Matt and Karen had been living together for a mouth now, and so far it was perfect. They were both the happiest they had ever been. Matt was being his adorable self; curled up on the couch watching the BBC, and Karen was doing some quick washing up before joining him.
Although Matt was extremely happy with his new ginger partner, he had no idea that this was honestly the only good relationship she had ever been in.
Karen had almost fished up, and as she got to the last plate it slipped from her hand. She froze. The plate managed to fall on the floor and shatter. Matt herd the plate break but he didn't hear anything from Karen so he rushed into the kitchen. His heart was beating faster than he was used to and he had already broken out into a sweat with worry. Karen's body was in a similar state.
"What happened?" He said in a tone that might have made his overwhelming concern sound like anger. Matt looked up from the floor to Karen's face, he became even more worried when he saw tears streaming down her face. Her body was shaking rapidly and she looked mortified.
"Karen," Matt said softly as he took a step toward her, "are you okay."
She flinched away when he got close enough to reach out and touch her. "Please, don't hit me," she sobbed in her thick Scottish accent.
"Oh god," he said. Matt didn't know what to say or how to react. He could feel his own heart breaking, "Karen I would never." He reached out, and ignoring her flinch pulled her into an embrace.
She cried into his shoulder for a long time before he pulled away and smiled down at her with his classic "everything's okay" smile. She whipped her nose on the back of her sleeve, and at that moment she didn't even care how unattractive that was.
She went back into his shoulder, but she wasn't sobbing anymore, just hugging the first man she's ever been able to trust. They left the broken plate on the ground and the dirty dishes in the sink and walked back into the living room together, Karen under Matt's arm.
Matt was trying to stay happy, and upbeat, and calm for Karen, but he just couldn't. He was shaken by the thought of Karen being hurt by anyone, and mortified by the why she looked at him when he'd stepped into the kitchen.
They spent the rest of the day sprawled all over the couch intertwined with each other. Sometimes they whispered about the past, sometimes they were just quiet together, sometimes they kissed, and when Matt went to pop some pop them some popcorn they both cried a little.
When the sun had been down for a few hours, and nothing good was coming on the telly anymore the moved to their bedroom. Neither of them could sleep so they kissed until their cloths weren't on anymore. They kissed until they made love. They kissed until Karen curled her naked body around Matt's and fell asleep.
Then Matt finally let himself feel everything he'd been holding in all day. He thought about the secrets Karen told him. He thought about how her father beat her when she was a child, and how the only two serious relationships she's been in had involved abusive partners.
Matt started to cry. He closed his eyes and put the arm that Karen wasn't laying on over his eyes. He cried silently for a long time; half of him wished Karen could wake up and comfort him, and the other half of him was so thankful that she didn't.
The next day Karen woke up first and kissed her sleeping prince of a boyfriend, and after getting dressed she snuck into the kitchen and cleaned up the broken mess and everything was back to normal. They didn't talk about the past anymore, only on sad days, and those were rare. They went back to happy, and Karen was the happiest she's been in her life.
Please Forgive any mistakes and such, I'm very new at this.