Survival

Betrayal

I still felt sick to my stomach as I lifted myself from the trash can to confront my cheating partner. I raced downstairs to see him looking smug as ever.

"Hey baby. Did you just put Cason to bed? I got us some wine and I figured we could do a little date while we eat dinner." He stated softly.

I looked at him angrily. I could've exploded right there had I been a bomb. He furrowed his eyebrows looking at me with concern.

"What's wrong?" He asked worriedly.
"You! You're what's wrong!" I screamed and threw the cellphone at him.
He looked taken back but I didn't care. He deserved it. He slowly reached down picking up the flip phone, just staring at it then Back at me.
"Bianca..." he started but I cut him off.
"No! I don't want to hear it! How could you? You had me put my life on pause for you! While you're out sticking your dick wherever you please! How about I do that??? How about I go out and fuck whoever I want! It's only fair right?" I had never been so mad. I know what I said before about living without him but he was still someone I loved. He was the father of my child and the only man I had ever been with.
He stared at me longer. The regret showed in his expression. I continued my rant.

"Nick, I trusted you. I trusted you with our lives. You're cheating on me and you've been doing this for a while. And on top of that we're past due on so many bills it's giving me a fucking headache!" I screamed but not too loud to wake the baby. His eyes widened and then became dark

"Who told you to go into my office hmm?" He asked slowly taking a step towards me. I stayed quiet taking a step back.
"What were you doing in there? Snooping around?" He kept coming closer only this time he started to roll up the sleeves of his button up shirt. I swallowed hard.

"You left the light on and...and I saw the bills and that phone was ringing. I wasn't snooping. I guess the universe wanted me to find out." I said softly but still held my assertiveness. He chuckled.

"Oh Bianca. If you think you have a say in anything I do especially when I pay the bills around here and take care of your sorry ass and put food in your fucking belly..YOU'RE WRONG!" He screamed in my face. I started trembling. I hated when I shook. It gave him that power over me...an unspoken fact that let him know that he controlled me. He knew I was scared of him.

I opened my mouth.

"Well I guess that changes things when you're not actually paying the bills huh?" I immediately wanted to retract my statement. Before I could think, I felt a familiar stinging pain on my cheek. I fell to the kitchen floor holding my face as if it could fall apart at any moment. I stared up at an angry Nick. I could see the fumes radiating off of him. He suddenly picked me up by my arm, standing me up. Only to slap me to the ground again. I yelped this time, tasting the blood from my split lip.

"Shut the fuck up! Don't make another sound because if you wake up my son im going to beat you twice as hard." He yelled. I couldn't help but to speak up.

"If you cared so much about our child you would be home enough to see him. You..you would make sure he has a roof over his head always! Why are you doing this to us?" I sobbed. I couldn't control it. I cried when I was mad. I hated showing him how vulnerable I truly was.

I expected an answer but I didn't receive one.  He kicked me in the stomach and leg. He picked me up by my hair and threw me on the kitchen table, knocking over the wine he bought. The bottle clashed on the floor breaking into a million pieces. Just as I am right now. I yelled out in pain.

"Didn't I tell you to shut up?!" Nick grabbed me by my hair once more and threw me into a wall that held our happy family portraits. He held me there between his arms. He was looking at my face scanning my body.

"If you ever talk about fucking someone else again, it'll be worse next time." He spat. I nodded in submission. "get yourself cleaned up and pick up this mess. Im going out and don't wait up for me." He breathed hard letting me go as I fell to the floor.

I heard the door slam and his car drive away. I bet hes going to whoever called that phone. I couldn't think about that right now. I was in so much pain. I struggled to get up and cleaned up the mess that was made. When I was done I limped my way to the bathroom. I stared at myself in the mirror as hot tears rolled off my cheek. My cheek was bruised badly and my lip split open. I lifted my shirt to reveal a purple mark starting to appear. I sighed. I was used to this. It started out as warnings. Then he would shove me here and there. The beatings didn't come until he saw me with an old high school guy friend that I ran into at Starbucks. He never let me forget that.

I wet a rag to dab away the blood on my face. My mind wandered. I had to do something about this. Cason and I can't just run away. Nick is good friends with the police since he's their financial advisor. He would find us as fast as he snapped his fingers. I had to figure out a way to get money and a lot of it...fast. or everything we know will be taken from us.