Brightest Kind of Darkness by P. T. Michelle, Patrice Michelle Page A

Sobbing, I babbled against his chest between gasps of air. “Two…guys…ch—chasing me. Want to...hurt me.”
    Ethan stroked my ponytail. “You’re safe.” His fingers slid down the back of my neck cupping me in a protective hold. “I’ve got you.”
    Just then, Kurt came thundering into the clearing, yelling, “I’m going to make you pay for—” he halted and looked left, then right. Glancing back, his attention locked on Ethan and me.
    Jay ran into the clearing from another area of the woods. “I heard her scream. It came from this direct—” he stopped speaking, then cut his gaze our way.
    Kurt nodded to Jay and they started toward us. Trembling, I wrapped my arms around Ethan’s waist and pressed against him, trying to absorb his calm strength.
    A shadow caught my eye, and a big hulking guy with olive skin and long black hair stepped out from behind one of the trees to our left and then another tall, thin guy with a spiky blond Mohawk followed him. Crunching leaves sounded to our right. Two other rough-looking boys, their jackets’ hoods pulled over their heads emerged from the edge of the woods. The field lights reflected their dark, angry eyes. I didn’t recognize any of them from our school. All of the newcomers looked fierce and mean, like they’d lived hard, rough lives and wanted the rest of us to experience their pain firsthand.
    When the huge, meaty one punched his fist into his open palm, and the tall guy beside him pulled out a switchblade knife, I glanced at Ethan, eyes wide. Could this nightmare get any worse?
    Ethan stared Kurt and Jay down. “Don’t go near Nara again.” Nodding to the big guy as well as the other three boys, he said, “My friends will make sure you don’t forget my warning.”
    Wrapping his arm around my shoulder, Ethan led me away from the circle of guys. My legs shook as we walked. I winced when I heard running, then yelling and whoops that sounded much further away. The guys must’ve chased Kurt and Jay into the woods. I didn’t want to think about what was happening behind us, but I had to say something. Someone could get killed if things got out of control.
    “They won’t hurt them too much, will they?”
    Ethan stared straight ahead. “My friends have been in tons of fights. They’ll be fine.”
    “What about the guys who were chasing me?”
    Anger lit his eyes. “They deserve much worse than they’ll get.”
    I stopped walking. “Just how far will your friends go? I mean, those two jerks need personality alternations, but I really don’t want someone being ‘maimed for life’ on my conscience.”
    Ethan rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger, then sighed. “They’ll be scraped and bruised but able to walk. Better?”
    My mind eased, I nodded and let him lead me to the soccer field.
    I tried to pretend my hands weren’t shaking while I collected my ball and put it in the bag. If Ethan hadn’t shown up…
    Once we’d stowed my stuff in the back of my car, Ethan opened the car door and waited for me to get in. Even though I wanted to ask him so many questions, I was afraid to speak. It felt like we’d moved to a whole new level in our friendship, but I wasn’t sure what that level was.
    Every nerve ending urged me to hug him, to show my appreciation, but I was unsure. Would he pull away? I didn’t need any more rejection in my life. “Thank you for being there,” I said in an unsteady voice.
    Ethan clasped my wrist and pulled me into his arms, holding me close. “I’ll always be here for you.”
    I shuddered against his chest, mumbling into his flannel shirt. “You weren’t at school and I didn’t see you after practice. I thought for sure no one would hear me scream when those guys finally got their hands on—”
    Warm fingers tilted my chin up. “I had something to do today, but I’d never leave you hanging. When I saw your stuff on the field and then I heard a guy yelling, ‘She went this way,’ in the woods…” he