I Broke The Girl I Loved

It's a Yes

(Aydrian's POV) •TW•

After Jayce saw the fresh slits on my wrist, an awkwardness had presented itself between us. We collected our drinks and left the coffee shop in silence, only to be met with more silence on the drive. By the time we arrived at his house it was 6:45pm. He turned off the car and got out, leaving the front door to his house open, knowing I'd follow him inside. The house was quiet when I entered so I assumed Evie must have been elsewhere. Jayce continued walking up the stairs to his room, once again leaving the door open. I made my way after him and stepped inside. He had taken a seat at the end of his bed, his eyes glued to the floor. Only when I softly shut the door and stepped in front of him did he look up.

"Why?" His voice came out hoarse when he asked.

I let out a sigh and shut my eyes. "It started when I was thirteen."

"Hey Aydrian!" A kid yelled at me from across the playground.

There was a small group of five other kids-two boys and three girls- surrounding him, staring at me with smirks on their faces. The first day of grade eight was going smoothly and I figured it would stay that way, but surely I was wrong. His group started making their way over to the bench I was sitting at.

"Uh hey?" I stammered, confused as to why they were talking to me.

"Must be really lame to be adopted, with your real parents not wanting you and all that," one of the boys said.

"N-no, it's not like that," I stuttered.

One of the group members let out at giggle at my nervousness as another one spoke, "It's exactly like that. You were a mistake Aydrian, you weren't good enough for them. That's why they gave you away."

Their words were like knifes cutting at my skin, causing it to rip and tear with every new comment they said. The tears brimmed my eyes and I keep my mouth shut, afraid that if I spoke my voice would crack.

"Look, she's going to cry," they teased, laughing as I got up and ran to class.

The rest of the day I kept my head down and it wasn't until I was home, in my room, that I let the tears fall freely down my face.

"They bullying went on for days but I never told Molly and John. I spent every night crying in the shower since the water would just wash any trace of my tears away. One night it became t- too much for me so I- I acted on my anger, thinking that maybe hurting myself would- would do something," I hiccuped as I felt tears roll down my face.

Jayce was instantly on his feet and by my side, using the pads of his thumbs to wipe the tears off my cheeks.

"Why doesn't Aydrian just off herself already? She is so useless," a girl said from outside of my bathroom stall.

She didn't realize I was in there but I bet if she did she wouldn't have cared.

"Seriously, she should," another girl remarked.

I flung the bathroom door open, hitting one of the girls as I did. She moaned in pained, bringing a hand to where the door hit her head, then scoffed when she saw it was me.

"Get a life Mack," I seethed.

"End your life, Aydrian," Mack hissed back.

"Everyone knew Jayce," I told him through tears. "Everyone knew I was adopted and all they did was make fun of me for it and bully me because of it. The worst part is I started to believe them, I believed I should kill myself."

Jayce said nothing and instead pulled me into his arms as the sobs racked my body. He rubbed comforting circles on my back and let my tears soak through his shirt. After awhile I composed myself and pulled away from Jayce, letting out a laugh when I noticed the wet spot I created on his shirt.

"I'm sorry. Your shirt is soaking," I apologized.

Jayce looked down and shrugged his shoulders. "My shirt can be cleaned Aydrian, it's unimportant right now."

"But it's all covered in snot," I noted, wiping my nose on my hoodie sleeve.

"Aydrian," Jayce began, taking my hands in his, "I don't care about the snot, I care about you and making sure that you're okay. I will always be your shoulder to cry on whenever you need."

My stomach felt funny at his comment. It was something I had never experienced before but I'd heard it in motion pictures on television screens and read it in the words woven on pages; I had butterflies. I blushed at the realization and Jayce smiled at me.

"You're beautiful Aydrian," he said, tracing a thumb across my cheek as he continued, "and you are worth it. I know you must hear those words a lot from people who have left you or haven't proven that you are enough but I promise I am here to stay. I am here to show you that you are enough and prove to you that your life is important," Jayce assured me.

"How did I end up meeting someone like you?" I questioned.

"Fate has a strange way of working sweetheart," he gave me a lopsided smile.

I glanced down at his lips, wanting nothing more than to kiss him. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me. His hands snaked around my waist and I softly pressed my lips to his. My hand made its way up the back of his neck, into his hair and I could feel him smile against my lips. I pulled away and he pouted so I pecked him on the lips once more before he cupped my face in his hands and kissed my forehead.

"I want to take you out Aydrian, on a real date. I want this to be real," he whispered, closing his eyes and resting his forehead against mine.

"Me too," I whispered back.

"Is that a yes?" He questioned, pulling away and looking at me with excitement in his eyes.

I tapped my chin, contemplating his offer. "Hm, it might be," I mused.

Jayce playfully rolled his eyes. "You know, maybe I don't want to take you out anymore," he joked.

"Fine," I said giving in. "It's a yes."

"Good, because I wasn't taking 'no' for an answer."