Page 32 of Saving Tracey
I gripped her chin in my hand and forced her to look at me. Panic flooded her eyes, but I didn't give a damn at that moment. "Don't youeverfucking do something like that again, understand me?"
She cast her eyes down away from my face. "Why are you covered in blood?"
"You tell me. It's yours anyway."
I could see her clenching her small fists under the blanket. "Why did you stop me? Why?!" Tears filled her eyes, breaking my fucking black heart.
"Because we love you, Tracey," Krista spoke up from somewhere behind me. I couldn’t take my gaze off Tracey’s broken expression. "You're our family now. We can't stand losing you."
"I've already told you I care about what happens to you.” Her green eyes met mine, shining with tears. I drew in a long breath, forcing myself to calm down. "I never want to go through what Iwent through tonight again. Don't do something stupid like this again." I reached forward, wiping away a tear as it slipped down her cheek. Her breath hitched in her throat, and her heartbeat accelerated on the heart monitor. "Can you promise me you won't do something like this again? This is the second time I've saved you from dying. I want you tolive.”
They said the third time was the charm, and I didn’t want to test that theory.
She nodded at me. I tapped her chin. "Say the words.”
"I promise." She looked at Kaleb's mom. "They're going to put me in a mental institution, aren't they?" Fear coated her words. I clenched my jaw. They wouldn’t be fucking taking her anywhere. I’d go to jail first.
I squeezed Tracey’s hand gently as Miss Brinson shook her head. "No. Not this time. However, if you do it again, they will."
No one was taking her away from me.
TRACEY
I was finally back home after being in the hospital for a little over three days. Trevor stayed with me in the hospital whenever he didn’t have school or football practice, and honestly, his presence helped me a lot.
Since I was now home again, he hung out around the house a lot, whether to spend time with me or to hang out with Kaleb. Krista tried to be around me as much as possible, and everyone tried to lift my spirits when I started going into that deep, dark hole that begged me to do it all over again.
I had promised Trevor I wouldn't though. I didn't want to break that promise to him. But fuck, some days, it was hard.
I stared at the TV in front of me, not really paying attention to what was on it. I was sitting on my bed, leaning against the headboard with my knees pulled up against my chest and my arms wrapped around my legs. I was wearing skinnies with a pullover hoodie, covering my skin. It was warm in the house, but I was still self-conscious of my scars and the recent cut I had obtained.
Trevor knocked on my open door and stepped in, giving me a small smile. My heart skipped beats at that smile. Lately, Trevor had been making my heart do crazy things. I really liked him, but I wouldn't allow him to know that. He could have any girl he wanted. Why would he want someone as broken as me?
He played football. He owned a motorcycle. He smoked, which gave him that bad-boy vibe all the girls loved. He smelled like Axe and burning cigarettes. His hair was dark and messy, and his eyes were dark chocolate; he had the looks to make any girl swoon, and it was no secret to anyone that he used his looks to his advantage all of the time. The times I had seen him without his shirt, his chest, torso, back, and upper arms had been covered with tattoos.
He was every girl’s dream.
He could do a hell of a lot better than me.
"What are you up to?"
I shook my head. "Nothing.” I turned my gaze back to the TV in front of me.
He sat on my bed, making me look over at him, and his eyes captivated mine instantly. He reached forward and grabbed my hand in his. Pushing my sleeve up, being careful of my cut, he revealed my scars. I tried yanking my arm away from him, but he shook his head and exposed all of my scars to his hungry eyes.
I was ruined. My bottom lip trembled. I was disgusting.
"Don't hide from me." I swallowed thickly, my hands beginning to shake as he ran his fingers over the white scarson my wrist. "You don't have to be ashamed around me. You're perfect."
"No, I'm not," I muttered. "Look at me. My dad hates me enough to beat me and r-rape me.” I choked out. “My mom didn't love me enough to protect me. Now I'm covered in scars. How can I be perfect?"
He did something I never expected him to do. He lifted my wrist to his lips, kissing the scars that covered my forearm, his eyes never leaving mine. Chills swept down my spine, and my heart began beating at a pace that was extremely unhealthy. But for once, I wasn’t panicking.
"You're perfect to me, Tracey."
Chapter Nine
I'd been avoiding Trevor after what he told me a little over a week ago. Every time he came over, I locked myself in my room, and I didn’t come out until he left. He had tried texting me the first couple of days to check how I was doing, but when I didn’t respond, he eventually stopped.
