Page 182 - It Ends with Us

He pushed me away.

“You fell do wn the stai rs.”
But I di dn ’t fall.
He pushed me. Again.
Tha t’s twice.
You pushe d me, R yle.
I can feel my who le body start to sha ke with the sobs. I ha ve no idea

ho w bad I’m hurt, but I don’t ev en care. No phy sical pain could ev en
compare to wha t my hea rt is feel ing in thi s moment . I start to slap at
hi s ha nd s, want ing hi m away from me. I feel hi m lift off the bed as I
curl up int o a ball.
I wait for hi m to try and soothe it out like he did the last time he
hu rt me, but it nev er comes . I hea r hi m walking around our
bed room. I don’t kno w wha t he’s doing . I’m still crying when he

kneel s down in front of me.
“You might ha ve a conc ussion, ” he says, matter-of-fact. “You ha ve a
small cut on your lip. I just band aged up the cut on your ey e. You
don’t need stitches .”
His voice is cold.
“Does it hu rt any where el se? Your arms? Leg s?”

He sound s just like a doctor and no thi ng like a hu sband .
“You pushed me, ” I say thro ugh tea rs. It’s all I can thi nk or say or
see.
“You fel l,” he says calmly. “About fiv e minu tes ago. Right after I
found out wha t a fucking liar I marri ed .” He places somet hing on my
pillow nex t to me. “If you need any thi ng , I’m sure you can call thi s
nu mber.”

I look at the crumpled up piec e of paper by my hea d tha t ho lds
Atlas’s pho ne nu mber.
“R yle, ” I sob.
What is hap pening?
I hea r the front door slam.
My who le world comes crashi ng down around me.

“R yle, ” I whi sper to no one. I cover my face with my ha nd s and I cry
ha rder tha n I’ve ev er cried . I am des troyed .
Five minutes.
Tha t’s all it takes to complet el y des troy a pers on.