin, I will not shed any more tears for him."

A startled but proud smile unfolded on Addie's lips. "Atta girl!"

Lauralee chewed her bottom lip nervously. "Also, I will stop moaning about the one-night stand from last night, because I can't change history and I need to focus on revising for the finals and not waste Dad's hard-earned money."

Addie cheered and clapped vigorously. "Good thinking, Laurie!"

Lauralee beamed. "Well, yeah. What happened last night doesn't bother me that much anymore because I left a whole bunch of scathing post-its lying around! I even stuck one on his..." She smiled slyly.

"Displacement of anger, huh?" Addie shook her head sadly. "Oh, how I sympathize with that poor, unsuspecting soul..."

"Mr. Kingsley? This way, if you please..."

His father's secretary was leading him on a tour around his law firm. There were glass partitions separating the entrance from the offices within. The vinyl flooring was a metallic blue and in the waiting room there were plush, white velvet sofas.

Chase was hardly impressed as he walked through the company which his father had spent his whole life creating and developing. So Dad had spent thirty years building this empire, leaving his wife to face clinical depression on her own and neglecting his son... The only time he'd shown Chase the remotest bit of attention was two years ago, when he'd gotten into the dean's list, when he realized his son was worthy of carrying on his father's legacy... Did his father even care about him as a child?

He sat stiffly in front of the Principal, who's beady eyes were filled with annoyance. This was the third time in the term Chase Kingsley was summoned to her office. The previous two times he'd played unpleasant pranks on his teacher. This time, however, he'd punched a fellow eighth-grade student.

There was a knock on the door.

"Mrs. Kingsley, do come in..." The Principal frowned when Chase's mother came in. "I do recall asking for Chase's father to come as well?"

Mrs. Kingsley gave a nervous smile and her hands were shaky as she took a seat. "Well, I suppose I could give him a call." Her face was haggard and she clutched at her bag until her knuckles were white. "But Chase's father is a busy man, you see, so I can't make any promises..." Mrs. Kingsley pulled out a sleek cell phone and dialled the number.

"Dear? I—"

The silence in the room was penetrated by shouts from the phone and Mrs. Kingsley held it away from her ear, glancing anxiously at the Principal, who pretended to be deaf in light of the family's dysfunction. Chase clenched his fists and stared out of the window, feeling his mother's humiliation as his own.

Mrs. Kingsley whispered a soft "Bye" into the cell phone and gave a trembling smile. "I'm afraid he's having a very important meeting right now... so if we may p-proceed?"

"Well, today I called you in because your son attacked his fellow eighth-grade classmate, Bob Berzin... he claims that Bob provoked him, but judging from his record..."

Later that night, when Chase was tucked in bed, he heard his parents fighting, his Dad shouting with rage and his mother screaming and crying.

Chase was used to such lullabies.

"Now, Mr. Kingsley," the secretary's nasally voice intoned. "I will leave you to explore on your own for twenty minutes. Your appointment with your father is arranged at 11.30 am, so please be prompt." She gave a terse smile and with a click of her heels, she was off.

Chase gave a cursory glance at his surroundings. The gray office cubicles were mundane and contained nothing more than a laptop, some stationary and lined paper. The prospect of working in this sort of soul-killing environment caused his stomach to churn with dread.

It took him ten strides to walk to the end of the room and there he saw something, right at the back, that made him slow his footsteps.

Post-its. Lots and lots of them, multicolored, decorated the walls of the cubicle and ate up all the gray. This particular cubicle was like a rainbow amongst the monochromatic office. The red and blue and green post-its almost swallowed up all the space on the desk, some with cartoon drawings, others containing brief reminders like 'BLACK COFFEE FOR MR K' with an angry, bull face drawn underneath. Chase grinned when a frazzled brunette hurried back into her seat.

"You know, my Dad, Mr. Kingsley, always drinks black coffee. And that drawing..." He gestured at that particular post-it. "What an uncanny resemblance of him, I must say."

The girl widened her eyes and scrambled to her feet. "I don't know what you're talking about," she bluffed. Her face was growing pink as she rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "Mr. Kingsley is a great boss and I'm so, so grateful for this interning opp—"

"Hey, you look familiar." Chase peered at her face, which stirred up some recognition within his mind... Hadn't he seen her somewhere before?

He took in her chocolate brown hair, a few strands slipping out of her chignon. The girl had transparent gray eyes with speckles of brown in them, a button nose and a full bottom lip, which she was chewing nervously. Something about the post-its looked so familiar...

"You're Post-it girl!" Chase declared loudly, causing a few heads to turn towards them. He waved their attention away and his eyes zeroed in on the girl, who was squirming uncomfortably under his penetrating gaze.

"You don't remember me?" Chase asked, feigning hurt. She shook her head wildly. "That one-night stand from a year ago? You were quite special... your name was uh," he racked his brain. "Lexi? No... Lauren? Wait, its Lauralee!"

Judging from her bright red face and wide, saucer-like eyes, Chase knew that he'd gotten it right.

Lauralee's mouth was 'o' shaped as recognition clicked in her mind.

"He had these super nice blue eyes and natural black hair — what a combination, eh? — and he had washboard abs! It showed through through his white tee!"

Oh my God.

From the corner of her eye, she saw that Fiona, the company grapevine, had an avaricious shine in her eyes. She was leaning as close to them as possible without falling out of her chair.

A nervous laugh bubbled out of Lauralee's lips. "Sir, surely your eyes are playing tricks on you... Truth be told, I've been celibate—"

"For a year? No, I have good memory," Chase said firmly, a Chesire cat's grin curling his lips. His cerulean blue eyes sparkled with excitement. "Say, why don't we head out for some coffee during your lunch break? I know this great cafe—"

"Mr Kingsley!" a stern voice boomed, causing everyone to jump. "You're late for our appointment."

Lauralee was stunned by the effect the older Mr. Kingsley had on the younger Mr. Kingsley. The moment he heard his father's voice, the mirth left Chase's eyes immediately and a cold sheet of ice took its place there. She saw a dimple wink out of his left cheek, but somehow she knew that it was not because he was smiling, but rather, grimacing.

Oh, God. This had to be one of those cliched dysfunctional relationships within wealthy families. But as Chase tensely walked towards the office, Lauralee shrugged off her concern. Whatever.

Rich people had plenty of money at hand which they could use to dispose their problems. Poor, working-class people like her had no business worrying about things like well-off, dysfunctional families. People like Lauralee worried about more practical things... like getting food on the table and paying the bills on time.

An hour flew by, during which Lauralee delivered five more coffees, sorted out three separate divorce papers, transcribed some notes for Mr. Kingsley's secretary, and got told off by her supervisor for not keeping her cubicle professional-looking enough.

When lunch break rolled by, Lauralee was desperate to escape from the office before Chase could corner her. But no such luck. He swiftly slid into the elevator just as she pressed 'close'.

Chase leaned against the wall, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "Nice try," he murmured, his eyelids sliding shut. He looked so, so tired compared to two hours ago, when he chatted her up. "Cafe Deluxe is really cosy. Every time after I visit my Dad here, I go there to relax. The food is good too." He cracked an eye open and his lips tilted upwards when he saw Lauralee edging towards the exit, as if he'd eat her.

"I don't bite."

Lauralee gritted her teeth and muttered to herself, "must resist manly wiles." She didn't know it, but Chase was neither a womanizer or a serial killer, although he may have acted like the two.

The lift door 'dinged' and Chase dragged her off to the Cafe, pushing his meeting with his father to the back of his mind.

"So, tell me more about yourself," Chase said, leaning forward.

This was the fourth time he'd asked her this question and Lauralee scowled, taking a sip from her caramel latte.

She no longer thought he was dangerous male specimen (really, he was too immature for that) and during the last half hour, she filled him in on why she was interning in his Dad's firm (Lauralee aspired to become a barrister to defend women— this stemmed from a poignant, domestic violence article she'd read a few years back), why she'd slept with him ("Bad breakup. Full stop," she said curtly), what happened to her in the year after she left college and so forth. Of course, she couldn't resist taking a dig at him for being rich.

"You've heard plenty about me," Lauralee pointed out. "Now its your turn."

Chase rubbed the back of his neck. "One last question, what's with your obsession with post-its?"

She grinned, finally receiving a question which she loved answering. "It all started in sophomore year of high school. Dad gave me a jumbo post-it back, containing a rainbow assortment of post-its, for my birthday. So I thought, hey, I should use them all up before they go un-sticky because there were LOADS."

There was a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "They turned out to be really useful... for lesson notes, for messages to friends... but you know what was the best thing of all?" Lauralee sipped her coffee, smiling happily. "I'd write out a hundred post-its with words like 'You're beautiful', 'I love your smile' and so on and stick them all over people's lockers-- especially for homosexuals, girls with low self esteem et cetera, because they did get a hard time from others."

A shadow flitted over her face, but it faded almost as quickly as Chase saw it. "I used to be overweight and I hated myself for it... so I just thought, what would make me feel better about myself? And that's how the post-it thing happened," she finished, grinning from ear to ear. "Gosh, you should have seen them smiling and laughing! I loved every second of it."

Lauralee's cheeks were flushed from the warmth of the coffee and the story she was telling. Chase was enamored by the excitement glittering in her gray eyes.

"So," she began, breaking him out of his reverie. "Spill out every silly, little detail about yourself."

He scratched his chin. "Well... where to start? I'm turning twenty-three, single..." He winked at Lauralee and she avoided his eyes, a flush creeping up her neck. He was amused by how easily she became flustered.

"I go binge drinking when I'm stressed or mad," he continued easily. "I don't smoke, because that's how my granddad died. I'm a single child. My Dad and I don't really get along and I dread festive, family dinners." Chase was surprised by the words that left his lips. He certainly hadn't intended to reveal the bit about his father, although Lauralee had probably gathered as much from her time at the office.

Lauralee's curiosity was piqued. "Fascinating... so are rich families really dysfunctional? So its just like in the novels." His mouth twitched and she folded her arms defensively. "What? I like reading trashy romance novels! They're... romantic," and serve as a boyfriend replacement, but she didn't tell him that.

Her eyes swept over her watch and she almost fainted.

"Shit!" Lauralee cursed. "Five minutes till end of lunch break and we're blocks away! I've got to run." She flashed Chase a quick smile and gathered her things, stuffing them in her bag. "Nice talking to you, Chase." Lauralee rose to her feet and was about to sprint, but he caught her arm.

"Lauralee Collins, would you like to go on another date with m-me?" God, he hadn't stammered since tenth grade when his Dad had shouted at him about his grades. Chase cleared his throat and tried again. "I mean--"

Lauralee pressed a finger to his lips, produced a post-it pad and a pen from her pocket and quickly scribbled something on it. Then she slapped it on his chest, gave him a coy smile and ran— whether because she was running late, or her answer, Chase didn't know. He peeled it off his lapel. On the post-it, she'd written her number and two words that made him grin from ear to ear.

Why not?

A few months later, on a midsummer's afternoon, Lauralee found herself relaxing against the bough of an oak tree with Chase Kingsley. The sun shone a bright halo on his dark hair while her head fit snugly in his chest. His hand slipped under her t-shirt and her breath hitched as he traced light circles on her stomach. Lauralee knew that this moment would be ingrained in her memories forever.

"Do you think this is love?" she whispered, playing with a loose thread on his shirt. He chuckled and Lauralee realized she loved everything about him, right down to the way his chest reverberated when he laughed.

"Do you?" Chase said huskily. He gently laid her head on the soft grass and twisted around so that he was leaning over her. Then, his lips captured hers in a searing kiss. When he withdrew from her, his thumb glided over her bottom lip and she sighed.

"Yeah," he murmured, soaking up the warmth of the sun. His hand found hers and they intertwined.

This is love.

"God, this is so nerve-wracking."

Lauralee was pacing back and forth in the living room, agitated. Chase was arriving in half an hour to pick her up for a family at his home tonight. For the occasion, he'd bought her a white, strapless, knee-length Christian Dior dress that floated like clouds beneath her. In addition, Chase had given her a cute, fashionable beaded clutch and nude Christian Louboutin peep-toe shoes. It was the most beautiful outfit she'd ever worn and Chase, true to his nature, was clever enough to rip off all the price tags. The price was definitely bordering a five-digit number.

Addie sighed admiringly at the shoes. "Will you give those to me after tonight?"

Lauralee bristled. "Of course not! I won't take a single thing from him. I'm bringing a change of clothes just so I can just leave these with him afterwards."

Her best friend scowled. "You're really one of a kind, girl. Who wouldn't take advantage of their super cute and rich boyfriend?" She smirked when Lauralee wrinkled her nose. "Who would have known that you'd end up falling for your one-night stand?"

Lauralee snorted. "He was so darn persistent... and he said he fell for me first, so there. Ha!" She turned to the mirror to clip a barrette to her straightened hair.

Addie idly flipped through her magazine, her eyes still dreamlike. "But think about it, Laurie... you don't even have to work anymore!"

Lauralee was so outraged by this comment that she spat out the bobby pin she held between her teeth. "I'm not going to rely on Chase!" she spluttered indignantly. "After all, I spent all those years studying law, right? And you know last week, I read this article about this woman who got assaulted by her boyfriend and in defence of herself she kicked his balls. And now she's being sued! Oh, the injustice! I—"

The doorbell rang.

"Oh, great!" Addie cheered, clapping her hands gleefully. "Prince Charming swoops away the Princess and saves my ears from all that ranting!" She jumped off the couch and kissed Lauralee's cheek, which had grown pale. "Have a wonderful time, sweetheart," she sang, doing a pirouette on the floor. Goodness, she seemed even more excited than Lauralee. Addie danced towards the door and opened it with a sweeping gesture.

Oh.

Chase was dapper in a white suit, his hair was gelled for the occasion and his startling blue eyes hugged all the curves accentuated by the dress she wore. Lauralee blushed as she rested her hand on the crook of his elbow. She inhaled a fresh smell of cologne and kissed his newly-shaved chin.

"You're beautiful," he murmured, pressing his lips on her forehead.

Lauralee grinned. Somehow, the nervousness had fleeted out of her system. "And you're freshly shaved, I see. Not even a trace of stubble on your face."

"Well, I don't want to be called Chewbacca again, do I?"

It took a few seconds to sink in, but when realization slapped her in the face, her cheeks grew hot again.

"When are you going to stop teasing me about the post-its I left back then?"

"Never. Can't resist," he smirked down at her.

Addie blew a raspberry. "Sweethearts, sorry to ruin the romantic moment, but I want to watch TV now."

Lauralee poked out her tongue at her best friend and Chase tugged her towards the elevator. "Come on, we're going to be late..." He flashed her a winsome smile. "I promise I'll behave."

It's time.

Chase felt a lump in his throat as he walked through the wrought-iron gates, his palms clammy with sweat. The imposing height of the mansion, the stern and cold atmosphere were reason enough as to why he preferred living outside. He glanced at Lauralee and noticed that she was also anxious, chewing her bottom lip furiously.

"So," he said as they stood before the flight of stairs. It led up to the entrance of the dining room. "This is it."

Lauralee tightened her grip on his arm. "Why do you sound so dramatic?"

He laughed nervously. "I do?"

"Yes," she hissed. "And why on earth did you fill me in with all those scary facts about your Dad? I break out in hives at the mere thought of seeing him."

"Well," Chase said, lowering his voice. "We're here, aren't we? And he told me to bring you so..." He reached for Lauralee's hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "Don't let him get to you, yeah?"

She nodded tersely, and they went in.

Lauralee was astonished by the sheer wealthiness of the Kingsley family. They had mahogany flooring and antiques for show at every corner of the mansion. The chandeliers dangled with crystals and the corridor flooring which led to the dining room were covered in Persian rugs.

She almost stumbled when she finally entered the dining room. There was a long table in the center and on either side of it were rows of servants, all of whom bowed as she entered with Chase. She took a seat beside Mrs. Kingsley while Chase sat next to his father.

This was the first time she'd seen Mr. Kingsley outside of the office, but his expression was still the same. He had the same blue eyes as his son, but his were austere and lacking in emotion. There was a frown permanently etched between his brows and his lips were thin.

Beside him sat his wife, Mrs. Kingsley. She had graying blond hair and hazel eyes and she was clutching at her napkin. Her frame was tiny compared to her husband's and from the way she averted her eyes, it seemed that she was well aware of it and even... feared him?

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Kingsley." Lauralee gave them what she hoped was a charming smile. "Thank you for having me."

Mrs. Kingsley's lips stretched into a thin smile, and her husband nodded stiffly. "Thank you for joining us today." The clatter of his cutlery sliced through the silence as he forked his salad. "Please, do eat."

She caught Chase's eye and he nodded, so she dug in. Honestly, did the Kingsleys live, breathe and fart money? Even the cutlery was gold! Lauralee chewed the salad and crunched the lettuce. Delectable. The salad cream was probably imported from France or something.

"So, ah..." Realizing that Mr. Kingsley had turned his attention to her, Lauralee almost choked on her salad and hastily reached for a glass of water, gulping it down greedily. She saw Chase's concerned expression and she focused on his father, instead. Her stomach twisted when she realized that Mr. Kingsley was trying to suppress a look of distaste.

"My name is Lauralee, sir," she managed to choke out. She straightened her back and lowered her gaze. Now she knew why even his wife didn't look him in the eye.

"Yeah, Dad," Chase said in a clipped tone. "She's only been interning at your office for what, eight months?"

"Bite back your sarcasm, boy," Mr. Kingsley barked, causing everyone to jump in their seats. "I don't need you to make a fool of your family in front of an outsider."

"I've been dating Lauralee for eight months. Obviously she's no outsider to me."

Mr. Kingsley's nostrils flared and Lauralee secretly hoped that they could resume to a silent dinner. She looked at Mrs. Kingsley enviously, who was drinking her mushroom soup like she was deaf.

Chase's father caught her gaze and snapped, "Honestly, Jennifer. How can you stomach the food when your son and husband are arguing like enemies?" He cast a disdainful look at her. "Twenty years and you haven't changed your odd ways. Nothing has changed except for your ageing face."

Mrs. Kingsley lowered her spoon and stared at her lap, shaking slightly. A hot surge of anger flooded through Lauralee. The way he treated his wife! She opened her mouth to defend Mrs. Kingsley, but Chase beat her to it.

"Father, the only person who hasn't changed is you," Chase snarled. "You're still rude, cold and an absolute bastard."

An uncanny silence hung in the air.

The hair on the back of Lauralee's neck stood when Mr. Kingsley turned his furious eyes towards her. "I'm sorry you have to witness such an unpleasant sight tonight, Lauralee. If I may ask you to leave—"

There was the screech of chair legs scraping the floor and Chase rose to his feet.

"Sit down!" Mr. Kingsley shouted.

"If she's leaving then so am I."

"Are you choosing a gold-digger over your family? She—" he jerked a head towards her, "is clothed in things which could easily cost her annual salary! What did she offer you in exchange for those? Or—"

Lauralee abruptly stood up.

"If you would excuse me..." She stalked off without looking back, fighting back the hot pressure building behind her eyes. Every word formed a knife that sliced between her ribs. Is that what it people saw? She dated Chase just to mooch off him and his money?

She angrily swiped the tears from her eyes and stepped out into cool autumn air. The cold nipped at her exposed skin but she couldn't care less. She was a fifteen minutes' walk from her apartment so she hugged herself and set out.

"Wait, Laurie!" Chase caught her arm but she shrugged him off, her face still burning from humiliation. He ran a hand through his hair, messing it up. "I didn't know he was going to be so rude tonight, otherwise I..." he trailed off when he realized that Lauralee wasn't listening to a word he said.

"Laurie..." Chase stroked the side of her wet cheek. "Let me make it up to you. What about dinner? We'll go to the fancy Italian restaurant nearby and—"

"Just..." Lauralee sighed and stepped away. "Leave me alone."

Chase dropped his hand to his side, defeated.

"Okay."

Two days later, Chase showed up on their doorstep with a bouquet of roses.

Lauralee slammed the door in his face.

The following day, he pressed the doorbell and left. When she opened the door, hundreds of post-its decorated its surface with words along the lines of 'I'm sorry' and 'Forgive me.'

"Give him a break," Addie urged, ignoring the dark look Lauralee shot her. "You're being unreasonable. It was his Dad's fault, not his."

There was peace for the next three days, but one night, there was a knock on the door. Addie was out partying so Lauralee tried to ignore it and read her novel. But the knocking grew more persistent so, exasperated, she swung open the door. "Chase, just give me a few more days to think it through—"

"Who's Chase?"

Lauralee faltered when she saw who it was.

"Bob?"

The man flashed his yellow, crooked-teeth smile. "Yeah, Lauralee. Its been almost two years..."

"I don't want to talk to you," she said coolly. She tried to close the door but he put his foot in.

"Sweetie, you're so cold—"

"You're the one who dumped me!"

He stepped forward and breathed, "Baby, let's start all over again."

His breath was laced with alcohol and cigarettes. He was obviously drunk and from the nasty grin on his face, he wasn't going to play nice either. A quick look at the thick ropes of muscle in his arms, and Lauralee knew that she didn't stand a chance.

"Come in," she said resignedly as she led him into the living room. Lauralee was careful to leave the door standing ajar, in case Bob tried anything funny.

"So who's Chase?" he casually asked as he plopped on the couch. He gestured for her to sit down and reluctantly, she obliged.

Bob raised a brow. "Well?" His arms snaked around her waist and she squirmed.

"Someone who appreciates me more than you," Lauralee snapped, making a move to get up. He roughly pulled her down again and she froze. Bob was never gentle in their relationship and under the influence of alcohol, she knew he was invincible.

"Maybe you should go home now," she suggested timidly, but his eyes darkened and he closed the distance between them.

"Why don't we... hang out? Just like the good ol' days." His lips curled and Lauralee found that she couldn't move her legs. She was literally sapped of all her strength. He slipped his fingers into the waistband of her trousers and her vision blurred and she opened her mouth to scream and—

Suddenly, the weight was lifted off her.

"You call yourself a man?" a familiar voice snarled, and Lauralee instantly recognized those blue eyes, which were currently flaming with such dark fury that she felt bad for the recipient of that look.

Bob sneered. "Chase? The Chase Kingsley? I remember you. Didn't you punch me in eighth grade and get suspended for two weeks?" He laughed. "Just because I said your mother was a whore..."

Chase's fists clenched and unclenched. "And you got all your cronies to beat me up for you afterwards..." The pure hatred in his eyes were unmistakable. "How could I ever forget?"

"Yeah, nobody would've believed you if you told on me. And now you've hooked up with my ex?" She glared at Bob but he didn't even look at her. "Didn't know rich kids like you went after second-hand sluts like her—"

"Don't you dare insult her!"

Chase lashed out with his fist and caught him at the lip. Bob staggered, wiping blood from his mouth. A derange smile unfolded on his lips and there was a mad glint in his eyes. "If that's what you want..."

Hell pursued.

Chase was fighting a loosing battle as he was knocked into the floor, eyes swollen and blood streaming out of his nose. Bob was walking towards him like a prowling cat approaching prey and Lauralee, thinking quick on her feet, took the hard-cover novel lying beside her and tossed it at Bob's head. She heard a satisfying clunk and knew she'd scored.

Bullseye!

Except she didn't foresee Bob's rage as his face darkened and he charged towards her. Panicked, her eyes darted around and she saw Chase struggling to get up and either sides of the couch trapped her and—

"Oh my God!" A screech cut through the silence and there Addie was, standing at the door with her hand covering her mouth. Before anyone could react, she took out her phone from her pocket and dialled three digits.

"Bob Berzin!" she screeched. "Get out of our home within ten seconds or else you'll find yourself behind bars for good!" Lauralee watched disbelievingly as Bob glared at all of them murderously and slowly slouched out. Addie slammed the door behind him.

"Oh my God, what a psycho..." she slid onto the ground, breathless. "Didn't know I had it in me..."

Lauralee rushed to Chase's side, who looked as if he was biting his lip to stop himself from moaning in pain. "He beat me nine years ago... and he beat me again today," he gritted out, clutching his side.

But then his fierce blue eyes searched her face. "He didn't hurt you, did he? If he did..." A muscle in his jaw twitched and his fisted his hand till his knuckles were white.

"No, I'm fine," Lauralee said hurriedly, fighting back tears. "You idiot..."

Chase wiped the blood of his face with his shirt. "No, you're the idiot. Why the hell did you let him in?"

"I couldn't close the door, he was too strong! And," the tears in her eyes dried as she narrowed her them at him suspiciously. "How did you know he was troubling me?"

Chase gave a sheepish grin and winced slightly. "Well, the knight heard the damsel in distress," he said vaguely.

Lauralee took in his profile. "I'll go get you a boiled egg. Its a miracle with swollen eyes..." She got up to fetch her first-aid kit but he caught her arm.

"You know, nine years ago I started taking self-defence classes because of this bully at my school... Bob Berzin. I was always a wimp but I became stronger because I wanted to protect myself better." Chase propped himself up by his elbow and managed to sit up and look her in the eye. "But now, I realize I have someone else, someone important in my life, to protect."

"Who?" Lauralee whispered, holding his gaze.

He slowly drew out a post-it pad and pencil from his back pocket, and scribbled something on it.

And Lauralee, with shaky hands, took it from him.

You.

Author's Note

Someone put me out of my misery. I have no idea where this came from.