abuse | zd

five

|alissa|

soon after texting zach, he pulled up to the curb outside of bryce's house. i peeked through the curtains of the back windows, able to see bryce and justin caught up in a video game in the pool house, before quickly making my escape. a bottle of grey goose caught my eye through the glass of the cellarette, and i stuffed into my bag before walking out to zach's car.

he could tell i was distressed from the moment i sat down in his passenger seat. my hair was still a mess- as i'd only combed through it with my fingers- and i wore one of bryce's tshirts which was far too big and a pair of joggers. not to mention the fact that my face was stained with tears.

"hey, lissa," there was empathy in zach's eyes as he looked at me, though he tried to cover it with a soft smile.

"hi," i said quietly. i set my bag between my feet in the floorboard.

"is everything okay?" he asked. he started his car before driving down the street.

i ignored his question, focusing my eyes on my fingers in front of me. "can you take me to cvs?" i noticed the light bruises forming on my wrists, and i could immediately feel bryce's hands wrapped around them again, pushing them into his mattress. i fought away the tears.

"of course," he said. we sat in silence for a few moments before he repeated his question, "is everything okay?"

although i hated to admit it, my pride was more important to me than it was to most. the thought of telling him what happened- of telling him that i let myself get violated like that- sickened me.

"yeah," i paused, thinking over what to say. "we just uh, we um, i just need to get a plan b." i mentally slapped myself as i stumbled over my words.

"oh," he said, clearly surprised by what i said.

i laughed nervously, "shit happens, i guess."

we rode in silence the rest of the way.

zach pulled into a parking spot and i unbuckled my seat belt, preparing myself to go inside. i rubbed my hands on my thighs, drying the layer of sweat that had formed.

"you okay?" he asked, and i nodded quickly.

i reached for the door handle, but quickly pulled my hand back to myself.

"i'll go in for you," he said.

"no, i've got it-"

"it wasn't a suggestion."

i sighed, reaching for my wallet. "don't worry about it, i've got it," he gave a soft smile before leaving the car.

tears welled in my eyes as i watched him walk inside, and by the time he'd returned, i was practically sobbing.

he noticed, apparently, because he opened the passenger door and pulled me into a hug, rubbing his thumb on my shoulder. i hated that he was seeing me like this, but i was unable to stop the tears.

zach held me, never asking a single question, as i soaked his shirt.

i will never be able to thank him enough for that.

|edited 03/01/2020|