Impossible to Avoid

Heitor

I should just go my way and continue searching for Catarina, who had drunk more than recommended the last time I saw her and for whom I am responsible. That was my intention, but as I walked just a few meters, I noticed some visibly drunk men heading toward the unbearable girl, and that was enough to make me uneasy in a disconcerting way.

I didn't have to worry about that girl, but it was impossible to keep walking without making sure those individuals wouldn't bother her. I slowed down my steps completely just to confirm that they wouldn't notice the presence of the lonely girl sitting by the seashore.

"Look what we have in front of us, my friends," one of them spoke loud enough for me to hear. "A beauty like that alone here. Must be lost..."

"Or she's just waiting for someone to find her," another suggested. "I think today's your lucky day, beauty."

I didn't need to see what was happening to understand clearly where that would lead, and I was sure nothing good would come out of that situation. I decided to go back and approach the girl before something bad happened to her.

"The cat got your tongue, baby? We're talking to you!"

"I have nothing to say to any of you!" the girl spoke quite courageously. "Can't a girl have her moment alone without a bunch of... oh! Forget it!"

At this point, I was already walking toward the girl and the idiots surrounding her, realizing that the scene was far from reassuring. She had chosen to stand once again, and after shouting at them and looking at the four men with clear disdain, without further delay, she started walking away.

Her defiance made me sigh with relief; after all, nothing more serious had happened. Until I saw one of them approaching her again, preventing her from moving forward by roughly grabbing her arm.

"Let her go now!" I spoke with authority as I approached the group. Everyone turned to look at me, and it was evident that the men did not appreciate my interruption, whatever they intended to do with the girl.

"Why should I listen to you?" the man holding the girl asked defiantly.

"Yeah, why would my brother listen to you?" another chimed in.

"If I were you, I'd leave now, before I call the police, and you spend New Year's Eve behind bars."

The man hadn't released the girl's arm, and she now seemed terrified, which was entirely understandable given the circumstances. Seeing her so frightened angered me. I hoped not to have to take this to the ultimate consequences, but I could never leave the girl to her own devices now.

"Why should we fear the police? We're not doing anything wrong."

There were four, and I couldn't fight all of them and come out unscathed. I could only put my well-being and maybe the girls at risk. So, I pulled out my phone from my pocket, pretended to dial a number, and then spoke loud enough for them to understand that I wasn't bluffing.

"Hello, I have a report to make, and before anything else, I want to say that my girlfriend and I are currently being threatened by four individuals and are in danger. We urgently need help."

My words seemed to have the desired impact because the idiot holding the girl's arm let go immediately.

"Are you out of your mind!?" At least two of them spoke at the same time.

"At no point did we threaten anyone here!"

I signaled that I was being questioned by the police about our location, looked around, and saw an excellent landmark.

"We're near Season Summer Hotel, heading down to the beach," I began to explain.

"Let's get out of here! This guy is crazy!" said one of them, the one who had been just observing the situation without really getting involved.

Before I could provide a more detailed description of the location to the supposed person on the other end of the call, as if they had planned it, the four men started walking hastily and soon were running towards the part of the beach where most people were gathered, unlike the deserted area.

Even from a distance, it was possible to see them blending in with the crowd, probably attempting to go unnoticed and not easily be found by the police, if they indeed came.

"Are you okay?" I asked the girl in front of me.

It was evident that she was nervous and probably still a bit shocked by the situation she had ended up in that night. Now, looking at her with full attention, I once again realized how beautiful she was and that, for some strange reason, she was making me feel shaken, something entirely senseless.

"I..." she began to say, licking her lips and making my heart race foolishly, "owe you an apology."

"You don't owe me anything," I said, wishing to leave as quickly as possible. "I did only what any decent man would do. Now, I suggest you go back to where the other people are, as you already understand it's dangerous to stay here alone."

I thought that upon hearing what I said, the girl would simply agree and leave. However, to my total astonishment, she started crying copiously, her whole body shaking convulsively. Well, if before approaching her I had already believed she was crying, now I had absolute certainty that my assumption was correct.

I was already feeling strange in the presence of this girl, and now I was completely shaken by the evident suffering in her tears.

"You don't need to feel this way," I tried to say something coherent. "Nothing bad happened, and those idiots are already gone."

"I'm so sorry... for how... I treated you," she said between sobs. "You... didn't deserve that."

"Let's forget about this, okay?" I suggested, raising my hands in surrender. "I won't hold any grudges. Is that okay?"

She nodded as if agreeing with my words but continued shedding her extremely painful tears, and it was tearing me apart. I needed to leave. But I couldn't leave her there at all.

"Where are your companions?"

My question seemed to open some floodgates, as her crying became even more intense, and it was evident that she was suffering.

"I'm alone..."

The way she said it completely disarmed me and made me want to hug her and comfort her suffering, but that would be entirely inappropriate.

She was wearing a simple dress, and there was no makeup on her face, which made me think it could indicate two things: either she is someone without much vanity, or she's not a tourist like I am. But if she had come to Gostoso just for New Year's Eve, she surely should have come with company—family, friends, or maybe a boyfriend.

Thinking about that possibility was not pleasant, and I tried to dismiss another untimely thought.

"Come on, I'll accompany you to a less deserted and safer place."