manhandled

verb

1. move (a heavy object) by hand with great effort

2. handle (someone) roughly by dragging or pushing

"Ahchoo!" I sneezed, then sniffled my nose, shivering slightly in the cool autumn air. I pulled my light cardigan tighter around me, then wondered if I should have put another layer on when I left this house this morning.

"Woah, are you sick, Lily? Are you coming down with something?" Grant was walking me to class. Patricia managed to drop us off this morning then she headed over to the estate to continue working on the last minute details for the show.

"I don't think so??" I asked, as I wasn't sure. My head was a little bit stuffy so thinking clearly was a little difficult. But I had too much to do, so I refused to be sick today, or any day this week.

"You were sneezing a lot yesterday too, when I came over for our study session." Grant pulled me up and handed me a small packet of tissues from his backpack, not that I didn't have my own. He was just kind like that.

"Thanks. I was sneezing yesterday? I don't remember." I don't remember much of what I did since getting home from shopping with the twins on Saturday. Sunday was just a major blur of studying, eating and napping, then more study.

"Yeah, I think you may be getting sick. Can I pick up some medicine from the store for you to help fight whatever this is?" He asked, a look of concern gracing his handsome face.

"No thanks. I have it all at home. Don't worry. I'll see you after class." I waved him off and entered into my commerce class with a bunch of other students. Class was long with heaps of note taking as one of the professor's Senior Teaching Fellow took the class for the professor who couldn't make it today. He wasn't very good at lecturing, just droning on and on about something that I couldn't remember once I'd left the class in a daze.

"Ms Lily? How are you?" a loud male voice asked.

"Huh?" was my reply dumbly. I looked up to find Shark One standing in my way just outside of the faculty building with a few hanger-ons next to him.

"Hi, I was looking for you. I wondered if you'd like to catch a coffee together. Are you free now?" His voice just kinda echoed in one ear, bounced around my head a bit then flew out the other side.

"Huh?" again with the dumb reply, wondering what this guy was on about and why he wasn't leaving me alone.

"You seem in a daze, can I help you with anything?" Shark One had a kiss-arse expression on his face, like his servile-o-meter was ratcheted right up to ten. It caused goose-bumps to crawl all over my arms as I shivered.

"I'm fine." I replied, then tried to walk around him. He stepped in front of me again and I nearly walked straight into him.

"What?" I asked warily watching this playboy and his group of sycophants.

"You don't look so well." One of the girls next to him pointed out. I vaguely remembering seeing her in the swimming centre with the swim club.

"Should I take her to see the doctor?" Shark On looked around us seeking agreement of those in his pose. Then he stepped forward then abruptly took a firm hold of my arm, and started pulling me along the university pathway across campus, the opposite direction of my pick up location. When I realised I was still shivering, I knew I didn't want him touching me and I did not trust where he was planning on taking me.

"Please let me go." I asked, politely while trying to pull my arm out of his grip. I vaguely wondered where Grant or Patricia were.

"You don't look so well. Let me take you to the campus medical clinic. They'll have you sorted out in no time, Ms Lily." Shark One continued smiling and didn't let go of my arm.

"Let go, I don't want to go to the medical centre." I tried pulling my arm free again, looking around for someone on my team.

"Ms Twice, he's only trying to help." "She looks so unwell, he's so kind."

"What her problem?" Voices of Shark One's hanger-ons complained.

"Let her go!" Peter Montgomery from my building security arrived quickly and clamped a strong hand on Shark One's hand, squeezing until the young guy released my arm. "She said she didn't want to go with you. Respect her wishes, young man." His voice was full of authority and a little bit of threat.

Shark One rubbed the bruising on his hand, swearing under his breath. When he realised he couldn't take me wherever he was planning, gave me a glare, embarrassed that his ploy didn't work out. I shivered again when I saw the look in his eyes.

"He was only trying to help. She doesn't look well and Max was taking her to a doctor." Someone complained as the group broke up. "Who does she think she is, anyway?" I rubbed the bruises on my arm as I watched them all leave.

"Sorry for arriving late, Miss. Are you OK?" Peter Montgomery was the head of my building security and I was somewhat confused as to why the older stocky man was on campus masquerading as my bodyguard.

"Yes, I'm fine now. Thank you. Why are you here, Peter?" I asked.

"Sorry, Ms Twice. I was asked by Patricia to come collect you from your class. Had I known the situation I would have arrived sooner so we could avoid that from happening." He looked back towards where Shark One and his cronies had left. "Does this happen a lot, Ms?" He asked, worriedly.

"Not since I was kidnapped a while ago. I've always had one of my team with me at all times. Today was a first." I hummed, then shivered again. "I thought Grant was supposed to be picking me up after class?" I looked back up to the taller man's face.

"He was, but plans changed. I was sent to pick you up. Again, I apologise for being late. Shall we go?" He directed me to his black Holden Club SS Sports. It was black, but still a beautiful looking vehicle.

"Is this yours?" I asked.

"Yes, family inheritance." Was his explanation, like I was going to question how he could afford such a nice car on his security guard salary. I waved my hands at him as I replied.

"Hey, not what I was asking. I trust Wallace who originally hired you. You mess up with me, you'll still be answering to him." I watched as the older gentleman in guard uniform nodded sagely then smiled at me.

"No truer words have ever been spoken, Ms Twice. I don't think anyone who got on the wrong side or Mr Overmeyer ever came out of the incident unscathed."

Yep. True that. Wallace, my step father, was a force to be reckoned with.

I arrived back at the apartment with a head stuffier than before. By the time I got up to my apartment, I decided to write off the rest of the afternoon and sleep away this head cold or bug or whatever it was that I'd caught. I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.