The story of Ellie and Aiden from His Everything continues in Their Forever.
Accompany the two young people on their journey full of self-discovery, opportunities, true friends, and more challenges they will have to overcome.
They say true love know...
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The day of the trial
I gripped the pen until my knuckles turned white.
There he was.
The man who beat me until I couldn't breathe.
The man who thought I was worthless.
Hell, the man who made me believe I was.
I breathed in and out before starting to speak. I didn't have to glance at the papers in front of me. I remembered every time his foot landed on my stomach, every time his fists punched my back. I could recite them by heart like fucking poetry.
And so I did.
I told them, the group of strangers with stern faces, all my darkest moments.
The entire time, his eyes were on me.
Angry. Cold. Incredulous.
Yes, Dad, the spineless shit had finally told the truth.
I finished my statement, my throat dry. My mind drifted to the last time he hit me.
"What, you're not getting up? You're even more useless than I thought." My father's shoe digs into my rib cage. "Get up and punch me, little shit. Get up and show me what you're worth. Do you think going out with that slut of yours makes you a man?"
"Don't you dare insult her!" I force the words out of my mouth and then try to inhale. Every breath hurts.
"Don't tell me what to do or say, you ungrateful son of a bitch," he hisses and kicks my back. The pain is too sharp, but I do everything in my power to not make a sound.
"Aiden."
"You're nobody." Another kick, to the stomach this time.
"You're worthless."
The venom drips from each word as he continues delivering steady blows to every part of me he can reach. I wonder if it's the end, but I don't want it to be. I want to live.
Finally, he leaves me on the floor and walks away, slamming the front door as he exits the house. I crawl to the wall and sit with my back to it, trying to breathe.
"Aiden."
Derek's hand was on my shoulder.
"It's over, boy. You did great. Like a champ. Go get some fresh air."
