Page 86 of The Breaking Pointe
“Have you been watching this kind of content all day?” His mute response serves as all the confirmation I need.
“Colton, you can’t let yourself listen to that stuff.It’s all
bullshitted opinions that aren’t even close to being true.” I shake my head, pushing his phone down to his side.
“It’s easier said than done, Noelle,” he responds, dropping the phone into his hoodie pocket.“It’s not just Daniel— though his threats are stickier than other guys. The problem is that it’s multiple guys targeting me because they feel threatened by me all of a sudden, and my contract isn’t even finalized. Maybe I’m being oversensitive, but it doesn’t feel great being made out to be the bad guy in everyone’s world.” He runs an aggressive hand through his hair.
“What matters is that you know yourself.You know you’re not a bad guy, okay? And any other relatively smart person would know that it’s strictly propaganda.”
My justifications don’t seem to render any satisfaction, based on his blank, subdued expression.
“Cole, c’mon.You’re gonna let Daniel get in your head with his left-field rumors that make no sense?He’s not you, and that boils his blood. He’ll get over it.” I wrap some fingers around his bicep, squeezing it.
Heglancesatmyhand,andthenme.
“He has good reason.” Cole sighs, following me as I pull his arm toward a pair of swings.
“Might this revolve around a specific contract that you have yet to mention to me?” I ask him, attempting to make him smile again.
“I have a bad feeling about fighting him again, that’s all. And once the contract is finalized, he’ll be the first on my roster. I won’t be able to back out.” He grits his teeth with the last words, watching me sit on a swing.
He wraps his hands around the chains, stepping behind me and looking down at me.
“Who said you had to?”I lift my head to return the glance. “I’m happy for you, but I have to ask why exactly you’re ruining good news about pro fighting all because of a guy whose ass you already kicked?” I start to laugh softly.
He cracks a smile, breaking his serious character but har- boring a gentle tone of voice. “Elle, I dunno if you realize… but it will be personal. He’s one step closer to knowing that we’ve been seeing each other,” he says, placing his palm on my back. “He’s not well rounded, which I’m aware of, but neither am I. I’m not going to lie to myself like he’s not afew weight classes above mine. and the sooner he confirms that we’re seeing each other, the more likely our egos are to collide.”
“Why do you seem so threatened by him?You’re every- thing he thinks he is and wants to be—possibly better.”I push myself up from the swing and turn around to face him. The swing dangles between us now.
I’m not sure why I feel this compelled to defend his insecurities, but nevertheless, I refuse to listen to him lower his quality to the likes of Daniel.
“You’re just saying that—” “I mean it, Colton.”
I glare at him, giving him the utmost, rock-solid stanceto let him know that I mean business.
Lowering my guard, I move the swing to the side and take a step closer.
“I would know.I know everything about that man, and none of the information is positive,” I admit, feeling the body heat rise within me and a wooziness assail within my gut.
“Care to share?”he asks.
Gliding my tongue across my top front teeth, I look down. “Have you ever met somebody with an aura so rotten that it makes your skin crawl?”I ask, testing myself on how ready I am to tell him about the Daniel I know.
The real Daniel, who sees me and numerous other women as his very own personal stress balls, who eats us for break- fast, lunch and dinner.
“Sure.I know someone, personally.Well, I knew,” he says, tapping all of his attention in.
“So, then you know why he’s not even millimeters close to being a good person.He loves almost every illegal performance enhancer, and even worse, you can tell.He hasn’t been sober since before we dated. He’s mean and vile. Shouldn’t that be enough evidence to tell someone?”
I avoid letting our eyes meet, sheer embarrassment filling me up as I speak.
“If you’re telling me that he’s a simple-minded coke head, it’s obvious, Noelle. But you dated him, so that means you and I both know that having a lot of money can go a long way. You can cover up anything and get away with it, scot-free,” he says, mellowing his voice.
“I dated him, yes. So, I know he’s controlling. He means what he says, and his threats are normally promises.”I quiet my volume, beginning a tapping motion with my foot. “When we first met, he was a nice guy. At least, I thought he was, but he ended up being good at fronting. Abusive words became abusive actions and…I just want you to take my word for it, please?” I take a deep breath, looking at each blade of grass beneath us, under the moonlight.
Colton suddenly stills, resembling my volume with his voice. “Did he put his hands on you?”
“He hasn’t for a while…” I say, thinking I could bypass the topic if I said it soft enough.
