The next morning (February 24th, 2007)

Beyonce sat at a table outside Mission Lake park waiting for Justin who was ordering lunch for them. She kept her eyes on the handsome guy who spoke to a cashier. It's been a day since she'd fled her home and she was starting to get more nervous by the days. She wasn't sure if she was safe or not, because she knew what type of guy Bryan was. He could've been looking for her that moment.

Minutes later, Justin approached their table with the food. "Sorry for the wait." he sat the food down and took his seat.

"That's okay." she watched as he sorted out the food.

"I got you a vanilla shake. They ran out of chocolate. Sorry." he apologized.

"It's okay. I can settle for that." she stuffed a fry in her mouth. "Mmm, fresh." he chuckled softly. "So um..." he peered in her eyes. "Met a new friend?" she joked.

"Who?" he asked in confusion.

"That...cute cashier over there. She's so...preppy, don't you think?" he looked over his shoulder to gaze at the cashier who was eying him at the time.

"Haha." he met eye contact with her. "You're so funny, you know that? Come here." she leaned in, watching as he slowly locked lips with hers. "Mmm, why not give her something to look at?"

"Ahaha." she pulled away, keeping her gaze on him.

"I uh, I was wondering...are you ever going back to the coffee shop?" she held her head down, chewing on her inner lip in thought.

"I thought about it, and...I decided that I shouldn't. For the mere fact that Bryan is familiar with the place. I was thinking, maybe I should work somewhere else. You know, where he wouldn't be able to find me." she chewed on a fry.

"Well, this is what I had in mind. You..." he pointed. "...stay at my place. I will take care of your living expenses and everything else. I just think that it will be much safer. Not that I'm trying to keep you behind closed doors or anything."

"You know...you are a really sweet guy. In a FRIENDly way, that is." he chuckled softly.

"Yeah. I basically forgot we were FRIENDS." he took a sip of his coke. "Have you ever realized that we do things with each other that normal friends don't do? You know, like last night for ONE example. Boy..." he released a sigh. "That was some night, wasn't it?" she blushed slyly.

"Don't remind me." she kept her eyes on her food. "But if you must know, I did enjoy myself."

"You didn't have to tell me that. It was obvious. I mean, I couldn't even keep you off..."

"Justin?" they looked away, gazing in on a brunette. His eyes instantly lit up.

"Isabelle?" he arose from his seat. "Um, what are you doing here? I mean..."

"I was just stopping by to get me a burger. You know, like I normally do." she reminded.

"Um..." he locked eyes with Beyonce's. "Bee, you met Sarah." she stood up, extending her hand out to shake hers.

"Hi. I'm Beyonce." she greeted. She reached out, shaking her hand. "I didn't realize you had TWO names."

"Oh, well Isabelle is my real name. Sarah is just a middle name my mother named after her." she explained.

"It doesn't matter. I was just...a little confused there for a second." she sat back down. This was an odd moment for Justin, because the two women he cared about was in his presence. He wasn't for sure if they both liked one another or just pretended.

"I see you dyed your hair. Something you vowed to never do." he realized.

"Yeah. I decided it was time for a change. You know how that goes." she spoke, taking a glimpse at Beyonce. "You know, I'm kinda a little surprised that you out of all people would consider being with a black woman." his eyes lit up.

"Excuse me?" she giggled softly.

"I didn't mean to offend you. That's just what I thought, ya' know? You used to always tell me that black coffee was just not your flavor."

"Sarah?" he stared at her in disbelief. "Listen, I'm sorry about this." he apologized to Beyonce. "You ready to go? I think I've had enough any way."

"Um, yeah." she stood to her feet. "It was nice meeting you."

"Likewise." she watched the two head towards the car. They both hopped in the car and drove off. There was silence between the two during the beginning of the drive home.

"That was kinda weird." she broke the silence between them.

"I'm sorry for that. I didn't..."

"It's okay." she assured. "I thought she was pretty funny. You know, with the black woman comment. What DID she mean by that exactly?" he shrugged his shoulders.

"Nothing. She just wanted something to say." he made a right at the light. "Just like I said, she's beautiful but not within. She can be really mean when she wants to be."

"I understand." she spoke faintly. "I wonder where Bryan is." she fiddled with her fingers in boredom. "I bet he's out somewhere looking for me."

He slowly pulled up in his drive way, immediately focusing in on a guy standing on his porch. "Is that Bryan?" her eyes lit up.

"Oh my god. What am I gonna do?"

"Relax." he turned the car off. "I'll handle it." he stepped out, slowly approaching the individual.

"Justin? Hey!"

"How you doin'?" he spoke, shaking his hand.

"I'm good." he stuffed his hands in his pockets. "So, what's going on?"

"Um, Beyonce ran away." his eyebrows raised interestingly. "It's been almost two days and I haven't seen her since. I was wondering if you seen her."

"Oh, well...yeah. I have. As a matter of fact, she's sittin' in the car now."

"What? She is?" he looked over his shoulder to gaze at her. She remained in the car, tense as can be. "What the hell is she doing with you?"

"We were just out eating lunch. She um..." he scratched his chin in thought. "She came to my house yesterday with bruises on her. She said that you hit her...after she caught you in bed with another woman." he held an hilarious look.

"That's nonsense! Why would I do something like that?" he shrugged his shoulders. "She's lying, man."

"Hmm, well I dunno why she would do something like that. Don't you think it's a little stupid of her to be beatin' on herself?" at this point, he wanted to hit him because he knew that he was lying. He was just waiting for the right time.

"Of coarse. I dunno, maybe she wanted attention." he shrugged his shoulders. "She does love attention, if ya' know what I mean."

"Um, actually I don't." he signaled Beyonce to get out of the car. "If you don't mind, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave." he grasped Beyonce's hand and led her towards the mansion.

"Beyonce?" he called. She hesitantly turned to face him. "What are you doing? Aren't you coming back with me?"

"I..." she hesitated. "I don't know." she glanced at Justin who remained by her side. She had a worried look on her face, knowing deep down that something bad was going to happen. "I can't take anymore of your...abusive behavior."

"What? Come on, Bee. Why are you lying like this? You KNOW I don't abuse you." he lied.

"How could YOU stand there and act like you do nothing to me?" she cried. "I can't go back there. I'm sorry, but I just can't." she turned, ambling towards the house.

"Maybe you should leave." Justin suggested. He stood there, watching the two enter the house and close the door. "Hey." she turned his direction. "You okay?" she sniffled inaudibly.

"I dunno. I'm confused right now. I'm not sure if I should go back or stay."

"Well it's simple. You just said you're tired of the way he treats you." he reminded. "Don't be stupid. You know what you need to do." she lifted her head to peer in his eyes. "I won't let you go back to that asshole. I refuse to. You're just too beautiful to be treated like that." he reached out, brushing her cheek gently. "I love you, and you know that. Don't let him do this to you. You've suffered long enough." he hesitantly leaned in, pecking her on the lips. She slowly gave in, kissing him intimately.

"Mmm." she moaned while resting her hand on his cheek. "I'm scared." she breathed between his lips.

"Don't be." he pulled away to gaze in her eyes. "I won't let him hurt you anymore. I promise." she licked her lips, slowly looking away as thoughts clogged her brain. "Don't worry about it. I want that asshole to try something else. I swear to god I will kick his ass." a soft chuckle escaped her lips.

"Have I told you how wonderful you are?" she turned, moving towards the stairs. He watched as she slowly ambled up the curved stairs. "You're not gonna put me to sleep?" a smirk slowly formed across his lips.

"I didn't know you wanted me to." he followed her in the room. She backed away, leisurely removing her top. He closed the door as he begin unbuckling his belt.

"No, no." she moved in towards him. "I got this." she removed his belt, quickly yanking his jeans down.

"I didn't know you had an aggressive side." he instantly met lips with hers. "I love an aggressive woman. It turns me on."

"Haha." he reversed positions, quickly backing her up against the dresser. He slid everything aside and sat her on top of the dresser. He positioned himself between her legs, gradually kissing down her tummy. "Ohhh..." she tilted her head back as she felt a wave of pleasure spread throughout her body. "Ohhh god." she moaned out of control as he tasted every inch of her. "Harder." she leaned back, enjoying all of the pleasure he gave her. The doorbell interrupted them. "Fuck." she was on the verge of exploding at any minute. "Don't answer it."

"You sure? It could be..."

"I don't care. This feels too damn good to stop." he chuckled softly. The doorbell went off once again. "Go awayyyy." she moaned.

"Haha. You're hilarious." he kissed her classified spot. "Feels good?" she nodded.

"God yes." he rubbed her intensely. "Jussstinnnn." she gripped a portion of her hair as she felt herself climaxing. "Oh god. Whew." she fanned herself. "I'm hot."

"Well you should be. Ahaha." he leaned in, kissing her on the lips. "You tasted sweet. Like chocolate." he sucked sweetly on her neck. The doorbell went off once more. "I think I should go answer it." he quickly threw back on his jeans. "I'll be back." she watched as he departed the room.

"Oh boy." she released a sigh.

Justin unlocked the front door and pulled it open. To his surprise, Bryan stood there. "Bryan? You're...still here."

"I wanna speak to Beyonce." he sighed heavily.

"Fine. Beyonce?!!!!" he called. "What do you want with her any way?"

"I just need to talk to her. That's all." Minutes later, Beyonce came trotting down the stairs. She instantly froze when she recognized the individual standing out on Justin's porch.

"Bryan..."

"Can I talk to you? Please."

"Um..." she glanced at Justin, hoping he would say something. "I...sure. What's going on?" she stood beside him.

"In private." her heart begin to race. She didn't want to be alone with this maniac, because she knew what he was capable of doing. For all she knew, he probably would've forced her to go back with him.

Justin walked off, leaving the two alone. "What is it?" she asked.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he whispered. "I want you to come back with me. Now." she shook her head.

"I can't."

"What do you mean, you can't? Make this easy for the both of us and do as I say." she looked back, searching for Justin but he was nowhere to be found.

"Shit." she mumbled, finally meeting eye contact with him. "I'll...come, but...I need to get my stuff."

"Don't fuck with me. I know what you're gonna do." her eyes slowly filled with solution.

"Please. I...I don't wanna go back." she cried. "You hurt me and...I just can't take it anymore." he reached out, yanking on her arm.

"Come on!" he pulled her towards him.

"No. Justinnnn!!!!!" she cried.

"Shut up." he dragged her towards his car. "You're coming back with me whether you want to or not."

"What the hell's going on?" he asked, stepping out on the porch.

"Stay right there." he pointed. "She's coming back with me, and there's nothing you can do about it." he took a few steps towards them.

"Let her go, Bryan."

"Fuck you." he quickly rushed towards him.

"I said let her go." he grabbed him by his shirt and slung him, watching as he fell flat on the pavement. "Get the fuck off my property." he held Beyonce's hand, helping her up. "You okay?" her eyes shot wide open.

"Justin, watch out!" he turned, hastily feeling a fist graze his cheek. He stumbled back, falling against the car.

"Asshole." he gazed in on Beyonce. "Get in the car." her bottom lip trembled with emotions.

"No." she spoke, shaking her head. "I'm not going back."

"Fuckin' pussy." Justin ran into him, watching as he fell to the ground. "Bitch." he kicked him violently.

"Oh my god. Justin, no." she grabbed a hold to his arm. "Stop it." he ignored her, continuously kicking him in the stomach. "Please. You're gonna kill him." she forcefully pulled him away from him. "Bryan?" she kneeled down beside him. He laid there holding his stomach in pain. "God..." she cried, resting her palm on his cheek. "Look what you did." she looked up to gaze at him. "You could've killed him." she sniffled, nearly blinded by her tears.

She unsuspectingly felt someone tug on her hair. "Bitch."

"Bryan, please..." she cried.

"Let go of her!!" he shouted, quickly striking him in the face with his fist. "Psychotic bitch." that instant, he blanked out.

Beyonce laid there crying her eyes out. "Oh god..." she sniffled profoundly. "Oh..." Justin stood there, not sure whether to comfort her or just leave her there to cry. He wasn't for sure who side she was on. Especially after she nearly jumped on him for kicking Bryan's ass.

"Um..." he kneeled in front of her. "You okay?"

"Just...leave me alone. Please." she sniffled uncontrollably.

"Fine." he ambled towards the mansion. She laid there releasing all of her anger by crying. He entered the house and stormed up the stairs. "I can't believe this shit."

...to be continued

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