Through The Dark

by Jae

  “Open the door, Daisy.” He yells as I start the shower. I quickly undress and get in. “God damn it, Daisy! Open the door!”

  A few seconds later I hear the door bust open as I cover my face with my hands and try to rub my makeup off while I cry. I know Liam can see me through the foggy glass of the sliding doors, but I don’t dare to look at him. I try my best to calm down and put my tears at bay, but no matter what I do, they won’t stop rolling down my face. I tense when I hear the sliding door open and then close as Liam steps into the shower behind me. He pushes his body against my back, his legs on either side of mine, and wraps his arms around me while burying his head into my shoulder.

  “I’m sorry.” He whispers after a few minutes. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  When I don’t say anything, only hiccups here and there when I try to catch my breath, he lets out a sigh and begins to place gentle kisses across my shoulders.

  “Please don’t be mad at me, Daisy.” He begs, his voice surprisingly choking up with tears. “Please don’t be mad. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s okay.” I say softly when I finally find my voice.

  I let Liam turn me around and pull me to him, his body feeling even warmer than the hot water pouring on us.

  “When I saw that guy holding your arm like that and how he was about to hit you again, something just snapped in me and I lost it.” He explains while running his hand up and down my back. “I shouldn’t have left you. I knew in the back of my mind that your friends wouldn’t watch over you like they should’ve. I’m sorry, Daisy. I shouldn’t have left you.”

  “It’s okay.” I say again, pulling his face down to mine and pressing my lips against his. “Let’s just go to bed. I’m tired.”

  Liam nods his head and wipes the remaining makeup smudged under my eyes away before turning off the water. We quickly dry off, change into clean clothes, and then climb into my bed.

  “Goodnight, Little Miss Daisy.”

  Chapter Nine

  I dream of a darkness that leaves me feeling shaken when I wake up. When I try to climb out of my bed, an arm tightens around my body, pulling me closer to them. I glance behind me to see Liam is still fast asleep. Pulling my eyes away from him, I look down at his large hand spread across my stomach. In my fear struck haze last night, I didn’t notice the cuts on his hand from punching that guy so much. I gently brush my fingers over the injuries and watch as Liam’s hand slightly twitches reflexively. For some reason I feel like these cuts didn’t just come from Liam trying to defend me. They came from some sort of darkness inside of him. The way he went after that guy, the way he kept punching him over and over again; I can’t get it out of my mind.

  “Are you afraid of me?” I hear Liam ask me quietly.

  I’m startled by his words, jumping a little in my spot. A part of me wants to say yes, because deep down in the pit of my stomach, I know I am. Well, it isn’t that I’m exactly afraid of him, but more that I’m afraid for him. I’m afraid of what is inside of him and what he is capable of doing because of it. So, instead of saying yes like I know I probably should, I shake my head no.

  “I would never hurt you, Daisy.” He whispers into my hair. “I swear I never would. I only want to protect you.”

  If there’s anything I’m sure of when it comes to Liam, it’s that he means what he says. It’s as if he knows that at some point our words are going to become minimal, so he doesn’t mess around and waste any of them. In my short time in knowing Liam, I’ve gathered that he’s the kind of person that will tell you the honest truth whether you can handle it or not. I also know he would never hurt me without him having to say so.

  “I know.” I reassure Liam softly as he lies on his back when I roll over. I prop my head up on my elbow and run my fingers through his hair, brushing it off of his forehead. I gently run my finger down his nose, causing him to close his eyes, and then trace the outline of his bow shaped lips. I place a kiss to his chest before resting my head on it and begin to trace the tattoos I can see. My eyes flutter shut when I feel Liam’s fingers brush against my cheek before sliding over to my hand on his chest and linking our fingers together. A few minutes later, Liam asks me if I would like to go to practice with him and I say yes. About an hour after that, he climbs out of my bed, much to my dismay, and takes a quick shower.

  “Does it matter what I wear?” I ask while I watch him walk from my bathroom to my closet, a towel slung loosely around his hips.

  “No.” He replies with a chuckle.

  “Good.” I sigh, getting up and walking into my bathroom.

  I stare at my reflection in the mirror while I brush my teeth. My eyes are a little puffy and my skin has red blotches on it from crying last night. I’m happy to see the handprint on my face has completely disappeared and the one on my forearm is barely noticeable; it should be completely gone within a couple days. After rinsing my mouth, I put some moisturizer on my face and then walk into my closet. I put on a white t-shirt with a black Ramones logo on the front, dark grey basketball shorts, and a pair of gray and bright red Nike running shoes. I pull my hair up into a crazy bun and put a little foundation on my face to cover up the red splotches and some mascara on my eyes to make them look less puffy.

  “You ready?” Liam asks me as I watch him put on a red cut off t-shirt. He’s also wearing white basketball shorts and his athletic sandals over white Nike socks that stop at his calves.

  I nod my head and wait for him to pick up his gym bag before following him outside. When I get in the car, I notice I have a bunch of texts from Ella, Zoie, and Taylor. The entire car ride I read through the messages; all of them pretty much asking if I’m okay. I respond back, letting them know I’m fine and not to worry.

  “Daisy.” Liam says, pulling me out of my trance.

  “Yeah?” I answer, looking over to the driver’s side and scrunching my face up in confusion when I don’t see him there.

  “Babe,” I hear him chuckle before realizing he’s already opened my door and is waiting for me to get out. “Come on, let’s go.”

  “Sorry.” I mumble, sliding my phone into my pocket and getting out.

  As soon as my door is shut, Liam locks his car before tossing his keys into his gym bag and readjusting it on his shoulder. I smile up at him when I feel his hand slide into mine. When we reach the end of the parking lot, I bring us to a sudden stop and lean up to give Liam a quick kiss. He smiles into the kiss and then presses another quick kiss to the tip of my nose after we pull apart.

  “You can just wait in the gym.” Liam tells me, pointing down the long hallway when we get inside the building. “I have to go to the locker room first.”

  I nod my head and say a mumbled okay before walking in the direction Liam pointed to until I find the gym. After pulling the doors open, I’m surprised to see how nice and big it is. Wait, what am I thinking? Of course it’s nice and big; it’s a college gymnasium! I wonder why they don’t play their games here. After looking around a little more, I realize no one else is in here yet. I see a rack of basketballs when I near closer to the court and pick one up. I dribble the ball while I walk around the perimeter of the court, passing it through my legs every few steps. I’m so stuck in my own little world, concentrating on the feeling of the ball leaving my hand and the sound of the it hitting the wooden floor after coming back to me over and over again, that I don’t even notice Liam and his team walk into the gym. I stumble back, startled, when I bump into someone.

  “I’m so sorry!” I exclaim as I stop dribbling the ball and look up to see an older man staring down at me.

  “Not a problem, dear.” He smiles. “I used to get lost like that when I dribbled a basketball too.”

  “I’m Daisy.” I introduce myself, sticking my hand out to him. “Daisy Fields.”

  “I know.” He nods his head, placing his hand in mine and giving it a gentle shake before letting go. “You can call me Coach.”

  My eyes grow wide. “It’s really
nice to meet you.”

  “You too.” He smiles even more. “I’ve seen you play many times. You’re a very talented girl.”

  “Thank you.” I respond, looking down at the basketball in my hands. “Not so much anymore though.”

  “Oh, I disagree.” He says and motions for us to sit on the bleachers. “I saw that video of you playing after our game on Friday. You definitely gave my boys a run for their money.”

  This comment makes me laugh while we watch the team shoot around before practice officially starts.

  “You can go practice with them if you want.” Coach tells me and I can’t help but look over at him in surprise. “I wouldn’t mind.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t.” I object. “I don’t want to be in the way.”

  “Can I tell you a secret?” He asks, lowering his voice a little, after looking at me for a thoughtful moment. “If I could’ve recruited you to play on my team, I would’ve. I could care less that you’re a girl. You could easily run circles around these boys; even with that bad knee of yours.”

  I don’t know what to say; I’m so shocked.

  “I hope you do like to run though.” He laughs while standing up and walking towards the court. “Come on.”

  I instantly stand up, pulling my phone out of my pocket and thanking God I decided to wear a sports bras today. I set my phone down on the bleachers before jogging onto the court, still carrying the basketball.

  “Let’s bring it in fellas.” Coach calls as the team moves to stand in a circle around us. “It looks like I’ve managed to convince Daisy here to join in on practice today.”

  I look around and see all the boys have confused looks on their faces.

  “This girl is a little firecracker and is going to keep all of you on your toes today, which is something we need to be prepared for when it comes to our next game. The team we’re going to be playing is quick and a bit scrappy and will be running circles around you if we aren’t ready for it.” Coach continues. “Now, with that said, I don’t want you to go easy on Daisy just because she’s a girl and she’s a lot smaller than all of you. I promise she can handle it.”

  I nod my head, completely agreeing with Coach. If there is anything I truly hate when it comes to sports, it’s when guys go easy on me just because I’m a girl.

  “And Liam,” Coach adds, causing everyone to look at him. “No throwing punches if she falls on her ass. Got it?”

  “Yes.” He answers, almost reluctantly, making everyone chuckle.

  “Let’s get started then; everyone on the baseline.” Coach shouts while clapping his hands together. “We’ll start with a six wall.”

  I stretch out my legs and bounce up and down on the balls of my feet while we wait for Coach to blow the whistle.

  “Well, this practice should be fun.” Liam says when he stands next to me.

  “Definitely.” Tony agrees and smiles at me. “Hey, Daisy.”

  “Hey.” I smile back before waving at Jack and Connor on the other side of him.

  I take off down the court as soon as I hear the whistle blow. No one really knows this, but I actually love running. Something about it has always felt so freeing to me. Even with a hurt knee, running is something that I’ve always felt comfortable doing. I love to feel that brief instant in every stride where both my feet are off the ground and to hear my heart beating against my eardrum. All of it seems perfect to me. Being the first one done, I stand at the baseline we started on with my hands resting on the top of my head, trying to catch my breath.

  “I didn’t know you could run that fast.” Liam says when he and the rest of the team have finished.

  Not really sure how to respond, I shrug my shoulders and smile up at him.

  “Get a quick drink and then move into the three-man-weave.” Coach yells before blowing his whistle again.

  Liam hands me his water bottle and I take a drink from it before handing it back to him. I wait for him to mimic my actions before putting the bottle away and then we get in line for the next drill. Liam stands behind me, absentmindedly rubbing my shoulders while he chats with one of his team mates in the line next to us. I smile my thanks to the guy who hands the ball to me after his ‘group’ finishes. He acknowledges me with a head nod before I pass the ball to the guy on the left wing and run behind him as he passes to the guy on the right wing. We continue this pattern of the three-man-weave perfectly down the court and back.

  “Nice!” The guys in my group exclaims as we give each other high fives.

  “Free throws!” Coach yells after the last group finishes.

  I end up at a hoop with three guys who introduce themselves as Mike, Kenny, and Dwaine; they are all insanely tall.

  “How old are you?” Kenny asks me while Mike shoots his first free throw.

  “Eighteen.” I answer after I rebound the made shot from under the basket and pass the basketball back to Mike.

  “Oh, so you’re going to be a freshman?” Dwaine asks after Mike makes his second free throw.

  I pass the ball to Dwaine as we rotate positions around the key. I can see Liam is watching me out of the corner of my eye.

  “Yeah.” I respond, nodding my head while I watch him shoot, the ball falling through the net.

  “Are you going to go to school here?” Mike asks once Kenny rebounds the ball and passes it back to Dwaine.

  “I haven’t decided yet.” I tell him after Dwaine makes his second shot and Kenny rebounds the ball again before passing it to me when I move to the free throw line.

  “How did you meet Liam?” Mike asks after I shoot the ball and make it.

  “A party at his frat house.” I answer while Mike rebounds the ball and passes it back to me. “My friend’s cousin Clair is in a sorority here and told us about it.”

  “You mean slutty Clair?” Dwain laughs and I look at him with wide eyes.

  “You guys call her that too?” I ask in disbelief.

  “Everyone calls her that!” Kenny answers.

  “That’s awesome!” I exclaim before shooting the ball again and watching it sink into the basket. I watch while Dwain sinks both of his shots and then we move onto the next drill. I’m pretty sure we run more than we do anything else, but I’m having too good of a time to care.

  “Alright, for the last half hour of practice, we’ll scrimmage.” Coach informs us when we’re all standing in a circle around him. “I want you to break up into groups of five. We’ll do kings court today; each game is five minutes.”

  “I call Daisy!” Dwaine shouts as he picks me up and tosses me over his shoulder. Mike, Kenny, and Connor immediately run over to be in our group too.

  “We want first game!” I shout after Dwaine sets me down and our team walks to the center of half court while everyone else moves to the sidelines.

  “You’re going down!” I hear Tony say as him, Liam, Jack, and two other guys named Dex and Ryan walk onto the court to face us.

  “Are we going to be skins, then?” Kenny asks.

  I shrug my shoulders with a small smirk and grab the hem of my shirt to start taking it off.

  “No!” Liam nearly shouts. “I mean, we’re skins.”

  “If you say so.” I shrug again, letting my shirt drop back into place while everyone in the gym quietly chuckles to themselves.

  After Liam and the rest of his team remove their shirts, we call our guys that we’re going to guard.

  “Heads or Tails?” Coach quickly asks after he tosses a coin in the air.

  “Heads!” I exclaim before it lands on his hand.

  “Heads it is.” He nods his head, showing all of us the coin.

  “We want the ball first.” I declare and my team gets in position on the court for a press break.

  “I want a clean game!” Coach shouts with a crooked smile, making the rest of the team laugh and I realize this must be some sort of inside joke, before he hands me the ball and blows his whistle.

  “Go!” I yell while smacking the ball. I take a quick moment
to examine that court and where my teammates are placed on it before letting my eyes narrow in on Kenny, the only one who’s even remotely open, and throw the ball in to him. He catches it without any trouble and turns to dribble down the court, keeping a safe distance between him and the guy guarding him.

  “I thought you said we were going down?” I tease Tony when the five minutes is up; my team won by six points.

  “Whatever.” He mumbles and I laugh.

  In the end, my team, to my surprise, wins all of the games. Most of them by only a few points though.

  “We’re the kings!” Dwain and I yell as he picks me up and puts me on his shoulders when practice is officially over.

  “Yeah, we get it, you’re the kings.” Liam says after a few moments, actually chuckling a little. “Now knock it off, Dwain, before she gets hurt.”

  “Wait!” I say when Dwain reaches up to take me off of his shoulders. “I want to dunk first.”

  Dwain agrees before Connor tosses him a ball and then he hands it up to me.

  “After I put the ball through, I’m going to grab onto the rim and then I want you to let me go so I’m just hanging up there.” I whisper to Dwain while he walks us over to the hoop.

  “Liam is going to freak.” He laughs.

  “I know.” I respond, making him laugh even harder.

  “Okay, ready?” Dwain yells loud enough for everyone to hear him.

  I respond with an excited yes before dropping the ball though the basket and then firmly grabbing onto the rim. I make fake cheering noises while I swing my legs around in the air after Dwain lets go of me.

  “I just dunked!” I yell just before I feel someone grab onto my hips, causing me to let go of the rim.

  “You’re funny.” Liam comments without a single trace of humor in his voice as he lowers me down to the ground.

  “Lighten up a little bit, would you?” I ask while poking his chest and mimicking the stern look on his face; which makes him slowly crack into a smile.

  “Go, Daisy!” Everyone cheers as they walk out of the gym to go to the locker room.