Wake Me Up

Chapter 1

 POV

You couldn't imagine a time that you had cried more in your life. The world was blurry, and you couldn't see through your tears as you ran out Jake's door. You tripped down the stairs, and the pain was unbearable on your already bruised body. You stood up, brushed the gravel from your arms, and just kept walking. The city of Wolverhampton looked like any other large, urban area in England. You had lived there all your life, but lately the beautiful town was looking more like a nightmare to you. You and Jake started dating about 7 months ago, and things started off great. That was before he started texting you 24/7, and always wanting to know where you were. After 3 months of that, you were done. You drove to his house to break up with him, and that was the first time he hit you. You couldn't believe it. After he hit you, though, he became nice. Nicer than he ever had before. He got you ice, and even drove to the store to get you flowers. He took care of you all day, and at the end of the day begged you to say you got a black eye in a baseball accident. You agreed. It wasn't for another month until he hit you again.

The second time, he wasn't as nice. This time, your arm and stomach both sported big, black and blue bruises. It hurt to sit, it hurt to stand, but he threatened to do even worse if you broke up with him. You didn't doubt what he said, and from the moment you nodded in agreement, he had you under his control, and you knew it. The nightmare began. Anybody who raised their hand, in any context, you would flinch. Loud noises startled you more than they should have. You couldn't walk down the street without tearing up from being afraid that the passerbyers would attack you. Today, you promised yourself you would end it all. Things went better than expected. But that doesn't mean they went well.

       As you walked up Jake's steps to his house, you heard loud noises coming from inside. Moans. The door was left open, so you let yourself in like you usually did. You followed the noises, knowing what they were but denying it, and ended up at Jake's bedroom. You pushed open the already ajar door, and saw Jake's naked back to you. Underneath him was a sleazy, fake blonde, with caked makeup melting off with her sweat. She stopped when she saw you, prompting Jake to get angry. He turned around, and when he saw you he jumped at you. He didnt bother to put on clothes. You barely made it out of his hallway before his big hands grabbed your arm. His fingers clenched around your arm and the longer he held on, the less you could feel.

      "What the fuck are you doing here? I told you to always call before showing up. What is your fucking problem!?"

        You couldn't speak over the lump in your throat, and somehow you were able to get yourself out of his grasp. Running at full speed, you barely heard him as he shouted after you.

       "Go ahead and run away, no one is going to want damaged goods anyways!"

       Damaged goods. Thats what you were now. He had taken your virginity, more forcefully than you had liked. You refused to call it rape. You weren't raped. You said yes. But you really hadn't wanted to. Suddenly, you realized he wasn't coming after you. You looked behind you, and knew, somehow, that was the last time you would see him. You felt free.

      This feeling of freedom didn't last long. You knew even though he didn't have control over you anymore, he had taken more of you than you couldn ever replace. Your virginity, your innocence, your happiness, your dignity. You didn't even know who you were before. You could finally see clearly, and realized you had gotten further than you figured, and had passed your own house. You turned around to head back home. On your way back, you passed a house with a young man, about your age, standing outside his home, watering his plants. You had seen him around school before. He was staring at you. You were a mess, and figured he was just nosey.

       "Excuse me, miss, are you alright?" he called out.

       It surprised you. Obviously you weren't alright. Your arms covered in bruises, limping, tears streaming down your face. Even still, you replied,

       "Yeah. I'm fine. Thanks."

       He put down his hose and stepped towards you. "I guess that was the wrong question. What I meant to say is, is there anything I can do to help."

       His kindness surprised you, but you just shook your head and continued walking. You didn't need his pity. However, as you reached your own home, just a couple houses down, you realized your parents weren't home, and you suddenly wished you had had his company.