Princess Charming (gxg)

Part 16

TW: This part discusses abuse.

My excitement to see Hallie that night was clouded by the fact that I might have to see Tori Banner in my future.

Which meant I might have to then see Kenna McDowell. And I didn't want to think about seeing her even more than Tori.

I knew that tonight was the night that I was going to most likely going to be fucking Hallie. And normally, I would be excited for this. But I could hardly even concentrate.

Fuck. Maybe I should just quit my job.

I was pacing back and forth in the living room in the pajama shorts and tank top that I had changed into after work, my mind full of thoughts.

I jumped when I heard my phone vibrate in my pocket.

It was Hallie, and she was here.

I didn't even change. I'm literally in my pajamas. Oh well.

I opened the door to see Hallie in a gray hoodie and black shorts. Her hair- which was now half black half fuchsia, was in a low bun and her makeup looked really pretty.

I automatically felt myself relax a bit when I saw Hallie.

"Hi." I smiled at her, "Come in."

"Hey." she smiled back at me, "I'm really happy to see you."

"So am I." I said as Hallie followed me into the living room, "Sorry, I'm still in my pajamas. I changed into them after work to relax and lost track of time. I'll change."

"No, no. You don't have to. I love being comfy." Hallie said gently, touching my hand.

"Want to go up to my room?" I asked Hallie, "I figured maybe we could order some dinner and have it delivered. It's close to 8, are you hungry?"

"I could eat." Hallie said, and there was a look in her eye that told me she meant more than just dinner. Then she said, "Are you okay, Alina? You're pacing around."

"I'm okay." I said, "Sorry. Let's go to my room."

Hallie followed me up to my bedroom, and I noticed she had a small overnight bag with her.

I sat on my bed, and Hallie joined me. I couldn't get the events of the day out of my head.

"Alina?" I heard Hallie say.

"What's up?" I looked at her.

"I've said your name twice. What's going on? I can leave if you want me to." Hallie said, her brow furrowed.

"No! No. I don't want you to leave at all." I said, putting my hand on Hallie's thigh, "I'm sorry. I just have had a rough day. Some things from my past came up that I didn't think I would have to deal with ever again."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Hallie asked me, "I know you're probably going to say no. But it might make you feel better. And I'm a really good listener."

Hallie was right. I was going to say no. I didn't want to tell her anything that was going on.

But I felt like I was going to explode.

I looked at her. "I think I should tell you more about my ex-wife." I said.

Hallie's eyes widened slightly and she nodded, "Go ahead."

I told her all about the beginning of when I met Jocelyn. How quickly we got close, and how I wound up getting married to her and moving to North Carolina. Hallie listened- she didn't interrupt me at all. She simply listened.

"How long did you live in North Carolina?" Hallie asked me.

"About two years." I said, "Everything was great at first. It was like a fairytale almost. I thought that I truly found my person and I felt so lucky that I did, considering how young I was. But that was not the case."

"What happened?" Hallie asked me.

"Many things. And I will tell you more and more about it, I promise. But Jocelyn drank a lot. I always knew that she did, but I truly didn't realize how much until I lived with her and we were married. And I also didn't realize how bad her anger issues were. I knew she had a temper. I have a bit of a temper. But alcohol and anger issues don't mix well together." I took a deep breath, "It started with a lot of yelling. She would call me names. Make me feel worthless, like I was nothing. That would happen a lot when she was drunk. Soon enough the mental and emotional abuse turned into physical."

Hallie's breath hitched. "What did she do to you?"

"It started with a slap. When Jocelyn would yell at me, and call me names and make me feel like I was nothing, I would fight back. I wasn't a perfect little angel. I would call her names back, it was very toxic. But the moment she slapped me, was the moment that I became scared." I said, feeling numb as I spoke and relived it, "She was all I had. I didn't have my family. She had so much power over me. And the dynamics changed that night- I became scared of my own wife, and she took advantage of it. The physical abuse continued, and it got even worse. I didn't know what Jocelyn I was going to get. Because some days she was the girl I knew when we first met. But other days, she was terrible. She knew I was abused by my parents and she did the same thing to me."

I felt my voice waiver as I spoke. Anytime I think about my parents, I always get emotional. Hallie took my hand in hers.

"I'm so sorry, Alina." Hallie said, "What happened today that is bringing all of this back to you?"

"My trainer at my new job, Giselle- she is engaged to Jocelyn's old best friend, Tori. Tori blames me for everything that happened to Jocelyn. Her death. Me cheating on her with one of her other best friends." I said, not wanting to admit it.

"You cheated on her?" Hallie asked me. Her voice had no judgement though.

"I did." I said, "One of her best friends, Kenna, saw what was happening. I was friends with her, and one night after Jocelyn raged on me, I called Kenna. There is truly no excuse for what I did, but I was completely broken. Vulnerable. And Kenna kissed me, I kissed her back, and one thing lead to another. The night Jocelyn found out was the night she died. And Tori blames me for all of it. I can't face her. If I ever had to face her, I wouldn't know what to do."

Hallie looked at me. "We will talk about your options. Alina- I would have never known you've been through all that you have. The way you carry yourself...you're so strong. And I understand why you have kind of serial dated before me and have never let anyone in."

"It's much easier than getting into something serious and having the potential to get hurt and go through hell and back again." I said.

"I promise I'm not going to hurt you." Hallie said to me, looking into my eyes, "I have my own issues, sure. But they are my issues. I would never put them on you. I'd never lay a hand on you or hurt you and call you names and make you feel worthless. I promise."

As Hallie spoke to me, I believed her. I believed every word she said to me.

"Thank you." I said to Hallie, "Thank you for listening. And making me feel safe."

She then leaned in and kissed me- and the intensity in the kiss made me know that it was going to lead to much more than kissing.

And I was ready.