Just One of the Guys
The Art of Starting Over- Book Two- Chapter One

Averi

"No, no, no, no, no..." Panic rises to the surface as I stare at my father's face, taking in the malicious look in his eyes.

*Shit, shit, shit!*

*What is he doing here?*

*How did he find me?*

"He's in here." I hear the headmaster say moments before paramedics make their way into Gentry's bathroom carrying a stretcher.

It rips me apart to have to do what I'm fixing to do, but I take advantage of the distraction that the paramedics provide as they work on Gentry. Turning to Knox, I whisper, "I have to get out of here." He looks confused, but I don't have time to explain. I need to get away from here, away from him, *now*!

Standing up, I grasp ahold of Knox's hand and look around, trying to figure out what my escape options are.

*Not many.*

*Scratch that, not any!*

*He's blocking the bathroom exit.*

*Shit*!

*What do I do?*

"Thank you for taking care of my daughter, son, but I'll take her from here. We have some unfinished business that needs taken care of." My father says, eyeballing Knox as he takes a few steps further into the bathroom towards me.

*Does my father know who Knox is?*

*No! He can't!*

*Shit!* *Fuck!*

*How?*

*I need to get ahold of Agent Hernandez. I need to get out of here and away from* him! *But what about Knox and the rest of the guys? Everyone has been put in danger because of my foolishness.*

The paramedics finish strapping Gentry onto the stretcher and then begin wheeling him out of the bathroom.

"Where are you taking him?" I ask, thinking maybe that will be my chance to escape my father.

"Endover Memorial." The paramedic says, giving me a kind smile before facing forward again, his focus going back to my friend.

"Knox?" I ask, hoping that he can somehow read my mind.

"We will follow, don't worry." He says, pulling me into his arms and kissing the crown of my head. "Kenny, while I appreciate the offer, right now we need to be with our friend," Knox nods at my dad and trailing his hand down my arm, grasps ahold of my hand and heads towards the door that dad is still blocking. "If you will excuse us, we have somewhere urgent to be."

My father is clearly angry, not at all liking that Knox isn't giving into him. I brace myself for whatever kind of backlash is to come, because whatever it is, it won't be good. But much to my surprise, he nods his head towards us and steps out of the way, muttering a sarcastic sounding "Right."

Hand in hand, we rush through the dorms and outside of the school, towards his truck that's still parked on the lawn. Splitting up, we both run for the doors, opening them, and hopping inside.

"I need to call my handler!" I tell Knox, pulling my phone from my back pocket as he turns over the ignition.

"Your handler?" he asks, glancing at me, a confused look plain as day on his face as he throws the truck in reverse.

"My father's found me. My location has been compromised...I-I'll have to leave," I say, whispering the last part.

"Your father? He's why you're in witness protection?" At my nod, he continues, "I've seen him a few times," he mutters, as though it's an afterthought. "Fuck!" I cry, as my breathing picks up, a panic attack not far off.

"Hey...calm down. It's okay, just breathe." Knox says, curling his hand around mine and threading our fingers together.

"When?" I ask, inhaling deeply and then breathing the word out, before repeating the process again as I try to calm myself down, but I need details.

"When?" he asks, casting a confused glance over at me before turning his attention back to the road.

"When have you seen him?"

"Oh, uh...well, he flagged me down on the side of the road a little while ago...umm..." he glances at me out of the corner of his eye, chewing on his lower lip, "it was when I went to Berkshire to look for you." *After he went to Berkshire to look for...*

"When was this?"

Reaching across the seat and threading our fingers together, he gives my hand a squeeze, "It was the morning after our first night together..."

"Oh..."

"Umm...yeah. So, he was broken down on the side of the road. I pulled over to see if he needed help and he asked to use my phone to call for a tow." My stomach fills with unease at knowing that my dad has obviously known, or at the very least suspected, where I've been for that long.

That means that he's been aware of my whereabouts for at least a month potentially even longer than that.

"I saw him at one of my games and then again outside of the hospital after that jackass-" he growls, unable to finish the sentence.

*After that jackass beat the shit out of me.*

"Shit!" Pulling up Agent Hernandez's contact, I press the call button and put the phone to my ear. Glancing at the dash, I realize that it's after 11:00 at night and pray that he answers.

"Averi...are you okay?" He answers, picking up on the first ring.

"He's found me." I rush out, tears welling behind my eyes at the reality that I'll have to leave everyone again.

"Can you get somewhere safe? At least until I can get to you?"

The first tear falls, slipping down my cheek and my breath catches when I open my mouth to respond, "I-I'm with my b-boyf-friend." Taking a deep breath, I try to calm myself down. Knox begins to rub his thumb in comforting circles across my knuckles, allowing me to calm down, although only slightly. "We're in his truck on our way to Endover Memorial Hospital."

"Boyfriend?" he shouts, causing me to pull the phone away from my ear, "You know what, never mind. Why are you going to the hospital? Are you injured?" Hernandez rushes out. I can hear people talking in the background, and I find myself hoping that he's been at the New Haven field office and not across the country.

"A friend of mine...he he overdosed."

"Okay, that should be good. Yes, go to the hospital. It's public, so hopefully he won't try anything. And, there are police there in case you do have any kind of trouble." With a drawn out sigh, he says, "You both stay there until I can get there to you, got it? I'm leaving New Haven now."

I glance over at Knox, his eyes on me, concern written all over his face. "We're good to go to the hospital. He says to stay there until he gets here from New Haven." Knox nods and makes a left turn at the next stop sign. "How long til you can get here?" I ask, chewing on the side of my thumbnail.

"I'll be about an hour, hopefully less since it's late and the roads shouldn't be too busy." The sound of the cars blinker ticks through the phone, filling the few moments of silence, "you two, please be careful." "Yes, sir. Thank you. See you soon." I tell him just before he hangs up.