Same Old Love / Noah & Elle Fanfiction

Chapter One.

I stand in front of my mirror, examining the bruises along my arms and the cut on my right cheek. Running my hands under cold water from the tap, I try to steady my breathing. Then I run my damp hands over my face in an attempt to get rid of the dried blood and tear tracks that cascade down my face. I turn off the tap once it's all gone, then make my way into my bedroom that I share with my soon to be ex-boyfriend. I sit on the bed for a moment, going over my options. I only have an hour before Hayden gets home from work and I have to leave before he returns or I'll never be able to escape. I need to get out. He's put his hands on me for the last time.

I pull a suitcase out of the closet, filling it with all my clothes, toiletries, and as many personal items that can fit. I make a mental note that I'll have to come back one day (hopefully with Lee) to pick up the rest of my things. I do a once over of my appearance—which is the least of my worries, but the last thing I want is to alarm someone while I'm leaving the building. I just need to get out of here. My hair is frizzy and messy, and there's mascara smeared under my eyes, but once I fix that, it'll be almost unnoticeable that anything happened. Besides, y'know, the cut that stretches across my cheek. I grab my jacket hanging off the rack and then make my way out of the apartment. I move as quickly as I can to my car downstairs, and once I load my suitcase into the trunk, I haul myself into the driver's seat, heading down the street to the closest store and pulling myself into the parking lot. The first thing I can think to do is call Lee.

It rings a couple of times before he picks up. "Elle! What's up?"

Lee's cheery voice makes everything hit me all over again. I try to bite back the tears threatening my eyes, but it's no use. "Lee," is all I manage to choke out.

"Elle?" I don't respond. "Elle, what's wrong?"

"I-it's Hayden," I cry.

"What? Did something happen? Is he okay?"

"No. Not that. He... he hit me," I start to cry harder now and I can hear the panic in Lee's voice.

"Shelly, what? What do you mean he hit you? Are you okay?"

I take a deep breath in and then start to explain it all to Lee. "It happened for the first time a few months ago, and I don't know, I'm dumb, he apologized so many times and then I just gave in and forgave him. But then today, I don't even know why he was mad but he just lost it. I don't know what to do Lee, I have nowhere to go."

Lee sighs, "You know I'd tell you to come here but there's just honestly no room in my dorm. Did you call your dad? Can you go home?"

"I can't go home. I can't face my dad like this, and plane tickets are just so much, I don't have that type of money right now."

"Well," Lee says, "It's a bit of a drive, but you could go stay at the old beach house. Nobody will be there until summer, so you'd have time to tell your dad."

I think about this for a minute. What Lee said made sense, but the beach house is almost three hours away. We used to go there every summer; me, my dad, Brad, and the Flynns. I have so many amazing memories there, but ever since Lee and Noah went off to university, we haven't gone. I guess it's my fault that I miss it so much, because I could be at Berkeley with Lee, but at the last minute I decided that university just wasn't for me. But even with all that, things would never truly be the same with the Flynns, not since Noah and I broke up over a year ago. Between the distance and the fact that Noah was getting so busy with school, it just didn't work out, and I'd be lying if I said that I'm completely over him. I don't know if I ever will be; he was my first love.

I sigh into the phone. "Yeah, I think I'll do that."

"Okay, Shelly," Lee says, "there's a spare key under the mat, and I'll come visit you as soon as I can, I'm just swamped at school right now."

"Lee, don't worry, I'm going to be okay," I say, and I hope that I'm right.

"I know you will be. Call me when you get there, and I love you, okay?"

"Okay, I love you too." I hang up the phone, and start my drive down to the beach house.