The back door slammed shut. Blind rage filled me as I tore through the house, breaking nearly everything in my path. If I'd had enough strength, I'd have pulled the fucking fridge down. Instead, I settled for throwing a pan at it. It dented it slightly, but it wasn't enough. What I really wanted to do was illegal.465Please respect copyright.PENANA1xOA4VHN0N
465Please respect copyright.PENANAzbkLs0NABt
I wanted to go to Jude's house and rip his throat out.465Please respect copyright.PENANANbSq109cHd
465Please respect copyright.PENANAJaLl9bryA9
That made me sound crazy, I know, but I was pissed. Slowly, as the anger ebbed away, I realized what I was missing. Or rather who. I slid down to the floor and my hands shook as I looked at them.465Please respect copyright.PENANAuI7wgpAhvj
465Please respect copyright.PENANAJNGziPvmIx
Christian should have been here to see my rampage. He would have loved it.465Please respect copyright.PENANAj9qGeXI1dA
465Please respect copyright.PENANA9XcyZVQ3Ia
I wondered where he was. I thought about going to see him. Maybe if I went, he wouldn't want to see me, and then I would come home in more of a mess than I already was.465Please respect copyright.PENANAmeVbKR2z9U
465Please respect copyright.PENANA2cqeniWUcn
Maybe it wasn't worth it.465Please respect copyright.PENANADO0q17eJ6B
465Please respect copyright.PENANAxXSkb9tTxB
Sighing as the anger left and was replaced with exhaustion, I stood up and went to lock the back door, only to find someone standing on the other side of it. My hand shook as I reached for the doorknob and turned it.465Please respect copyright.PENANA6PgKgWFQ2E
465Please respect copyright.PENANAKk6tk03ZjZ
Christian stepped over the threshold, his eyes full of apology and something more, and wasted no time wrapped his arms around me and kissing me hard. My arms automatically went around his neck. His fingers were pressed into my skin, so tightly I thought they'd leave a mark, but I didn't care. Something inside me had repaired itself when I saw him.465Please respect copyright.PENANAZ8NA8xRGq5
465Please respect copyright.PENANA3IvSqRYyDn
He pulled away from my mouth and buried his face in my hair. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so fucking sorry, Kendall."465Please respect copyright.PENANAXzm1tzufhy
465Please respect copyright.PENANAu3xzjmDjvV
My head was resting against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. Regret sat in my gut and I wanted to tell him the truth about Jude. About the kiss. About what I found out. But I knew it wouldn't help anything right now, so I stayed quiet. We ended up on the living room couch, his hands everywhere all at once, his mouth still on mine.465Please respect copyright.PENANAlEDoxvY8C8
465Please respect copyright.PENANAGYTYlkiZUB
A slamming sound jarred me awake. I instantly panicked, realizing what was going on, and looked around. Christian was asleep beside me, his breathing soft, his arm draped across my stomach. Something slammed again, then a figure appeared in the space that connected this room to the kitchen.465Please respect copyright.PENANAxoosvdZCAF
465Please respect copyright.PENANA4PYGupZN79
"What are you doing?" My mother asked angrily. "Who is that boy? ANSWER ME!" she screamed.465Please respect copyright.PENANApRdv0RFw1g
465Please respect copyright.PENANAFrKp1nwhEf
Christian was startled enough to wake up. He blinked a few times and his eyes widened. He whispered, "Oh, fuck."465Please respect copyright.PENANApZcQKMLAZ2
465Please respect copyright.PENANAsAhSOQQF5i
"He's my boyfriend, mom." I glared at her and the bottle she held. She never would have yelled at me normally. She needed some help. "We weren't doing anything."465Please respect copyright.PENANAby9hkcIeoM
465Please respect copyright.PENANA5taSnYfgcu
She came close to me, reached down and slapped me across the face. My head snapped to the side and I let out a small cry. My mom, no matter how drunk she was, had never hit me in my entire life. My eyes burned with tears as I turned my head to look at her.465Please respect copyright.PENANAMlD3EqzfWG
465Please respect copyright.PENANAVIOPFB0zvp
"Don't lie to me, you little bitch," she hissed. "I know what you're doing when I'm not home. Do you enjoying fucking all the boys in the town? You know why they do it, don't you? They feel bad for you. You're not much to look at and you don't have a father, so they feel sorry for you."465Please respect copyright.PENANAn2B8J1cUDb
465Please respect copyright.PENANAVd387lSsUs
That was when Christian chose to intervene. He climbed over me, stood in my way, and stared at my mom. I watched her watching him and I thought she was going to smack him to, but she didn't. She just kept staring at him, then her lip curled nastily.465Please respect copyright.PENANAGijXFRhUlA
465Please respect copyright.PENANAs3y1zIGQFe
"I want you out of here," she said, craning her neck to look at me. "I won't have you sleeping with every boy in my house. I want you gone by tonight."465Please respect copyright.PENANAeIagdDuxH6
465Please respect copyright.PENANAD7EARdKlwf
When she left, I closed my eyes, my hands trembling. Christian sat beside me, put his hands against my shoulders, and started to lift me. "Come on," he said softly. "Let's go."465Please respect copyright.PENANAk4nkqKIXhy
465Please respect copyright.PENANAzMIXZ1xWoo
"She didn't mean it," I said, knowing it wasn't true. When you drank, your deepest desires and truths came out. "She just had a bad day, that's all."465Please respect copyright.PENANAXyYyHNL03N
465Please respect copyright.PENANAbCXREc7SUF
When my knees gave out on me, I didn't want to get up again. One of Christian's arms went around my middle, the other underneath my legs, and he carried me into the kitchen. My mom was standing at the sink, drowning another glass of alcohol. She didn't even turn around.465Please respect copyright.PENANAbC1b2YRA1k
465Please respect copyright.PENANAumQF0bUtuZ
"You know," Christian began, "if you were a better mother, and not a monster, then maybe this wouldn't have happened. I've seen what drinking does to people and I don't like it. But I sure as hell wouldn't let you lay another finger on Kendall, so we're leaving. You're never going to see your daughter again, Mrs. Scott. I hope you're happy."465Please respect copyright.PENANA66x9Pcgfe8
465Please respect copyright.PENANAXbPNXF0uH4
As he walked out of the house with me in his arms, the glass my mom held could be heard shattering on the floor.
ns3.15.203.168da2 I wanted to go to Jude's house and rip his throat out.465Please respect copyright.PENANANbSq109cHd
465Please respect copyright.PENANAJaLl9bryA9
That made me sound crazy, I know, but I was pissed. Slowly, as the anger ebbed away, I realized what I was missing. Or rather who. I slid down to the floor and my hands shook as I looked at them.465Please respect copyright.PENANAuI7wgpAhvj
465Please respect copyright.PENANAJNGziPvmIx
Christian should have been here to see my rampage. He would have loved it.465Please respect copyright.PENANAj9qGeXI1dA
465Please respect copyright.PENANA9XcyZVQ3Ia
I wondered where he was. I thought about going to see him. Maybe if I went, he wouldn't want to see me, and then I would come home in more of a mess than I already was.465Please respect copyright.PENANAmeVbKR2z9U
465Please respect copyright.PENANA2cqeniWUcn
Maybe it wasn't worth it.465Please respect copyright.PENANADO0q17eJ6B
465Please respect copyright.PENANAxXSkb9tTxB
Sighing as the anger left and was replaced with exhaustion, I stood up and went to lock the back door, only to find someone standing on the other side of it. My hand shook as I reached for the doorknob and turned it.465Please respect copyright.PENANA6PgKgWFQ2E
465Please respect copyright.PENANAKk6tk03ZjZ
Christian stepped over the threshold, his eyes full of apology and something more, and wasted no time wrapped his arms around me and kissing me hard. My arms automatically went around his neck. His fingers were pressed into my skin, so tightly I thought they'd leave a mark, but I didn't care. Something inside me had repaired itself when I saw him.465Please respect copyright.PENANAZ8NA8xRGq5
465Please respect copyright.PENANA3IvSqRYyDn
He pulled away from my mouth and buried his face in my hair. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so fucking sorry, Kendall."465Please respect copyright.PENANAXzm1tzufhy
465Please respect copyright.PENANAu3xzjmDjvV
My head was resting against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. Regret sat in my gut and I wanted to tell him the truth about Jude. About the kiss. About what I found out. But I knew it wouldn't help anything right now, so I stayed quiet. We ended up on the living room couch, his hands everywhere all at once, his mouth still on mine.465Please respect copyright.PENANAlEDoxvY8C8
465Please respect copyright.PENANAGYTYlkiZUB
A slamming sound jarred me awake. I instantly panicked, realizing what was going on, and looked around. Christian was asleep beside me, his breathing soft, his arm draped across my stomach. Something slammed again, then a figure appeared in the space that connected this room to the kitchen.465Please respect copyright.PENANAxoosvdZCAF
465Please respect copyright.PENANA4PYGupZN79
"What are you doing?" My mother asked angrily. "Who is that boy? ANSWER ME!" she screamed.465Please respect copyright.PENANApRdv0RFw1g
465Please respect copyright.PENANAFrKp1nwhEf
Christian was startled enough to wake up. He blinked a few times and his eyes widened. He whispered, "Oh, fuck."465Please respect copyright.PENANApZcQKMLAZ2
465Please respect copyright.PENANAsAhSOQQF5i
"He's my boyfriend, mom." I glared at her and the bottle she held. She never would have yelled at me normally. She needed some help. "We weren't doing anything."465Please respect copyright.PENANAby9hkcIeoM
465Please respect copyright.PENANA5taSnYfgcu
She came close to me, reached down and slapped me across the face. My head snapped to the side and I let out a small cry. My mom, no matter how drunk she was, had never hit me in my entire life. My eyes burned with tears as I turned my head to look at her.465Please respect copyright.PENANAMlD3EqzfWG
465Please respect copyright.PENANAVIOPFB0zvp
"Don't lie to me, you little bitch," she hissed. "I know what you're doing when I'm not home. Do you enjoying fucking all the boys in the town? You know why they do it, don't you? They feel bad for you. You're not much to look at and you don't have a father, so they feel sorry for you."465Please respect copyright.PENANAn2B8J1cUDb
465Please respect copyright.PENANAVd387lSsUs
That was when Christian chose to intervene. He climbed over me, stood in my way, and stared at my mom. I watched her watching him and I thought she was going to smack him to, but she didn't. She just kept staring at him, then her lip curled nastily.465Please respect copyright.PENANAGijXFRhUlA
465Please respect copyright.PENANAs3y1zIGQFe
"I want you out of here," she said, craning her neck to look at me. "I won't have you sleeping with every boy in my house. I want you gone by tonight."465Please respect copyright.PENANAeIagdDuxH6
465Please respect copyright.PENANAD7EARdKlwf
When she left, I closed my eyes, my hands trembling. Christian sat beside me, put his hands against my shoulders, and started to lift me. "Come on," he said softly. "Let's go."465Please respect copyright.PENANAk4nkqKIXhy
465Please respect copyright.PENANAzMIXZ1xWoo
"She didn't mean it," I said, knowing it wasn't true. When you drank, your deepest desires and truths came out. "She just had a bad day, that's all."465Please respect copyright.PENANAXyYyHNL03N
465Please respect copyright.PENANAbCXREc7SUF
When my knees gave out on me, I didn't want to get up again. One of Christian's arms went around my middle, the other underneath my legs, and he carried me into the kitchen. My mom was standing at the sink, drowning another glass of alcohol. She didn't even turn around.465Please respect copyright.PENANAbC1b2YRA1k
465Please respect copyright.PENANAumQF0bUtuZ
"You know," Christian began, "if you were a better mother, and not a monster, then maybe this wouldn't have happened. I've seen what drinking does to people and I don't like it. But I sure as hell wouldn't let you lay another finger on Kendall, so we're leaving. You're never going to see your daughter again, Mrs. Scott. I hope you're happy."465Please respect copyright.PENANA66x9Pcgfe8
465Please respect copyright.PENANAXbPNXF0uH4
As he walked out of the house with me in his arms, the glass my mom held could be heard shattering on the floor.
465Please respect copyright.PENANAA5HYqkjwNX