Page 16 of It's Only Ever Been You

She looks at me, eyes wide with surprise, but they quickly narrow into something steely and fierce.There’s a hardness in her gaze. She’s already decided she’s done with me. “I’m busy, Ethan,” she snaps. “Why don’t you go back to pretending I don’t exist?”

The guilt rises up in me, but I push it down. “I just don’t think you should be hanging around this guy.”

Her face flushes with anger. “Excuse me? You think you get to tell me who I can or can’t spend time with? After the way you’ve been treating me?”

“Em, I don’t trust him,” I say, keeping my voice steady even though my pulse is pounding. “I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

She lets out a sharp, bitter laugh. “Oh, that’s rich. You’re worried about menow? After you’ve spent the last few weeks acting like I don’t even exist? You ditch me, ignore me, make me feel like an idiot for thinking we were anything close to friends, and now, suddenly, you care?”

I open my mouth to try and explain, but she doesn’t give me the chance.

“No, Ethan. You don’t get to pull this crap. You don’t get to waltz back into my life and pretend you’re protecting me like some hero. Do you know what these past few weeks have been like for me? Wondering what I did wrong, wondering why the person I trusted most in this world could just shut me out without a second thought?”

I can see the hurt behind her fury, and it cuts me deeper than I want to admit. “Em—”

“No! Don’t ‘Em’ me.” Her voice rises, raw and unfiltered, drawing stares from people passing by, but she doesn’t care. “I thought you were my best friend, Ethan. I thought I mattered to you. But I was wrong, wasn’t I? Because the second you got scared or whatever that was, you dropped me like I was nothing.Nothing.”

Her voice trembles, and I see the tears shining in her eyes. “You don’t get to treat me this way, Ethan. And you sure as hell don’t get to swoop in now pretending you’re doing me some kind of favor. So go ahead. Run back to your new friends, your football buddies, and all of yourgirlfriends. Just stay the hell away from me.”

She turns and storms off, leaving me standing there, feeling shredded from the inside out. Realizing just how much I’ve fucked this up.

……………………………………………………………

Jaxson is throwing a semi-beginning of the year party. He had to wait a few weeks because he wanted to do it when his parents were out of town. That way people can ‘hook up’ if they want.

I overhear one of the guys on the football team talking about it, and I’m only half-listening until I hear Emma’s name come up. Someone mentions she’ll be there, and I’m surprised. Emma isn’t the type to go to parties—it’s not her scene. Ihad to drag her to the last one, begging her to go. But, knowing she’s going, I feel this need to check on her, to make sure she’s okay.

I tell myself it’s none of my business, that she’s free to go wherever she wants. But the thought of her at some random party, surrounded by guys who don’t know her like I do… gnaws at me. I can’t shake it. I try to focus on something else, but all I can picture is her there, out of place, uncomfortable, or worse—getting caught up in something she shouldn’t.

By the time I’ve argued with myself for the tenth time today, I know there’s no point. I’m already grabbing my keys and heading out. Maybe it’s an excuse, maybe it’s something else, when I arrive the party’s in full swing, I’m there, scanning the crowd, my pulse racing as I look for her.

Then I spot her, and my heart stops. She’s with that guy…Daniel. He’s got one arm wrapped possessively around her waist, pulling her against him, way too close. He’s leaning in, whispering something right in her ear, his eyes glinting with a look I don’t trust one bit. Emma’s expression says it all—she looks uncomfortable, tense. She’s trying to pull back but can’t.

My pulse spikes as I watch him tighten his hold on her, guiding her toward the staircase. My stomach twists as he leads her up, one step at a time, his grip on her firm, like he’s not giving her a choice.Before I even realize it, I’m shoving through the crowd, ignoring the people in my way.

I can barely see straight. I follow them up, fists clenched so tight my knuckles are white, the noise of the party a distant blur against the pounding of my heart. When I reach the room they disappeared into, the door’s shut. An uneasy mix of anger and fear churns in my stomach, making it impossible to sit still.

I lean in, straining to hear, and that’s when I catch it—Emma’s voice, muffled but unmistakable, pleading, “No…don’t.” Something in me snaps. I twist the knob, but it’s locked. Doesn’t matter. I throw my shoulder into the door, once, twice, until it splinters from the frame and bursts open, then I’m inside.

What I see is a total shock to my system—Daniel is on top of her, his hands gripping her wrists above her head, pinning her down, her eyes wide with fear. He freezes when the door slams open, his head snapping toward me, his expression shifting from shock to anger. But I don’t give him a chance to say or do anything.

“Get off her.NOW.” I roar. My voice is like ice, low and dangerous.

I cross the room, my long legs eat up the space between us and I don’t even think—I grab him by the back of his shirt, hauling him off her with a force that sends him crashing to the floor.

He attempts to get up but stumbles back, shocked, and I knock him to the floor again, my body tense, ready to rip him apart if he so much as tries to get up one more time.

Emma’s sitting up, cheeks flushed and eyes wide, her expression somewhere between shock and relief. But when her gaze locks onto mine, I see everything—hurt, confusion, and maybe a glimmer of forgiveness, at least I hope that’s what it is.

The look on her face is nearly my undoing.

I take a step back from Daniel, my chest heaving as I try to shake the surge of anger still pulsing in my veins. But my focus is all on her. I move to the bed, kneeling in front of her, my hands reaching out but stopping just short of touching her. “You okay, Em?” My voice is barely a whisper, soft, weighted down by all the regret, all the guilt I've carried since I pushed her away.

She nods, it’s the slightest movement, and a rush of relief floods through me, grounding me. But she doesn’t say a word—just looks at me with those searching eyes, waiting, hoping I’ll finally break down the wall I’ve been hiding behind.

I let out a shaky breath, the words slipping out raw and unguarded. “I’m sorry, Em. I’m so damn sorry. I should have been there for you. I should never have pushed you away. You didn’t deserve any of it. And this” I say motioning to the asshole coweringaway from me, “I should have been here with you, this should have never happened.”

She reaches out, her fingers brushing against my cheek, and her touch is so light, so tender, it nearly shatters me. I close my eyes, leaning into her hand, feeling something settle back into place that I didn’t even realize was broken.

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