" Ellie , who did this ? " I must have zoned out because Aiden was in front of me , blue eyes practically glowing with emotion , pinning me to the spot I stood on . I knew his eyes were beautiful but every time I saw them I was blown away . Seafoam and blue like the ocean . I could almost hear the ocean and feel the coastal son just looking into them . " Ellie ? I snapped back to reality again . I told you I slipped at work . " I mumbled , my cheeks probably turning several shades of red . Aiden didn't believe me . His eyes told me just as much . I've seen enough bruises to know the difference between a punch and a slip . " Aiden growled . " Well I'm telling you it's from an accident . " I snapped back . The silence was tense enough to cut with a knife . It clouded over us like fog , thick and heavy and clinging to my skin and squeezing my chest . My heart thrummed against my lungs with anger , frustration and fear . I could feel the corners of my eyes burn and prickle as hot tears of frustration threatened to spill . I wanted to scream , I wanted to cry , I wanted to sink onto the cool kitchen floor and let the weight of it all press onto me until I couldn't breathe . I trembled under the weight of the emotions surging in my veins hating myself for letting them get to me like this . I resisted to react to my emotion and stood my ground . The whole time Aiden's eyes remained locked with mine , dark and unreadable . " Um , guys ? " The tension snapped like a thread pulled too tight as Kyle walked in , clothes and hair rumpled from sleeping , eyes glazed and struggling to focus . I breathed a quiet sigh of relief as Aiden's eyes finally left me , no longer pinning me down . " Everything okay ? " Kyle's probed , a soft frown of worry collecting on his brows . " Yeah . " I croaked after a moment . " I had an accident and Aiden was overreacting . " If looks could kill , I'd be six feet under . " I'm not overreacting Ellie . " Aiden managed between gritted teeth before looking at Kyle . " Someone has clearly hit her . Do you know anything about this ? " " No. " Kyle was clearly shocked , his eyes flitting between us before he took a step towards me , concern shimmering in his eyes . " Someone hit you ? When ? " " I wasn't hit ! " I shouted , anger bubbling over again . " It was an accident so will you both just leave it alone ? " For true dramatic effect I had of course stormed out of the kitchen , ignoring both Kyle and Aiden calling for me to stop . I couldn't work out what made me more angry ; that didn't believe me or that Aiden had figured out the truth so easily . I was an idiot . I shouldn't have given Noah an excuse to hit me ( not that it mattered because he would have found another excuse to torture me ) . I shouldn't have told Aiden . I shouldn't have shouted at them . I shouldn't have let Aiden hug me . I shouldn't have thought I could have friends . What an idiot ! Kyle and Aiden left me alone for the rest of the evening and well into Saturday until after I came home from work . Aiden's truck was unsurprisingly not in the drive and there was no sign of him in the house . However , Kyle was there when I got back that evening just as the sun was setting and casting long shadows across the land . I was surprised to find him sitting in the living room , the TV turned to some sports channel . We both froze when our eyes met and I could see everything Kyle was thinking and feeling in that moment from confusion to pity and worry . 1/2 Chapter 14 I sighed , feeling my annoyance bubble up again and in no mood to deal with whatever pity party Kyle had planned for me . " Ellie , wait ! " Kyle jumped off the couch as I turned to leave and head to my room . My shoulders tensed as 1 froze mid - turn , my brain going on what to do . I could just ignore him and hopefully he will go away , or I could hear him out , I ended up choosing the latter and with my shoulders slumping in resignation , I reluctantly turned to look at Kyle again . " Look , uh … " Kyle looked as awkward as I felt , hand coming up to rub the back of his neck as he looked away for a moment . I thought he wasn't going to speak but in the end he sighed and looked at me again . " I'm sorry about last night . We should have believed you and we didn't . " POST COMMENT Chapter Comments Stephanie T - H he's going to attack her publicly and Kyle will see and get involved then Aiden will get involved View All 3 Comments > ✩ 2