Treat You Better

Chapter Sixty-two: Promises.

Chapter Sixty-two: Promises.

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The wind was gentle but cold when it flowed around Angelo and I as we watched each other. It was ready to blow away the pieces of my once again broken heart like it would the petals of a dead rose. I took a deep breath, steeling myself for whatever confession he was going to throw at me.

"Violet." He stated, his eyes staring right into mine so deep he could have seen my heart. I tightened my grip on the blanket around my shoulders, holding it to my chest. "I may have started planning this whole thing far before even stepping into town, and I may have even come back here just to take revenge on Franca, but that wasn't the sole reason. I came back for you.

"You have had me in your palm since what feels like the beginning of time." He stressed, "You trusted me when you were at your lowest, how could I ever betray that? If I ever used you for anything, it would have been to piss Hale off so that he'd send me out, but that was just what I told myself to rationalize the pull I felt to you every time, the reason I always wanted to be by your side, wether you were miles away or just inches out of my reach." He took a step towards me but I backed away, shaking my head. If he stayed too close, my brain was going shut off and I had to think.

"Th- the proof you got," I stuttered, "why did you try so hard to find it if you didn't plan to use it?"

He winced, "That was for you, Letty."

"Then why didn't you tell me you literally had audio recordings of me getting assaulted!?"

"Because I had to watch you try to move past it! I was there, remember? You were fighting everyday to get stronger, to be happy again, I couldn't just bring something like that and shove it in your face, I needed you to be ready, to finally want to make them pay for what they did." He still took the next step and I shook my head some more, pressing my hands to my temples. "All you had to do was say the word, Violet and I'd have given you everything you needed to bring Franca down because that fight isn't my fight..."

"Oh... good God..." I groaned, squatting to sit on the sidewalk, landing heavily because of how low it was. The world was spinning, truths and lies were starting to look the same, was I lying to myself? Why was I villainising the person I loved? What was wrong with me?! He sounded so sure and convincing, was that as a result of a well practiced art? When did I become so paranoid? Wether I was right or wrong, it was too late now, I'd ruined everything!

I didn't realise how hard I was breathing until Angelo took my hands, brought himself down to face me and made me look at him. "Okay, I need you to talk to me, ask me something else, anything else?"

I blinked away the blurriness away, forcing myself to focus on his tired, beautiful eyes that were also a bit sad, sad because of me...
"I don't know how you're... not mad at me right now." I blurted, a tiny sob cutting into my sentence.

"Hm, it's quite easy," He muttered, wiping my cheeks with the back of his fingers. "Especially considering that I've loved you since I was a child, I've loved you for years on end not knowing if you were still the same little girl I left behind, not knowing the sound of your voice or what you even looked like, I loved you so much that when Hale bragged about his new girlfriend and he showed me a picture, I just knew exactly who she was and I couldn't for the life of me pretend to be happy for him..."

His eyes flicked back up to mine and I sucked in a breath.

It went silent. Everything, the voices in my head, even the thudding of my heart was calmer. I raised my hand to press his palm to my cheek.

"I love you even now, Violet. Even when you're scared, confused. I'll love you still if you break my heart, it's yours to break. I just love you. Do you... believe me?"