You and Phillip had been dating on and off for the past three years. The police were rolling in heavy and your heart stopped. Phillip was in trouble again. Going into the bedroom, you shake him and he groggily rolls over. In slow motion, your world starts to crumble around you.
“Phillip Kopus! ON THE GROUND!” Phillip drops to the ground, participating like a stand up citizen.
“Tell me, tell me what you did.” You beg. His eyes stare into ground, his lips unmoving.
“He killed Mike Parker, in cold blood.” Harold Jensen barks, dragging Phillip’s large frame out the door.
“Phillip!” You shout, sprinting to get in front of him. “You son of a bitch.” You snarl, hand cracking across his face. “You won’t ever be any different than your father.” You turn and wobble back into the house and drop onto the couch; defeated. They’d taken him, once again he was behind bars.
“Sweetie?” Marie calls from the door.
“In here.” You whimper out. Her familiar, comfortable face meets yours with a sad smile. “You gonna visit him?” She asks, wandering around cleaning and picking up a few things.
“I don’t know. He killed Mike. He killed him.” You murmur, staring out the window at nothing.
“I can’t believe that. But he and Mike into some crazy things, so maybe Mike deserved it.” She shrugs. “I’m not saying he deserved to die, I’m just saying maybe don’t judge Phillip so harshly.”
Two Months go by, no word from Phillip and he refused to see you. Today was your last visit. If you were declined again you’d give up on him. As you walk into the prison, you are stopped by a guard.
“Jack Kopus is asking for you.” You are led down a hall to see Jack Kopus at a table, always a sick smile twisting his lips upwards. It always made you feel gross.
“Hey pretty girl.” He growls, patting the table and waving to the open seat across the table.
“What do you want?” You snip, in no hurry to hear whatever Jack had to say.
“I hear Phillip’s here. Sometimes at night, he calls out for you.” He laughs. Your heart twinges, as Phillip wouldn’t see you.
“Okay? If all you wanna talk about is Phillip I’m gonna go. I’m actually not here to see you.” Standing, you hear Jack say something you never thought you’d here.
“You’re not the only pretty lady meeting him here. And he got released three days ago.” He barks.
“What?” You turn to him, brows furrowed and heart thundering. He was doing it to get under your skin. Shaking your head for a moment, you face the wall to compose yourself.
“Phillip was released already.” He grins darkly, his smile like something of the Joker’s.
“Anything else you want?” You nip.
“He’s banging another girl and he didn’t want you to know.” He snarls, continuing to try and break her.
“Well I guess if I haven’t seen him and he’s been out since Monday I guess I’ve been left in the dust.” She chuckles, waving to Jack as she starts out the door.
“He’s sleeping with Mike’s girl. That’s where he is. Trust me, sweet pea. I wouldn’t lie to you. Go ask them. See ya later, baby.” He assures, winking to you before letting you leave. Mike’s girl, why would she be sleeping with Phillip if she knew what he did?
“I’m here to see Phillip Kopus.” You state, leaning against the wall. Exhaustion was taking over already. Dealing with Jack took a lot out of a person.
“I’m sorry, he’s been released.” Released. You nod, your quaking legs carrying you out the front door and to your car. Collapsing onto the sidewalk, the tears falling down your face.
“Are you okay?” Asks a soft voice, and your eyes meet Mike’s girlfriend. Phillip’s big frame hulked behind her. Standing and feeling a rage you’d never felt before, you swing on her. Your fist connecting over and over with her face. Phillip’s big frame drags you to the ground and holds you there.
“Baby, you need to calm down. What the hell’s going on?” He asks, like you hadn’t seen him in two months. Struggling out from underneath him, you lunge at her again. Knocking her to the ground, you hold her down.
“I’m sorry.” She whispers, tears running with the blood down her face.
“HEY! What’s going on? Get off her and put your hands up.” A cop shouts. You do as he says, standing and raising your hands.
“Leave her alone.” Phillip barks at him.
“Ma’am, you the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be held….” You block him out as he cuffs you, eyes narrowed on Phillip. Watching the horror in his eyes as you were dragged away from him and he couldn’t do anything. Getting put into a parked cruiser, he starts the car, giving her a moment before he shifts into drive and starts towards the station.
“Damnit! You okay?” He asks her. The last she sees Phillip his arms are around her.
“Jesus, what the fuck are you doing? Do you want let out? I won’t jail you if you don’t want. I just had to get you away from her. What the hell’s gotten into you?” It was Officer Rekker, your high school boyfriend that broke up with you over some silly girl.
“Rekker, I wanna sit in a cell until I don’t wanna kill her. You let me out right now,
I’ll hunt her down and kill her.” You snarl, giving him a dark look.
“Here, at least you can sit in the cell by my desk. I can keep an eye on you there.” He chuckles, and you do too, only a little, but it was a little relief.
“Rekker! What the hell is that? You know Kopus is out, right?” Harold calls from the other side of the room. He and Kopus got along alright, Jean being common ground for them.
“I know boss, she said she’d commit murder. I felt it in the best interest of the city to detain her. At least for a night.” He responds.
“Got you, and she was arrested why? And why is Kopus walking in here right now?” They point to the front door, where plain as day, there he stood. Phillip Kopus, anger radiating off of him.
“I don’t wanna see him.” You bark, stalking to the back of the cage and standing with your face against the cool brick.
“She doesn’t wanna see you. Kopus, back up. She doesn’t wanna see you.” Rekker stands in front of the cell, hand on the baton, ready for a fight.
“You think you’re so cool, don’t you. Became a cop just to make your life mean something? Guess what, you little fuck. You’ll never mean anything, I could kill you right now. And no one would fight me. Understand me, move.” He growls, so close to the cell. You could hear his breathing now, the heavy rise and fall of his chest.
“Kopus, she doesn’t want out. So tell me, do you plan on fighting her? Because I could swing this door open and she wouldn’t move. Did I need to prove it?”
“Swing it open.” He barks, watching in shock as the door is swung open and you continue to stand there against the wall.
“You’re free to go.” Rekker states, standing away and leaving the way open. You sit on the floor.
“Princess.” Phillip whispers from the door. “Do you really wanna stay here?” He asks.
“Yes! I wanna stay here away from you! You son of a bitch! I went every week for two months and you never once let me in! But here she was visiting you and you two were fucking! You couldn’t let me see you and you were fucking someone else! So excuse me if I don’t really wanna be around you! I hate you!” Tears fall down your face as you stand there.
“Baby, I was in a rough place. I’m so sorry you thought I was sleeping with her.” He whispers.
“Leave me here. I don’t wanna be around you. Your dad told me about your shit. About her visiting you. About you being out since Monday, yet you couldn’t give me the time of day. I need some time in here to come down. I wanna kill her. I wanna kill you. I wanna launch outta this cell and strangle you. I wanna kill you.” You grind through clenched teeth, anger seething between your pearly whites.
“Then do it.” He challenges, hands out at his sides.
“I won’t. I won’t stoop to your level.” You snap back, eyes narrowing on him.
“You fucking bitch.” He charges into the cell, hands reaching for your throat. You jump onto the bunk and jump on his back, wrapping your arms around his throat.
“How dare you, how dare you fucking talk to me like that. I was there to see you. And you wouldn’t let me see you, yet here you are. Pretending to care about me now. I wanna spend the night here. I wanna be detained away from you because I hate you. I’m gonna strangle you.” You swing, your fists slamming into his gut over and over again.
“I love you. I’m so sorry.” He whispers, pulling you against him. “Calm down.”
“Baby, I need some time away from you. I’m sorry, I can’t trust you.” You whisper, pulling away. “Rekker, get him outta here.” You call, heading over and sitting on the bench. Phillip braces himself, shoulders stretched back and squared.
“Don’t fight me, Kopus.” He barks, reaching for the taller man and dragging him out of the cell and taking him to the front door and leading him outside.
“You protect her. You keep her safe until she wants to come home. Something happens to her, I’ll kill you. I can’t get her to come out, but I’ll kill you if you hurt her.” He murmurs, pressing his first two fingers into his temples and them wiping his mouth nervously.
“I need you to vacate the premises, Mister Kopus. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at seven in the morning. That’s when she’ll be released.” He turns walks inside, heading to the desk. Phillip watches as he stops and talks to you, eliciting a laugh and a smile from you. He swallows hard, leaving the police station and heading towards the house. Maybe he’d go to the bar. He didn’t really know. He’d never been talked to like that. He’d never felt so helpless. Wandering into the bar for a drink, Marie is sitting at the bar.
“Tell me something,” he starts, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I need to win her back. At this rate Rekker’s gonna take her away from me. I can’t even think straight. She’s never acted this way.”
“I visited your father for the first time today.” She murmurs, and Phillip’s head shoots up to look at her. She was drunk, so drunk her eyes weren’t open.
“Ma, let me take you home.” He murmurs, lifting her from her seat and carrying her to his truck. He stops at a gas station and buys a thirty-two pack of beer and a fifth of whiskey before getting to her house and carrying her inside. Once he gets to his house he wanders inside, booze in his right hand. “Fuck me.” He barks, dropping the case of beer and the bottle on the floor when his eyes land on your spot on the couch.
“Tell me something,” he whispers, cracking open a beer. “I need you to tell me you still love me.”
The case was gone, the bottle only a drop left in the bottom, and Phillip tripping over nothing as he makes his way into the bedroom. He drops into the softest bed, kicking off his boots and dragging his drunk self up into a more comfortable position. He rolls over, facing your side of the bed. He sees you, and reaches for you but finds nothing but a blanket and a pillow.
“I’m sorry baby. I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry I’m so fucked up. I hate myself. I hate myself. I hate everything about me, but I love you. And you saw that. You saw how damaged I was and you loved me anyway. I should have scared you. I’m so sorry that I didn’t. I love you, baby. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” He repeats his mantra, tumbling off the bed and dragging open the nightstand. He pulls out his pistol and a letter he’d written almost a year ago. He planned it out, a night when you wouldn’t be home. And you weren’t home again. Between the alcohol and bad thoughts, you were the last thing he thought about.
“See ya later, princess. You need anything you let me know.” Rekker chuckles as you take off down the steps to the cruiser, the crisp morning air waking your senses.
“Hey Rekker! My car is at the prison, do you think maybe you could take me?” she asks, and smiles, racing her to the cruiser before taking off for the prison.
“Hey, really quick.” He starts, but you already knew what he was going to say. You grab his face and press a harsh kiss to his lips. He deepens the kiss, his gentle hands holding your head as you grab tightly to his uniform. Drawing back, his eyes wide and dark with lust, you both chuckle. “Well christ woman. Way to read my mind. I’ll see ya later.” He whispers, pressing one more gentle kiss to his lips before getting into the car and heading home.
As you walk in, you don’t hear any movement, and head to the bedroom to find a horrific scene in front of you. A note on your pillow, a gun dropped haphazardly onto the bed, and Phillip sprawled awkwardly across the bed. At first you give a shriek, assuming the worst. After a moment of panic, you shake him.
Gently, his brown eyes crack open to find you standing over him.
“Princess?” He asks, sitting up and lunging at you. Tackling you to the ground, he finds you still there under him, grinning like a fool.
“I love you, Phillip Kopus.” You murmur, grabbing him up for a kiss. Your lips pressed against his harshly, feeling the sparkling taste of his lips and sweet smell of his cologne and cigar smoke, leaving you laughing in pure joy.
“I’m so sorry, babygirl.” He murmurs, hugging tightly against him.
“Phillip, can we talk about this?” You hold the note up. He shakes his head.
“I was in a bad place last night. With you gone, with the alcohol, I couldn’t think straight. I’m sorry I scared you. I’m sorry I lied to you. I’m sorry, about it all. I’m sorry for everything. Make sure we get through our shit together. Okay?” He whispers, rolling to the side to let you up.
“You promise me you won’t kill anyone else?”
“I promise. You promise not to kiss any other officers?”
“I promise. Wait, how did you--” Your eyes meet his, and they dance with laughter.
“I saw the way you two were laughing last night. I knew it would be a moment. It’s alright baby. We’re gonna be okay.”
