Face Down
by Shelly

Hey girl, you know you drive me crazy
One look puts the rhythm in my hand
Still I'll never understand why you hang around
I see what's going down

Hoyt sat in his hotel room, trying desperately not to hear the argument happening in the next room. It had been this way for quite some time. He just didn’t understand what his best friend Morgan saw in Kip James.

He had known Morgan for almost seven years now and she drove him crazy always dating loser after loser. Like a good best friend he was always her shoulder to cry on. Kip? Kip really took the cake. Everything had started out fabulously, but in time Kip revealed his true nature. The story line with Christy had pushed him over the edge and he began taking out his frustrations on Morgan.

With a sigh he turned on the television and turned up the volume in the hopes of drowning out the sounds. His heart leapt into his throat when he heard the familiar sound of a palm striking flesh. He knew that the argument had taken a violent turn. Like so many other arguments before this one. Internally he wrestled with the idea of going to break up the fight or staying out of it.

Moments later there was a frantic knock on his door. Shaking his head he answered the door, finding Morgan standing there. Her make up had run down her cheeks from her tears and her jaw was red and slightly swollen.

“Please just let me in, Lance,” she begged, looking over her shoulder when she heard the door next door open. “Please.” Hoyt stepped aside, allowing her to enter the room. He saw Kip just before he closed the door in his face.

“You bitch,” Kip yelled through the door. “He can’t protect you forever.”

Hoyt opened the door, blocking the doorway so that Kip couldn’t enter the room. “Go back to your room, Kip,” he said, his eyes boring holes into him. “You’re drunk. Go sober up.” Something in the bigger man’s eyes made Kip back down. He turned and headed back to his own room.

“Thank you,” Morgan said softly taking a seat on the bed.

“I didn’t do that for you,” Hoyt replied. “Someone needs to put that son of a bitch in his place.” He squatted down in front of her, gently tilting her head up so that he could survey the fresh damage. Shaking his head he stood and grabbed some ice cubes from his ice bucket. Placing them in a washcloth he placed the ice pack over her jaw.

She winced, taking it and holding it in place. “Stop looking at me like that, Lance,” she said. “You’ve had some real winners on your list of girlfriends and I kept my mouth shut.”

Hoyt shook his head, plopping down on the end of the bed. “None of my girlfriends beat me up on a nightly basis,” he replied softly. “Morgan, you have to leave him. He’s just going to keep getting worse.” She shook her head no. “I’m afraid he’s going to wind up killing you one of these days.”

She sighed loudly, having heard this from Hoyt before. He took her hands in his and pulled her up to her feet, walking her over to the mirror over the bathroom sink. “Look at what he’s done to you,” he said forcing her to look at the faded and fresh bruises scattered across her face.

Cover up with makeup in the mirror
Tell yourself, it's never gonna happen again
You cry alone and then he swears he loves you

She pulled free from his grasp. “The bruises will fade, Lance,” she said. “I can cover them up. You just don’t understand him like I do. He always feels horrible after he hits me. He loves me. He tells me so all the time.”

“Understand him,” Hoyt replied, unable to believe what he was hearing. “You’re kidding me, right? Understand him? He beats on a woman. What’s to understand?”

“He won’t hurt me anymore,” she replied flatly. Hoyt scoffed. “He won’t once he knows.”

“Knows what,” Hoyt asked, fearing he already knew the answer.

“That I’m pregnant,” she replied. “I just found out today. I haven’t had a chance to tell him yet.” Hoyt closed his eyes tightly, raking a hand through his dirty blonde locks. “He just has to stop doing this once he knows.”

“Morgan,” he began, but decided against arguing with her. “Why don’t you get some sleep,” he finally finished. “You take the bed.”

“Where will you sleep,” she asked frowning looking around the small room. “We’re both adults, Lance. Sleep in the bed.” She smirked. “I promise I won’t hog all the covers.”

He had to chuckle at the cheeky smirk she wore. She drove him crazy sometimes, but he loved her with all of his being. She always wound up with someone who didn’t deserve her and that killed him, but as long as she needed him he would be there for her.

“All right,” he said as she crawled under the covers. “I’m kicking you out of you swipe any covers from me though.” He joined her, allowing her to curl up at his side. “Night, Morgan.”

“Night,” she replied, closing her eyes.

A pebble in the water makes a ripple effect
Every action in this world will bear a consequence
If you wade around forever, you will surely drown
I see what's going down

Early the next morning Hoyt pulled himself free from Morgan’s sleeping form. He padded to the door and quietly made his way out into the hall. He knew he had to straighten Kip out now, especially if Morgan was pregnant.

He knocked on the door to Kip’s room and waited. When the door opened Kip looked like death warmed over. “Are you busy,” Hoyt asked.

“Actually I was sleeping,” Kip replied, not appreciating being woken up at such an ungodly hour.

“Good,” Hoyt replied shoving his way into the room.

“Are you deaf,” Kip demanded. “I said I was sleeping.”

“And I really couldn’t give a rat’s ass,” Hoyt replied. “This has got to stop, Kip.” He opened his mouth to say something, but Hoyt waved him off. “You can’t keep beating on Morgan. Don’t give me that crap that she fell or she walked into a door. That shit isn’t flying with me anymore. I know what you’re doing to her and it sickens me.”

“You’re just jealous that you’re not her one true love,” Kip replied, crossing his arms across his chest. Hoyt grabbed him by his shirt collar, slamming him up against the wall. “I see I hit a nerve,” Kip chuckled.

Do you feel like a man when you push her around?
Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?
Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end
As your lies crumble down, a new life she has found

“Why do you do it, Kip,” Hoyt said slamming him into the wall again. “Does it make you feel like a big man to push her around the way you do? Does it give you some kind of sick pleasure to see her all bruised and battered? Does it?”

“The bitch is a freak,” Kip sneered. “She loves being slapped around. Just ask her.” Hoyt slammed him up against the wall again, letting him go for fear of hurting him more than he had planned to. “She loves it rough,” Kip teased. “Didn’t know that about your sweet little Morgan, didn’t you, Lance?”

Hoyt glared at him, boring holes into Kip. If looks could kill Kip would have been long gone by now. The glaring didn’t seem to faze him.

“Oh yes,” Kip said imitating a woman’s voice. “Hurt me, Kip. Hurt me good. Oh yes!”

“Son of a bitch,” Hoyt yelled, shoving Kip into the wall again. “She does NOT enjoy being slapped around, you sick fuck! I know her better than anyone knows her.”

“You know her in every way except the most important one,” Kip laughed. “Tell me, Lance, why didn’t you ever hit that? Oh yes, because you weren’t man enough.”

“One of these days she’s going to get wise to you, Kip,” Hoyt said, his voice deathly serious. “She’s going to see right through your lies and leave your sorry ass so far behind. When that day comes I’m going to be right there to laugh in your face.” With that he released Kip and headed back to his room.

Later that week Hoyt got a call he had hoped he would never get. Taking a deep breath he stopped outside Morgan’s hospital room. He knew she would be a wreck. Kip had beaten her so bad this time that she lost the baby. He wanted to kill the bastard, but knew Morgan needed him more right now.

He entered the room and saw BG James dozing in the chair by her bed. Gently Hoyt nudged him. “You can go now,” he said softly. “Thanks for staying with her.”

“It’s no problem,” BG replied standing and stretching. “I just wish Kip wouldn’t do this to her.”

“You and me both,” Hoyt replied.

Before either man could say another word Kip entered the room. His eyes were red rimmed. He glared at Hoyt a moment before turning his attention back to Morgan.

I see the way you go and say you're right again,
Say you're right again
Heed my lecture
Do you feel like a man when you push her around?
Do you feel better now as she falls to the ground?
Well I'll tell you my friend, one day this world's going to end
As your lies crumble down, a new life she has found

“Why didn’t you tell me,” he demanded, waking Morgan. “Why didn’t you just tell me you were pregnant?”

“Would it have made a difference,” Hoyt asked.

“You son of a bitch,” Kip said. “You knew. That’s why you came to talk to me that morning.”

“Kip calm down,” BG said stepping between the two men.

“I will not calm down,” Kip said shoving BG out of the way. “This cocksucker knew. He KNEW!”

“Yeah,” Hoyt replied, glaring at Kip. “I knew. Bet that just eats you up inside doesn’t it, Kip? She cared enough to confide in me and not you.”

“Motherfucker,” Kip yelled trying to throw a punch at Hoyt. It connected with Morgan’s face as she was trying to get out of bed. She groaned her lip splitting and fell to the floor.

Face down in the dirt, she said,
"This doesn't hurt", she said,
"I finally had enough."

“Morgan,” BG gasped, helping her up. “Your lip.”

“I’m fine, BG,” she said glaring at Kip. “Get out of here.”

“But..baby I…” He didn’t get the chance to finish as Morgan slapped him hard across the face.

“I said GET OUT,” she repeated. “I should have known better than to keep giving you chance after chance. You’ve taken everything from me, Kip. The last straw was our baby. I don’t even want to see you again.”

“I believe the lady asked you to leave,” Hoyt said stepping between Morgan and Kip. BG still supported her while she stood there glaring at him. Kip didn’t say a word. He gave Morgan one last look before leaving the hospital room.

Once he was gone she sagged against BG. “Let’s get you back into bed,” he said, helping her over to the bed.

“Thank you,” she said weakly. “Both of you. I don’t know if I would have been strong enough to tell him off alone.”

“You’ll get stronger,” Hoyt said taking her hand and pressing a kiss into the palm. “You’ll see. Get some rest.” She nodded, closing her eyes. Hoyt settled in to keep watch over her, motioning for BG to leave.