Safety At His Command

William’s Reality

William never really knew what contentment felt like but with Malorie, he thought he was beginning to. Every little moment they had after their kiss, because it was a kiss even though she was the only one kissing him in the hallway, had been pushing him for more. It was as if he fell out of the sky and plunged into the sea being the person that created waves in the first place. These waves only pushed him further, wanting more… needing more. 

And so after the most resentful cooking class he ever sat through had come to an end, William found himself asking to walk her to her next class which was Spanish, another class he didn’t miss but certainly wasn’t terrible at. He did his time, two years of it and it wasn’t required for college, not that he planned on going, which was another reason his father had been so anal this year. Ultimately, it wasn’t the man’s decision. 

It wasn’t like he was going to offer to pay for a school that wasn’t his choice. 

And anything that was his father’s choice wouldn’t take even one look at him. William knew where he belonged and that was in the working class. He wasn’t the office type though either, regardless of the intelligence he knew he had. No, William knew he was more of a hands on sort of fella. He knew his way around machinery. Maybe not all types but he could certainly learn it if given the chance. He liked getting dirty and breaking a sweat. Above all, he liked to be outside, which, in his Dad’s eyes meant that his only possible careers would be that made in landscaping which he mocked entirely even if he had to get trees taken down in their backyard, or construction which was also a joke to the man. 

His Dad simply could not see the use of a bunch of men and women laying cones and keeping traffic moving while they ground up asphalt. Or how town maintenance could possibly have a good enough pay to enjoy the finer things in life… not that his interests matched up to that of his fathers, at all… but the finer things weren’t materials. The finer things were a few good friends that he didn’t have and certainly didn't dream about because dreaming was for kids. Dreaming didn’t get him those either, but somehow, it did land him a girl he liked the moment he walked through those dreams and stood up for both of them. 

Maybe that was the thing she liked. 

Malorie did hint to him that she felt as though she was nothing, too. 

She wasn’t though, not to him. 

Idly, he wondered if that should be the theme of his paper, and wouldn’t that be the icing on the cake to turn it in early? To stick it to dear old Dad the next morning. 

It would be funny to do it, he thought as he considered the task at hand, but the length and requirements of the paper itself had been greatly underestimated if he thought he could pop it out in a few hours. 

William kept it in his mind as the bell rang the second time, and he stood in the doorway with his eyes trained on hers. His promise is as silent as hers until he says he’ll be back for her there at the end of the day. 

He felt as though he was in some sort of control when he had said it and surprisingly, she allowed it. It was as if she needed to hear someone tell her how it was going to be. 

It struck him as odd but every person was different in the building and who was he to claim such a thing? He was practically following her around for her attention, like a little puppy. 

It wasn’t an activity he delighted in when he was younger. Hell, he didn’t even do that to his mother when he was a child. He was a genuine loner, ready to take on the world and his accomplishments were me by himself without ever feeling the need for an audience…

While she seemed to be similar to him, she also liked it when he’d reassure her that he was there. She liked it when he was domineering, when he commanded a room… and now, William realized how much she preferred his choice of power over her. 

William certainly struggled with the prospects of it all and before he knew it he landed himself straight down into chaos theory trying to figure it all out instead of simply asking her. That was the one true thing he knew about people specifically; they did not like being called out and Malorie didn’t deserve it either.  It simply made more sense to observe her and follow her lead; to be there and be the voice that fixed her problems, that is, if she let him.

Today she did and it felt amazing to be the one called on for it. Replacing Brian was fantastic. The fact that she kept touching him and not the other guy was even more so. Which begged the question, did she feel safer with him over Brian? And how? In one day… no in two periods she not only gave him a chance but followed him and let him walk her to class. She let him tell her how things were going to be and by some means she stayed there, just outside of class with her books, that he reached for to carry for her, because what boyfriend didn’t? 

All of them, because they were p*****s and didn’t know how to treat a lady. 

He hauled her stuff over one shoulder and held her hand with the other, and she let him. 

She let him walk her to his car and when he offered her a ride she’d been reluctant at first but eventually nodded after other cars left the lot around them. Malorie didn’t necessarily explain why but she didn’t have to. He respected how this was playing out in her mind and didn’t ask. 

While they sat in his crappy little coupe she didn’t make it feel worthless. She didn’t pick it apart like the other kids did. She just smiled when he asked her to ride with him. 

Having her beside him changed things. It changed the space from just him and his seats and music to them which made everything else seem to fade away. She was pleasant like she always is, to him at least, and he couldn’t help but want it forever. 

By the time they did move, they did in silence. At first he wasn’t sure what to ask her, but finally she supplied directions to her place. 

Well…

Not her place, per se, but a place to drop her off. 

It wasn’t really a place at all which made his heart speed up. Did she not want to be there with him, he wondered, his dream coming crashing down around him. Did she… was she ending whatever this was? 

Malorie reached for the door handle, then his arm, seizing his thoughts from cycling through him. 

“This is my stop,” she said, giving nothing away. “Thank you for today. No ones ever seen me the way you have, William.” 

His name on her lips was maddening. 

He blinked slowly letting it wash over him, and as it receded and she removed herself from his space, and she was gone.