Petals in the Wind

Chapter Fifteen

I awake slowly, my right eye barely opening.
I turn my head slightly to see Henry sitting beside me, his head resting on the edge of the bed, his hand grips mine. My knuckles were covered in bruises.
Soft snores come from him, he must've fallen asleep.

My ribs were aching, so did my throat.
I could feel tears begin to pool in my eyes,
Henry cleaned me up, I was in his bed.

I have to tell him my secrets, he deserves to know.
I could feel my heart aching,
He's going to leave you Dallas my brain says.
Once he realizes how fucked up my past is, he's definitely going to leave.
I wouldn't blame him either. I knew I had baggage and a lot of it too.
I sob quietly, I was in love with Henry.
Somehow, someway he managed to tear down all of my walls. He made me feel special and loved.

"Petals" I open my eyes to see Henry staring at me. Relief flashed before his eyes and he reaches his free hand out to rub the side of my face softly.
"I was so worried." He whispers, kissing my bruised knuckles.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." I sob out.
God I was a wreck.
Henry looks at me lovingly,
"You have nothing to be sorry for love, just tell me what happened." He says.

He was wearing a blue sweater, his glasses on his face like always. He looked unbelievably handsome.

I was crying heavier now,
"Clint is my stepfather." I start, he squeezes my hand reassuringly
"My mother met him when I was 10. At first he was a really nice guy. Then he would always say how I needed to dress girlier. I had long hair then, but I hated. At first he would just use a belt, to try to beat me into being who him and my mother wanted me to be.
I was never girly enough for them. Never polite enough, never good enough." I tell him
"My ex boyfriend Jack. I met him when I was 14. He was the only person who knew about my home life. And he made me feel like everything was okay. I had short hair then, and I had only wore combat boots then too. Then one day he tried to tell me the same things Clint did. And when I refused to listen to him, he started hitting me too. He was three years older then me, so he was 17 then." I tell Henry
Anger covers his face but he stays silent,

"I tried to be who they wanted me to be for a few weeks. But the beatings never stopped. So I started fighting back. Clint would hit me and I would hit him. Same thing for Jack too. It's how it always was. Us beating the shit out of each other and me ending up bruised and battered by the time we were done. We moved away from Jack once I turned 17, but Clint never stopped."
Henry just kissing my hand continuously, trying to comfort me.

"I moved here to get away from Clint. But he somehow found me and showed up today. He's never going to leave me alone." I tell Henry
Then I remember that I had left him at the cabin
I sit up with a start, my ribs protest greatly. Henry stands up and tries to tell me to lay down again.
"Henry, Clint he was at the cabin. I hit him with a vase and he- he stopped moving. I don't know it he's still there-" I try to tell him but he cuts me off.

"The cabin was empty when I got there Petals. I found you in the woods passed out against a tree. Do you know how scared I was?" Henry says, slight anger laced his tone. His green eyes stare into mine,
"I could've lost you Dallas." He whispers.

I close my eyes shamefully.

"I'm sorry, I can understand if you want me to leave-" I go to say

"Leave? You think I want you to leave? Dammit Dallas. I love you. I am so unbelievably in love with you. I don't care about your past. It does not define you. I could tell you had secrets, but baby your chaos makes you beautiful. So many things make you beautiful." He says, his eyes bright, he slowly kisses me as he sits down on the bed slightly in front of me.

He loves me?

The tears were falling down my fast like a waterfall. Relief flooded my system, I throw my arms around Henry despite the pain that flares in my ribs.

"I love you Henry." I whisper against his neck.

Henry wraps his arms around my gently,
"I love you too Petals, so much." He says kissing the top of my head.

I pull away from him and lean my head against his chest, despite being in a lot of pain. I had never felt more happy or content.