Runner Girl

Amy sat on the subway with the plastic-covered dress folded neatly in half upon her lap. At the time Tracy's suggestion that she rent a designer gown seemed like a great alternative to buying something, but now the blood spatters across the front of the Gucci dress made the frugal choice look disastrous. She hoped the store owner would allow her to pay it off in installments, although she had no idea how much to expect. Not that she had any right to worry -- whatever she owed would be trivial compared to the lawsuit John faced. He didn't seem overly concerned about it, but what had happened Saturday night made Amy feel like crap.

She exited the subway and made her way up to the street. A cold blast of air hit her in the face, but she welcomed the discomfort. The freezing wind felt like penance. If only she'd reacted better, Keith's nose would still be intact and so would John's reputation.

Brisk, determined steps led her to the high-end storefront and she stepped inside, only to find the saleswoman busy with another customer. She forced herself to wait patiently by the counter: more penance.

"I'll be with you in a minute. Or you can just leave it there, if you're in a hurry," the lady said without looking up.

"I'll wait. I need to talk to you about the dress."

At that the woman looked up, her eyebrows rising in disapproval and disdain. She said "Excuse me a moment," to the customer, who continued browsing through the rack. She approached the counter, asking, "What seems to be the problem?"

"I got something on it." Amy's voice was barely a whisper.

"What?"

"Blood."

The woman peered over her glasses at Amy again and sighed loudly, "Well, sometimes it comes out, but -- Good lord! What happened?"

Amy shifted her weight and looked down at the dress, "Well, um... there was a fight. Oh, not me, but I was standing --"

"Where the hell did you wear this dress?"

"The Polished Nickel. It's new -- a new club."

The angry expression faded away, replaced with curiosity, "You were there when John Heywood hit that guy? I saw it in the paper."

"Yes. Yes, I was there, but it wasn't John's fault."

"You

know

John Heywood?" The woman's demeanor changed completely and in a flash.

"Well, yes, John took me to the grand opening. That's why I needed the dress, and --"

"What? Why didn't you say so?" The woman removed the dress from the counter. "Darling, don't worry about this dress, I've got something to clean it with and if that doesn't work, I can always dye it black. Just be sure and tell John where you got the dress, okay? My name is Lydia, and next time you attend an event, please, please do come see me again. Promise?"

Amy blinked in confusion. "Really? I mean I appreciate that, but... are you sure the dress is okay?"

"Oh darling, don't you worry about that. Just promise me you'll come back next time you need something. Did you know I lend out jewelry too? Just call me, or even email. Here, take my card. Let me know what you're looking for, and if I don't have it, I can get it. Furs, shoes, purses -- it just doesn't make sense to buy things you'll only be seen in once, even if you've got the money, right? It's what everyone's doing these days. I can't mention the names of my clients, but you'd be surprised. Anytime you need something special, please, allow me to assist you."

"Um... okay, Lydia. Well thanks. Hey, I'm really sorry about the dress."

"Oh, don't you worry about that, darling. Amy is it? Yes, I have updated your file. I have your sizes and will start to update your preferences." she said, then looked away from the computer screen. "Amy. It was my pleasure helping you."

Amy gave a slight wave as she opened the door and stepped out into the cold, thinking,

Borrow a

fur coat? A down jacket and some hiking boots would be really nice right about now.

* * * * *

John arrived looking distraught, but still took a moment to mock William for reading in a bar, "Hey, nerd. Thanks for taking a break from the books to meet up with me."

"Oh, I didn't break." William held up his book. "Besides, you're usually the busy one. I figured something must be up."

"That's an understatement," John sat down heavily. "I think I fucked things up with Amy."

"What happened?" William slumped and looked resigned, as if readying himself for a story he'd heard before. The waitress barely paused as she passed by, John's nod affirming 'the usual.'

"Ugh," John put his forehead in his palms. "Well, I lost my temper. Not at Amy, but in front of Amy and Herman and Frank, and these other clients I haven't mentioned, and... it got ugly. I made an ass of myself in front of several important people."

"That isn't like you. Putting your foot in your mouth is to be expected, but what caused you to lose your temper?"

"I know, it's really not like me, but now Amy thinks I have anger issues and nothing could be farther from the truth, but just try and convince her. Anyway, now that she's seen me put my hands on someone --"

"What? It got physical? What the hell happened? Go back to the beginning!"

"Okay, okay. We were at the grand opening for 'The Polished Nickel' the new club Herman just opened. Remember that restaurant 'Philippe's' in the Meat Packing District?"

William shook his head.

"Well, it wasn't very memorable, so of course it went under. I managed to obtain the property at a steal, and Herman worked his magic to turn it into a posh nightclub. I took Amy to the opening," John smiled for the first time. "She looked stunning."

"Tracy helped her pick out the dress."

"Ah, so you knew about the event. Did you get to see her in that dress?"

"No, but Tracy said she looked beautiful."

"Here, I took a photo of her, but it doesn't show the dress very well." John took out his phone and swiped a few times, then held it out for William to see.

"Stunning. Strapless. Beautiful shoulders, very lovely indeed."

"Yeah, but you can't even see what it did to her ass," John smiled wistfully. "A head-turner, but I expected that. She knew it too, and she was radiant."

"So did someone hit on her?" William shook his head in answer to his own question before he even finished asking. He knew that wouldn't provoke John to rage.

"You think I would have lost my shit over someone hitting on my date? I'm not that insecure. Besides, I'd be disappointed if she wasn't hit on."

"Yes, but is she secure? Could she handle being the date of a big shot?"

"She totally holds her own. I thought she seemed shy when I first met her, but no. She may be an introvert, but she is extremely self-assured. Hell, you should have heard what Collette said to her."

"Collette was there? The designer who decorated your place and paid herself that huge commission, even though you were dating at the time?"

"Well, she still deserved to be paid for her work. She has great taste and did a fantastic job on The Polished Nickel as well, but she can be such a cat. She actually said to Amy 'Aren't you lucky? Landing a man who is financially successful and fantastic in bed!'"

"She didn't."

"Oh, she did."

"And how did Amy react?"

John laughed, "Amy didn't miss a beat. She said, 'Yes, fantastic in bed, and in a limo, and on a rooftop too."

William choked on his drink, "Wow. I didn't know she could be so sassy!"

"I didn't either," John laughed, "So I whispered in her ear, 'Are you thinking of someone else? We haven't done it on a rooftop!'" and she whispered back, "Not yet, but I'm sure you'll be amazing."

"Oh Amy, that little vixen. This is good news so far. So what the hell went awry?"

John's head dropped and his face looked pained as he went on, "I was deep in a conversation with Herman and this fellow he introduced me to, a guy who's looking to buy some corporate apartments. He was quite a talker and Amy excused herself to go to the restroom. I loved watching her walk in that dress, and I wasn't the only one." John grinned momentarily, then his brow furrowed and he continued. "Then she came out of the restroom, and the club has this long corridor, but I could see her from the waist up through this wall of glass. Some guy starts talking to her and I'm still talking to this friend of Herman's, but I can see her and she looks a little irritated, but fine."

John's drink had arrived and he took a swallow. "I kept looking back at her, but she didn't see me. Then she got this look on her face, a nervous look. I don't know what the guy said, but she started looking past him and I could see she wanted to get around him, but he wouldn't let her pass. He actually put a hand on her shoulder and wouldn't let her go."

"Uh-oh."

"Yes, and I thought of going over there, but this guy is talking and there is a crowd between us and I'm hoping she'll meet my eyes, but she doesn't. I see her trying to get around this guy and he's literally blocking her way every time she steps to the side and I felt pretty trapped myself, in a different way. It felt weird to see her face, but to have this glass barrier between us... Then she got this expression, a look of fear, and this guy has both hands on her shoulders and I felt this rage welling up in me. She stood only about fifteen feet away, but I couldn't get through the crowd fast enough."

"Wait a minute. It's not like she actually experienced any danger, right out there in public, right?"

John shrugged off William's comment, "I didn't even excuse myself, just walked away and started squeezing through the crowd to get to Amy. I could see her face and at this point she looks downright panicked and I'm practically pushing people out of the way-"

"But you were in a crowded club? Not like anything could happen."

"You're right, William. I know that, but..." John nodded and hesitated, not sure how much to reveal, but this was William he was talking to. He paused before going on, "The thing is, Amy was brutally raped a year ago."

"Oh, fuck. I'm sorry." William shook his head and looked down. "Well that sheds a new light on the situation. Oh man, poor Amy."

"Yeah, but don't ever let Amy hear you call her that; she hates being seen as a victim, but it was brutal. Date-raped by some creep she met on the internet. Violent too. The guy kept her tied up for four hours."

William's head dropped back in exasperation. "Man, poor -- sorry. God, that pisses me off. I'm getting angry now. Did the guy get caught?"

"Yeah, in the act of raping someone else. He's in prison now, getting karma up the ass." John caught the waitress's gaze and gave her the 'two more' signal.

"God, this pisses me off," William repeated, shaking his head. "Is that what was going on at the batting cages? I wish you'd said something."

"I was pissed, but I thought I'd get over it. I guess that is partially why I went a bit crazy. Anyway, back to the club; I already knew Amy has this thing about being cornered and she probably wasn't in any danger, but just seeing her looking scared got me really pissed."

"What did you do?"

"Well, it depends on who you listen to," John gave a forced laugh. "There are two very differing versions and one of them is likely to get me in some legal trouble. But here's what really happened; I pulled the guy back by the shoulder and told him to take his hands off her, and he took a swing at me."

"He missed?"

"Yeah, he'd been drinking a lot and threw a sloppy punch. It turns out Amy knows the guy, but I didn't know that. I figured he was some guy she bumped into at the club, but it turns out he showed up hoping to see her and became pretty disappointed to find her with a date, so the guy drank too much and came on too strong."

"God, I almost feel sorry for him," William laughed. "Almost, but not really. Who is he?

"Some guy from her running club, oh -- remember the Waldorf Astoria? That's the guy."

"Okay, so he takes a swing, misses, end of story?"

"I hit him."

"Uh-oh."

John nodded with a face that said, "You don't even know the half of it."

"Just a lucky punch... or unlucky, depending on how you want to look at it. I swear, man, I felt it crack and heard it too."

"Oh no."

"Yep. A real bleeder. Blood splattered across Amy's dress, and it got my suit too. But it gets even worse."

William had his head in his hands, shaking it back and forth.

"The guy's filing a lawsuit. Against me, and against Herman, and..."

"What? That's crazy! He took a swing at you first!"

"I know, I know. The lawyers will take care of it, but my reputation... It's in the fucking paper, William."

"What?"

"Yeah, Herman's pissed, Amy's freaked out."

"And some guy has a fucked up nose."

"Yep."

"And what is Amy saying about all this?"

John thought for a second before speaking, "She's embarrassed. Embarrassed for me and how it impacts my professional relationships. She feels like it is her fault, as if she did something wrong. I'll admit, it crossed my mind too, that maybe she overreacted. I didn't realize she knew the guy." John shrugged and took another drink.

"So you believe both of you overreacted because of the rape?"

"I think so. I mean, the guy behaved like an ass, he had too much to drink, and he took a swing at me, but still... I don't think either of us can shake the feeling that the rape had a lot to do with it. Amy is really upset."

"I can see why. It's like that rapist is still has power over her. In a way, she is still a victim."

"That's exactly what she said."

"Damn," William looked at his phone and John assumed he got a text from Tracy.

"Plus she feels guilty, although she shouldn't. She didn't do anything wrong except look scared and she couldn't help that."

"Ah yes, here it is," William held his phone and read from the screen, "You didn't make the Journal yet, but the Times headline reads: 'Posh nightclub or octagon? Real estate mogul loses his temper at The Polished Nickel on opening night."

John laughed and put up his hands. "Hey, I'm a mogul? Did you know that? A mogul with a hot temper! Besides, bad press is still press, and that's publicity for the club. I'm sure Herman will get over it quickly, once our lawyer pays off the runner with the broken nose."

William shook his head and laughed. Humor seemed the only way to improve the situation.

Then John got a text message. Amy asked if he could come to her apartment. She wanted to talk.

* * * * *

I didn't realize the club Amy was talking about would have an exclusive guest list. I thought about leaving and stood on the sidewalk thinking about where to go, but then Amy walked right past me without even acknowledging me. I can forgive that, she wasn't expecting to see me, but I wasn't expecting to see her step out of a limo and was momentarily dumbstruck anyway. There she was, getting helped out of a limo, and she talked to the driver all friendly-like, not like to the hired help. I heard her say "Bye-bye, see ya' in a bit," very casually, and I watched her wave to him. Weird. Sometimes Amy just doesn't know how to blend in with New Yorkers.

She made up for any awkwardness by wearing a snug strapless dress that left nothing to the imagination, her cute ass looking incredibly delectable and her legs as long as sin. Hell, she could say "y'all" wearing that dress and no one would even notice. Once I saw her, I knew I had to get into the club. I made another run at the bouncer and whispered that I was a private investigator hired to follow a cheating wife. I asked if there was any wiggle room in that guest list as I discreetly showed him a hundred dollar bill in lieu of a badge. I guess I got lucky or the bouncer had been unlucky himself, because he took my bill and whispered, "Burn the bitch."

The place was nice, I'll admit it. Good looking crowd, too, but Amy stood out as the most gorgeous redhead in the room. I should have questioned why a schoolteacher would be invited to an event like this, and how she managed to finagle a limo, but I just figured she knew someone. Well, she knew someone, alright. Some rich playboy paraded her around introducing her to people while I hung at the bar.

Fuck me

. So yeah, I sat there stewing, drinking, and realized the reason Amy played so hard to get. I thought she went for the nice-guy type, like Miles. But hey, I'm a nice guy.

However, I don't think I'd ever worked so hard to get a first date. Oh, I enjoyed chasing Amy down, don't get me wrong. It was fun chasing that ass through the park every Saturday. And when I finally caught her and we went on a date, we got along great. I just figured she was such a sweet southern gal, it was going to take some time to get anywhere with her, but I knew I had made some progress. She most definitely flirted with me that night we ran in the snow. It was just a matter of getting a few drinks in her and she'd warm up, which is why I'd just bribed my way into this club -- not to see her on the arm of some rich guy.

And so I drank. And I watched them. I could tell by their body language that it wasn't their first date. She was laughing and smiling, and giving him a look I'd never seen on her face before. Fuck, I felt like a fool. And so I drank. She didn't even notice me sitting at the bar, or if she did, she didn't acknowledge me. I kept waiting for a chance to talk to her alone. Last thing I wanted was an introduction to that guy. Last thing I'd want to hear is being introduced as her "friend from the running club." And so I drank.

I watched Amy whisper something to the pretty boy and when she broke away and started making her way through the crowd, I seized my opportunity and followed her. When she came out of the bathroom, she seemed shocked to see me there. I guess I was feeling bold since it looked like she was getting hot and heavy with rich-boy and this could be my last chance. Or maybe it was the alcohol, but I saw her arrive alone and I felt free to invite her to leave with me. She acted shocked, as if she didn't know how I felt about her, and that kind of pissed me off. She wasn't even as warm to me as she'd been to the damned limo driver. She tried to dismiss me and said she needed to get back and that's when I kind of let her have it. I told her off for blowing me off over some rich guy, and for leading me on, and that she just liked being chased. I told her she didn't give a shit about running; it was a guy's income she was interested in. She started to argue and so did I. Then she tried to cut me off, but I wasn't done, and... I don't know... I was getting pretty pissed, but next thing you know I feel someone pulling on my shoulder and I spun around and it was him, so I took a swing. Problem was, I wasn't ready for it, and when I spun around my feet were still crossed and the guy was expecting it, I guess, because he ducked and threw a punch back at me and... holy hell!

I couldn't see for a few minutes after that, but I heard screaming. If you've been hit in the nose, you know you can't see for a minute and it hurts like hell, but I think it looked worse than it was, which would explain why all the women were screaming and making a scene. A bouncer came up immediately, or maybe it was two, I really couldn't tell, except they knew who he was and they scooped me up and led me outside as quickly as they could. They must've been trying to cover up for the guy because they put me in a cab and paid the fare, while I sat in the back of that cab thinking "What the hell just happened?" I told the cab driver to go back to the bar, but he talked me out of it, saying I looked a mess. That gave me an idea. I told the cab driver to take me to the hospital, that my neck was hurting me.

I didn't know the guy's name at the time, but I knew he had money. And I knew I was going to make him pay for humiliating me like that. Later I found out who he is and realized getting my face in front of John Heywood's fist was a very lucrative move. I don't feel duped by fucking Amy anymore: hell, she did me a favor. Maybe I'll even send her flowers once I get my settlement.