Being Broken

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

•Brielle•

For some reason, I was nervous. Justin was going to tell me why he left all those years ago, but I can tell from his expression that it would be hard for him to do so. Now, why it would be hard, I have no idea.

Letting out a huge breath of air, Justin lifted his head so our eyes met. "How often do you listen to music?" he asked.

I frowned. Well, that was not what I was expecting him to say. "Uh, not too often."

"Do you know any well-known singers off the top of your head?"

Thinking about it, I realized that I didn't. That made me upset. What twenty year old didn't know any music artists? Wracking my brain to try to come up with at least one, I became embarrassed when I couldn't. Shaking my head no, I bowed my head apologetically. "No, sorry," I whispered.

"Hey, don't apologize. It's nothing to be sorry for. It was just a question."

Glancing up at him, I allowed him to continue.

"Okay, so do you remember where we lived when we were kids?" Justin asked, seeming like he was taking a different approach to the topic.

Nodding, I answered, "Yes. Stratford, Ontario, right?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "And when did you move away from there?"

"I moved when-" I stopped abruptly. When did this become about me? Why did he need to know when I moved? I moved when my parents died. Beginning to hyperventilate, I panicked. Memories of living with Chase came rushing back to me. The hits. The kicks. The sexual assaults. The endless torture that seemed endless at the time and now haunts me to this day. My heart sped up without me realizing it, and my breathing became ragged.

"-Brielle. Brielle! Look at me!" Justin was yelling. Grabbing my hands, my attention snapped to him. Out of habit, I instinctively pulled them out of his grip and backed away as far as I could- which wasn't too far, considering I was in a desk chair with a desk behind me.

"-am so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you like that," Justin said. Without looking at him, I could tell that he was being sincere. He meant me no harm. He was just trying to get my attention. That thought alone made my erratically-beating heart calm slightly, and my breathing began to even out.

Taking a deep breath, I swallowed hard before meeting Justin's eyes again. The brown orbs were swirling with concern and guilt.

"I'm so sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have asked you that. It doesn't matter when you left because that has nothing to do with me leaving all those years ago. I'm so sorry I scared you. I shouldn't have grabbed your hands like I did."

I shook my head slightly. "Y-you're fine," I stuttered. I could feel my hands shaking on their own accord from the unwanted adrenaline rush I had just received. "Con-t-tinue with your s-story."

Nodding, Justin gave me one last apologetic look before picking up where he left off. "Okay, uh, well I moved away from Stratford when I was six. You were five. It seems like so long ago that I'm surprised we even remember each other. But anyways, we moved in with my dad for a little while. He lived about two hours from Stratford at the time. My mom and him had gotten back together, but it didn't last long. They had another falling out, and two years later, my mom and I packed up and moved back to Stratford. By that time, your family was long gone. I was eight when we moved back. Aidy told me that the same year I originally went to live with my dad, you all . . . moved away as well."

My breathing had started to get heavier again as I realized what he was talking about. It was the years that my parents past away. The years I went to live with Chase. That's why he asked about when I move to earlier! But he couldn't know about Chase, right? Aidy wouldn't have told him my biggest secret, would she?