Page 36 of Discord
“Wear this.” He would say as he threw one of his oversized t-shirts my way.
His closet had grown alarmingly large with women’s clothing while mine was severely lacking. Either Brandon had developed a new fondness for women’s fashion—no judgment if that were the case—or he had sneakily moved me into his home.
Brandon had bested me yet again. If I didn’t love coffee and his homemade meals and despised packing, I would have made a dramatic display over the treachery. And that’s when I caught on to how truly fucked I was and how deep I let myself fall.
My obsession had returned with full force.
Mia
It wasdark by the time I fended Brandon off and forced him to drive me home. He was particularly vocal against my nasty habit of sleeping at my own home.
Every day, he chipped away at my resistance. The last few weeks had me engrossed in Brandon with cartoon heart eyes. I had no idea what the future held, but I was convinced that being away from him couldn’t be the right choice. My heart told me I belonged somewhere else, or rather TO someone else. Meanwhile, my brain told me college was a smart decision because he’d kick me to the curb the moment he found out about my past stalking habits. There was also the other incessant fear of my family.
Brandon and I exchanged our usual goodbyes—a furtive smile from me and a grunt from him—before I reached the front door. Like always, he waited until I was inside.
I took the stairs to my room and almost had a heart attack upon finding Reid at my desk, sitting in the dark like some evil supervillain. The low lights in the room were foretelling the conversation we were about to have.
“Christ, Reid.” I clutched my heart dramatically. “You gave me a heart attack.”
Reid stood from the desk and nervously paced the room with an assertion on his lips. Without so much as a hello, he declared, “Milo didn’t hurt Raven. He didn’t do anything to her. She was telling the truth all along. W-We misunderstood the situation.”
I stiffened. What? Of all the explanations, this was at the bottom of the list. “But Raven’s bruises?”
He looked around, uncomfortable. “She was doing that to herself.”
My eyes widened. What the fuck.
Reid ran a hand over the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable. “I-I went through Raven’s emails and texts with Milo.”
Oh.
Snooping was generally my M.O., but I wasn’t surprised Reid had resorted to the same.
“Raven… she was dealing with some past trauma and went about it the wrong way. Milo noticed she was taking a nosedive and tried to get her professional help. She got defensive about it. That’s why they got into an argument.”
Shit. It sounded familiar. Raven got defensive with me, too, when I brought up her disturbing new look.
Reid rubbed his temples with his fingers. “I confronted her about it.”
My bottom lip quivered. “Is-is she still hurting herself?”
“No,” he declared firmly. “She won’t be doing that again.”
Things still didn’t add up for me, and I pressed Reid about the situation. There had to be something wrong with his explanation. Otherwise, it meant that I made a colossal mistake with Milo.
Despite my best attempts, Reid’s monologue remained consistent with Raven’s—I misinterpreted the situation—and I finally slackened.
Shit.
Raven was engaging in self-harm, and I accused Milo when he was only trying to get her help.
Reid closed his eyes. “It was unfortunate you accused him of hurting Raven. Ironically, he snapped and put his hands on you instead.” Because I threatened Milo with his worst fear. Told him that I’d make Raven break things off. Milo knew Raven would cave because she’d do anything for me.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Reid shook his head. “We both know how much Milo used to rely on Raven. Then she left for Paris, and he was so unhappy. She finally came back and—”
“He panicked at the thought of losing her again,” I ended the sentence on his behalf. “I freaked out over nothing,” I whispered, swallowing a wave of nausea.
