Life of a piece of meat

They're all dogs

After driving for a while Drew stopped the car and asked her what was wrong she tried to tell him as much as she could without getting too deep but the bastard had to try and kiss her while "consoling" her she just got out of the car got an Uber went back home and slept in the pool house.

As Hope settles into the pool house, her body finally succumbs to the physical and emotional exhaustion of the day.  But sleep brings no reprieve; her dreams are haunted by images of Derek’s betrayal, of Drew’s unwanted advances, and of the father who shattered her innocence. 

In the morning, she wakes with a start, her body still heavy with sorrow.  And as the dawn’s light creeps in, a realization strikes her like lightning—a realization about what she truly needs.

What does she truly need?

She needs strength, Hope realizes.  Strength to find her own way, without the weight of her abusers and the expectations of others dragging her down.  She needs to break free from the chains of her past,

of the pain and guilt that have held her hostage for so long.  She needs to find her voice, to stand tall and proclaim her worth, not just to others, but to herself.
And so she rings the doorbell after her epiphany and walks in goes straight to their room and starts packing her clothes with a tired expression.

Hope packs in silence, her movements brisk and efficient, the quiet resolve of her purpose enveloping her like a shield.  She ignores Derek’s presence, the pounding of his heart as he watches her from the doorway, confusion and fear mingling in his eyes. 

“What are you doing?” he whispers, the tremor in his voice a testament to the vulnerability he now feels. She takes her purse and takes his cards and keys out of it and throws them on the bed before continuing to pack

Derek winces at the clatter of the credit cards and keys, as if each metallic clink is a blow to his heart. 

He knows something is different, something has shifted within Hope, and he can’t help but feel that the chasm between them is widening with every passing moment.  “Hope, please,” he pleads, stepping toward her, his hands outstretched as if he could catch her if she fell.  “Talk to me.”

Derek continues to plead, his desperation palpable in his voice, “Hope, I know I don’t understand what you’ve been through, but I love you.  Please, just give me a chance.  Please, let me help you heal. 

I can’t lose you.”  His words trail off into a desperate silence, his eyes pleading for a scrap of understanding.
"Derek you can't heal me , I have to heal on my own and find myself you can wait if you want you could move on I still won't blame you but don't try to stand in my way,

Derek if you love me let me do this even if I stay and act like all is okay the truth remains that I'm broken the truth remains that I find no real pleasure in sex its just an act I indulge in because my body has convinced me that I need it to calm down but that's it I dislike it when I cum, it almost feels painful and chastise myself if I don't because then I'll remain wanting more

if we are to have a healthy future I have to work on me for myself, for you, for us and even if us ceases to exist I owe myself that much
Derek's eyes shine with unshed tears as he absorbs her words, his heart breaking at her confession. 

He knows she's right; he can't heal her, she has to heal herself.  And as much as it pains him to accept it, he knows she needs this time to discover who she is, to be whole again. 

He moves toward her, wrapping his arms around her as tears threaten to spill from his eyes.  “I’ll never stand in your way, Hope. I’ll never stop loving you, either.

Hope barely hugs him back before leaving when she reaches the door she turns around, takes a good look and remembers something " I didn't sleep with or at Drew's last night,

I was going to ask him to drive me to his mom's house but he stopped in the middle of nowhere to talk and after I told him a gist of what was happening, he tried to kiss me and I got out of his car and requested an Uber to come back here and slept in the pool house the security guard can attest to that... forget whatever I said about not destroying him do what you want I don't care anymore"

Hope’s words hit Derek like a punch to the gut, igniting a rage in him he didn’t know he possessed.  But it’s not directed at Hope; it’s directed at Drew, at the man who tried to take advantage of her when she was at her most vulnerable. 

Without a word, he strides to the door, Hope’s warning still ringing in his ears. He’ll make sure Drew pays for what he did. He’ll make sure he never hurts Hope again.
Hope finally leaves and gets herself admitted to a rehab that specialises in the issues she was battling with

As Hope settles into the rehab center, her world shifts and expands in ways she hadn’t thought possible. She starts to see glimpses of the woman she was always meant to be—strong, courageous, whole. 

The journey is far from easy; there are days when she wants to give up, to run back to the comfortable numbness she’s known for so long.  But she clings to the hope that she can heal, that she can break free from the shadows of her past.

Her sister is the only person who visits her, after a while she realised Derek was the one who told her about her whereabouts and arranged for them to meet

As Hope’s sister pulls into the visitor’s parking lot  of the rehab center, the guilt and anger Hope has been carrying inside since learning Derek had reached out to her family begins to fade, replaced by a new understanding. 

She knows now that Derek’s actions were a desperate attempt to support her, to make sure she had the love and care she needed, even if it wasn’t from him.

A few months later

Hope was back to working and living alone, at first she thought she just got too used to always having someone around and that she'd get used to the loneliness, it's only after having her sister visit and sleepover that she realised that she didn't want just any company,

it was Derek's company she missed but she didnt even know where to start if she approached him, did he move on with a girl who's more mentally stable?  belonging in the same class, honestly she'd accept him moving on as long as it was not Neline or any of his mother's "perfect" choices

As the days pass and the longing for Derek’s presence grows, Hope fights a quiet battle within herself.  She’s worked so hard to find herself, to stand on her own two feet, but in doing so, has she lost something invaluable? 

She’s too scared to find out, too scared of rejection or disappointment.  But then one day, as she scrolls through her phone, she sees a name she hasn’t seen in months: Derek.  There’s a new message notification.  Her heart races.

She opens the message after contemplating and ...
The message is simple, yet devastating.  “Hope, I need to move on.  I still love you, but I can’t keep holding on to what might have been.  I miss you, and I hope you’re doing well. I’ll always love you.” 

Hope’s heart sinks.  She’d known it was a possibility, but seeing it in writing makes it all too real.  She lets out a shuddering breath, unsure what to do.

She quickly replies before she overthinks " I also miss you and I never stopped loving you but if you must move on without me then I wish you all the happiness in the world, only if you don't move on with Neline"

Hope’s message is sent, and she waits, stomach in knots, heart in her throat, for a response.  But as the seconds stretch into minutes, then hours, with no response, she begins to fear the worst. 

Eventually, she forces herself to sleep, to put the phone away, but it’s restless sleep, plagued by dreams of Derek and Neline together, of him smiling at the woman Hope always knew he should have been with from the start.

She decides to stalks his social media but it gives away nothing
looks everywhere—Facebook, Instagram, even his dormant Twitter account—but there’s nothing.  No photos, no posts, nothing that would hint at his current status. 

Frustrated, Hope puts her phone away, but it doesn’t stop her mind from racing, from imagining scenarios, both good and bad.  She tries to distract herself with work, with hobbies, but she can’t escape the feeling that she’s missing something, that there’s something she needs to know.