POLAROIDS︱18+

Twenty-Three

FAITH

His body rested against mine, flawless skin and strong arms draped over me between the soft cotton sheets.

Being back in Ravenswood was my biggest nightmare but being there with Logan made it a little more bearable. His ability to sooth my anxiety was immense and something I'd never felt with anyone else but there was one more thing I had to do before I could really be at peace with him.

Moving his toned arms from their position around my waist, I slowly dragged myself down the bed and dressed myself in a few layers dim clothes, the warmth of the material on my skin being nothing compared to the internal heat of Logan's body on mine.

I glanced back as I pulled the door closed, seeing his bare body resting in the bed I could finally call ours instead of his. Sneaking down the stairs I grabbed his keys out of the dish near the front door and locked the door behind me, needing them safely inside should my plot not go as planned.

I slipped myself into his dark coloured car, flicking the headlights onto their lowest setting and heading off towards the South Side, attempting to not draw any attention to the fact I'd just stolen Logan's car.

It was almost dawn but hopefully I'd be back beside my fiancé before the sun had even risen, my failsafe for Dean's actions discretely secured without him ever being the wiser.

After driving the town's main road until I pulled into my old neighbourhood, a single drop of sweat running down my back as I stared at the house, questioning my sanity for ever bringing myself back to the house of horrors.

I held the keys tight in my hand, not considering prior that they'd be my only real means for defence should things go pear shaped. Quietly jiggling the door handle I stepped inside, the eerie space bringing back far too many God-awful memories for me to reminisce.

Attempting to shallow my breathing I stepped through the house and up into my old bedroom, noting my brother out of sight and my mother asleep on the couch as per usual, her long but thin hair scattered around her.

I reached for the hollowed out and tatted Jane Austin novel in my bookshelf, seeing exactly what I came for, untouched and in the exact spot I'd left them.

The polaroids.

Dozens of photos of my own body, bruised, cut, burnt, and beaten. Tears evoked my vision at the sight as I collected the photos into a stack and slipped them into my pocket, knowing I now had some physical evidence of Dean's abuse and a concrete reason for him to stay away from me and the people I loved for good.

I turned on my heals, not needing to be in the house another second than I needed to be, only to see the dark shadow blocking my path. The only sources of light in the room being the dull moonlight and the charred embers of a lit cigarette. My stomach ached as I felt bile rise up in my throat.

He scoffed at my silence as I tightened my hold around the hardcover novel in one hand and Logan's keys in the other.

"I figured you'd be back for those, it was only a matter of time." He spoke softly, his calm undertone only unnerving me further. He wasn't calm, Dean didn't do calm.

He knew.

I choked on my words as I opened my mouth to speak, quickly shutting myself up as I debated my options. I knew he was stronger than me, that theory had been proven too many times to count.

"Give them to me and I might let you run back to your little hockey player boyfriend unscathed." He muttered as I stared ahead at the doorway, my hope to make it home by sunrise diminishing with each moment. Not only had he known about the photos, but he'd also known I was back in Ravenswood.