Song: "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis
(TW: abusive partner)
Soft light shined onto my face as my eyes fluttered open. I turned my head slightly, taking in the window that I had forgotten to close the night before. Then I lay my head back down on my pillow, closing my eyes and trying to grasp any remnants of sleep. I had slept really well, dreaming about someone that felt so perfect. Despite not being able to see their face the entire dream, I knew it was Bella. Bella. I smiled, but my lips slowly fell as the day before materialized into my memory. Bella leaving. The party. The article. Suddenly the door to my room swung open and for a second I thought Bella had come home. Instead, I found Oliver leaning in the doorway.
"Oh good, you're awake!"
"What would you have done if I wasn't? That definitely would have woken me up"
"I wanted to tell you that I'm going to run some errands and since I'm basically your guardian right now in your time of need, I wanted to make sure you were ok."
I sat up, "yeah, I'm fine. Go ahead. I should get up anyway."
"Kk," they waved as they turned and left me sitting in bed, the door to my room still wide open. I groaned, laying back down one more time on my pillow. After 10 seconds passed, I rolled out of bed and opened my closet, pulling on some jeans shorts, and a striped blue and white button down. I stared in the mirror across the room, taking in the way the light from the window hit my hair and the fact that my freckles had multiplied since the start of the summer. My feet scrunched against the tiled floor and I closed my eyes. At that moment, I felt ok, like everything would be ok.
A knock at the door interrupted my contemplation.
"Back already Oliver," I laughed as I made my way to the door. I wonder why they are knocking, they have a key...
My question was answered moments later because it wasn't Oliver standing in the doorway. Instead, a tall man with shaggy black hair and tattoos down his right arm stared back at me.
"Henry?"
--
"Henry, what the fuck are you doing here."
"You know what I'm doing here."
"No, the fuck I don't, now leave." I make to close the door in his face, my heart beating loudly in my ears, the familiar panic that I thought I had left behind coming back to me suddenly.
"Oh no you don't" his hand caught the door and wrapped around the edge as he pushed it open. Suddenly I was back to the end of last year, the ease with which he swung open the door reminded me of how little I could do to stop him, if he decided to hurt me, when he decided to hurt me. He never hit me when we were together, but he would be rough, especially when he was mad. He didn't give a damn about consent, he treated me like his property. During the relationship, I thought it was normal because I hadn't ever truly dated someone before, except for a couple of short-lived relationships in high school with boys I didn't like. As it got worse, I realized that I needed to get out, needed to get help. I did, and I cut Henry out of my life. I thought I would never see him again; I was wrong.
Now, as he stared at me from the doorway, his hand still on the door, I realized how naive I had been to think he would leave me alone. I held my breath, waiting for him to snap. Instead, he stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind him and crossing the hallway into the kitchen. Despite my entire body screaming for me to run, I followed him and found him leaning against the kitchen island.
"Did you think I wouldn't see the article?" My lungs constricted.
"I don't know what you are talking about."
"The fucking E-News article about you dating that Bella Ramsey girl."
"That wasn't me."
"Did you think I wouldn't recognize the jacket my own mother gave you?!" He took a step forward and I flinched. "Just because we are on a break, doesn't mean you can go date some girl, you're still mine"
"They aren't a girl!" I yell, then I take a breath, "and we broke up. Henry we are never getting back together. Bella is a million times the person you'll ever be."
"Did you hear me, Alex, I let you take some time to sort out your little problems but you're still mine." Suddenly, I found myself being pushed against the kitchen wall his face dangerously close to mine.
"Get off me, Henry!"
"No." He smiled but then his face dropped and he doubled over. I hadn't even realized I'd hit him, but by the way he was cursing and crouched on the ground, I knew my knee had found its target.
"What the fuck is he doing here," a cold voice said from behind me. I turned to see my roommate with a murderous look on their face, something I had never seen before. Oliver crossed the room in one stride and grabbed Henry by the arm. I thanked the gods that they had started going to the gym last year because they had no trouble dragging the still doubled-over Henry out the front door.
"Call the police Alex." I nodded then rushed to grab my phone.
15 minutes later Henry was being carried out of the apartment complex by two officers. My head was a buzz of emotions and I barely registered as Oliver called my lawyer about getting a restraining order. I was in shock, and somehow I ended up in my room, sitting on my bed with the lights off. I reached for my phone, tears threatening to spill over for the first time since Henry had burst through my door, and texted the only person I wanted to talk to.
>> Bella, can I call you?
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Author's Note: I'm sorry if this chapter was a little traumatizing, I've been planning this arc for a while to explain Alex's past, I hope it wasn't too triggering! Anyway, fuck Henry.
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Falling In Love (Bella Ramsey)
FanfictionAlex is a first-year student at King's College navigating life with the open wounds of her parent's rejection of her identity and her last relationship. There was very little to her life until she bumped into a person who would change that.
