cover her now bare chest, and bawling.
"You dirty mother fucker! I should kill you for touching her!" Ashton was yelling. He threw punch after punch in the man's face, blood splattering everywhere. Every punch slammed the man's head against the concrete floor. He was relentless in his beating, almost to the point of insanity. Each punch felt like it wasn't enough, so he felt the need to add another.
Jayden ran into the hall and pulled Ashton off the man. "Dude, that's enough. You're going to kill him."
"That's right!" Ashton roared, pulling back for another blow.
"He's unconscious, man! He's out!"
Ashton stopped struggling to get out of Jayden's grasp. He stared at the man for a moment, catching his breath, his fists still clenched. "He deserves to die!" Ashton yelled, and spit on the man.
Jayden let him go. Ashton turned to where Kaylee sat crumpled on the floor. He got down on his knees in front of her and took her face in his hands. "It's ok. He won't touch you again. Do you hear me, Kaylee? Look at me. "
Kaylee looked into his eyes, and a sudden clarity flashed. She threw her arms around his neck.
Ashton held onto Kaylee, whispering comforting words in her ear, rocking her back and forth. Realizing that he was feeling her bare back in his hands, Ashton backed up. He pulled his shirt over his head, averting his eyes the whole time, then put it on over Kaylee's head. She finished putting the shirt on, and Ashton lifted her to her feet.
Noah came running down the hall and pulled his sister into his arms. He gave a silent plea of thanks to Ashton as he ushered Kaylee back to the bus. The security guards all ran in then, far too late to be of any help, but they did cuff the assailant while waiting for the police to show up.
Ashton walked up to Brandon and shot him a fiery gaze. The men stared at each other, one pale with fear, the other red-faced with fury. "Why didn't you help her?" he yelled.
"He had a knife and threatened to use it on me," Brandon stammered.
"So your safety is more important than hers?" he growled accusingly. "She was almost raped! Did you see her when she left here? She could barely walk on her own. But I guess all that matters is that you didn't get hurt, right?"
It took everything he had in him not to hit Brandon. He actually had to step back from the man and take deep breaths to avoid smashing his clenched fists into his face. Instead, he went back to the bus to check on Kaylee, and be there for her in case she needed him.
Kaylee stood in the shower long after the water had run cold. She didn't think she'd ever be able to get his smell off her body, and she wasn't sure if she would ever feel clean again. She finally gave up and got out of the shower. Even as she toweled off, she felt dirty. She dressed in her pajamas and left the bathroom, her legs still unsteady.
Noah had a mug of hot chocolate waiting for her, the top overflowing with marshmallows. It was the kind of thing he would do when they were kids and she had gone through a rough day; the sight of those marshmallows made her want to cry again, this time with gratitude. Kaylee gave him a weak smile, and curled up next to him. They sat in silence as she drank the warm, rich fluid. Noah had no idea what to say to her, so he didn't say anything at all.
When the silence had stretched out for long minutes, Kaylee finished her drink and took her empty mug to the sink. She gave her brother a long hug and walked back to the sleeping quarters. She started to climb into her bunk, but stopped, and instead peeked her head into Ashton's bunk.
He was lying on his bed. He simply looked at her for a moment, and then moved the back wall of his bunk, making room for Kaylee to lie next to him. It was a silent invitation that made her feel warm and safe inside, a good feeling she never dreamed she would associate with Ashton - but there it was. He was the one who had saved her, after all.
She crawled in and cuddled up next to his body. It would have felt strange a few hours before, but now