“You’re not done.” He reaches forward and grips my hip with a sense of possessiveness that sends another wave of anger to course through me. “You’re so damn dramatic and such a tease. Just get in the car, we’ll go back to my apartment and I’ll make sure you feel all better.”

Bile rises in my throat. The combination of the anger that I have right now for Eric, and for myself for staying in this relationship as long as I have, and for getting in the car when I knew that I shouldn’t have, pushes me to the breaking point. I grab the keys he’s twisting around his finger in some maneuver that’s intended to be suggestive but really just makes him look like a perv. He curses as they dig into his skin, and I throw them into an open dumpster some twenty odd feet behind us. All of those years of pool basketball finally pay off and the keys fall with a satisfying clank.

“What the hell? You fucking bitch!” He grips my arm, just above my elbow and whips me back roughly so I’m facing him again. He seethes as his fingers constrict. “I’ve been sleeping with other girls the entire time we dated! You think you’re so special? You aren’t! You’re just an uptight, spoiled bitch!” he yells in my face.

The admission shouldn’t hurt, though it does. I already knew there was a good chance he was sleeping around, but hearing it from him, and wondering exactly how long it’s been going on causes a twinge of pain.

My eyes dance to a few bystanders that I can tell are debating on whether to interfere. I hate that this is becoming such a spectacle.

Retaliations and accusations flood my mind with a plethora of four letter words that would make Kendall proud, but I clamp my mouth shut and walk away. My pride screams at me to go back and let him have it, but a small voice urges me on, reminding me that this isn’t a battle worth fighting. You fight to keep things you want, things that you believe in, and neither of those apply.

I quickly flag down a nearby cab and don’t bother looking back as I climb in and recite my parents’ address. I figure it’s best to worry about my car tomorrow, when I’m not angry and don’t have to wonder if Eric will try and follow me there. The cab driver glances at my reflection in the rearview mirror several times, and then politely inquires if I’m alright as he too just witnessed the end of Eric and me.

Heat rises to my cheeks as I nod and quietly thank him for his concern, assuring him I’m fine.

“Do I want to know?” Kyle asks, getting out of his truck as I climb out of the cab.

“No,” I reply, making my way over to him. Kyle slings his arm loosely around my shoulders, and we walk up to the house together.

“I don’t mean to pry, but why are you still dating him? I understand you want to make your own decisions, and when it comes to dating, that is your choice, but he’s such a loser!”

My sisters have all changed tactics, and rather than complain about Eric, they simply work to discuss Max as much as possible. Kyle prefers to avoid the topic of Max with me, sticking to bashing Eric, which I’m more than fine with.

“I know. I ended things tonight,” I reply as he opens the front door.

Kyle’s eyes snap to me and a smile lights up his face. “Thank God! It’s about time! Sunday, I’m pouring you a drink and we’re celebrating!” He exclaims.

“What are we celebrating?” Kendall asks.

I look up to see her sitting at the kitchen table with Jameson, Abby, Landon, and Max. All have towels wrapped around themselves as they devour pizza. My heart flutters at the sight of Max as he hovers in his chair, like he’s debating whether to stand and greet me, or remain seated.

“Ding dong the douche is gone,” Kyle sings, reaching for a slice of pizza.

“Seriously?” Kendall asks, her voice a few octaves higher as she looks to me for confirmation. “What happened?”

I shrug and walk to the kitchen to pour a glass of orange juice. As I add some cranberry juice to it I see Max slide back into his chair. Obviously neither of us knows the proper etiquette currently.

“You didn’t tell me you were going to do it tonight! What happened?” Kendall asks as Kyle comes up beside me and extracts a bottle of vodka from above the fridge that he hands to me with a grin.

“Who cares, he’s gone!” he says, squeezing my shoulder. “Seriously, there were a few times I really wanted to punch that guy. I’m a little disappointed I didn’t get the chance.”

“Don’t worry, you can always punch Paul,” Abby chimes.

I feel relieved for the impending breakup to finally be done and over with. However, I have no desire to discuss the details until I can think up a vague enough explanation so I’m not lying but craftily omitting large portions of the evening. Not to mention I really don’t want to discuss this in front of Max, who I can still feel staring at me, willing me to look at him.

It’s taking a ridiculous amount of energy for me not to. I want to bathe in his attention, but something feels wrong about grinning at someone an hour after breaking up with another guy, even if it is Max.

“What did you guys do today?” I ask, looking to Abby as I take a seat between her and Landon. They’ve been intentionally avoiding each other since their impromptu make out session at Dante’s.

“Are you okay?” Kendall asks, reaching her hand across the table and wrapping it around mine. I look down at our joined hands. Kendall’s always been envious of my olive-toned skin, but I’ve always loved the alabaster with soft pink undertones that she and my sisters all have. I look up to see her light blue eyes staring at me with concern.

I take a long drink and squeeze her hand. “I’m great,” I say with a smile and I am. My break up was just a bit more exciting than I had intended, and I’m sure the stress of it shows on my face. I take another drink and push the thoughts further from my mind.

“The offer still stands. I’d be more than happy to throw a few punches,” Kyle says, standing behind me as he finishes a slice of pizza.

Kendall knows me too well to know if things had gone fine I would give her a brief summarization and wouldn’t be drinking. Surprisingly though, she doesn’t push it. She doesn’t have to.

Kyle grips my arm, roughly pulling it back and twisting it in an awkward Cirque Du Soleil move. “What the hell?” he yells. His hand grips my arm and I know I must already be sporting a bruise from where Eric had grabbed me. “Has he hit you before?” he demands, his green eyes bright with fury as I face him.

“What?” Kendall jumps up as the others slide their chairs back to get a look.

“It’s nothing.” I work to pull my arm back and try to conjure up a smile that will set Kyle at ease. Instead, he glowers at me with an intensity that I’ve only seen a few times in all the years I’ve known him.

“Ace,” Kyle repeats, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, “has he hurt you before?”

“No.” I can feel the others’ attention on me and can already picture their pity and anger.

Kyle’s eyes slowly open and find mine. I don’t avoid it. I know he won’t believe me unless I meet his challenge. His eyes quickly dance between mine, beseeching the truth. “No,” I repeat a little louder, shaking my head.

“Ace, seriously.” He persists.

“Seriously, Kyle, nothing has ever happened,” I insist, raising my eyebrows as I stare back into his eyes to emphasize I’m telling him the truth.

He still doesn’t look convinced. Kyle knows better than most about how to hide abuse, and I know this is hitting home with him since his dad had been a perpetual drunk that spent half of his time drinking and the other half abusing Kyle, both mentally and physically.

I shake my head in defeat. “I was stupid. I planned to meet him at a restaurant to break up because I didn’t know how things would go, and when I got there he drove us to a different restaurant because he’d made plans with these horrible social climbing jerks that all drank way too much and were being obnoxious and rude. So I left. I figured that even though I think breakups should be face to face, I’d give in this time and do it the middle school way and call him.