So, since Thursday was Thanksgiving, I didn't get to upload a new chapter, but it's Saturday, so here's today's chapter! Enjoy!

A Monchele Romance

Chapter 7- It's Officially Over

Dianna took a crying Lea over to the couch and sat down, holding Lea tightly and rocking her back and forth.

"Shhh, Lee, what happened? You haven't answered any of my calls and I got worried…" Dianna stroked Lea's hair until she got one last soft sob out.

Swallowing, the tiny brunette looked up at her friend with sad eyes. Feeling better with Dianna there, she decided to stop crying. Lea told Dianna everything, not skipping a single detail. It was hard for her not to cry while explaining, but she blinked away any tears that threatened to fall down her cheeks. Dianna's mouth dropped as she listened to Lea's story, anger towards Theo slowly building up inside of her.

"Di, I didn't know what to do!" Lea cried out. "I-I just ran out…"

"Sh, I know, I'm so sorry. How could he have done this to you?"

Lea didn't answer. She just sat there in Dianna's arms, tears brimming in her eyes again until she couldn't hold them back any longer.

Not able to see her friend so sad anymore, Dianna lifted Lea's face from her lap, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"Lea, I hate seeing you like this."

Lea swallowed. "I'm sorry Di, I just- I'm so angry and upset…"

"Hey, you know what? If Theo was too stupid to realize that he already had the kindest, brightest, and most beautiful girl in the world to himself, that's his loss, but he does not deserve to have someone cry over him. Maybe he wasn't ever really good enough for you. You need someone worth having you; no one else will do for my best friend." Dianna smiled comfortingly, taking Lea's hand. "Theo just wasn't the one… he never was."

Blinking up at Dianna, Lea took a deep breath. "Thanks Di, I'm glad you came over."

Dianna shook her head. "Of course I came over. You needed me; I wasn't about to stay home all night without checking on you."

"What about Theo?"

"What about him?"

Lea swallowed. "Well, what am I going to do? I know for sure he's going to come over soon…"

Dianna stood up, taking a deep breath and looking into Lea's eyes. "Lee, you're probably right, but there's really nothing I can do for you there… just remember, when he does come, stay true to yourself. Don't fall right back into his arms. You need to let him know that he doesn't deserve you." Dianna set a bag of food on the table. "You're probably hungry. I got you some food. Please eat it." She swallowed and left Lea alone to think about her words.

Lea wasn't surprised the next day when she opened the door to find Theo there. She was surprised, though, because it was obvious that he was drunk. Lea swallowed and held the door handle nervously as looked up at him, hoping that he hadn't had too much to drink and the conversation would go smoothly. Theo walked straight into the house and shut the door.

"Babe-"

"Theo, I'm not your 'babe' anymore… how could you cheat on me?" Lea was determined to keep from crying in front of Theo, not wanting him to see that she was upset.

"What are you talking about? You are my 'babe' Lee."

"Well I'm not sure I want to be anymore… what you did- it wasn't right. It hurt, a lot."

Theo reached forward, grabbing Lea's arm. "Who cares about that? Just forget about it and we don't have to fight."

"I care!" Lea yanked her arm away from him. "I care about it! I always trusted you! You have no idea how badly you broke my heart and I'm done!"

A glare formed on Theo's face. "You're not done. You're not done until I say you're done. You're mine."

Lea took a step back. "Theo, you need to leave immediately. I don't want you here." She swallowed, gathering the courage before saying, "We're through."

Lea was crouched on her living room floor, sobbing with her hand against her cheek. She was still there when Cory peered into the open door. Dianna had an interview but she asked him to check on Lea for her because she was still worried.

Cory shut the door softly behind him and looked around. Hearing someone crying softly, he rushed to find Lea in the living room and crouched down beside her.

"Lea, what happened? Are you okay?"

Lea couldn't respond. She was too afraid and was crying too much. Cory lifted her face so she was looking at him and brushed a piece of hair from her face.

"Hey…" Cory spoke softly and soothingly. "What happened? Di sent me to check on you… she told me about you and Theo. I hope that's okay." He took a deep breath as more tears slid down Lea's cheeks. "Lee, you can tell me… what happened?"

Lea looked down, hugging her knees to her chest. She wanted to tell him, and she knew she could. For some reason, Lea felt comfortable with Cory. He made her feel safe. "Theo… he came."

Cory swallowed. "Oh… and?"

"I-I broke up with him… but-"

Cory reached forward and took Lea's hand. "What?"

"H-he hit me…" Lea burst into tears, burying her face in her hands.

When Cory heard her say this, he became angry. He was furious that Theo had hit Lea. He was about to storm out to find Theo when he looked back down at the small, sobbing figure and decided that she needed him to stay with her.

Hesitantly, Cory scooped Lea's small body up into his strong arms and carried her to her bedroom, setting her down softly among the pillows. Having her lay down, he covered her with the soft comforter.

"Lea, don't worry. It'll be okay. Just get some rest. Try and sleep."

Reluctantly, Lea nodded, knowing that he was right. She really just wanted to get some rest. Hoping that he would stay while she slept, maybe watching television or something, Lea finally fell deeply asleep.