247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNQlzzK1e2Q
I wanted to go to Jude's house and rip his throat out.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkW7DaNT0Q7
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl6sjt0Fort
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgGkpbM4HN
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKRMGCvg0YL
Christian should have been here to see my rampage. He would have loved it.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIih4SgNTZj
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCreEX8cj5q
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvm6L7QPIXh
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqW742OQINP
Maybe it wasn't worth it.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsAuv5tcXmn
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfXu7XyEQgb
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzxWXiB6oX
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0WuYrABK8m
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRcFw6t1W4
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwKTlYwsyeG
He pulled away from my mouth and buried his face in my hair. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so fucking sorry, Kendall."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMU1nDvOhOl
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQu3Y2XBQ8u
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWb9PH8CrSp
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk4U8OpAIqu
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6BePzB4cUI
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKPypqq2M0P
"What are you doing?" My mother asked angrily. "Who is that boy? ANSWER ME!" she screamed.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR9Ust3oitg
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4a7Hqd7p8I
Christian was startled enough to wake up. He blinked a few times and his eyes widened. He whispered, "Oh, fuck."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3LwhZ96MzY
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3rSWSSGccT
"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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpi6aZ3lEyO
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT5MsfeZvrr
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyBtNqQmfQs
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡknLz9SPOGs
"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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPMRShV0kv
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwDYRE0JSYw
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN1dSqUh4aB
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLi10orlwFo
"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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3JLwNsJh1A
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnDcR31Nglz
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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpKp7oG7Coi
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9oIyAEq5Ys
"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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiaKBjsOrfM
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW5Re5RAAa8
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.247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqUemM3vxVR
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV5laMEmGlj
"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."247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxdlyikm0v
247Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz1aXzcyR5K
As he walked out of the house with me in his arms, the glass my mom held could be heard shattering on the floor.