Page 209 - It Ends with Us

“R yle, ” I beg . “I can ex plain. ” Tea rs strea k down my tem ples and

int o my ha ir. “You’re ang ry. Plea se don’t hu rt me, pleas e. Walk away,
and when you come back, I’ll ex plain. ”
His ha nd grips my ank le and he yank s me unt il I’m benea th hi m.
“I’m no t ang ry, Lily,” he says, hi s voice disturbing ly calm no w. “I just
thi nk I ha ven’t proved to you ho w much I love you.” His body comes
down agains t mine and he takes my wrists with one ha nd above my

hea d, pres sing them agains t the mattres s.
“R yle, plea se. ” I’m sobbing , trying to push hi m off of me with any
part of my body. “Get off me. Pleas e.”
No , no, no, no.
“I love you, Lily,” he says, his words crashi ng agains t my cheek .
“More tha n he ever did. Why can’t you see tha t?”
My fea r folds in on itsel f, and I bec ome diluted with rage. All I can

see whe n I squeez e my ey es shut is my mother crying on our old living
room couch; my father forcing hi msel f on top of her. Hatred rips
thro ugh me and I start screa ming .
R yle tries to muffle my screa ms with hi s mouth.
I bite down on hi s tong ue.
His forehea d comes crashi ng down agains t mine.

In an ins tant , all the pain fades as a blank et of darknes s rolls over
my ey es and cons umes me.

• • •

I can feel hi s brea th against my ea r as he mutters somet hi ng
ina udible. My hea rt is racing , my who le body is still sha king , my tea rs
are still someho w falling and I’m gasping for air. His words are
crashi ng against my ea r, but the pain is thro bbing in my hea d too
ha rd for me to dec ipher hi s words.
I try to open my ey es , but it sting s. I can feel somet hi ng trickling

int o my right ey e and I ins tant ly kno w it’s blood.
My blood.
His words beg in to come int o focus.
“Sorr y, I’m sorr y, I’m sorr y, I’m . . .”
His ha nd is still pres sing mine int o the mattres s and he’s still on

top of me. He’s no long er trying to force hi msel f on me.