“Where is she?”

He turned around and with a sick feeling in my stomach, I followed him.

Ryan explained quickly, “Two guys attacked Brooklyn. Cooper and I stopped it, but she’s pretty shaken up.”

Brooklyn was sitting on the ground beside Cooper, her head bowed. “Brooklyn,” I ran forward and sat beside her, pulling her into my arms, patting her back, rocking her back and forth. I could feel her shaking all over. I smoothed her hair, telling her that I was here and everything would be okay. I cried as she cried. She sniffed when a car pulled up out in front of her house, then groaned “Oh, shit. It’s my brothers.”

Her brothers, Gabe and Daniel ran over to where we were gathered, and took in the situation.

“Did you call the police?” Dan knelt beside her. “Brooklyn? Did you call?”

Lifting her head, Brooklyn said in a trembling voice, “No, please. I don’t want to deal with that. Everyone in the neighborhood will know. Can you clear the party out of the house? I just want to take a shower.”

Dan wanted to argue with what Brooklyn wanted, but after Gabe shook his head, Dan gave in. “Fine.” He ran back toward the house.

“The streets can judge them,” Cooper said with a look in his eyes that scared me.

“What?” Sam mumbled.

Gabe grabbed him up from the ground and gave him a hard shake. Cooper reached for the other guy, but Ryan beat him to it. “No, Coop. Let the SB justice work.”

Cooper, Ryan, and Gabe got the guys up and shoved them into Gabe’s car.

Dan came outside several minutes later and told us the house was cleared out. “Hurry. Our parents weren’t far behind us on the interstate. I’d rather they not see Brooklyn like this.”

I helped Brooklyn into the house, my heart aching for my friend. Anger and sadness pelted me. With shaking hands, I dug out a pair of pajamas for her and went to start the shower. When I came back, I said, “Are you sure you don’t want to go to the police? I’ll go with you.”

She shook her head, her eyes huge in her face. “The police, maybe a trial, maybe the guys get off with a slap on the wrist, the hurt in my mother’s eyes. I can’t deal with any of that.” Moving slowly, she got up from the bed and shuffled toward the bathroom.

An hour later, after Brooklyn showered and climbed back up onto her bed, there was noise in the hallway, then Cooper and Ryan knocked on the doorframe of her room.

She looked at both of them and then at me. “Do you think I was asking for it?” she said in a sad, broken voice.

“No, you weren’t.” I said.

She searched Ryan’s face. “Even after what I said in the kitchen?”

Without hesitation, he shook his head. “No, I don’t think you were asking for it.”

Cooper walked all the way into the room and hovered beside her, taking care that he wasn’t in her personal space. “It’s not your fault and you don’t have anything to be ashamed of. Understand?”

Ryan nodded. “Coop’s right. Those guys got the memo and they won’t bother you again.”

Cooper watched Brooklyn’s bowed head for a second, then tore a piece of paper from a notebook on her desk. He wrote something on it, then handed it to her. “My number. If you want to talk or need me to kick someone’s ass.”

Brooklyn crumpled the paper into her hand. “Thank you both for what you did.”

“I’ll stay with you, tonight,” I said, pushing back a strand of her hair that fell across her face.

Brooklyn shook her head. “No, I just want to go to sleep.” She reached for a stuffed bear on her bed and hugged her arms around it. “I need to be alone. Please.”

I rubbed her back. “I wish you’d let me stay.”

“I’m okay, Tana.” She looked at me with haunted eyes.

I gave her a gentle hug, wishing I could say something, wishing I could somehow rewind time and prevent what happened. “I’ll check in with you later and I’ll come the second you say you want me here.”

“Thank you.”

As I walked toward the door of her room, Cooper said something to her that I didn’t catch. Brooklyn’s lower lip trembled and she nodded.

I hung around for a second, waiting for Cooper to leave with us but when the two of them kept talking in a low voice, I finally left with Ryan.

On the drive back to my house, even though I wasn’t sure I was ready to know, I asked, “What’s SB justice?”

Ryan draped his wrist across the top of the steering wheel and glanced in the rearview mirror. He changed lanes, then said, “Southtown Boys.”

“The gang?” My eyes widened. I’d heard stories about their exploits. Bad ass boys with a penchant for fast cars, fast girls and a life bound for prison. I tried to work down the lump in my throat and didn’t ask any more questions. I took out my phone and sent Brooklyn a text and got one back in response. She was fine. She was okay. She was lying to me. I sighed and leaned my forehead against the window. I couldn’t stop the shudder that rippled through me. I’d danced with Sam, the creep. That could have been me. I should have warned Brooklyn about him. I should have said something. Maybe if I would have said something she wouldn’t have been hurt. I started crying. Burying my face in my hands, I sobbed with bone deep tears that shredded me.

The Charger slowed, then stopped as Ryan pulled onto the grass by a ditch. We were in a stretch of the road where there were no houses, no businesses, just the wide-open fields and wildflowers. Ryan got out and came around to the passenger side. He opened the door, released my seatbelt and pulled me into his arms. He held me tightly. “Everything’s okay.”

I wrapped my arms around him, the warmth of his chest searing through my dress. I pressed my face into the side of his neck. “I danced with Sam. I should have told you that he was rough with me and then maybe I could have prevented what happened to Brooklyn.”

Ryan’s body stiffened. “Rough with you?”

“Yeah. He squeezed me really hard.”

“Sam’s not going to be in a position to hurt anyone for a long time and this isn’t your fault any more than it’s Brooklyn’s.” He wiped away my tears with his thumbs. “She’s safe, you’re safe. That’s what matters.”

I sniffed. “When girls don’t go to the police, sometimes guys think it’s because what happened is okay since she was drinking. But dealing with the police and everyone talking is hard. Then if it does ever go to court, the guy who did it doesn’t always get found guilty and that sucks, you know?”

Ryan swallowed and tilted my head up to look into my eyes. “You sound like you have experience with this. Did you lie to me at the park when we first met? Did someone try to attack you?”

“No, not at all. I promise,” I said through my tears. “I’m an open book when it comes to you. You know more about me than my own mom does.” I rubbed my hand across his scuffed up knuckles, glad that Ryan and the others had kicked Sam’s ass even if I didn’t want to know exactly what they’d done to the guys after they’d driven off with them. “Thank you for helping Brooklyn.” It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him what a beautiful soul I thought he had but I knew if I did that, he’d only tell me he didn’t have one.

*

RYAN

The closer it came to the time to be with Tana, the edgier I felt. Like it was everything I was waiting for and all that I should leave alone. Before I could even blink, Friday afternoon arrived and it was time for me to take off from the garage. Time for me to take Tana places her body had never been before.

I stopped at the house, took a shower to wash the day’s grime off, and packed an overnight bag with a change of clothes. After what had happened to Brooklyn, I’d asked Tana if she wanted to cancel, but she’d said no. The only person Brooklyn was talking to right now was Cooper, which her brothers weren’t too happy about.