My face burned with the initial embarrassment, but then America screamed in my ear, reacting to Travis jumping from his seat. He reached over the table and grabbed Chris by the throat with one hand and a fistful of T-shirt in the other. The linebacker slid across the table, and dozens of chairs grated across the floor as people stood to watch. Travis punched him repeatedly in the face, his elbow spiking high in the air before he landed each blow. The only thing Chris could do was to cover his face with his hands.
No one touched Travis. He was out of control, and his reputation left every one afraid to get in his way. The football players ducked and winced as they watched their teammate being assaulted without mercy on the tile floor.
“Travis!” I screamed, running around the table.
In midpunch, Travis withheld his fist, and then released Chris’s shirt, letting him fall to the floor. He was panting when he turned to look at me; I’d never seen him look so frightening. I swallowed and took a step back as he shouldered past me.
I took a step to follow him, but America grabbed my arm. Shepley kissed her quickly and then followed his cousin out the door.
“Jesus,” America whispered.
We turned to watch Chris’s teammates pick him off the floor, and I cringed at his red and puffy face. Blood trickled from his nose, and Brazil handed him a napkin from the table.
“That crazy son–of-a-bitch!” Chris groaned, sitting on the chair and holding his hand to his face. He looked at me. “I’m sorry, Abby. I was just kidding.”
I had no words to reply. I couldn’t explain what had just happened any more than he could.
“She didn’t sleep with either of them,” America said.
“You never know when to shut up, Jenks,” Brazil said, disgusted.
America pulled on my arm. “C’mon. Let’s go.”
She didn’t waste time tugging me to her car. When she put the gear in drive, I grabbed her wrist. “Wait! Where are we going?”
“We’re going to Shep’s. I don’t want him to be alone with Travis. Did you see him? Dude’s gone off the deep end!”
“Well, I don’t want to be around him, either!”
America stared at me in disbelief. “There’s obviously something going on with him. Don’t you want to know what it is?”
“My sense of self-preservation is outweighing my curiosity at this point, Mare.”
“The only thing that stopped him was your voice, Abby. He’ll listen to you. You need to talk to him.”
I sighed and released her wrist, falling against the back of my seat. “All right. Let’s go.”
We pulled into the parking lot, and America slowed to a stop between Shepley’s Charger and Travis’s Harley. She walked to the stairs, putting her hands on her hips with a touch of her own dramatic flair.
“C’mon, Abby!” America called, motioning for me to follow.
Hesitant, I finally followed, stopping when I saw Shepley hurry down the stairs to speak quietly in America’s ear. He looked at me, shook his head, and then whispered to her once again.
“What?” I asked.
“Shep doesn’t … ,” she fidgeted, “Shep doesn’t think it’s a good idea that we go in. Travis is still pretty mad.”
“You mean he doesn’t think I should go in,” I said. America shrugged sheepishly and then looked to Shepley.
Shepley touched my shoulder. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Abby. He just doesn’t … he doesn’t want to see you right now.”
“If I didn’t do anything wrong, then why doesn’t he want to see me?”
“I’m not sure; he won’t talk to me about it. I think he’s embarrassed that he lost his temper in front of you.”
“He lost his temper in front of the entire cafeteria! What do I have to do with it?”
“More than you think,” Shepley said, dodging my eyes.