Michael’s POV
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I felt bad just walking out of group therapy, but I knew that I could not stand to be around Ashton anymore.
As I made my way back to my room, I tried to calm myself down, but that was easier said than done. I was furious at Ashton. The fact that he thinks he can just waltz in take Rebecca from me disgusts me. Something about him seems off too. I didn’t trust him.
I opened the door to our shared room, and as I had predicted, Ashton was sitting on the floor, tears flowing freely from his eyes.
“We need to talk.” I stated, before taking a seat on my bed.
“I.. I.. I’m sorry. I had no idea you were her.. her.. her boyfriend.” He managed to choke out.
“Well no amount of apologizing is going to fix this issue.” I said sternly.
“I just.. She’s just so beautiful and I-“
“Don’t you dare talk about my girlfriend that way. I swear to God if you say anything else like that…” I stopped myself before the inevitable came out. I was angry, I was on edge. I knew I couldn’t control myself.
“Sorry Michael, I really didn’t know. I thought that maybe for once I’d have a chance, I mean she seemed kind of into me…”
That was it. That was the final straw.
I briskly walked over to where the boy was sitting on the floor and grabbed a fistful of his hair, bringing him to his feet.
“What did you say?” I asked.
He replied with silence, causing me to become even more frustrated. I threw a punch at his nose, feeling it break on impact.
Ashton stumbled backward, and I took the opportunity to swing another punch, and another after that.
By the time I had finished, he was collapsed on the floor shaking, covered in blood.
“That was got trying to get with my girlfriend.” I said, turning to walk away.
“And that,” I paused, turning back to kick the boy laying on the ground, “Was for thinking you’d get away with it.”
I then walked out the door without a second glance back. This was the first time that I’d been in a fight where the other person didn’t even attempt to hit back. He just stood there. I almost felt bad, but at the same time, I felt that he deserved it.
I sat down in the hall and tried to collect myself before returning to Rebecca. I had gotten kicked out of my last rehab clinic for a fight, and I didn’t want the same to happen again.
After several minutes I got up and walked to Rebecca’s room, letting myself in as I had many times before.
I found her asleep in bed, with her laptop dangerously close to falling off the edge. I tried to move it without waking her, but in the process managed to make it slide off her bed, resulting in me yelling as I tried to catch it.
My sudden movements woke Rebecca up, and she gave me a smile that I tried to reciprocate. She seemed to notice that I wasn’t myself, but I didn’t want to tell her what happened.
“What’s wrong?” She asked.
“Nothing, I’m fine.” I said, tying to display a more realistic smile than the one I’d shown previously.
“Michael, I know you well enough to know that you’re lying. Now tell me what’s wrong.”
“It’s nothing, I’ll tell you later, yeah?” I stalled.
“I guess.. But I’m worried about you. You’re not yourself. It has something to do with Ashton, doesn’t it?”
“Please don’t say his name!” I exclaimed.
“Why?”
“Um I just don’t like him very much. I’m uh.. Gonna go for a walk to clear my head.”
I pulled Rebecca in for a kiss before turning towards the door.
I knew that someone had probably found Ashton, as his crying was quite loud. I knew I might get detained again, so I needed to make sure to tell Rebecca how I felt before I got locked up for another week again.
“I love you, so much. More than you will ever know. Just remember, I will never let anyone hurt you. I promise.”
She stood there looking confused but responded with “I love you too, Michael. So much. Thank you.”
I gave her one last kiss and the headed out the door. I tried to make my way out to the field, but as I suspected, I was stopped by a group of staff members.
“Michael, we’ve packed your stuff. Your parents are on their way. I’m sorry, but I don’t think Shady Grove is right for you. You may sit in the office and wait for your parents to arrive.”
The woman’s words shocked me, and I stood there staring, trying to comprehend what was just said.
“What? No!” I exclaimed. “You can’t just kick me out! He deserved it!”
“I’m sorry Michael, but we really don’t have a choice. You’re a danger to the other kids.”
I continued to protest, but it soon became clear that I would not be staying. It suddenly hit me that I would be leaving Rebecca. She couldn’t last on her own, and everyone knew that.
“Can I at least go talk to my girlfriend? And, you know, say goodbye?”
“I’m afraid not. We can’t risk letting you near other patients.”
“BUT SHE’S MY GIRLFRIEND! I LOVE HER! I NEED TO SAY GOODBYE.” I yelled, not caring who heard.
I felt a hand on my shoulder, as I was guided towards the office.
“You can wait here until your parents get here. There’s no use trying to sneak out, because I will be staying here watching you.” A stern looking man said, as I sat down on one of the uncomfortable chairs.
A while later, my parents walked through the doors looking rather disappointed. Neither of them talked to me, and I knew it’d be a long drive home.
Once we were all in the car, my dad initiated the conversation.
“Michael, this is the second time this has happened.”
“I know.” I mumbled.
“Your mother and I talked, and we decided that maybe the move back to Sydney wasn’t the best idea.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Michael, we’re moving back to America.”
A/N Thank you for 15K reads! I can't believe it! I decided to write this as a thank you instead of doing my homework oops! Anyways, it's a bit of an intense chapter I guess! What do you think will happen next?