Thanks to the awesome Nani (glamagirl) for reviewing. Glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully you'll enjoy this one as well.
"Please," she pleaded. "We don't have to walk away."
He shrugged away from her touch, his face expressionless and his voice cold as he spoke. He couldn't raise his eyes to look at her, because he knew that if he did, he would back out of this. And he knew that she would hate him for this now, but later she'd understand. This was for the good of both of them.
"It's easier this way, Li," the man said softly, as a hand came up to tug at his hair. "Don't you see? We're two different people now. We just don't…" he fumbled for the words. "Mesh."
"Where is this even coming from?" Lita questioned, completely surprised by her boyfriend's behavior. "Come on, talk to me; let's work this out." She reached for his hand, but he again brushed her off, shoving his hands in his pockets as he did so.
"You don't get it," he gritted his teeth as he ground the words out. She didn't seem to be listening to him, or even thinking clearly, because if she was, she'd understand exactly what he was talking about. The situation was crystal clear to him; why couldn't she just open her eyes and see? "We're never going to work out."
Crushed by that statement, Lita blinked rapidly, her eyes wide and brimming with tears, and she hastily wiped them away before he got the chance to comment on them. She tossed her red hair back and crossed her arms over her chest, her tone indignant as she spoke.
"You think so? Cause I think we've been doing a pretty damn good job so far."
Again her boyfriend shook his head, wishing that there was some way he could explain to Lita why he had to leave. He knew that she thought he didn't want to work things out, but that wasn't the case, at all. They'd been trying for God knows how long, only to end up back here. Quite frankly, he was tired of trying, and regardless of whether or not she wanted to admit it, so was Lita. No good was going to come out of this, he knew that. He knew that things between them would be rocky at best for quite some time, but he was okay with that. He was prepared to deal with the insults, the angry accusations, and even the silent treatment. To him, it would all be worth it in the end because he had made a decision he should have had the guts to make long ago—he was going to stop hurting the woman he loved, as well as himself.
"I think you're scared," Lita said quietly. "I think you're so used to failure that you think one little speed bump in a relationship automatically means a breakup will follow." She crossed the room to stand beside her boyfriend, her hand on his shoulder as she spoke. "That's not true. Walking away isn't going to solve anything."
"Please," he pleaded, his voice rough and ragged. "Don't make this any harder than it has to be. I told you already, this is never going to work."
"Why?" She pressed, her voice calm. "Because you won't let it? What are you afraid of?"
"Nothing. I'm not afraid of anything, and for you to make such an implication is ridiculous." But he wouldn't look at her when he said it, and he was fidgeting—to Lita, a sure sign that he was lying. She couldn't make him open up, and she couldn't make him stay if he really didn't want to, but she was at least going to fight for this. Maybe she might lose it anyway in the end, but she'd be damned if she didn't at least try.
"You're not afraid," Lita rolled her eyes. "Okay. Then prove me wrong."
Why was she doing this? As each moment passed, he grew more and more frustrated by the way Lita was acting. This had gone on too long; he'd stood here, in the same room as her, and stalled for far too long. The time for conversation was over. And without another word, he silently turned his back to her, bent over to pick up his duffel bag, and made his way to the door. He had just turned the knob and pulled the door open when he heard a scoff.
"Wow, you're even more pathetic than I thought," Lita sneered. "You're willing to let the best thing that's ever happened to you end just because you're scared. Maybe you're right. We're not right for each other. I need a man, not a boy."
The words stung, though not as much as he'd expected them to, because he knew that Lita was right. Of course he wasn't going to admit it, because doing so would bring his weakness to the surface, and he couldn't allow that to happen, but she was right. He was turning his back on this because he was scared.
Maybe he was scared to face the things he felt. Maybe this scared him more than he could imagine. And maybe he would regret it later, but he didn't have any reason to complain at the moment. He'd made this bed; now he was going to lie in it. No looking back. No changing his mind.
From here on, he would concentrate solely on moving forward.
