1 - Victoria
It was cold, I was wet and above all, I was livid. Miles’s phone had rang out each time I had attempted to call, and I finally gave up, throwing my phone into my handbag and deciding my only choice was to walk home, in the rain. He should have been there, he should have picked me up from work because he told me he would, he knew what time I finished and yet he wasn’t here, and it had been forty five minutes. With no umbrella I had accepted the rain smashing down onto my head, droplets rolling down my nose and I wrapped my flimsy grey cardigan around me, to get some warmth. It was dark and I knew I should keep to the main road, but I wanted to get home as soon as possible, taking the short cut through the dark side street. My hands were freezing and wet, starting to hurt so I put them into my cardigan pockets, ignoring the car driving towards me. If I kept my head down, I might be able to beat some of the rain and I stared at my stupid black slip-on work shoes, giving me no escape from the elements.
“Excuse me!” A man shouted and I ignored it, picking up my pace slightly. The noise of a car came back to life, and I finally looked to my left as I felt it drive up next to me.
“I said excuse me!” The man shouted through the open window, other men in the passenger seat and back, laughing their heads off. I really wasn’t in the mood for this, so I carried on forward, ignoring them blasting their horn at me. As I heard a car door open, I tried to jog slightly, suddenly going from irritated to terrified. My legs started to shake under me, and I came to a sudden stop, as someone grabbed my shoulder, forcing me to turn my body. “All we wanted to do was talk to you, you bitch,“ the man spat out at me, anger in his voice. He was around my height, his hood up covering most of his face and I took a step back, pulling my handbag closer to me. The worst-case scenarios went through my head, was I about to be attacked here? His friends were laughing outside of the car, one of them catching my eye as he held his phone up. “Give me your number,” he said firmly.
“I have a boyfriend,” my voice was shaking, making even myself angry. My head spun behind me as a black car came to a stop, in the middle of the road.
“Babe, get in the car,” a man spoke, opening the passenger door. The car was sleek, a midnight blue in colour and my legs moved me to it, before I could even make a decision in my own head.
“You’re lucky!” The man shouted at me as I got in, my head going back at the speed to which the car moved.
“Where do you live?” The man driving asked me, his voice was rough slightly gravelly, and I shuffled in the seat.
“Ordsall lane,” I whispered, pausing. “Thank you.”
“Not a problem.” He replied, saying nothing further and before I could blink, we were at the beginning of my road, the car coming to a stop. Finally, I looked over at him and my stomach jumped. His jawline was strong and chiseled with some dark stubble, his looks matching his rugged voice. “Thank you again,” I said shyly, and he looked over at me, his eyes were a dark brown and his full lips turned into a small smile.
“Don’t walk alone at night anymore, what’s your name?” He spat out, seemingly a question but his demeanor made me think it was a demand.
“Victoria, you are?” I wasn’t as confident as him and you could hear it all over my voice.
“Carter,” he responded, looking me up and down until he came back to my face. “Where were you coming from?” He seemed in no rush to chuck a stranger out of his car, even though I was likely dripping rainwater all over his beautiful seats.
“I’m a waitress, at Vino, the Italian place near- “
“I know it.” Carter cut over me. “Be safe.” He turned the ignition back on and I got out of the car, my legs heavy as I walked up the small slope towards my block of flats. As I turned back around his car was gone and the sudden relief that I was home and okay, made me chuckle to myself, opening my flat door to nothing.
“Miles!” I screamed, silence. I threw my handbag down, going into my living room and collapsing on the leather sofa, also starving, so I knew I had to get up to make something sooner or later. Some time had passed before the front door swung open and I heard him walk in, poking his head through the living room door.
“I’m getting in the shower,” Miles said quickly, his light brown hair cut short against his head.
“Where have you been?” I demanded to know, sitting straighter. Miles moved his head back, chuckling to himself.
“I was out,” he replied, and I stood, pulling the door open further.
“You were meant to pick me up from work,” I reminded him, my voice showing my frustration.
“Shit sorry babe, I forgot, I was busy, am I not allowed to be busy?” He was defensive and I sat back down, grabbing the remote control. Arguing with Miles was pointless, he had an answer to everything and any time I had an issue, he managed to twist it, to make me the bad guy. As I looked up, Miles was gone and I heard the shower running, sitting deeper into the sofa.
