Page 14 of Fighting Spirit

“Marshall, honestly, it’s okay.” I rest a hand on his arm, trying to relax him even a fraction before this escalates even further. I don’t understand how things got so out of hand. I figured that Georgie had sent Marshall to come get me whilst she… Well, I don’t know what, but it must be important. But now he’s here acting like a lunatic and trying to goad Rowan into a fight? What’s gotten into him? “Let’s just go, yeah?”

He lets out a huff and turns to wrap an arm around my shoulders. “Yeah,” he says as I pat his chest awkwardly. One glance at Rowan shows an expression that looks as if he’s not sure whether to laugh or put Marshall through a wall. “Let me get you outta here.”

He steers me toward the open front door, not even pausing as I try to thank Rowan for hanging out with me.

“Bye, Ruth,” Rowan says with a confused frown.

“Rowan, I-” I’m not sure how I’m planning on finishing that sentence, but it turns out not to matter. Before I can come up with anything, Marshall shuts the front door firmly behind us and has us moving toward his car.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he rushes out. “You can tell me.”

He looks so earnest as his eyes search mine. Despite my confusion, there’s a surge of affection for my worried friend and I wrap my arms around his waist, giving him a tight hug.

“Thanks for coming,” I say honestly. I hadn’t known what the hell I was going to do, so despite how weirdly he’s acting, I’m still grateful he’s shown up.

“I’ll always come for you,” he speaks into my hair. It’s hard not to giggle at his words. They sound so much like something from a movie.

I pull back and head over to his passenger door. My arm jerks as I stop short, realizing too late that the door’s locked. He quickly opens it and I slide in. I start to say something but he pushes the door shut, almost catching my fingers where I had been holding the doorframe. He rounds the front of the car and slides in before I can get my bearings. “Did Georgie send you?” I ask.

“Georgie? No, why?”

“She didn’t ask you to come get me?” I’d figured that Georgie must have called Marshall, knowing he had a car.

“I haven’t heard from Georgie since Monday.” He frowns.

“Monday?”

“We have a class together?” He’s speaking slowly, like he’s talking to a child who’s lost their mom.

“No, I meant, have you heard from her tonight?”

“Ruth, what’s going on? Why would Georgie have called me?” He reaches out as if to cup my face, but I back away, almost hitting my head on the window behind me. Marshall’s face falls as he takes in my expression, the way that his hand hangs awkwardly between us. “Ruth, I was worried when you didn’t text me back about tomorrow’s paper.” Fuck. I wince, remembering the messages I ignored. “I went by the studio to see if you were there, but it was empty.”

“You went looking?”

“I was so worried,” he continues. “Your phone was on the ground, there was still music playing. At first I thought you’d just gone to the bathroom but when you never showed, I knew that something bad had happened.”

“How did you find me?”

“I follow a couple of the Beaufort guys on social media, someone posted it.” He gives me a smile that almost makes me feel better. “I’ve been driving around the block for an hour, asking around at any party I could find.”

“And they just told you?”

“I mean, it took a while.” He gives a self-deprecating chuckle.

“So Georgie really didn’t reach out to you?”

“No, Ruth,” he’s a touch firmer. “It was all me.”

“God.” I rub a hand over my face. “She must be so worried.”

“I’m sure she’s fine.” His tone is almost sulking.

“She’ll be freaking out by now, I’m never home this late.”

“It’ll be okay.” He gives me a tight smile as he passes over the toad head that I’ve only just spotted on his lap. He must have grabbed it on the way out. Probably whilst I was staring back at Rowan. “You must be hungry. We can stop somewhere, and I’ll get you some food.”

“No, I’m fine.” Why is everyone so determined to feed me tonight?

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