Ugly(52)

“Trent,” I scream as I try to stop the continuous blows he’s landing. “Trent,” I yell again and grab onto his fist as he rears his hand back.

His head whips around to look at me and he angrily spits, “Don’t, Lily. I saw the whole damn thing.”

The moment he looks back, two huge bouncers have him up and are hauling him out. There’s two more who’ve grabbed the guy who had his hands on me and are dragging him out, too.

I look around and see Shayne. She’s looking shocked as she watches both the guys being dragged out of the club. “Bye,” I mouth to her as I go to leave.

As I walk away, she runs after me, throws her arms around me and whispers, “Be careful.” Just as am I about to ask her who I should be careful of, she’s gone.

When I reach outside, Trent is already pacing and completely irrational. “What the hell was that, Lily? I saw everything.”

“Then you saw how I told him to take his hands off me? And did you see how I moved away?”

“I saw you look at him like you wanted him to kiss you.”

“No I didn’t. I was going to tell him to leave me alone, again. But you grabbed him and…you know the rest.”

Trent turns and walks toward his dad’s car. “Are you coming?” he shouts over his shoulder to me.

I run to catch up to him, and link my arm in his. “I wasn’t to blame, really. I didn’t do anything.”

He takes a few breaths and calms down, “Yeah I know. I just saw his hands on you and I lost it. Isn’t it lucky you changed? Because if you had worn that dress, God only knows how many others would’ve had their hands all over you.”

“I know, I’m sorry.” I lean in and kiss him. “Thank you for coming to get me.”

“It’s alright, babe.”

When we reach the car, he opens my door and waits until I’m in. Then he comes around and gets in the driver’s side. “Will you teach me to drive?” I ask as I watch him pull out onto the street.

“Not this again, Lily. You don’t need to learn how to drive. I’ll take you anywhere you need to go. You know that.” In a comforting gesture, he squeezes my thigh.

“I know, but I’d like to be independent, too. I mean, what if something happens and we can’t be together.”

I can see his mouth turn down in a frown. “That’s just ridiculous. We’ll always be together. In life and in death.”

In life and in death? What exactly does that mean?

As it turns out, I don’t have to wait too long to discover what he means.





November 13th 2009

Dear Diary,

It’s been just over a year since we got married. Trent wanted to marry me right away, but we managed to wait until just before my nineteenth birthday. This last year has been, for the lack of a better word, difficult. We celebrated our first year anniversary the way we spend every night.

I go to class during the day, as does Trent, then after class I go to work and Trent comes home. Some nights I manage to get more than four hours sleep, but since Trent’s taken over our finances, he says I need to work more because we need the money. He’s got a job too, but he only works two days a week. He says school is stressing him out, so he can’t work more.

Seeing as this is my very first diary entry, I may as well tell you, Shayne and I don’t speak much anymore. She said Trent was trying to control me and he was coming between us. She also said when I leave him, I should come find her. She was bridesmaid at our wedding, and after that night she barely talked to me again. Trent says it’s because she’s jealous Liam hasn’t married her yet. I don’t know, maybe it is. It hurt at first, but now I’ve been so busy with school, work and being a wife, I don’t really have too much time to notice she’s gone. Does that make me a bad friend? There are times, like when I got the top marks in my last three papers for English Lit I wanted to tell her, but she wasn’t around.

Trent says he wants a baby, but I’m nowhere near ready for a child. And really, I wouldn’t have any idea what to do with one.

Trent’s dad came over last week, but Mrs. Hackly wasn’t feeling well, so she stayed behind. I found a recipe on line and made it. Mr. Hackly told me it tasted like cat food, and Trent laughed and told him I was still learning. I liked it. But maybe I liked it because I know what it’s like to have nothing.

It was my twentieth birthday yesterday, and Trent bought me a box of chocolates, saying we don’t have extra money to go out.

The apartment is small, but it’ll do for now. I really can’t work anymore to try and get us anything nicer, because school takes up so much of my time.