AllFreeNovel
Share Us
At first, she laughs—like this is some kind of sick joke. Trust me, I wish it was. However, when she sees I don’t have the same humorous look on my face as she does, she stops.
“That’s not funny.”
“I’m not trying to be.”
She sits up with a lurch. “Where is this coming from? We were fine. We… The gala.”
“Laney,” I sigh, but she’s already tearing up.
“You promised.”
Looking at her, watching as her heart shatters, I feel it too. The pain in my chest is worse than anything I’ve felt in my life. Worse than when my dad left. Worse than any fight I’ve been in. It’s excruciating, but this is what’s best for her—even if she doesn’t know it. She’s going to need someone to hate for this, and that someone might as well be me.
“You deserve better than me.”
She shakes her head. “Don’t give me that shit. That’s for me to decide, not you.”
“You do, you just don’t want to believe it.”
Wiping the tears from her face, she gets up and storms into my bedroom—stuffing her clothes into a bag. I lean against the doorway. Watching her is a cruel punishment, one that I should look away from, but I can’t. As she finishes, she turns to me. The devastation on her face is sure to haunt me in my sleep.
“Knox, don’t do this,” she pleads one last time. “I love you.”
Hearing those words, the honesty in them—they hit their target dead on. The last piece of me that was holding on snaps. I’m falling into a deep abyss, pieces of me floating around, never to be put back together again.
I drop my head. “You can’t love someone like me. The things I’ve done—things I still continue to do—they’re unforgivable.”
“I don’t care. I love you.”
“You shouldn’t.”
“But I do.” Stepping closer, she places her hand on my cheek. “I love you, Knox.”
My jaw clamps down to keep from repeating the words that are threatening to break out. There’s only one way to make this stick, and it’s sure to destroy us both. I grab her wrist and remove her touch.
“I don’t love you, Delaney,” I lie through gritted teeth, my face becoming stone to mask my emotions. “And I never will.”
She rips her wrist from my grasp like it burned her and pushes past me. The last thing I hear is the door slam before I collapse onto the floor, the pain of heartbreak all consuming. She’s gone.
THE ALCOHOL COURSING THROUGH my vei
ns is comparable to putting a Band-Aid on a gaping wound—the effort is there but it’s a pointless one. Even the pot I smoked did nothing to dull the constant ache inside my chest. My phone lies on the coffee table, with texts from Zayn left unread and calls unanswered. Three days have passed since I dropped an atomic bomb on my own life, and I still can’t even breathe normally.
A pounding on the front door pulls me from my wallowing in self-pity.
“It’s open,” I shout, not wanting to get up.
Grayson steps inside, and his tough demeanor changes once he sees the state I’m in. “You look like shit.”
“Thanks, fuckhead. Is that all you needed? You can go now.”
“No, I can’t.” He looks me over and pulls the half-empty bottle of liquor from my grasp. “You’ve missed training the past two days. Cal isn’t happy.”
“Shit,” I grumble.
I try to stand but end up on the ground, landing on my side with a thud. Grayson mutters a curse under his breath and comes to help me as I laugh. Once I’m on my feet and find my balance, I shove him away.
“Tell Delaney’s precious fucking uncle that I’ll make it up and to calm the hell down.”
