I shivered, pulling a sweater on over my head. It was a little to big, but I didn't care as long as it added to warmth. It was still snowing, heavily and at a glance out the window, I could see the sky was dark gray. I shivered again, yanking on my boots and pulling my hair out of the sweater.
I stepped out into the hallway, shutting my door behind me. I walked passed Sammy's room and heard the dull sounds of Mom getting him ready for school. I smiled a tiny bit and headed upstairs.
It had been almost a week since he'd hit me. Since, things had been incredibly... safe between us. We never had any real conversations, and I stayed as far away as possible. Especially when the scent of alchohol came around again.
I padded down into the kitchen and winced. There he stood, glaring into the liquor cabinet. I slowly started backing away, but banged my elbow into the wall behind me.
"Christ!" I yelped then quickly covered my mouth. He jerked his head in my direction and slowly smiled. It wasn't a loving, fatherly smile. Something about it made my skin crawl.
"Goooooooooood morning, princess," he slurred. "Why don't you get that cute ass over here and give Daddy a kiss?"
I very slowly continued inching my way towards the door. "I have to get to school Dad. Maybe later. Bye."
Like a switch, his face collapsed in anger. I tried desperately to hide my fear. He stumbled towards me reaching out, but I ducked out of the way and made a bee-line for the door.
Just as I stepped outside, he latched onto my hair, yanking me back in. I felt tears sting my eyes.
"Where do you think you're going you stupid bitch!?" he pulled me up and slapped my face. Hard.
Just as he wound up for another hit, the phone rang from within the kitchen. He jerked his head in that direction and I took the opportunity to shove him off. His lip peeled back angrily, and he began shouting but I was out the door and halfway down the street before he could get a word out. Tears streamed down my face. I used the sleeve of my sweater to scrub them off, but they continued to fall. I silently cursed myself. Maya cried. Weak people cry. I am not weak.
"Elly! Hey, Elly, wait up, would ya'?"
I stopped in my tracks. This could not be happening, not now.
"Phew, I thought you were going to make me run-"
"Go away Avery." I tried to make my voice sound emotionless, but it cracked mid-sentence, giving away everything I really felt.
Suddenly, I felt completely naked.
He trudged up closer, looking at me. I kept my eyes down and begged the tears to stop but they persisted.
"Elly, what's wrong?" concern dripped off of his voice. It made me cringe. No one ever really cared.
"Go. Away. Avery."
He pulled me into his arms, holding me tight. Without thinking, I sunk into him, my tears soaking onto his jacket. Neither of us said a word.
"It's all going to be okay, Elly. I swear."
If only he had known how much I wanted to believe him.
........
"We're going to elope."
I sighed, closing my book. There was never any reading done when my eccentric, self-appointed best friend came around. I looked up into his green eyes, the corners of my mouth twitching. He nodded with comedic seriousness.
"Oh?"
"Yep." He popped the 'p.' "Vegas beckons."
I wrinkled my nose. "Vegas?"
He nodded again. "The only thing we still need to figure out is if we want an Elvis or Cupid wedding."
I smiled at that. "Well, I'm not completely thrilled about a man in a diaper attending the most important day of our lives. Plus, Elvis is a classic."
He laughed, taking his seat beside me. "True. But Cupid comes with our very own fridge magnet. And I quote 'I got hitched by the fat guy in the diaper.'"
I just about died laughing at that. As much as I'd hated Avery when we first met, he was very quickly growing on me.
Suddenly, he sobered up.
"I can't let you go back there, Elly."
I looked down, studying my hands. He scooted closer to me and his eyes seemed to bore into me. He was leaning closer and I could feel his breath on my face.
He was barely an inch away when I remembered myself. I was Elliot Jackson. Strong. Resilient. Cold-hearted.
I jerked back, voiding my face of all emotion. He looked up, suprised, then hurt. I looked away, forcing myself not to crumble.
"I don't needa babysitter, Avery."
"There's nothing wrong with asking for help-"
"I don't need your help!" I was practically shouting. Several people looked over at us and I felt heat prick my ears.
He stared at me for several seconds, clenching and unclenching his jaw. His eyes showed a range of emotions- anger, sadness, protectiveness.
He swiftly stood, looking at me. I met eyes with him, blinking back tears. He turned his face away and slammed his fist down on the table. I winced as he began walking away.
"No, Avery, wait..."
He didn't look back.
.
