Abuse

I used to have a boyfriend that hit me. The thing is, I didn't see it coming. He always seemed sweet in the beginning; but then it started. He would tell me what to do on my Friday nights, what earrings to wear, what I should and should not eat; things like that. Things that could be "justified" and shrugged off. He wanted to spend time with me. He liked those earrings best. He’s just looking out for my health. But this wasn't the case. He started "controlling" me when things didn't go just his way. He would grab me with a grip so tight, it left bruises up and down my arms. Then he would hit me. He never gave me a black eye or anything like that, because he knew that would get him caught. Even while this was happening, I let self-deception get the best of me. It wasn't really happening, this couldn't happen to me. One day, I was walking through my living room when my mom stopped me; she asked about the bruises, and I lied. It would go from "oh, I don’t know" to "I fell down", or "I got hit with a ball in gym class". This was when I realized the problem at hand. I was altering my daily life to cover up for him, and that was not okay. I felt miserable, unwanted, alone, scared, and completely disgusted with myself. Finally, I went to his best friend, who I was pretty well acquainted with, and told him everything that was going on. He was shocked, but said he would take care of it. It ended up his best friend beat the shit out of him, and we never spoke again