A New Beginning

Chapter 45

Chapter 45

On Thursday, I woke up surprisingly early. I looked at my clock at nine in the morning. Hey, it was early for me. I glanced at my phone and saw that I had one missed call from Elliot. I pressed redial.

"What's up?" I asked into the phone.

"Nothing." He said.

"Wanna come over?" I asked through a yawn. He hesitated.

"Not right now." He answered.

"Is everything ok?" I asked worried.

"Yeah." He said unconvincingly.

"Elliot, tell me what's wrong." I ordered.

"I'm just pretty beat up, ok." He sighed.

"Is he there?" I asked.

"No." he answered.

"Then I'm coming over." I said, and I hung up the phone. He was there for me when I needed him, so I was going to be there for him.

I got dressed, brushed my hair and teeth, and walked out the door. I walked hurriedly to Elliot's. I knocked on the door, and Carol answered. The bruise on her face had gone down.

"Hey PJ, he's upstairs." She said with a sad smile that worried me.

"Thanks." I said as I walked up the steps.

I opened his door, and I saw he was sitting on his bed. I sat next to him.

"Show me." I told him. He hesitated, but then he lifted up his pant leg. I gasped.

His entire left leg was bruised and swollen from the knee down.

"What happened?" I asked.

"He found out that I had been away from the house the last couple days." He said with a grimace. Then it clicked. This was my fault.

"I'm so sorry Elliot." I said. I would not cry. This was about him, not me.

"You don't have to apologize. It's not-" he started, but I interrupted him.

"It is, and we both know it." I said. These next words were going to break my heart. "We should break up. I don't want you getting hurt worse because of me."

"This is why I didn't want to tell you. I knew you would think like this." He said with sad eyes. "I don't want to break up, and I know that you don't either. He is not gonna come between us." he said as he stroked the side of my face.

"I just don't want you to get hurt." I said while looking up at him.

"I'm fine. I just got you, and I'm not gonna lose you." He said with a small smile.

"You won't." I said as I carefully wrapped my arms around him. I didn't know if he was hurt anywhere else. "Any other places?" He took his shirt off.

"Just here." He said as he placed my hand on his chest.

The bruises were fresh. I could only imagine how that happened. His arms enveloped me in a hug, but I didn't hug back.

"You're not going to hurt me." He whispered into my hair. I didn't believe him.

His lips came down on mine, and I was careful that my leg didn't hit his. He sighed and pulled away.

"You aren't gonna relax are you?" he said with smile tugging at his lips. I shook my head.

"I can't. I feel like whatever I do hurts you." I answered.

"Fine, just stay here then." He said as he laid me down next to him and wrapped his arms around me. I made sure that my head was rested in the crook of his neck and not his chest.

"Can you walk?" I asked curiously.

"Barely." He said as he twirled a piece my hair in his fingers.

I stayed in his arms until my alarm went off.

"I don't want to leave you here. You're defenseless." I told him.

"I'll be ok. You have to go." He said. I kissed his still naked chest, and he wrapped his arms back around me. "You drive me crazy when you do that." He whispered in my hair. I smiled and squirmed out of his arm. I gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"Be careful." I told him as I stood in the threshold of his door.

"I will." He said as I walked out of his door and out of the house.

I turned the corner and started walking home. I passed Joe. I didn't notice it was him until I walked past him. I turned around and did a double take. I had the left the house at a good time. If I hadn't, who knows what would've happened.