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Twenty-two
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Emma was alone in her apartment, looking at pictures on Instagram. As she scrolled down the pictures, she saw a new picture Mila uploaded a few hours ago. It was a picture of her with the guy she saw him with a couple of times before. The guy had his arm around her neck and he was kissing her cheek while Mila had a wide smile on her face; it was a genuine smile Emma could recognize from a thousand miles away. She liked the picture and set her phone beside her on the couch. She was thankful that Mila did not block her on social media; she needed to check on her from time to time even if the only available way was checking her social media accounts.
Emma was happy for her best friend, she was more than happy for her. Yes, she still considered Mila her best friend. The guy, who she learnt his name was Blake, was Mila's first boyfriend and she was hoping he was treating her right. She could not help but think, what if he was just like Cole? Cole was all nice and loving, but it tu
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By your Side Twenty-three
Halloween came rather quickly, it was as if the semester was flying by. Too many things happened in the span of a month and a half. Mila, Blake, Julie, Leila, and Hannah were all going to the same party. It was a party thrown at one of Blake's friends’ house. Ashton, Blake's friend, had a thing for Leila and he wanted to get to know her more, so he asked Blake to suggest going to his party in front of the girls, and luckily, they agreed. However, only Mila knew about Ashton's crush over Leila and knew about the reason behind the suggestion."Are you going to match with Blake?" Hannah asked Mila, who was putting on make-up. Mila was extremely excited about her first Halloween party with Blake."Yes! I am, as you can see, Daisy and he is going to be Mr. Gatsby." Mila sounded ecstatic as she spoke. This was all new to her. She was not used to having a boyfriend, going on dates, having somebody to pamper her, and all of those beautiful things."He makes you ha
By your Side Twenty-four
Emma stared at her reflection in the mirror, her eyes brimmed with tears and her fingers traced the fingerprints on her neck. It’s been two days and they did not fade, they were getting darker. She took a thin scarf and wrapped it around her neck to hide the marks Cole left on her. She made sure that her long sleeves were long enough to cover the bruises on her arms. Emma mastered the art of covering her bruises on her face with make-up. She was dead from the inside and looked lifeless on the outside. How did Cole manage to turn her into somebody she never thought she would be? How did he manage to suck life out of her? How did she allow him to have control over her in that way? Emma looked away and moved to her bed, taking her backpack then left her room. She walked to the living room and went to the kitchen to make herself something to eat and to drink her coffee. She was about to make herself some French toast, but she quickly put everything back in the fridge, rememberin
By your Side Twenty-five: Mila's P.O.V
I was at the college library trying to finish the assignment that was due next week, but I could not write anything down, I could not think straight. My mind was drifting to different places and by different places, I meant horrendous thoughts and scenarios. I kept thinking about Emma. I was worried about her, she did not look good at all. There was something bad going on in her life and she refused to talk about it with anyone, especially with me. Why did she feel the need to keep me out of her life? She was being abused, I was sure of that. I had a feeling she wasn’t attacked, but I had no proof. I knew I told her that I would not be there for her again after what she had done to me, but that was all some angry talk. I would never forgive myself if she got hurt and I knew that she needed me at that time, yet I was not there to help her. Nobody knew her like I did and during our whole friendship, I have not seen her that broken before, I have never seen her looking that dull
By your Side Twenty-six
"Wh-when... when you said you'd hurt Mila if I talked to her again, what did you have in mind for her?" Emma stuttered a little as she talked. She had trouble talking whenever she was near Cole."Let's see... if I ever saw you talking to her, I could easily get my friends to bully her, hit her, have some fun with her, or even better, I can do all of that myself." He smirked, making her gulp in fear."What do y-you me-mean by have s-some fun with h-her?" She already knew the answer, but she wanted to make sure that she knew how evil he was."I mean we can easily touch her inappropriately, or even better, take it to another level," he said, shrugging as if it was nothing. Emma's eyes went wide and she quickly looked away, understanding his dirty intentions."I'll stay away from her... you don't need to do any of that," she stammered, having some trouble breathing.Emma was with Cole on campus, she was with him, Ariana, and his two best pals, Justin a
By your Side Twenty-seven
When Emma heard Hannah's voice, she got more nervous than she already was. It took her a lot of time to build up her courage to visit Mila after the phone call with Julie. Emma looked down for a moment then looked back up at the two girls. If looks could kill, Hannah's glare could have killed Emma. "I... I want to s-see her," Emma mumbled, her heart beating fast. She did not dare to look at Julie, how could she possibly face her after what Cole forced her to do? "Never in a million years," Hannah said with a stern voice. "You don't h-have the right t-to do that!" Emma exclaimed in a quiet voice. "Actually I do, do I need to remind you of what you said on the phone?" Hannah raised her eyebrows at Emma and folded her arms. Emma went silent and did not know what to say. She wished her life could have been easier in any way. "Please, let m-me see her," Emma pleaded. "Are you here to show off your money or something? What? Do you think you
By your Side Twenty-eight
"Mum, I swear I'm all good, nothing is wrong with me," Mila assured her mum, Jennifer, for the millionth time. She was sitting on the chair beside Mila's bed. Mila resembled her mum a lot, they shared the same eye colour, the same type of hair, but Mila was more tanned than her mum."You look like you've lost weight, actually you two look like you’ve lost weight," Jennifer said, pointing at Mila and Emma. She has always been protective over the two of them."My weight is the same, but I agree with you, Emma did really lose weight," Mila told her mum, noticing how Emma looked skinnier. Everybody saw that but Emma."I'm all g-good, don't w-worry." Emma smiled at Jennifer. Jennifer noticed Emma's stutter when she first saw her and talked to her. Emma looked lost when Jennifer asked her about it, but Mila quickly stepped in and told her that it was due to stress and it was only temporary."I'm kind of worried about Blake," Mila said in a humorous way. H
By your Side Twenty-nine
The next morning, Mila woke up and found Blake already in the room and Emma was nowhere to be seen. She kept looking around, making sure that Emma was not in the room. To be honest, she was disappointed when she found her gone, but she tried to conceal that feeling."Good morning," she mumbled in a croaked voice. He looked at her when he heard her voice and instantly smiled."Good morning, baby girl," he said and pecked her lips.Mila scrunched her nose when he kissed her lips. "My morning breath is horrible." She giggled. "Can you help me get to the bathroom?"He nodded and carefully removed the hospital blanket then helped her stand up. It took her a couple of seconds to get adjusted to the pain then slowly walked to the bathroom with Blake's help."You can go home today," Blake informed Mila."Good, I hate hospitals," she said as she stood by the sink to wash her face and brush her teeth. "I think you need to get out now." she laughed a l
By your Side Thirty: Emma's P.O.V
I did not know how long I had been in the closet, I did not have a watch, a mobile phone, or anything. I was hot, tired, thirsty, and hungry. I wanted to get out so bad, but Cole locked me inside and I did not know how to get out. I hated dark and closed places and now I was being kept in a small dark area. I felt like I was being suffocated, out of breath, and about to die.Other than what I have done to Mila, I was clueless about what I did wrong in my life to deserve all of that. Was karma serving me what I deserved for what I had done to Mila? I could not find any logical explanation for all that I went through in my life but that.I was dead, emotionally dead. I was just a walking body on this Earth, a walking body that only got abused and belittled every single day. I missed feeling safe, I missed feeling happy, I missed my old life. I ruined everything with my own hands, I pushed away true friends and chose snakes over them. I had the opportunity to be friends w
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By your Side Bonus
"Mum, we've been in the car for over an hour. Come on, let's knock on his door," Emma encouraged her mum. Emma and her mother have been sitting in front of Ethan's house for so long since Caroline was scared of seeing her son after five years. She was scared that he might end up rejecting her."What if he turned me down?" Caroline sighed, looking at her daughter."That's just an assumption, you can never be sure if you haven't tried," Emma told her. "Let's go, mum. We have to take this step sooner or later."Caroline took a deep breath before nodding her head and stepping out of the car. The two of them walked towards the front door of Ethan's house and Emma could tell how nervous her mother was. Deep down, Emma knew Ethan would never turn them down. Something inside of her assured her that he would welcome them.As they reached the front door, Emma rang the doorbell and waited for somebody to open the door for them. After a few moments, a blonde woman wh
By your Side Epilogue
In life, we are going to encounter different obstacles, some of them will be normal, they will pass by one day and we will most probably end up forgetting about them. However, some of them will break us, but we always have the choice to get up from our fall and fix ourselves; we always have the choice to be stronger and to face the storm with a brave heart. We always have the choice to either be fighters or to be victims.We are going to meet different people, some of them will be amazing and others will be nothing but snakes or maybe chameleons because they always change their skin and their colours. Meeting bad people is just as important as meeting the good ones because we will never know the worth of those who truly love us unless we meet the fake ones, the ones who will end up breaking us and tearing our hearts apart.We will make mistakes, we will all do. We are not angels to be perfect all the time. We are humans and humans make mistakes, but what is important i
By your Side Sixty-two: Emma's P.O.V
I was sitting in the café near the campus waiting for Aaron to arrive. We were supposed to have lunch together. Aaron met my mum a week after she settled in Seattle and I could tell that she liked him, which was something I was grateful for. She bought herself a flat close to the one I shared with Mila and she let me decorate it. I remember how surprised he was when I told him that my mum was finally back in my life and how happy he was for me; however, I could see the worried look in his eyes and when I confronted him, he admitted that he was worried that she might fail me again and he did not want me to get heart-broken for the second time by the same person.He was so considerate and loving; he treated me like a queen. Each day, I fell in love more with him. He never failed to amaze me and he made my heart flutter each time I saw him. Believe it or not, I still get butterflies in my stomach every time I see him."Hey, baby." I heard his soft voice and I felt
By your Side Sixty-one
Emma was sitting in the living room, doing some of her assignments while Mila was studying on the kitchen counter. They both loved their majors so much which was a motivation for them to work harder. While Emma was studying, her phone started ringing beside her, pulling her out of her concentration. She frowned when she saw the name on her phone and looked in Mila's direction."Mila... it's my mum," Emma said in a quiet voice, but it was enough to get Mila's attention who looked at her with pure astonishment in her eyes."Answer her," Mila told her. Emma's phone stopped ringing as she held it in her hands. She was torn and did not know what to do.Emma kept wondering what her mother wanted from her after disowning her. Soon, her phone started ringing again and she did nothing but stare at it for a few moments before finally deciding to answer her."Hello Mrs. Adams," Emma spoke coldly, trying to match the level of their coldness on the day they decided th
By your Side Sixty
After too many hardships, Emma finally believed that the rainbow did appear after the rain. Her life was finally getting better, she knew what true happiness tasted like and she was in love with every single detail of it.Emma's relationship with Mila was stronger than ever; something she has wished for ever since her life turned upside down. She finally managed to get over her fear of Cole and she even managed to forgive herself for everything that happened. She no longer felt guilty whenever she looked at Mila. She no longer thought so low of herself whenever she remembered everything she had done to Mila. She was well aware that everything she had done was a mistake, but she was finally convinced that she should not spend the rest of her life beating herself up.Blake knew how much Emma liked decorating and how good she was at it, so when his mum mentioned that she wanted to redecorate her office, he suggested that she should hire Emma to do it. When Emma was offere
By your Side Fifty-nine
Three days later, Mila was finally discharged from the hospital; something she was thankful for. However, what she was not thankful for was the lack of Emma's presence. She did not come to visit her or even call her. It was like she was mad at Mila, but Mila did not do anything... she only lied to her for her own sake. She did not want her to suffer, was that a wrong thing to do?Mila walked inside the apartment as Blake helped her to walk since it was not an easy task due to her wounds. She did her best to convince her parents to leave and luckily they agreed after a lot of unsuccessful attempts, both of them had their jobs and she thought that they should not stop their life because of her, so they booked tonight's flight. Julie and the others convinced them that they would take good care of Mila and she told them that she would Skype them every night to assure them that she was okay.When Mila walked inside, she saw Emma sitting on the couch. She was looking at the
By your Side Fifty-eight
It had been five days since Mila was stabbed. She was doing better, yet she did not wake up. Her kidney was thankfully working properly and her wounds were starting to heal, but that was not enough to make Emma go easy on herself.Blake called her parents and told them everything. It was not an easy moment for them and they took the first flight to Seattle once they heard what happened. They were devastated and they looked broken when they saw their daughter.Julie, Leila, and Hannah were in shock when they heard what happened. They have never imagined that something so terrible like that would happen to Mila. They did not think that Cole was that cruel.Emma told Mila's parents all what happened in her life and why they reached that state in the first place; she told them about Cole and his abuse, about Ariana, and how she got between Mila and her. She even told them about kicking Mila out. She told them about almost being raped and how Mila and the rest saved
By your Side Fifty-seven
Once Emma passed out, Aaron quickly carried her small body between his muscular arms and laid her carefully on the hospital seats. A nurse saw what happened so she asked Aaron to take her to the emergency room. Aaron picked her up again without any struggle and rushed to the emergency room. She weighed less than the weight he practised with at the gym. He held her protectively like he was holding his whole world between his arms."She passed out, she received bad news and passed out," he told the nurse who helped him lay Emma on the hospital bed."Don't worry, she's going to be okay," the nurse assured him upon seeing how anxious he looked.After thirty minutes, Emma woke up. Aaron did not leave her side, he was really worried about her even after he was assured by the doctor and the nurse that she was doing fine. After the nurse fixed the IV in her hand, he held her pale hand gently in his. He hated seeing the girl he loved in that place. He loved seeing her be
By your Side Fifty-six: Emma's P.O.V
"Blake, it's getting so late... Mila hasn't come home yet and she is not answering her phone, please tell me she's at your place." I bit my nails nervously as I talked to Blake on the phone. It was already midnight and Mila was nowhere to be found. I was close to losing my mind."What do you mean she's not home? I only saw her this morning, but nothing after that," Blake spoke, worry was obvious in his voice."I don't know! She told me she needed to buy a few things and left, but that was around eight and now it's midnight!" I told him nervously. What was I supposed to do? Should I go search for her?I looked at my phone and saw an unknown number calling me. "Blake, stay on the line, there's an unknown number calling me," I said anxiously and answered. "Hello.""Is this Emma Adams?" I heard a woman's voice, speaking to me professionally which increased my worry. Why would anybody call me at this hour unless it was an emergency?"Mila Montgomery has
