"Hello?" I mindlessly answer the phone, assuming it's my mum again. She ended the call earlier, needing to attend to the kitchen, and wanted to call back. I had nothing better to do while waiting for Mia to return from her internship soon.

"Where the hell are you?" Hannah's voice makes my heart stop. My lungs no longer move. She's pissed, and it's rare hearing her in such a state. I can feel her anger radiating through the phone. "You have me and everyone else sick to our stomachs, wondering where you are. I mean, what the hell Megan? We were at the dance, and you up and ran without a word."

"Hannah," I start to defend, but I'm cut off.

"I'm sick of this shit, Megan," she snaps, and I fall silent. My heart is in pieces, and my throat strains. "I mean, come on. I've been your best friend since we were children and the others love you to death. I don't know what the fuck happened, but to leave all of us in the dust? That's low."

"Hannah, I'm sorry," my voice trembles. All the air has escaped me, and this pain is never-ending.

"Where the hell are you?" she seethes out.

"I can't tell you. Josh hurt me-"

"It's like I don't even know you anymore," she scoffs. My heart stings, and I swallow hard. Just tell her. Why can't I tell her? The words just won't come out. "You leave us anytime we are out, you've been far more closed off than ever, and you barely talk to us anymore. I'm sick of it. I'm done. I'm done trying. You won't talk to me, then screw it. Goodbye," she ends the call, and I pale entirely.

I'm going to get sick. My pulse is weak and thready. I just want to fall to the floor and hide my face in my knees. My bottom lip trembles, and I feel parched. Defenceless. Alone. I've wanted to tell her for so long, and I could never get it out.

My hands dry my cheeks, and I make my way out of the bedroom. I need water to cure this ache in my throat. I'm confident I just lost my best friend, maybe even for good. All because I got the courage to run from the monster that is Josh. The first time I've ever dared to leave. I imagine the others will hate me as well. I'm sure he twisted things around already to make himself look good.

I down a cup of water, but it still doesn't do a thing. I start to fill up another cup when there's a knock at the door. My shoulders slump, and I let out a heavy sigh. I don't want to talk to anyone and don't have the energy. Another knock, and I set the glass on the counter. I use my shirt to dry off my cheeks once more, to hide that I had started to cry. However, my eyes will surely give me away.

I open the door, and I can feel the whole world stop. I'm not breathing, and my heart isn't even beating. Dark, angry eyes fixate on mine. Fear etches across my skin, causing goosebumps to rise. Those brown eyes are demonic. His hair is a chaotic mess. That all too familiar vein is above his eyebrows.

"You fucking bitch," Josh seethes, but he can't finish it. My heart begins to race. I start to come to my senses. My feet try to make a run for it. My hair is instantly grabbed, and I am ripped back. A searing pain takes over my scalp, and that familiar ache returns to my neck. I wish I had cut my hair. Why didn't I cut my hair? "I told you I'd find you. I will always fucking find you," his words bring chills down my spine. His breath smells like alcohol. Those tears are back, clouding my vision. I choke on the air, finding it hard to breathe.

I want Louis.

I should have stayed with him.

I was safer with him.

Mia gets back home soon.

She would be safer if I were with him.

"I'm sorry," I break, a sob taking over. I can't control it. My entire body is shivering. That mind-numbing void is hitting me. "I love you. I love you. I was dumb. I shouldn't have left. I was scared. I'm sorry. Please forgive me. Please."

He growls, hand still tightly holding onto my hair. I'm terrified. I'm scared that it's the end. I'm afraid of what he's capable of doing. I'm scared Mia will walk in and get hurt because of me. He's too strong to go against; he's always stronger when drunk. His hand lets my hair go, and my breathing staggers. I didn't expect him to let me go. "Get your fucking shit. We're leaving," he demands. My heart drops immediately, but I listen. I turn and head to the room, hurrying to grab my bag. The door tries to close behind me, but his hand slams against it to stop it, causing a large thud as it rebounds into the wall. My heart drops, and I move faster to shove whatever into my bag.

I grab my phone off the bed, but it's taken from my hand immediately. I watch as he slams it down to the ground, and the glass shatters. My heart stops in my chest, and I can't breathe. "Leave it," he demands. I'm too scared to move. He smashed my phone. It now sits lifeless on the ground. I'll have no way of calling anyone. I'm too afraid that we aren't going to end up back at campus. I'm too scared that he just destroyed the one thing that may be able to protect me. "Let's go," he roughly grabs my wrist. I let out a small whimper, his tight hold on my wrist.

"You're hurting me," I cry out.

He doesn't care. He drags me out of the apartment, and I am nearly tripping over my feet to try and keep up. I can't breathe. I can't think. I'm terrified. We pass some couple making their way to their apartment, and my head turns down so they can't see my face. My heart is hammering in my chest.

We get outside to that all too familiar blue car. He goes to open the passenger door, and he practically pushes me in. My heart sinks deeper as he slams the door shut. He walks over to the driver's side, and my eyes focus on his balled-up fist. He gets in and instantly locks the car. He turns the car on, and it roars with life. I'm too choked up to buckle in before he suddenly takes off.

"I'm sorry," my voice trembles, tears masking my cheeks. He doesn't answer. That negative energy wraps around me so tightly that I can't breathe. He gets onto the road and starts fast. My hands fumble with the seatbelt in a hurry to put it on. His knuckles are white, hands so tight on the steering wheel that it could snap. He nearly hits a car when speeding to turn left. I shriek, grabbing onto the door handle and the centre console. "Josh, slow down," I beg, my voice even worse than before. He doesn't. That anger and alcohol have his mind made up. "Josh, you're going to get us killed. Slow down," I plead even louder.

He still doesn't listen.

"You left me. You fucking left me. Three years, all to be disrespected like this," he sneers.

Another car's horn blares at us. My heart is frantic in my chest. "Josh, I was just scared. You're scaring me again. Please, it was a mistake. Slow down."

He doesn't listen. My heart is felt in my throat. I've never been in such a fast-moving car. I can't watch. "I love you," I get out, trying to grab his arm. A sharp pain hits my cheek, and I let out a small cry. My hand cradles my cheek, and my heart is nearly about to give out. He backhanded me.

"Please, stop. We can talk. We can... you're gonna... we're going to die," I shriek.

I swear he goes even faster.

My eyes fall on a man on a bicycle ahead, and my stomach drops. "Josh!"

He suddenly slams on the brake. The car lets out the loudest screech of a sound. I'm slammed forward, then ricocheted back into the seat, bound by the seat belt I almost didn't put on. My neck aches, I can't breathe, and my back aches. My heart is pounding so hard that I don't know how it is still functioning.

"Asshole," the man yells from his bike before us. It takes a moment for me to process everything. The car is diagonal on the road. Another car was in the other lane. He would have hit the man flipping him off before us if he didn't stop.

I can't breathe.

I want to open this car door and run out.

The nasty scent of burning rubber surrounds us after his tires go up against the pavement.

"You're fucking crazy," I stammer, undoing my seatbelt.

"Megan," he growls, but I get out of the car.

I can't breathe.

I can't think.

I can't see straight.

"Megan, get back in the fucking car," he demands, getting out as well. My vision is tunnelled. My heart is racing. "Megan," he repeats again. I don't listen, trying to storm away. "Megan," he screams out in what sounds like fear. A blaring sound makes my heart drop, and something heavy slams into me before everything goes dark.