Better Things

A/N: Howdy folks! Here's the new story. It's an AH/College fic. Chapters will be a bit shorter because that's the way they worked out, and I'll be posting every Saturday. I'll let you know right now, this story is a bit of a slow burn. There will be romance (and drama), but it's going to take a while to get there.

Disclaimer: It ain't mine.

I'm always a bit nervous when I put up a new story, but here's hoping you like it. On you go!

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"Forget what happened yesterday, I know that better things are on the way." Better Things by The Kinks

I was ready. No, I was more than ready. I couldn't wait to get away from small town life and start living in the big city, and compared to Forks, Washington, Seattle seemed like a ginormous city. It wasn't that I'd never lived in a big city before, I had, but this was the first time I'd be living in a big city on my own. My parents were nervous about me going to school there, but they accepted that it was my decision, and Seattle was what I wanted.

After high school graduation, I'd been unsure of what wanted to do with my life, so my parents suggested community college. So, I knocked out some general courses and worked my butt off at Newton's Sporting Goods and Outfitters store. It had been hell. Well, it was fine until the owners' son, Mike, start sniffing around. He'd been the popular guy at Forks High who hadn't so much as shown me the time of day, much less had known my name. Needless to say, I was a bit shocked when he started flirting with me one day at work. I shook it off, figuring that I was nothing more than a conquest or a bet, and I refused his advances, but he wasn't deterred. If anything, my ignoring him only made him more persistent. But, eventually, I'd caved in and gone on a date with him.

Before I knew it, Mike and I were exclusive, and we were the "it" couple. You know, that popular and perfect couple that all couples strive to be? Yeah, that was us, and we were blissfully happy. Which only goes to show that I was an idiot. A few months in to our relationship, he started making little comments about my weight, my clothes, and my hair. I didn't think much of it at the time and made the small changes he suggested, not even realizing that I was about to go down a dark path.

Over time, the criticisms became more harsh and more frequent. Mike also became demanding and possessive. He demanded to know where I was or who I was with at all times. I knew what he was doing was wrong, but I blew it off and made excuses to my friends for his behavior. I should have told my parents, especially my dad, seeing as he was the chief of police, but I hadn't. I had kept quiet, and that was a mistake.

Six months after our first date, Mike asked me to marry him despite the fact that we were nineteen, and our relationship had been rocky for the past few months. I turned him down, and that was when I got the shock of my life. We'd been at his parent's house, and he'd made this fancy meal. After dinner, he got down on one knee and proposed. Actually, it was more like a demand. "Marry me, Isabella."

I told him no, that I wasn't ready, and that I wasn't sure I loved him as much as he loved me. That had been the wrong thing to say. I'd never seen Mike so angry. He was furious. No, he was livid. His face turned bright red, his eyes darkened, and he started yelling. He grabbed my upper arms with so much force I felt them start to bruise, and then he slapped me before he called me a whore and a tease and swore I would get what was coming to me.

Now, being the daughter of the chief of police meant that I'd had some self-defense training, but at that moment, I was unable to recall any of it. I'd been terrified and paralyzed that someone I cared about had hit me. He hit me once more, and I felt the skin on my lower lip break, tasting the blood as it began to spill. That was when my fight or flight mode kicked in, and I went ape shit. I started kicking, biting, and yelling as loud as I could, but it only seemed to make Mike angrier. I'd never known fear before, not really, not like that. Mike seemed to have grown larger before my eyes, and he came at me with the force of a bear. Mike rammed into me, knocking me to the ground, and then his fists begun flying. I did my best to protect myself from him, but he still got in more than a few hits. My face felt like it was on fire, and I was certain my nose was broken.