“What?!” She frowns, surprise and curiosity mingling on her face. “When did that happen?”
“A few days ago... when he nearly sent me to the emergency room.”
She gasps loudly, her eyes widening in shock. “You’re telling me he did this to you?”
I nod slowly.
Her hand flies to her mouth, a choked sound escaping her throat. “What the fuck!” My lips quiver, and tears begin to well in my eyes. The memory of the worst day of my life floods back with excruciating clarity, as if I’m reliving it all over again. Words catch on the lump in my throat, but somehow, I force them out in a strained, ragged voice.
“After we got into a fight, he hit me... across the face. Hard enough to send me crashing onto the coffee table and almost fracturing my ribs. Then he grabbed my hair and threw me onto the couch, where he choked me until I lost consciousness.”
“Oh my God, Mila.” Both her hands shoot to her mouth as she shakes her head in disbelief. “Why would he do that?”
“Because we were arguing about Jason… again. He wanted me to quit babysitting for him, and I refused. Then he accused me of having a thing for Jason and called me sad and pathetic. When I told him to leave, he straight up refused, so I tried to walk away. That’s when all hell broke loose.”
“What the fuck is wrong with him?! Did you report him to the police?”
“I did. Jason helped me get a restraining order against him.”
“He knows?”
I nod. “He showed up at my place after I missed my shift. He arrived just as I was starting to regain consciousness, and when he saw me… he just lost it. He practically beat the shit out of Dean and threw him out of my apartment. He was the one who took me to the hospital and then to the police station.”
“And that’s why you’re staying here?” she asks as she glances around the room.
“Yeah. He wants to make sure Dean doesn’t try to contact me, but also wants to keep an eye on me.”
“That’s really sweet of him. It seems like he really cares about you.”
I let out heavy sigh. “He’s been incredible through it all. Honestly, I don’t know what would’ve happened if he had never shown up.”
Tears spill down my cheeks, a crushing heaviness pressing on my chest. I don’t even have time to wipe them away before Sofia pulls me into her arms, holding me tightly as we both break down in sobs.
As she holds me, I finally let go of the hurt and pain I’ve kept buried. The unbearable weight of trusting someone who didn’t deserve it, giving them a second chance, only to be torn apart all over again. Dean may be out of my life for good, but the scars he left will stay with me forever.
“This is all my fault. I’m so fucking sorry,” Sofia whispers repeatedly in my ear.
Shaking my head, I pull away from her and meet her gaze. “No, Sof. It’s not your fault. You have nothing to be sorry about.”
“But if it weren’t for me, you would’ve never met him!”
I take her other hand and hold it gently in mine. “Sof, I would never blame you for introducing me to him. You couldn’t have known how dark and twisted he really was. The only person to blame here is Dean. He did this to me. Not you.”
She nods slowly, wiping her tears with her sleeve.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I was just scared and really confused, that’s all,” I explain.
“It’s okay. I’m just glad you told me now. And I feel better knowing you have Jason around. Where is he by the way?”
“He popped over to the restaurant for a bit. He wanted to give us some privacy to talk.”
“God, he’s perfect! You sure you don’t want to be with him instead?” She shoots me a playful grin.
I let out a genuine laugh. “I think I’m going to give the whole dating thing a rest for a while.”
“I completely understand. And don’t worry, I promise I’ll never set you up with another arsehole again.”
We both laugh, and for the first time in three days, I feel a genuine lightness settle over me.
