“I don’t want to talk about that,” I said quickly, my voice small but firm. My fingers curled into the hem of my shirt. “Mark said I don’t have to talk about things if I’m not ready.”
Aarev blinked, then nodded, looking contrite. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Elior. I didn’t mean to push you into talking about it. I just…”
“It’s okay,” I said, though my heart was still beating a little fast.
“No, it’s not. I haven’t been fair to you. I’ve just been worried. You’re a good kid, Elior, and I—I’m worried about you.”
“Worried about what?” I asked.
Aarev was quiet for a moment, watching the water instead of me. The ducks had wandered off again, and the swan was farther out now, a white curve against the green.
“I’m worried,” he said finally, “that Jace might be taking advantage of you.”
“What?” I shook my head immediately, the motion sharp. “How?”
“The way he acts around you—it’s not normal,” Aarev said gently. “And I’m not saying he hasn’t helped you, because in some ways, he clearly has. But help and control can look very similar when someone’s vulnerable.”
“I’m not—” I started, heat creeping up my neck. “I’m not vulnerable like that. I mean, I am, but—he saved me. He—”
“Elior,” Aarev interrupted softly, turning fully toward me now. “Please. Just listen to me for a minute. I’m not trying to upset you.”
I hesitated, fingers curling in my lap. My instinct was to stand up and go home. It felt like hewastrying to upset me.
But at the same time, he looked so concerned, like he was earnestly trying to express that something was deeply bothering him. He was my friend—he had said so. And friends needed to support each other. Maybe if I listened to what he had to say, I could clear up any misunderstandings that had led him to be so upset.
“…Okay,” I said quietly.
“Have you ever been in a relationship before Jace?” he asked.
I blinked, then shook my head.
Not even close.
Aarev exhaled slowly, rubbing a hand over his face. “Yeah, Ithought so.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” I asked.
“A lot,” he said. “Healthy relationships don’t start the way yours did. They don’t begin in crisis. They don’t begin with one person having total power over the other’s safety, housing, food, or emotional stability. Have you two even talked about you getting a job or going to school or anything that would make you more independent?”
“He doesn’t have power over me,” I said quickly. “And no, but—”
Aarev replied, “You rely on him for almost everything—where you go, who you see, what you wear, when you eat.”
“That’s not true,” I insisted. “He lets me choose things.”
“Does he?” Aarev asked quietly. “Or does he decide what your choices are first?”
I opened my mouth, then closed it again. I thought of the clothes he bought me. The way he watched me eat. The rules about going out alone. The way he didn’t like it when I used Aarev’s first name.
“He just wants me to be safe.”
“I believe he tells himself that,” Aarev said. “But making someone dependent on you—especially someone who’s just escaped an abusive, controlling environment—that’s dangerous. Even if it feels loving.”
My chest felt tight. Too tight.
“You don’t understand! How would you know any of this? I haven’t seen you since that first therapy appointment, which was like a month ago. You don’t know anything about our relationship,” I snapped.
Aarev’s expression softened, but his eyes stayed serious. “I see how possessive he is over you. I see how you think youneed his permission or approval to go places and do things. I see how you’re completely financially dependent on him. I see how he’s trying to keep you hidden away from the outside world. None of that is okay, Elior. None of it.”
