Some people wait their whole lives to find the perfect friend.
But not Isabella Washington.
She knew she'd be best friends with Aiden Cunningham the moment she set eyes on him. But staying friends through school is easy. It's what comes after that c...
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It had been two months since Isabella last spoke to Aiden. It was December and she'd seen Aiden in the hallway at school, and he hadn't even glanced at her. He had also stopped texting and calling her.
Like he would talk to her anyway.
After all those things she said to him, he would never talk to her again. She probably would have done the same thing if she were in his shoes, but it wouldn't have mattered to her because she would've been by his side even if he tried to push her away.
But he left because she told him to.
He didn't stay.
She didn't deserve anyone at this point. Isabella was with Matthew, and she felt like she was drowning.
When she told Matthew about her success in ending her friendship with Aiden, he reminded her about not telling anyone. He did one more thing to guarantee she followed his rules.
He took her phone.
He gave her a phone with his number and her parents' numbers as a substitute. Matthew was smart; he made sure that when Isabella's parents called, it rang through to the new number. He wouldn't want Isabella's parents to suspect something was wrong if they couldn't speak to their daughter.
Isabella missed her parents so much. She found out that her mother and father had added another month to their business trip, so she didn't know when they would return. She hadn't told them about Matthew's beatings; she didn't want them to be in danger. She couldn't let anything happen to them. They were the most important people in her life, besides Aiden.
Aiden would probably never look at Isabella in the eye again. He deserved someone who wouldn't let him down like she did.
All because of Matthew.
Matthew's words still lingered in her mind on what he would do, along with the voices in her head, whispering that she deserved the abuse.
The voices never went away now. The words they would say to her were hurtful, but they were true. Isabella did push Aiden away like trash. It was a devastating loss after all the years they had been friends.
Matthew was her priority now. She had to listen to him and do whatever he said.
She couldn't go anywhere.
"Bella."
Isabella snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Matthew's voice. She turned her gaze towards him.
"Yes?"
His eyes were still dark—she hadn't seen his light brown eyes in a while. His hair was messed up from running his fingers through it, making the strands stick up in random directions.
And above all was his inflamed face.
"Why are you zoning out like that? We're in public, for God's sake. Fix your face," he hissed.
