With Grayson's sudden absence from her life, Mia tries her hardest to carry on as normal; to continue as though she had never met the man who turned her world upside down in only a short amount of time.
With the help of her best friend Hailey, and...
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Wordless, thoughtless, I run to Grayson.
His hair is disheveled, his hooded eyes just about open. Up close, he reeks of alcohol and next to him, discarded beer bottles lay—more than it makes me comfortable to see.
It makes me feel sick because this isn't a Grayson I've seen before, and it's all because of me.
At his side, my hand flies to his shoulder. "Grayson! Are you okay?"
Chloe is behind me, her lips pursed. "Grayson. Come on we need to get you back."
Slowly Grayson looks around. His eyes meet mine and his brow creases. His sculpted jaw is tense, the beer bottle in his hand meeting his lips once more before he clumsily stands and brushes me aside like I'm nothing.
Am I nothing now? Have I really gone that far?
I stand, beside myself with regret; Grayson doesn't even want to look at me.
Meandering back down the lakeside, it's clear just how much Grayson has drank. Barely able to keep to a straight line, he makes to his car.
"Grayson stop!" Chloe runs after him.
He turns suddenly, launching the beer bottle to the pebbled shore. It smashes and catches me off guard.
"Oh just fuck off!" He roars, his throat hoarse. "Both of you!"
My lips quiver, but I move forward to level myself with Chloe. "Grayson please," I plead. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?!" He wails. "You make me feel this little Mia!" He holds up his shaking hand, his thumb and index finger practically touching. "I'm done!"
I move even closer, tears spilling once again. "It was a mistake. Grayson I'm so sorry. Please just come back with us."
Grayson snarls, laughing to himself in the reflection of the water. "Go on Mia," he chuckles, albeit scarily. "Go spend the night in that room I booked for us and revel in how you've once again painted me to be the monster you so want me to be. Go on."
"Grayson enough!" Chloe booms. "Let's go!"
Grayson turns quickly now. "Oh don't even get me started on you big sis!" His words are melting into one another. "Mentioning Delilah?! What a fucking fantastic that idea was huh? Putting thoughts into Mia's already fucked up mind."
I gasp a little, but don't speak. Grayson isn't in his right mind and I need to remember that.
"Enough," Chloe says again, grabbing his arm this time. "We're going."
Grayson shrugs her off. As much as Chloe has mental power over Grayson, she'll never beat him in strength. "You know what? Both of you can go to hell." He turns to me now, his eyes so focused on mine that I can feel the burn. "You know what Mia? I do so fucking much to show you how much I love you and this is what you do."
