We are not going back

Chapter Seventy-five

Tyler and Doug came back to camp just as Kamala finished cleaning the blood off my face. I could hear them talking quietly before they stepped into the clearing, and for a second, I wanted to disappear all over again, slip back into the woods where nothing made sense but at least I wasn’t being watched, judged. But then Tyler’s eyes landed on me, his face shifting from relief to concern as he took in the sight of my head wound.

“Eleonora, what is going on?” he asked, rushing over to where Kamala was crouched beside me.

Doug hung back, his face pale, his eyes wide. I could feel their eyes on me, sizing up the damage, the blood, the exhaustion etched into my skin.

But I wasn’t having it. Not this time.

Tyler stepped closer, his voice gentler than before, like he was tiptoeing around something fragile. “Are you okay? You should’ve told us you were going out. We were worried sick.”

I looked up at him, feeling the rage I’d been holding in all day start to bubble up again. The concern in his eyes was genuine, but I couldn’t forget how he’d snapped at me earlier, like I was some selfish asshole for caring about my relationship. Now he wanted to be nice? Act like he gave a damn?

I stood up suddenly, almost knocking Kamala off balance as I rose to my feet. Tyler’s hands reached out to steady me, but I slapped them away, my vision swimming with fury.

“Don’t.” My voice came out low, dangerous. “Don’t you try to act like you care now.”

Tyler’s face twisted in confusion. “What the are you talking about?”

“What am I talking about?” I repeated, my voice rising. “You treated me like shit this morning, Tyler. Like I was some kind of burden for trying to figure out what the fuck is going on with Kamala. You yelled at me, made me feel like I was the problem. And now you want to act like you’re worried about me?”

His face softened, his hands dropping to his sides, but I didn’t let him speak. I couldn’t. Not yet.

“I don’t know what’s going on with you or why you think you can just flip a switch and treat me like I’m a fucking child, but I’m not putting up with it anymore.” My chest was heaving, my heart slamming against my ribs as the words poured out of me. “You don’t get to pick and choose when I matter to you, Tyler. You don’t get to shut me out one minute and then act all concerned the next.”

Doug shifted awkwardly beside him, and Kamala looked between us, her eyes wide. But I didn’t care. I wasn’t done.

“You don’t know what I’ve been through, Tyler. You don’t know the hell I’ve lived in -still live in- because of Olivia, because of everything that happened. And for you to turn on me like that, when I was already losing my mind, when I needed someone to fucking talk to- ” My voice cracked, but I pushed through, the anger burning too bright to stop now. “I don’t deserve that. I don’t deserve to be treated like an afterthought.”

Tyler opened his mouth to respond, but I cut him off again, stepping closer, my eyes locked on his. “You think you know what’s best for me? You think keeping me in the dark is protecting me? I’m done with that shit. If there’s something going on, if you and Kamala are hiding something, I deserve to know. I’ve been through too much to be treated like I’m fragile.”

I could see the guilt on his face, the way his shoulders sagged like the weight of my words was finally hitting him. But it wasn’t enough.

“I’m setting some boundaries, right now, because clearly I haven’t been loud enough,” I said, my voice shaking slightly but strong. “I’m not a child, Tyler. I’m not some helpless person you need to protect. If you care about me, then respect me. Talk to me. Don’t talk at me.”