TW: This book has a lot of descriptions of abuse and because of how often it is, there are no trigger warnings at the beginning of chapters. Take this as a warning for the whole book.
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Samuel never thought that moving out of his childhood home wo...
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xliii. Bravery And Knife Wounds
The day started off just like any other day would. I woke up, I went to work, and I left work when it was my normal time to do so.
As I parked my car in my parking spot, an awful feeling appeared in the pit of my stomach. I was almost afraid to get out of the car, but I made myself do so anyway.
I stepped into the apartment building and just stood there at the front door, listening. After the what was now three weeks of silence from upstairs, I'd become paranoid. Sometimes I would stop whatever I was doing, just to listen for any sounds, anything that could signify distress.
I was happy to not have to hear anything, and from what I'd heard from Benjamin, everything truly was fine. The fact that it was all fine was something that I knew made both of us paranoid. It felt like Taylor was planning something.
I may not have known Taylor well, but I'd learned a lot about how she worked through just hearing her yelling at Benjamin. I knew she wouldn't be able to last very long without blowing up on him, as sad as it was.
When I didn't hear anything, I shrugged and walked into my apartment. I set my keys and phone down onto the kitchen counter before going to sit down on my couch.
My mind wandered to Benjamin and our friendship. I knew I was his only friend, Taylor had prevented him from having anyone else. Hell, he wasn't even supposed to be talking to me. We were doing it all in secret because we knew that if she found out, she would most definitely hurt him.
The fact that I was this amazing man's only friend only made me feel guiltier about my feelings toward him than I would have felt if he had other people.
I was sure he'd stop talking to me if he found out that I, his friend, wanted to be able to kiss him, and hold him in my arms in a way that wasn't appropriate for friends. I didn't want him to stop talking to me. He meant too much to me, and I wouldn't know what to do if I lost him for good.
The sound of something shattering upstairs made me snap out of my thoughts. I felt my muscles stiffen, and I sat in perfect silence, waiting to hear something more.
I heard the sound of more things being thrown around, as well as the familiar screeches that came out of Taylor's mouth. I was about to get up to get my notebook so I could write down everything when I heard the words that made the colour drain from my face.
"You're so fucking dead, Statton. You hear me?"
The tone in which Taylor yelled those words made the room I was in turn 30 degrees colder. I knew she was serious.
Deciding I wasn't going to take the risk of letting my Benjamin stay alone with her in that apartment, I sprinted to my phone. I pressed on the power button, but my phone wasn't turning on. The battery was dead.
