"Mary," he says suddenly, voice low and breaking. "I'm so sorry." Seb closes his eyes like it hurts him to admit it. When they open again, there’s no wall he's spent building up. No hatred, only grief.
I need to tell him the truth. I'm just not sure when the right time will be. My breath stumbles. Why now? Why did it take me almost dying to be able to tell him the truth? The fear that Anthony or Tyler will walk through that door is far scarier than telling Seb the truth. Ihaveto tell him.
"S-Seb," I whisper, forcing my voice steady even though my heart is shaking and my throat feels like sandpaper. "I need to t-tell you the t-truth." Nerves buzz sharply under my skin as I try to push myself up, wincing as the pressure on my bandaged wrist stings from the movement—only for me to fall on my back again.
“Mary, don't move. You’re still healing. Here.” Seb grabs a cup of water from the counter, bringing the straw to my dry lips. “Let me tell the nurse you’re awake, then we can talk, okay?” His eyes plead with mine but I don’t want to wait. I need to get this out now, before I change my mind again. Before I can, a woman in scrubs walks in, her eyes on the clipboard in her hands. It takes her a moment to look up, and when she does, a giant smile spreads on her face.
“Look who’s awake!” The joy in her voice makes me want to go back to sleep. There’s no room for joy right now.
“Let me just check over your vitals and change your bandages, then I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake.” She keeps that smile glued to her face as she checks my heart rate, temperature, and whatever else is needed before unwrapping my sliced, barely healing wrists. I can’t look.
My eyes clash with Seb’s, and it takes everything in me to not start sobbing. The reminder of what happened is still fresh. I don’t want to remember.
“There you go. We’re all so glad you’re awake, Mary. The doctor will be in soon.” I don’t say anything to her, so I just nod.
Seb just stares at me. The silence in the room is almost suffocating me. I inch away, just enough to create some distance between us, even though I want nothing more than to cling to him.
I play with the blanket, nerves swimming through me as I think about telling him theentiretruth. Something I know I should've done months ago. Maybe then all of this could've been avoided.
Seb stays still, eyes fixed on me with an unbearable intensity.
"Dean Westwood..." I falter; his name alone is sour in my mouth. For a second, I almost retreat. Seb has hated me for six months. What happens when he finds out the truth?
He somehow found out about..." I stop mid-sentence because I can't explain this without starting from the beginning—and fuck, I really don't want to. Before I can continue, Seb cuts me off.
“Mary, we don’t need to do this right now. I almost lost you. I don't care about what happened.” Seb takes a deep breath, trying to center himself, but I feel like the truth is suffocating me.
"Seb, I need you to listen to me." The urgency in my voice stops him.
"Six months ago, Game Night was the worst night of my life."
Nothing feels real. The walls blur as I stumble into the room, the door clicking shut behind me. The carpet rushes up to meet my face, the breath knocked from my lungs. My head throbs and my vision swims.
A hand clamps around my ankle and drags me backward. Through the haze of my vision, a shape appears.
Tyler.
The last person I ever thought I'd see right now—looking down at me with a smile that makes my stomach twist.
"How're you feeling, Princess?" His voice slithers through the air, every word dripping venom. "Hope whatever I put in your cup is working its magic. It definitely seems like it." I try to push myself up, but my body doesn't cooperate. Darkness creeps in at the edges of my sight.
"T-Tyler, stop. What are you—?"My plea is cut off as a cloth is being forced between my teeth, his hands moving too fast for me to fight back. My arms are yanked behind me after Tyler moves me to my side, and panic sets in like fire under my skin.
Tyler leans in, his breath sour against my ear. "It's okay, Princess. It's just some harmless fun. You'll love it." The room tilts, and that's when I see Anthony resting on the bed a few feet away.
The light blurs. Sound blurs. A belt buckle jingles somewhere above me. I squeeze my eyes shut, sobbing, trying to claw my way out of my body. Nothing could prepare me for the pain that follows—the way the world fractures around me. My tears dry into silence. My mind floats somewhere far away. When another shadow looms, it's like I'm watching from outside of my own body, my heart breaking, my voice gone.
The pain between my legs intensifies once Tyler and Anthony trade places, robbing me of more of something I never gave them. And when the tears finally stop, and everything hurts, I beg God for death that night.
Chapter 22
Mary
Thewordshanginthe air like smoke, thick and choking. I watch him, waiting for something. Anything. But his face is completely unreadable, like a clock stuck in time. Then, his jaw clenches, and his eyes close as he takes a deep breath.
I want to reach for him, but my hands won't move.
"You went through all of that," he says quietly, almost like he's talking to himself.
