She begged me
"I have money saved- please Ben, we can fake your car and go far away" she whispered begs to me.
"Briley." I spoke firmly.
I watched a tear fall down her face.
"Go shower and fix your mouth."
Briley.
"Please Ben" I cried out to him, trying to be as quiet as I could.
"Stop this, right now." He whispered.
"We will talk about this when we are alone, just go."
I went and showered, getting the pizza out of my hair.
My lip was busted open, making me out a butterfly bandage over it to hold it together, satisfied enough.
I put on a big t shirt and a pair of shorts before going straight to my room, where I braided my hair and then just sat on the floor, thinking.
If I ran away without Ben, Ben would have to take his anger from me running away.
He'd probably kill Ben.
Ben didn't even deserve to be in this, this wasn't his father.
This was his mothers shitty choice in men.
I exhaled just as Ben walked into my room.
"Let me see" he spoke, touching my chin to pull the bandage off.
"You could probably use a stitch." He mumbled before immediately redoing the bandaid, exhaling as he looked to me.
"Why couldn't you have just eaten the slice?" He asked me.
"Because I would've puked-" "don't you think a little throw up would've been better than all of that?" He spoke quickly to me.
"I'm never going to get the nutrients I need if I keep throwing up my food-" "I'm just saying, Briley." I could tell he was losing his patients.
"You only have to go two weeks without the medicine you need, so just do what you have to do to get past these two weeks without him having to beat you."
So I took his advice
I'd eat everything he gave me, no matter how bad it made me feel
And I'd immediately go upstairs and make myself throw up for relief.
But he was right, the beatings did stop.
So maybe it wasn't that bad.
Monday.
Ben.
I watched as Briley went into a crying melt down over him trying to make her eat a banana after a pretty large breakfast.
"Stop that shit right now-" "I'm sorry- I'm on my period." She tried to explain, but he didn't want to hear it.
Suddenly I watched as he grabbed the back of her head, shoving the banana straight into her face continuing to just smear it as she tried to get out of his grip.
"We have to be at school in ten minutes." I spoke, trying to make this stop.
"Go wash that pathetic face off and then get the fuck out of here."
She got into the car with no make up on, a portion of her face was blood red from the impact of his hand against her face.
I drove in silence.
And suddenly, she spoke
"If he was going to kill me, would you stop him?"
"Briley- what?" I asked her.
"If was going to kill me, would you stop him?" She repeated.
"He's not going to kill you." I told her, making her look to me slowly.
"He chokes me out, hits me with food, hits me with his fists, over just me eating." Her voice cracked.
"What happens when I do something one day that pushes him way overboard?" She hiccuped out a cry.
"He's never going to kill you." I told her firmly as I parked in our normal parking spot, seeing her grab her bag.
"Well if he ever comes close to it, let him."
She got out without another word.
I slammed my hands against the steering wheel, hating being in this family.
What the fuck was I supposed to do?
