33
Chad
I woke up the next morning feeling rested and happy. Although I could have stayed in bed all day, I needed food, a workout, and then the library. I found myself running my fingers through her hair and staring at her peaceful face. My movement woke her up. Her eyes fluttered open. When she looked in my eyes, she smiled.
“Hey,” she said shyly.
“Hey back,” I replied.
“What are you thinking?” she asked quietly.
“A few things, actually. First and foremost, I was admiring how angelic you look when you’re sleeping. Secondly, I was thinking how I would like to spend the entire day in bed with my beautiful angel. Sadly, the rational part of my mind took over. I realized I’m hungry and need a workout, and then I need to get to the library. So my question is this…are you interested in joining me for any of those things today?”
She looked like she was thinking over my suggestions. “Well, I like the part about spending the entire day in bed, but the rational part of my brain agrees that we need to be more sensible. Although I have to admit that for the first time in my life, being sensible sounds extremely overrated. So I guess I’ll take option two—begrudgingly, I may add. What gym do you work out at?” she asked me.
“I work out at school, since it’s free. Have you been there?” I wondered.
“No, but I could use a run. I’m game. There’s a diner around the corner, then we can hit the gym and the library.”
“I’ll need to stop by my place and grab my book bag.”
“That works. We can stop there after we eat so it gives us some time for our breakfast to digest before we work out.”
I gave her a kiss and hesitantly got out of bed. I could have easily stayed in bed all day, but that would have to wait. I had way too much work to do. We got dressed in comfortable quiet. It felt like we had been together a lot longer than we had. It felt really good for a change. I could get used to playing house.
As we left the building, I saw a familiar face standing by the curb. It was him—her ex-boyfriend. I could feel Emily get tense.
“What are you doing here?” she asked him in an accusing manner.
“Waiting for you,” he said in a threatening tone.
“Why?” she asked nervously.
“To see if you’ve really turned into the two-bit hussy I thought you turned into. Just like your mom, huh? Jumping from one man’s bed to another.”
“Back off,” I told him. I stepped between him and Emily. This guy was such an asshole. I wasn’t a violent guy, but I really wanted to hit him.
“Get out of my way. You don’t scare me. This is between me and my girlfriend.”
Emily pushed me aside so she was face to face with him. “I am not your girlfriend anymore, Martin. It is over. Why can’t you get that through your thick skull? Now leave me alone!” she yelled at him. I was proud of how she stood up for herself.
“We were supposed to get married. This is just a phase. I’ll forgive you for sleeping with muscle man here.” This guy was delusional, and I wanted to flatten him on the pavement.
“My God, Martin. You are not listening. I will never marry you. Now leave me alone.” Emily turned to walk away, and Martin grabbed her. That was it. I grabbed him by the shoulders and threw him up against the cab that was waiting for him.
“The lady said it was over. Now get the fuck out of here before I do something I don’t want to. And one more thing,” I said, threatening. “If you ever disrespect her again, I will make it so vile and hateful words will never be able to come out of your mouth again. Do you understand me?”
He pushed at my shoulders, but I didn’t budge. I had several inches and probably close to forty pounds on him. He couldn’t have moved me if he tried. I let go on my terms and glared at him. After I felt satisfied that the confrontation was over, I turned and grabbed Emily’s hand, and we started to walk away from him.
“You’ll be sorry,” he yelled at our backs. “You’ll both be sorry!”
We walked about a block when I stopped and faced Emily. I knew she’d be crying.
“I can’t believe I spent three years with him,” she said.
I wrapped my arms around her. “It’s OK. It’s over now. I won’t let him hurt you. I promise.”
She buried her face in my chest and continued to cry. “Thank you for standing up to him.”
“I will never let that asshole hurt you ever again. I have to admit that it took every ounce of willpower not to beat the shit out of him.”
Emily hugged me even tighter and her tears began to subside. “I have to admit that the way you defended me was…pretty hot,” she said quietly.
I leaned back and looked at her. “Hot?” I asked her. “I was thinking chivalrous or gallant, but hot will do.” With that remark, she laughed. “Let’s not waste any more time thinking about him. C’mon, I need food.”
I grabbed her hand, and we walked to the diner. We spent the entire day together, as planned. It was a productive day academically and for our relationship. We studied well together and enjoyed the time we weren’t doing schoolwork. We finally left the library around nine and went our separate ways. I was disappointed with that decision, but it was probably for the best.
We were both very busy all week. Although we saw each other in classes and had an occasional meal together, we didn’t spend any additional time together. It was OK, though. We had a comfortable connection and I knew I was the only man in her life. That was important to me. I believed in monogamy, and, from what I observed, she believed in it too.
Thursday night I went right home after class to change so I could meet Emily at a nearby sushi bar. There was a strange-looking man standing at the entrance of my building. “Are you Chadwick Baldwin?” the man asked me as I approached the entranceway.
“Who wants to know?” I asked apprehensively.
“Consider yourself served,” the man said.
He handed me a large manila envelope. I opened it immediately. I couldn’t believe it. Martin was suing me for assault and battery. This had to be a joke. I read the summons twice. When had I assaulted him? I thought about the two times I’d met him. I didn’t do anything to him. What was this pissant complaining about?
Oh my…he must have been referring to the other day when he was waiting outside of Emily’s apartment building. I remembered now. I’d shoved him against the cab. What the hell? That was not assault. If I’d assaulted him, he would have known it was happening. What a juvenile. I needed to make this go away. I couldn’t afford to have any indiscretions on my record. I pulled out my phone and called Emily.
“What’s up? Cancelling our sushi date?” she asked me.
“Apparently your ex has a real issue with me.”
“Martin? Why? What did he do?”
“I was just served with a restraining order and a court date. He is suing me for assault and battery,” I explained.
“Assault and battery! Are you kidding me? I can’t believe he would do that. This is bullshit. I’m going to call him,” she told me.
I thought about it. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. That’s probably what he’s hoping you’ll do. I just need this to go away.”
“When is the date? I can act as a witness, and so can the doorman. He saw what happened. I’ll talk to him when I get home. I could always get a written statement from him, so he doesn’t have to appear. This is awful, Chad. I am so sorry.”
This was not her fault. She couldn’t have known her ex would act like such a child. “There’s nothing you could have done to prevent this. I’m just relieved you got away from him when you did.” That was true. Thank God she wasn’t dating this asshole anymore. It was a frivolous lawsuit, and I was confident any judge would agree.
“Well, we aren’t going to go down without a fight. I’m going to call my dad and see what he thinks we should do.”
“That’d be great. I can meet with him whenever he’s available. Just let me know what he says.”
“You got it. Let me call him now, and I’ll get back to you in a little bit. And Chad, I really am sorry. I didn’t think Martin could be this vindictive.”
“Stop apologizing. You couldn’t have seen this coming. This case has no substance. We both know I did nothing wrong. He’s the one being petty. Let me know what Ian says.”
“Will do.” She hung up, and I was so glad I’d called her right away. I felt better. I’d forgotten the doorman had seen what transpired. I remembered him rolling his eyes in disgust after I walked away from the cab and grabbed Emily’s hand. Having two witnesses would only help my case. I just wanted this to go away. I didn’t have time for this kind of crap.
Emily called me back and asked if I could meet Ian, Katharine and Ian’s attorney (who was also a good friend of his) at Pane Vino’s at seven. Of course I could meet them. I was so relieved they were willing to help.
I took a cab to the restaurant and arrived twenty minutes early. I was sitting at the bar having a beer when everyone arrived. Emily walked in with her dad. She looked very worried. I walked up to her and gave her a kiss. “Get that worried look off of your face, angel. Shoving a man does not constitute assault.”
“No, it doesn’t,” I heard Ian say. “Chad, nice to see you again.” We shook hands. I also shook Katharine’s hand and was introduced to Greg, Ian’s attorney. We were seated at a table in a corner, which was a little more private. Once our orders were taken, we got to the business at hand.
Greg initiated the conversation. “Just tell me what happened, Chad.”
I told him how Martin had been waiting outside the building early Sunday morning. I relayed as much of the conversation as I could remember. The most important defense was Martin’s verbal assault on Emily. I had refused to let him speak to her disrespectfully, and I assured Greg that I would respond the same way again if he spoke that way to her.
“Do you think he waited all night outside the building?” Katharine asked.
I looked at Emily for confirmation. “It looked like he had the same suit on he would have worn the night before, so my assumption is he did. There was a cab waiting outside the building, so I’m not sure. Maybe he was tired of waiting and was getting ready to leave when we came out. Who knows. It looked like he had been drinking. I assumed he drank too much Saturday night and decided to wait outside the building until I appeared Sunday morning,” Emily told the group. “I know I was clear that our relationship was over, but he obviously wasn’t listening. He had his life planned out, and I screwed up his well thought out plan. He gets very upset when his organized life gets ruffled. To make matters worse, I think he is jealous that I’m seeing Chad.”
“How very sad,” Katharine said. “Anyone can see how much happier you are. I thought you were polite but adamant at the gala about how your relationship was over. Greg, do you think Martin has any kind of case?”
Greg thought for a moment before answering, like most attorneys do. “Absolutely not. He’s acting like the proverbial woman scorned. He just happens to be a man and not a woman. I’ll look into this and get back to you tomorrow. If you could give me your phone number, Chad, I’ll let you know what happens. This is truly a frivolous lawsuit, and I assure you it will not go on your record. Since you said you’ve never been in trouble with the law and have a clear history, I’ll make sure none of this sullies your good name and your background information remains clear.”
I couldn’t believe how relieved I felt. I’d wanted to be an attorney for as long as I could remember, and I didn’t want something as trivial as this to change the course of my career. Aspiring attorneys could not have any kind of police record.
“I can’t thank you enough, Greg. This was the last thing I ever expected to happen.”
“Forget it. Let’s enjoy this amazing spread, and I’ll call you tomorrow.”