Kate was angry. Julian knew it and he didn't care, he was angry too. She fucked up and she was still paying for it, and unfortunately so was he.
"How much did you get done?" He asked as they walked to the restaurant for dinner.
They'd been in Rio for three days and had another five to go. For hours each day, Katie was stuck in their hotel room doing a paper for her grad level Comparative Lit class. Correction: redoing a paper, but that was a different story entirely.
"I have like eight pages left, ten at the most" she mumbled, bringing her hand to her forehead. She was exhausted.
"That's not what I asked."
"Julian." She stopped short to stomp her foot. The couple ahead of them looked back briefly.
He spun around to glare at her.
"Don't you dare throw a tantrum."
"Don't start shit over semantics!"
"Get over here." His teeth were bared.
She obeyed.
"How. Much. Did. You. Get. Done?" He had her upper arm in his grasp and was pulling her along swiftly.
She thought about lying. She really seriously considered lying but she knew it wouldn't end well. "I'm tired."
His grip tightened, becoming painful.
"Six," she said quickly, hoping her admittance would prompt him to release her arm.
He squeezed harder and picked up his pace but his face showed no change. Inside he was seething. He imagined throwing her onto the sidewalk like a rag doll. That wouldn't go over well in public.
She gasped, his fingers digging into her arm. "Please let go," she whispered, knowing she had to stay calm and not start a scene.
He said nothing, and if there was any change in the strength of his grip it only got harder. He tugged at her, enjoying the little gasps that escaped her lips each time.
The restaurant was on the corner. Julian checked his watch -- they still had time before their reservation. Taking deep breaths he pulled her around the side of the building and pushed her up against the wall.
"How the fuck did you manage to only write six pages today?" His face was inches from hers.
"I'm tired," she said, voice shaky. "I'm fucking tired, Julian. I write all day, we go out at night..." She was getting teary.
He put his hand to her throat and squeezed, cutting off the airflow. "Don't start crying out here, Katie, or I'll give you something to cry about."
With that he released her neck, grabbed her by the hand, and dragged her back around the corner and into the restaurant. Her arm ached.
Dinner was tense. He ordered for her -- appetizers, food, drinks. She glared at him from across the table, growing angrier with every word he said. He didn't fucking know. She was exhausted and frustrated and wanted to either write the paper or enjoy their vacation -- not both. Both was too much. She told him that, tried to convince him, but he didn't listen. Once he got an idea in his head he never listened to anyone else.
He ordered another bottle of wine for the table.
"I don't want anymore," Kate told him. She pushed her glass away.
Julian smiled a genuine smile. He found her resistance legitimately endearing. "You're not done," he said softly.
"I am." She jutted her chin out and stared at him defiantly. "I don't want anymore."
The waitress was still standing over them, unsure if she should get another bottle or not. Julian nodded at her. "We will take that second bottle."
"You're wasting your money," Kate said.
"No," he hissed, jaw clenched. "
You're
wasting my money. The last three days have been a waste of my fucking money."
She looked down into her lap. He was right.
The waitress returned and allowed Julian to sample the wine before she filled his glass. "Hers too," he said, handing Kate's glass over.
He turned his attention to his girlfriend and, to her embarassment, issued her a very gutteral and very public warning: "don't be stupid."
She knew what he meant. Drink the wine and shut up. Do what I say and shut up. Stop talking back. Stop glaring, drop the attitude, and shut the fuck up.
They sipped their wine in silence. Julian gazed out at the beach and the city skyline as it started to rain. He wished they were there under better circumstances. Jesus, he was furious. She was a spoiled fucking child.
He turned to face her. "You're going to write another three pages before you go to bed tonight," he said.
"I'm too tired."
"And then tomorrow you can finish it. Then we'll be able to enjoy the rest of our vacation."
"I'm too tired to write any more tonight."
"I didn't fucking ask you."
She opened her mouth and then closed it. She had a zinger but didn't know if she wanted to use it. He was already angry. Julian was known among their friends to have a temper. Most of them knew there was a line and not to cross it. Katie knew it better than anyone. And yet, with her mouth and her wit she found herself on the line, over the line, and just before the line on a fairly regular basis. It was part of why he loved her -- she fought back, and with force. She couldn't hurt him physically but she
could
absolutely hurt him. A relationship is no fun if it's one sided.
"What," he asked, leering. "What were you going to say, little girl?"
She shook her head, mouth closed, pretending to be afraid.
"That's what I thought." And with just a look he repeated his earlier warning: don't be stupid.
"Please, um..." Katie looked startled at the sound of her own voice. Butterflies rose in her stomach, daring her to continue. "Please don't drink too much, though."
Julian was a bit taken aback by her earnest request but didn't falter; instead he just leaned forward, over the table, and quietly asked, "afraid of what I might do, kiddo?"
Kate leaned back in her chair and with an air of cockiness she brought her glass of wine to her lips. She sipped it slowly. "No," she said, loud enough that the nearby tables could hear. "But it would be nice if you could get it up unlike last night."
The color drained from Julian's face as he stared at her in silence. Her heart was pounding. That was so far beyond the line -- and so far beyond her farthest deviation from the line; suddenly she was shaking all over. She couldn't hold her glass steady and set it quickly on the table.
"Get your fucking bag, we're leaving." Julian made no attempt to keep his voice down. He dug through his wallet and tossed 250 reals onto the table. With that he walked outside to wait for her.
She knew she was fucked and tried to imagine what he was going to do to her but couldn't. Inside she felt both fear and excitement. Her panties were wet.
She was expecting the ambush when she stepped out of the restaurant and was not disappointed. Julian immediately grabbed her by the hair and pulled her ear to his mouth. "That was fucking stupid." Back around the corner he dragged her and pushed her up against that wall again. The palm of his hand connected with her cheek two, three, four times before he released her and took a step back. "I should just leave you here."
Terror flashed across her face. She opened her mouth and then closed it again, and before she could form words he stopped her.
"I'm not going to, but I should." He grabbed her by the hair again and pulled her towards him. "That was so fucking stupid, Katie. Jesus christ."
Julian spun her around so she was facing the wall and pushed her up against it. Hair still wrapped around his fist he jerked her head back. "You want me to be able to get it up?" He growled. "Well, let's see."
Kate whimpered as she listened to him unbuckle his belt and pull it from his pants. Then she heard his zipper. She shuddered. They were on a side street only 20 feet from the main road. Anybody that walked by could see them -- was he serious?
