Without Cause

Bethany

I'm not the victim. He didn't do any of those things with malice or the intent that I thought he did.

Against her better judgment, she unbuckled her seat belt and moved to her knees, leaning over and wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I told you that I was struggling, that I felt like you didn't care about me. I know it's stupid now, but those are the things that kept kicking me down each time I would try to work things out with you." She pressed her face against his neck and breathed in deeply. "You're not a monster at all. I just felt like a victim, which is stupid."

He kissed the side of her face and rubbed her back softly. "You want me to take you back to your place? I honestly didn't realize how bad all of this looked. I didn't have the intent you thought I had, but I understand why you ran from me. Maybe you were right to run."

"No." She turned her face toward his. "I don't want to run anymore. I just need to understand where you were coming from. You explaining it is