A CRY FOR REDEMPTION

chapter 22

" Good afternoon, Mr Lavary. Is Phoenix home?" On my way to Phoenix's house, I ran into his dad.

I went over to Phoenix's place to pay him a surprise visit because I was growing increasingly desperate to see him.

"Good afternoon, son. Phoenix and some of his buddies are in the TV room." He responded. "I will see you later; I am heading to work now."

I gave a nod of agreement and nearly bolted for the front door.

I was getting more and more nervous as I got closer to where he was because I could hear voices and I was not sure how he would react because he was with his friends.

"Phoenix." I stood in the doorway and called out to him.

Everyone's attention was focused on me, and as I watched Phoenix, I noticed shock and rage in his eyes.

"What on earth is this loser doing in here?" one of his friends approached me. "Are the two of you secretly dating?" He teased, and everyone burst into laughter.

"No, man, I do not hang out with losers like this one; he is just here because our fathers are in business together." he said With utter distaste.

My chest constricted at his direct remarks. I understood his desire to keep us a secret, but his harsh words hurt me deeply.

What are you doing here? He spoke through clenched teeth and pushed me into the hallway."Are you trying to expose us?"

"I-I missed you okay; I came here because I had not seen you in a long time." I burst out sobbing in silence.

"Look..." He checked to see if anyone was watching before pulling me into an empty room. "I understand how you feel; trust me, I miss you as well. But you can not approach me while I am with my friends; we discussed this." He let out a sigh. "I will come over to your place and make it up to you, okay? He clutched my face.

"Okay?" He asked again after I remained silent.

Tears were streaming down my face as I nodded silently and left the room.

I stood at the far end of the hallway and looked back, seeing him and his friends laughing and making jokes about me being a weirdo. I turned around and walked away in despair.

Several weeks passed with no change; Phoenix only showed up to have sex with me, while I became increasingly depressed with each passing day.

I knew the relationship was not going anywhere, so I considered ending it. Even though it would leave me broken, I needed to consider my own mental health and walk away from the toxicity that was Phoenix.

...

To phoenix ❤️
C

an we meet? I would like to talk to you about something.

I

texted him.

From Phoenix ❤️
"

Go to the school's basement; I will see you there🤤

I

left it at that and proceeded to the school basement.

...

"Baby." Phoenix hugged me from behind and started trailing kisses down my neck. " Can't we just ditch school and head over to your place?"

" Phoenix..." I managed to suppress a moan. "I really need to talk to you about something important." I tried to get free from his grip.

"What can be more important than this?" He sucked at my earlobe.