Untitled

I felt someone violently shaking me.
"Al, wake up. Please, Ally, snap out of it!"
My eyes fluttered open to darkness. It was completely silent around me, and I was only aware of my ragged breath. I could hear the soft murmur of the air conditioning upstairs above me. The cool air gave me chills, and my body shook slightly. A tall figure stood above me. I recognized the figure almost immediately.
"What time is it?" I asked Jack. He turned his torso around one-hundred and eighty degrees to look at the digital clock on the other side of the basement.
"It's about two in the morning." he said. His usual cool, low, husky voice was hushed as he talked to me. "What the hell is wrong with you? You looked like you were giving labor in your sleep." He chuckled softly at his own joke.
I sat up off the carpeted floor. I could feel my own perspiration through the back of my shirt. I disregarded his last comment, and studied Jack's face. His dark chocolate eyes were comforting and inviting, and settled the sick feeling I had in my stomach. His brown skater hair fell perfectly, not a strand was out of place. And his long bangs fell just above his eyes, covering about half his face. I snapped out of my trace. We're just friends, I reminded myself.
Jack reached for the light switch and flicked it up. The light was harsh and filled up the spacious room. My hands instantly flew to my face, covering up my eyes.
"God, why am I still here?" I asked him. "Did it ever occur to you to wake me up so I could go home?"
"Well it occurred to me when you started screaming in your sleep." he said seriously. I broke eye contact with him. I had remembered the dream vividly. "Seriously Al, you look like you haven't slept in days, and when you finally do you scare me half to death."
"It was just a nightmare, I'm fine." I said, trying to brush it off. His tanned arms were covered up by a dark hooded sweatshirt, and he wore nothing but boxers. I sucked in my breath, trying not to scream out of excitement. He shot me a look.
"Ally, you seem different." he said.
"Good different?" I said, smiling.
"No." he said with a serious face. My face fell at the sight of his frustration. I knew why I had changed, and I wouldn't forget a single detail about it until I died. "Why can't we talk about this?"
"Look, it's not-,"
"Is this about Carl?" he said, interrupting.
My blood ran cold. I clenched my hands into fists, letting my nails dig into my palms. I hated Carl with every fiber in my being. Jack saw my hurt face, and he sat down closer to me.
"He cares about you, you know." he said plainly.
"No he doesn't." I said, shaking my head back and forth. "Not in the right way."
"Al, we've moved on from this."
"Jack, it happened! You we're there!" I said angrily.
"He didn't mean for it to happen." Jack said calmly. "He apologized to you at least a million times. He's just trying to be a good step dad. Give him some credit."
"Being pants-shitting drunk is not an excuse for that kind of behavior." I said sourly.
"Don't over exaggerate-,"
"He was a sloppy mess!" I said angrily. Emotions that were bottled up inside of me seemed to be let loose. My face was hot, and tears formed behind my eyes.
"Hey, calm down." he said. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"Jack, do you understand how emotionally scaring that night was?" I said seriously. My voice cracked. He wrapped his arms around me, and pulled me in close. I breathed in the scent from his sweatshirt, letting my tears soak into the soft fabric. I felt him rock me back and forth, shushing me.
"I know, I understand it's hard." he said.
"No you don't." I whispered softly. "You won't know unless it happens to you."
"What he did to you was wrong. Very wrong."
I pulled away from his embrace in disgust. I stared at him harshly.
"Wrong?" I questioned. "Is that all it was? How about dehumanizing, embarrassing, disgusting?"
"Ally-,"
"Jack, Carl invaded my privacy. He tried to kiss me for god sake! And then when I stop him he proclaims that I'm a whore!?"
"He's new at the father thing, it's only been two months. And you know he has an alcohol problem."
"Why the hell do you keep sticking up for him?"
"I'm just trying to lighten the situation, that's all." Jack said softly. "You also might want to mention it to your mother. We're the only ones who know about this Al."
"I can't do that." I said. "It would break my mom's heart. I mean she finally found a guy she likes. And ever since my Dad died she's been miserable."
"You can't just let some guy do that to you!"
"What is it to you?"
"Because I care about you!" he finally proclaimed at almost a yell. I paused, letting this statement soak it. "Look, forget I ever brought it up."
He stood up off the floor and sighed.
"Come on, I'll walk you home."