On the day of the proposal, I finally met my boyfriend’s brother. At that moment, my entire body froze, muscles numb, and a loud ringing filled my ears. I knew it—my PTSD was acting up again. He acted like a perfect gentleman, but in my mind, all I could see was his other face—his terrifying face. He had once crouched in front of me, his cold gaze piercing as he sneered, “You’re just a cheap slut, Rose. Who are you trying to fool?” And with that, he’d pressed a lit cigarette into my hand, the sizzle of it burning into my skin. “Hey, sis. I’m Ethan, David’s brother,” Ethan Landon’s voice cut through the noisy atmosphere, hitting me with precise clarity. A violent shiver ran down my spine, my whole body convulsing. “Rose… Rose…” David noticed my distress immediately, gripping my cold, pale hand tightly. Without missing a beat, he covered for me, “She’s a bit shy around strangers. Why don’t you sit down for now? Don’t startle her.” Ethan looked at me with slight surprise. I had changed my name, changed my appearance. It seemed like he didn’t recognize me. He just smiled and said, “Alright. I haven’t been back in years. I’ll go catch up with some old friends.” As soon as Ethan walked away, David’s face fell. He gently wrapped his coat around me and pulled me into a quiet corner, holding me close, full of concern. “Rose, what happened? Why are you having an attack now? I’m sorry, was it the crowd? Did it overwhelm you?” His voice was filled with guilt. David knew about my PTSD. I had a few episodes in front of him when we first got together, and it scared him senseless. But over the past three years, he’d been incredibly good to me—kind and gentle—helping me heal my trauma, little by little. I hadn’t had an episode in a long time, and even the doctors thought I had a chance at recovery. But after seeing Ethan again, I knew. I knew I wasn’t getting better. I’d never get better. Not in this lifetime.
“David…” I finally managed to regain some sense of calm. Still trapped in his arms, too stiff to push him away, I could only press my weak fists against his chest. “Sorry, did I scare your brother?” David kissed my forehead gently, soothing me in his soft voice, “It’s fine. I know you don’t like strangers. But after we’re married, Ethan will be family, just like me. He’ll protect you too.” Protect me? Family? I almost laughed out loud at his words. If only he knew that the reason for my lifelong illness—the very source of my trauma—was his dear brother. Would he still be able to say so casually that we’d all be family? That Ethan would protect me? My eyes felt dry, but I couldn’t cry. I’d cried all my tears back in high school when Ethan Landon was tormenting me. That’s when I learned tears are the most useless thing in the world. “Rose, I just remembered—didn’t Ethan go to the same high school as you? Did you ever hear any stories about the trouble he got into?” David chuckled, his voice light, as if trying to calm me down. “He was just a dumb kid back then, causing trouble at school. But don’t worry, he’s grown a lot over the years. He’s not that reckless boy anymore.” “And, you know, he cares about family… just like I do.” Yeah, I knew what David was saying, but it wasn’t the whole truth. No one knew better than me—Ethan Landon was rotten to the core. How bad, you ask? Bad enough to see me for the first time and immediately decide, along with his rich-kid friends, that I was his new plaything.
Why? I thought about it. Probably because I didn’t look the other way when he and his gang of rich bullies were harassing everyone at Lincoln High School. Ethan was the ringleader back then. They didn’t care about right or wrong. They just enjoyed tormenting people for fun. Once, I saw him forcing my deskmate to kneel and lick his shoes while his friends laughed. I couldn’t take it anymore and stormed over to confront him. That’s when I caught his eye, standing out from the silent crowd. I still remember the gasps from the students around us, and the mocking look on Ethan’s face as he pushed my bangs back, sneering at me. “What, trying to stand up for your little boyfriend?” The way I shielded my deskmate with my body amused him. From that moment on, Ethan decided I was his next conquest. Ethan and his gang of trust fund kids started hovering around me more and more. They bullied my poor deskmate and tried to sweet-talk me at every opportunity, making my life increasingly unbearable. “Rose, what’s so great about that country boy? All he has is good grades.” “Why don’t you be with me instead?” At first, he was all talk. But one day, in the school cafeteria, he slid his hand onto my leg. That’s when I finally snapped. I screamed at him, right in front of everyone, “Jacob’s smart, good-looking, and a hundred times better than you!” “Ethan Landon, I hate you! Leave me alone and stay away from me!” Ethan, who had been adored and spoiled his whole life, was humiliated in front of the entire cafeteria. As soon as I finished shouting, I realized how dangerous it was, especially when I saw the murderous look on his face. He let out a sinister laugh, and I knew his patience was gone. Then, a bowl of scalding soup was dumped over my head. The hot liquid ran down my hair, burning my skin, and I couldn’t even open my eyes. And that was just the beginning. I had touched Ethan’s sore spot, and from that day on, he made it his mission to make my life a living hell. He had his lackeys take inappropriate pictures of me from humiliating angles and posted them on the school blog. Then, he spread vicious rumors, calling me a manipulative slut who’d sleep with anyone. Soon enough, I became the laughingstock of the school, the subject of endless gossip. The girls looked at me with mocking eyes, some full of jealousy, while the boys’ stares were downright filthy. Walking down the hall, I couldn’t escape the constant whispers: “Hey, that’s Rose Evans. Gotta admit, she’s pretty hot…” “You might have a shot with her. I heard she’s not that picky.” “Ugh, what a bitch.”
Ethan got his lackeys to take compromising photos of me and post them all over the school forum. He spread lies about me, calling me a slut, saying I’d sleep with anyone. In no time, I became a laughingstock, the subject of endless gossip. The girls gave me dirty looks, full of mockery and jealousy. The boys? They looked at me like I was a piece of meat. I couldn’t walk down the hall without hearing: “That’s Rose, right? Gotta admit, she’s hot…” “Maybe you have a shot. I heard she’s not picky.” “Ugh, what a slut.” It didn’t stop there. I was cornered in alleys by groups of girls, pushed around, cursed at, and beaten. Every time, after the crowd dispersed, Ethan and his friends would show up to watch me struggle. “How’s it going, Rose? Regretting your choices yet? If you kneel and apologize, maybe I’ll reconsider.” He stood over me, looking down with that same disgusting grin. I was scared—terrified, even—but I had never been taught to submit to evil. So I bit my lip and stayed silent. His smile faded. Then, he took his cigarette and pressed it hard into the back of my hand. “You think you’re so pure, don’t you? You’re nothing but a dirty slut, Rose.” I could hear the sizzle of my skin burning, the smell of charred flesh filling the air. That was the mark Ethan left on me—his trophy, my shame. The scar remained, a pink, jagged reminder of what he did. Years later, I tried to cover it up with a tattoo—a pink whale. But the ink couldn’t erase my past, just like it couldn’t fool David when he saw the scar beneath. When David asked about it, I brushed it off, saying it was just a burn. He knew I had stories I wasn’t telling, but he never pushed me for answers. He just held me close, whispering, “I wish I had met you sooner. Then I could’ve protected you, before you had to go through all of this…” I almost cried when he said that. David thought I was touched, and he kissed me gently. But only I knew the truth: I had met David a long time ago. And every scar on my body—he and his brother were the ones who gave them to me.
That day, after Ethan left, I lay in the alley, feeling like a dying fish washed ashore. The alley was right next to the school. Students walked by, but they all hurried away, not daring to help me. My vision blurred from the pain, and I didn’t know how long it had been until a pair of worn-out sneakers appeared in front of me. Then, someone draped a big, familiar hoodie over me, the scent of laundry detergent filling my senses. It was Jacob. He didn’t have much money, but he went to the pharmacy, bought some medicine, and brought me back to the classroom. Without a word, Jacob cleaned the burn on my hand. His eyes were red, and finally, in a hoarse voice, he said, “Rose, I’m sorry…” That was only the second time Jacob had spoken to me since he transferred to Lincoln High.
From the moment Ethan had started targeting me, I noticed Jacob distancing himself. I knew he didn’t want to drag me into his mess, but in the end, I couldn’t escape Ethan’s torment. When the disinfectant stung my wound, I couldn’t hold back my tears. I looked at Jacob and said, “Don’t apologize. You didn’t do anything wrong.” The ones at fault weren’t him—or me. It was those who had started this whole mess and the bystanders who did nothing to stop it. “Rose, why aren’t you saying anything? Are you feeling unwell?” David’s voice broke through my thoughts. His grip on my hand tightened, and for once, I heard a trace of uncertainty. He remembered how we used to talk about bullying cases, how deeply I despised it. He knew about Ethan’s notorious reputation at Lincoln High, how it had caused such a scandal that even the police got involved. The Landon family had covered it up, but the school had never quite forgotten. Now I understood why David had waited until today to introduce me to Ethan. He had been scared—scared that I would be disappointed in him, in the Landon family, because of the sins of the past. So I gave him no answer, no relief. I just closed my eyes and whispered, “I’m sorry, David. I’m tired. Can I go home now?” It was supposed to be the day he proposed to me. But seeing my state, David relented, nodding, “Okay, Rose. I’ll take you home.” On the way back, David tried to make small talk, but I kept my lips sealed, not offering him a single word. When we reached my apartment and he followed me to the door, assuming he’d come in like usual, I stopped him. “David, maybe you should go spend time with your brother. He just got back.” David froze, his face showing clear confusion. We had been living together for a long time now, and he hadn’t expected me to shut him out on such an important day. My sudden coldness was impossible to ignore. When I went to close the door, he slammed his hand against it, hard enough to make it shake. The warmth in his eyes was replaced by panic. “Rose, what’s going on? If it was wrong for me to invite so many people today, I’m sorry. We can talk about it. Didn’t we agree to be honest with each other, no matter what?” He said a lot, but I remained cold and distant. Finally, he lost his composure. “Is this about Ethan?” Every time I heard that name, it felt like I was suffocating. I turned pale, but I answered stiffly, “Yes, David. I knew you had a brother, but I didn’t know he was Ethan.” “Do you know why I became a lawyer? Why I hate bullying so much?” One question after another, my words hit David like punches. I could see the shock and struggle in his eyes, the emotions swirling inside him. “You know your brother got into a lot of trouble back then. But what if I told you I was one of the people he bullied?” David froze, like a machine malfunctioning. Disbelief and pain filled his expression. “Rose… how? He never—he never mentioned you…” I let out a bitter laugh. Ethan and his friends were so cruel back then, they didn’t even keep track of the people they tormented. “You think Ethan remembers every person he’s hurt?” My words left David speechless.
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