"Hey, babe," silky notes pervaded the your ear, mellow juxtapose to blaring tunes speakers spewed. But to you, it might as well be the symphonic ahhh angels sung. The reprieve released upon a hero's arrival.

A sneaky gloved hand, formerly booze-occupied, roundabouts the small of your back. It hooked your waist, yanked you to her zone, demolished the gripping bridge the other made.

In display, force and possession must be brimful in her hold, make this "fake girlfriend" performance with a friend in distress plausible. But the gasp you drew suggested otherwise. Shit, too much?

"Hey..." you managed through a smile, tight, stretching with the aid of a frayed string. Muscles near your eye twitched, resisting the unnatural pose. A plea for her to hurry before your brittle façade shattered at the slightest provocation.

"Where'd you been? I almost went crazy looking all over for you," dawned a crease on her forehead, and engraved plenty more when a once-over slid to... that.

"Who's this?" A newfound ogre who decided to leave his cave and be a menace? Six feet average pest ripping you from the crowd for 'some alone time' prior to her meddling.

Creep alert.

"We were just meeting up," the guy fumbled out, "for a friendly cha—"

Oh, lies, lies. Her grip tightened, hips annexed, to brawl off the urge of drilling the order: go jump off a bridge.

"Doesn't look very friendly to me." Blunt cut-ins triggered sharp shadows from his furrowed brows. "Now, excuse us, but you've taken way too much of our time, alright?" and it cued that filthy mouth of his to poise, teetering to retort—but none of it reached your ear. Neither hers.

For, in a heartbeat, jogtrots grappled your figure to be smooshed between a riot of swaying bodies. Once safe and sound, merged in the throng, Cate halted at the pulsating nucleus of the dance floor.

"You alright?" she voiced above the laughter and conversation woven together. "He didn't harm you—" her touch lounged on your wrist, surveying imprints of his harsh grip, "did he?"