Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 74469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Goosebumps spread over my skin, and I begin to cry for a different reason – because someone is showing me kindness.
Colton tightens his arms around me, and I hear him whisper, “You’re not alone anymore.”
Overwhelmed, sobs wrack me. It feels like I’ve been starved to death, and in desperate need to feel safe, I wrap my arms around Colton’s waist and bury my face between his chest and my bicep.
I’m violently tossed from one emotion to the next. From experiencing a hug for the first time, and the comfort it gives, to absolute heartbreak because I’ve never had this before.
“What happened?” I hear a woman ask, and I’m ripped back to the cold terror that’s my constant reality.
I yank away, and my eyes wildly search for an exit.
“Don’t come closer, Mom,” Colton calls out, holding a hand up toward her.
He reaches for me with his other hand, and I quickly move to his side.
When he wraps an arm around my shoulders, he says, “It’s okay. My mom won’t hurt you.”
I glance back at Colton’s mom, and when she smiles, it does nothing to lessen the anxiety I feel.
Please don’t let them hurt me. Please.
There’s a concerned look on Mrs. Lawson’s face as she stares at me, and it sets me a little at ease.
“Shouldn’t we take her to the hospital?” She asks.
NoNoNo.
I shake my head and glancing up at Colton, I whisper, “I can’t go there. It will make my mother angrier.”
“She doesn’t need stitches,” he tells his mom.
“But she could have internal injuries,” Mrs. Lawson argues.
“I don’t!” And then I repeat the words my mother has said hundreds of times to me, “It’s not so bad.”
Get over it. Stop being so dramatic.
“My God,” Mrs. Lawson gasps. “Your hair.”
Humiliation spreads through me like a raging fire, and feeling dreadfully self-conscious, I lift my hand to what’s left of my hair.
“You can fix it, right?” Colton asks his mom.
My eyes dart back to her, and there’s a weird sensation in my chest as an empathetic smile pulls at her mouth.
“Yes.” She takes a cautious step closer, and I instantly tense next to Colton. “I can cut it into a pixie style if you want?”
Cut.
I shake my head, and when I try to take a step backward, I’m stopped by Colton’s arm that’s still around my shoulders. My chin begins to tremble as apprehension fills my chest, snuffing out the little calmness I’ve managed to gain.
“We don’t have to do anything now,” Colton reassures me. “It can wait.”
Unable to cope with everything that’s happened, it’s becoming increasingly hard to not cry.
Then Colton asks, “Have you had dinner? I was just about to prepare something.”
“Dinner?” I ask, and it makes me aware of the hollowness in my stomach. “You want me to stay for dinner?”
It’s such a foreign concept that I can’t wrap my mind around it.
“You can’t go home,” Colton says. He glances at his mom before he continues, “You can stay here as long as you like.”
Home. My mother.
She’ll be so mad because I left.
Fear drives me to ask, “If it’s okay, can I stay the night?” Not wanting to get in trouble, I quickly add, “I won’t get in the way.”
I just need tonight to gather my strength before I have to face my mother again.
Mrs. Lawson gives me a gentle smile. “Colton is right. You can stay as long as you want.” She gestures to me. “I can give you some of my clothes to change into.”
“You can go bathe or shower if you want,” Colton adds. “I’ll start dinner.”
I glance down at the bloodstains on my t-shirt.
Clean clothes would be nice.
Mrs. Lawson smiles at me again.
I want to believe that she’s nice, but life has taught me people are cruel.
When I keep still, Colton moves his hand to my back. “Mom, will you mind picking something and bringing it here?”
“Sure.” I watch until she disappears down the hallway.
Colton moves in front of me, and my gaze darts up to his face. I take in the nose ring and his dark eyes. All this time, I thought he’d become a bully, but I was wrong.
So wrong.
He’s done nothing but be kind to me. The longer I look at him, the more it feels like he sees right into the heart of me.
I so badly want a hug again, it makes my vision blur with tears as I whisper, “Thank you.”
Seconds tick by, and then the corner of Colton’s mouth lifts. It’s like sunshine breaking through stormy clouds. He steps closer, and when his arms wrap around me, I feel the warmth of a thousand suns shine down on me.
And for a breathless moment, I don’t feel utterly alone.
COLTON
I hold Brie until I hear Mom walk back into the kitchen. The last time I felt so protective of anyone was Brady, and the feeling comes naturally as if I’ve known Brie all my life.