I stared at my reflection in the mirror. A dark blue/purple bruise flowered across my cheek and into my eye. I could see bruises on my shoulders and neck peeking out from my top. "Elle, stop looking at yourself for a while." Mam came into the room and gently pushed me back. "Bruises fade, honey. This time next week, they'll most likely be gone. This isn't you. He didn't and never will define you." I smiled up at her. "Thanks mam, but I don't really need your 'your an empowered woman' speech right now. It's just school and I have Charley promising to break anyone's face if they stare at me. So I'm sure I'll be fine."
I rolled my eyes and she laughed. "Okay, but if you want to come home at any point just call okay?" I picked up my school bag. "Yeah mam, okay! Charley is outside so I should go" I said walking away. "Bye mam, love you!" I called before closing the front door behind me.
Charley was waiting outside, looking annoyed. "Bout time! Let's not be late maybe" She began waliking and I had to run to catch up with her. "We have 45 minutes and school is 10 minutes away. We have ages." I rolled my eyes and she lightly hit my arm. "Ow." I complained rubbing my arm. "Can we avoid violence for a few days please?" I rolled my eyes at my best friend. "Oh yeah sorry. I'll buy you chocolate okay, don't hate me." I laughed and she linked her arm through mine as we walked in the gates of our school. As I had expected, students and teachers alike stared as we walked in through the drive."Just ignore them, Elle, okay?" Charley whispered to me squeezing my arm. "Yeah, I know. There's only one person I don't want to see." I told her. "If he comes near you I'm going to kill him" She muttered as we walked to our locker to grab our books. "He's usually here by now." I said looking around nervously. "He is obviously going to avoid you, I suppose." Charley said. "There's no point in stressing. If he is in, he's just going to see what he did to you and realise what an asshole he is" She shrugged her shoulders and she began to walk to her class.
Thankfully, the whole day passed with no sign of Alex. I was crazy thankful that I didn't have to see Alex for the first time in school. Honestly, I wished I never had to see him again. What Josh said made everything that little bit clearer for me. After the 'attack' subconsiously, I had blamed myself for it. Not anymore. "Mam, I'm home." I called opening the front door. "Kitchen!" I heard back so after ditching my bag, i joined her. She was cooking dinner and after chatting for a while I wentdownstairs to do my homework. I was doing history and texting Josh and Evan. Eventually the whole homework doing was totally abandoned as I spoke to the guys and Charley. The doorbell rang and I heard mam call it. I heard angry voices and they quickly raised to yelling. I quickly ran up the stairs through the hall to the front door. And there he was yelling at my mam. "Just let me in, Alison! Elle will forgive me I know she will. It was a drunken mistake ok? Everyone makes mistakes. ELLE!" Alex looked absolutely crazy. His hair was a mess and his eyes wide and bloodshot. He called out from me as soon as he saw me cowering at the back of the hall. He tried to move towards me but my mam pushed him back. "Don't you dare try and get into my house. I will call the guards." Mam growled at him. "I'm not here for you. Elle, please baby, can we talk?" He looked at me with large pleading eyes and he visibly winced when he saw the bruising on my face and neck. "Please baby?" He begged. I shook my head and cleared my throat but my voice came out weak and afraid anyway. "N-no Alex. I-I need you to leave me alone. You've done enough." Tears fell from my eyes. "I don't need this. And I don't need you" I stated striding forward to close the door in his face.
Once the door was closed I dissolved into tears and fell into my mams arms. "I'm so proud of you, baby. Good job. You stood up for yourself" She leaned back and wiped tears from my face. "I'm going to go and get some ice cream and we can have a movie night okay?"I nodded and went back downstairs. I heard the front door close and I just assumed it was my mam coming back. Then the door to my room closed. I whipped around to see Alex standing in front of the door. I started to scream but Alex quickly covered my mouth. "Elle, calm down it's just me." He said, before slowly removing his hand. "Please don't hurt me again." I begged, backing as far away from him as I could. He took a step towards me. "No, stay there. Don't come near me." I put a hand up as if it would or could keep him away. "Why are you here?" I asked him, shaking. "I love you, Elle. And I would never hurt you on purpose. I was drunk and I took ecstasy at the party. Please Elle, just give me another chance." He looked sad and my arms wrapped around my body. "I don't know Alex. I'm terrified of you." I said quietly looking at the ground. "I don't think that you deserve a second chance." His face grew angry . "After 6 months you're just giving up on me? On us?" He began to walk forward "Alex, I'm just scared okay? Everything was great with you until Saturday, and I don't think that I can risk it again." Tears filled my eyes. "I can't live without you baby. If you leave me I don't what I'll do." He said and straight away I felt bad. "No Alex, you can't do anything to yourself. Please Alex. Don't hurt yourself please." I sobbed. "I just need time okay, just give me some time." I begged him. "You should go before mam gets home." I said. "One hug before I go?" He asked me. I quickly stepped into his arms. His arms wrapped gently around my bruised body. "Thank you baby" He said before kissing the top of my head, and running up the stairs and out of the house just as my mam pulled up outside.
