The Pain, Redux(Ivy x Abused Male Reader Rewrite)

10: A Life Made Better

Be ready for a shorter than usual chapter.

  Morning was all the same. Wake up, get hit, make breakfast, run to school, get through hours, eat food from mystery person, which was two bags of potato chips today, go through more hours, go to lecture hall.

  Entering, Ivy once again sat at the table, opposite to your usual seat, and was using pen to do something. Upon closer inspection, she was tracing over the veins with different colors of pen, which you appreciated, to say the least. As you took a seat, you prepared to write the last few paragraphs for the project's accompanying essay.

  Working was a breeze, and Ivy used the remote for the AC unit to cool you two off, which you also appreciated. With two of the last three paragraphs written, you put down the pencil for a moment, standing up.

  "I'm gonna get a drink. I'll be right back." You said. Ivy nodded.

  "Go ahead. I'll still be here when you get back." You walked through the doorway, and when you turned around to close the door, you saw Ivy, who was staring into space, as if mentally preparing herself for something. You shut the door and walked to the nearest bathroom, where a drinking fountain sat near.

  Getting a refreshing taste of water, you eventually got back to the room, where Ivy was working on the poster. You sat in your seat and reached for your pencil, only to find that mechanical pencil from the other day in it's place.

  "Keep it." You looked at Ivy, who kept working,

  "Pardon?"

  "I said keep it. You did most of the work, and I don't use that pencil anyway. The ones you have look like you've used them since fourth grade." That sentence.... was more accurate then you'd like to admit.

  "Well? Get back to work." Ivy said. You nodded, using the pencil to continue writing.

  When you finished the main essay, you used a stapler to bind the sheets together. You placed the essay aside and got to work on the text on the poster, correcting spelling errors and whatnot.

  "Hey Y/n?" Ivy asked you looked at her.

  "Yeah?"

  "Why did you forgive me so fast?" Ivy asked. You stopped for a moment, taking a breath.

  "You're.... not the only person to bully me. There were people before you, and really, somebody apologizing is kinda rare to me." You answered. Ivy nodded.

  "Okay." You continued working in silence, until Ivy exhaled.

  "Okay, enough stalling." She said. You stopped working, looking at Ivy in confusion.

  "Pardon." Ivy looked You in the face.

  "I apologized, but I never explained myself." Before you could respond, Ivy continued.

  "I bullied you, because I didn't know any better. I watched those documentaries on this kind of stuff, and always thought they were bullshit. All this stuff on bullies kids being abused or bullied themselves, I never went through that, but I always just kinda... felt violent. I had people I liked, and other people would try and go for them, so I took that violence out on them." Ivy sighed, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks.

  "Well, I grew up and left childish crushes behind. But... well... I always bullied you for most of those reasons, and...." Ivy fell silent. You saw where this was going.

  "You wanted to conceal something? Maybe emotions?" You asked. After a moment, Ivy nodded, confirming your suspicions.

"I... I liked you, Y/n. I didn't know how to feel about it, so I tried to bury the feelings by hitting you, and for a while, it worked. But then.... you hit me back, and, even if for a moment, I felt what you did about me. I wanted to conceal my feelings for you, but it only hurt you." Ivy sighed. When you didn't respond, Ivy went red.

"Well, you can just forget I said that. I just wanted to vent and you-"

"I enjoy your company, Ivy." You interrupted. Ivy went silent.

"I always found you cute, even if your temper ruined it, and to be honest, since you stopped bullying me, I have grown more attached to you." You admitted. When Ivy didn't answer, you got back to work. After a moment, you saw her get to work as well, using her arm as support to aid with her coloring blood vessels.

You looked at her hand, and considering the brief exchange, you did what felt appropriate. You put your hand over hers and continued going through your work. Ivy snapped up to look at you, then your hand on hers. You didn't look at her, so you couldn't see her reaction, but she didn't move her hand.

That was something.

Okay. I know that was cheesy. I'm sorry. This rewrite has been more focused on plot than romance, as opposed to the original story, and I don't think it's doing the few sentimental scenes any good. Can I get an opinion on that, and how I could improve? I would really appreciate that. Anyways, have a wonderful day!

~ASnazzyGuy

~852 Words

5 Chapters Remain