I put my beer down on the bar, disappointed I couldn't get it to go down smooth tonight. Sometimes, even when I wanted nothing more than to get a good drunk going, it just wouldn't happen. I had come into the little neighborhood bar to drink. To get shitfaced. Now, even that goal would go unachieved.
To say I was in a mood would be a massive understatement. I was in a fugue. A morass of ennui. I was questioning life and all that entailed. The bar, a quiet little place, was picked to drink quietly with no chance of striking up a conversation. I drained the glass and threw a couple of bucks down for the bartender before walking out into the warm night air.
I lived near downtown and had walked to the bar, not wanting to add a DUI to my list of life complaints. I started the trek home, head down, hands in my pocket.
My route took me by a busier part of town, a street where the clubs were located. There were pockets of people standing around smoking, and other than the occasional nods, no one disrupted my journey.
I turned the corner onto the street which would take me home. It was a quiet road, with small businesses, and I stopped to tie my shoelace. As I bent down to retie it, I heard a small scream.
"No!" I heard a woman scream. It was coming from the alleyway on which the clubs backed. I walked towards the opening to see what was going on. "Stop!" I heard her cry out.
In the lowlight of the alley, I could see little, but what I did see set me into motion. There were three men surrounding a woman, and it was obvious she wasn't appreciating the attention.
As I neared, one of the men, the largest, ripped the woman's skirt, exposing her panties. The tank top she wore already had one strap torn, and she was in danger of losing it on one side. As I got closer, the man hooked his fingers into her panties and ripped then off, exposing the woman's pussy, even though one side was still attached. Even though I was scoping the situation out, my male nature did a double take, taking in the woman's pussy.
"Please stop," she cried. "I don't want this!"
The man stepped forward and pulled his hand back to slap her when I stepped in close and grabbed his wrist. The other two men were between the big man and me, so I wasn't in immediate danger of being jumped.
"The lady said stop," I said, applying pressure to the wrist. He futilely tried pulling his band away, but despite his size and strength, I had leverage.
He looked over his shoulder at me and sneered. "Turn around and mind your fucking business." He jerked his arm and I let go.
"This is my business," I said. "I won't stand here and let you hurt a woman."
"There's three of us and one of you, so I guess we'll do whatever the fuck we want."
He stepped forward and swung, putting all of his bad intentions into one wild haymaker thrown at my head. Unfortunately for him, my head was already gone. After I moved to the side, I kicked sideways and heard a crunch as my foot made contact with the side of his knee. He buckled, his head dipping and coming into contact with my upcoming knee. More crunching flattened his nose and he fell on his side, all the fight gone.
The smaller of the two remaining men came forward more cautiously, and I managed to get the girl behind me. I could tell the man had more ability than his friend and as he approached, I knew it wouldn't be over as quick. The last man was frozen in place, so I kept him in my periphery as I faced the other.
The man came in quick, feinting right. I don't bite, but took notice he was a lefty. He settled into place in front of me and watched me. I stood back, not wanting to be overly aggressive.
He acted, coming in quick with a three punch combo. Unfortunately for me, he led with his right when I expected his left and he clocked me, splitting the skin in my eyebrow. I felt the blood pour out, but ignored it.
He reset and came again. I blocked his punches with my arms, then hooked my left arm around his right and spun him. With him compromised, I hit him with three hard punches to the back of the head. They staggered him, but he stayed upright and stumbled out of my grasp.
He came at me with a kick, which I caught against my ribs. I tipped him onto his back and stomped at his midsection. The stomp connected and he groaned in pain. I jumped on him and rained punches down, battering him. Finally, a well placed elbow against his temple turned out his lights.
I jumped up, ready for the last guy, but all I saw of him was his back as he disappeared down the far end of the alley. I turned and the girl was standing, looking at the two men on the ground. She was sobbing slightly, but looked at me as I came close.
"We need to call the police," I said.
"No police!" She cried. "Please, no police. Just get me out of here and I will explain."
I ushered her out of the alley and back onto the street. I walked behind her the two blocks to my street and stopped. She was clutching her torn clothes against her, and I waited as she readjusted what remained.
"My house is right down here," I said. "Let's get my car and I will take you wherever you need to go."
"I really don't have anywhere to go," she said. "Let me think."
I nodded and led her down the street to my house. I keyed the lock and held it open for her. Without hesitation, she walked inside as I followed her. She sat on the couch, trying in vain to keep her clothes together.
I walked down the hall into my room and found a pair of sweats and one of my t-shirts. I gave them to her and showed her the bathroom so she could change.
When she came out, I handed her a drink and settled in to hear her story.
"You were almost raped," I started, "so tell me why you didn't want the cops involved."
"It wasn't like that," she said. "Well it was, but not totally. The guy who ran?" she asked. "He was my boyfriend. The other two were guys he owed money. As partial payment, he agreed to let those two have some fun with me. I didn't know why we were going to the alley. I thought we were just gonna smoke a joint. When I resisted, it started to get a little rough."
"Nice boyfriend," I commented.
"We've only dated a couple of weeks. I had no idea what he was like. We met and went out where I live and things were good. He asked me to come see him for a week, so I flew down. Then tonight happened and I'm just really confused and scared."
I nodded. I didn't really know what to do or say, so I did nothing, just took a long drink of my vodka. My heart rate was still elevated from the alley, and I was trying to compose myself.
"That was pretty incredible....what you did in the alley. Where did you learn to fight like that?"
"Honestly? That was the first real fight I have ever been in. I workout with some friends training mma. I don't fight and have no desire to fight, but I guess all the gym time came in handy."
"I guess so," she said with smile that lit the room.
"Do you want me to take you to a hotel or something?"
"No. I mean, my purse is at his apartment. I need to get it, but don't want to see him tonight. I don't know what to do. Can I just stay here and sleep on the couch?"
"Is that a good idea? Going from being almost raped to staying in a strangers house?"
She smiled again. "A stranger that stopped me from being raped by beating up two guys and scaring my ex-boyfriend to death. I feel safe enough with you."
"I have a spare room," I said. "You can sleep there."
I showed her the room and the bathroom across the hall. I handed her a towel from the linen closet and went and sat down on the couch to finish my drink.
As the water turned on, my mind went unbidden to the image of nakedness in the alley. No matter how gentlemanly I was, I had not had a naked woman in my house for far too long, especially one I had seen mostly naked.
The girl, whose name I still did not know, was pretty. Very pretty. Probably 25 or so, she was short, about 5'2" or 5'3", and had short, dark hair. She filled out her tank top nicely, and had her breast actually been exposed, it would be a very generous handful with a little excess. She had a flat, toned stomach, nice hips, and slender legs. I had seen her cute, round ass very clearly, and the rest of her was beautiful as well. I dislike pubic hair a great deal, but for some reason I could not get the image of her pussy, complete with more hair than I had seen in years, out of my mind. The hair was dark, and though a bikini would contain it, it was not trimmed on the sides much more than that. It was close trimmed in length, looking smooth and touchable.
I heard the shower stop and managed to drag my mind back, adjusting myself to accommodate the growing hardness in my pants.
