Author's note: This is my original work and the characters, story, and other unique content are mine. Others are not permitted to use or replicate any of the material in this story. This includes copy/pasting and/or scraping for any personal use (to include, but not limited to, placing my work into Ai bots of any kind).

TW: This story contains violence, cheating, domestic abuse/neglect, and other adult themes.

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"Harder! Harder! Oh, Ryan!"

Melissa's voice echoed down the hallway, reaching Amelia's ears where she stood in the darkness beyond the light spilling out through the cracked door.

In all of the years she'd been dating Ryan, she'd never swung by unannounced - tonight was the first.

It would also be the last.

She was already recording as she walked calmly toward the door, capturing every moan, each time they screamed each other's names... the one time they mentioned her.

Imagine, she thought with a cringe, bringing up the girlfriend while fucking the mistress... homewrecker? What's the right word for the 'other woman' when you're not married?

Not that Ryan hadn't tried. Several times he'd pushed for marriage, especially this last year. In the past few months he'd even asked for a baby.

She wondered if she'd always known and that's why she'd been so resistant, or if she believed the words she'd told him.

"I'm not the marriage type," she repeatedly said, shaking her head, "Besides, we don't need a piece of paper. Marriages are just contracts, and only good when business is involved."

Her resolve had been cracking, she'd admit - hence tonight's visit.

The irony wasn't lost on her.

She recorded from the doorframe, still hidden in shadow, for another moment or so. She even took a few pictures, to be thorough. Then, she slipped her phone into her pocket before walking into the light and leaning against the doorframe.

They didn't notice her right away.

"Fuck, I'm so close," Melissa moaned, her breathing heavy and her back slicked with sweat.

"Me too, baby," Ryan grit out.

"I certainly hope it's wrapped," Amelia said casually, ignoring the way they both screamed in surprise and leapt away from each other as if they'd been burned, "You really don't know where that's been."

"Amy," Ryan choked out, his eyes bugging even as he held a small pillow in front of himself.

As if she hadn't seen him already.

"Evenin'," Amelia chuckled, eyeing her boyfriend and her once-best-friend, "It appears I've interrupted quite the party."

"This isn't-" he began, but Amelia just smirked at him and raised an eyebrow - daring him to finish his sentence.

"Don't be so cliché," Amelia sighed, noting that Melissa didn't look sorry at all as she turned to leave - glancing back once to look at them over her shoulder, "Oh, we're done. Obviously. If either of you show your face in front of me ever again, I'll tell your mother all about this."

That was the first time Melissa's little look of victory fell, a scowl making it to her face.

"Don't be a bitter bitch, Amy," Melissa spit, "Just because-"

"Oh darling," Amelia chuckled, shaking her head, "I have nothing to be bitter about. His mother won't accept you, and he knows it. If she finds out what he's done, he'll be written out of the will," she glanced at the pale, gaping man she thought she'd love forever, "and he knows that too. I don't need him, just like I didn't need you when I dumped you as a friend. Neither of you are worth my time, and you're clearly made for each other."

She paused for a moment, holding Ryan's panicked eyes with her cold ones.

"Thank you, by the way," she said coldly, making him flinch, "You proved me right yet again. Marrying you really would have been a mistake."

"Amy, wait!" Ryan screamed, clearly coming to his senses as she walked away - trying to hop into his pants as he struggled forward.

"Why are you chasing her?!" Melissa squealed, "Are you serious right now?!"

"Shut the fuck up, Melissa," Ryan growled, nearly tripping in his effort to follow Amelia out, "You always knew Amelia was-"

Amelia didn't stay long enough to hear the rest of their bickering, slipping out of the apartment and down the fire escape so Ryan wouldn't be able to catch her and infect her with his stupid.

When she dropped to her feet down the ladder that always got stuck a foot above the ground, Amelia dusted her hands and shoved them in her pockets.

A back alley in the middle of the night... not the greatest place to be in a city like this. She didn't linger, rushing toward the mouth at the end that offered street lights and other people.

Unfortunately, she didn't make it that far.

"Well, aren't you a pretty thing," a raspy voice came before a man in a black hoodie emerged from behind a dumpster, "What's a pretty thing like you doing in a place like this?"

Well shit, Amelia sighed internally, hitting the power button on her phone in her pocket repeatedly as fast as she could.

A Hail Mary, she knew, but she couldn't exactly whip the phone out and call the police with the man right in front of her.

"Just walking by," Amelia responded, noticing shadows moving before two more men walked up behind him.

"Why not keep us company for a bit," the first man said, a crooked grin the only part of his face she could see, "We're not as scary as we look. Honest."

"Oh, I'm sure of that," she scoffed, not missing the sound of scuffing from behind her, "but I'm afraid I just got out of a bad relationship, and I'm not looking for my next one."

"Who said anything about a relationship, little dove?" a deeper voice said from behind her.

"Hmm, I suppose you didn't," she acknowledged, seeing the pipe by the wall beside her.

She dove for it suddenly, grabbing it and swinging it toward the voice behind her without another word.

She took him off guard, and he cried out in surprise when the pipe connected with the side of his face with a solid crack.

"Fucking bitch!" he screamed, from the ground.

"Yeah, yeah," she snorted, swinging the pipe around as the other men dashed forward, "pretty thing right up 'til we say no. So original."

She swung, fast and decisive, nailing the first man in the stomach when he was within reach.

She knew she was outnumbered, and likely outmatched - but she'd be damned if she just gave in.

If she was truthful, her hope was just to buy time for the police to arrive - or for an opening to escape.

Unfortunately, neither of those happened before the pipe was wrenched out of her hands - caught mid-air by one of the remaining men - and then swung brutally into her thigh.

She screamed out as her leg gave out, feeling the crack in the bone more than she heard it.

"We could have been gentle," the man towering over her spit, "now... nah, I don't think-"

She lunged forward and punched the man in the balls with everything she had, and while the man beside him hit her so hard in the face she flew into the brick wall behind her and saw stars - the sound the other guy made as he crumpled to the ground made her smirk.

She was grasping around the ground for literally anything to use as a weapon even as her vision was still coming back when she heard a series of grunts and cries that had her head snapping to the side.

She didn't recognize the silhouette of the man in the long trench coat that was finishing what she'd started, but that didn't matter at the moment. What mattered was that he dropped the last two guys, kicked a few who were still down for good measure, and then turned and picked her up without a word.

He didn't run, but he didn't walk either - moving at a brisk pace down the alley (away from her car, she noted with a tinge of irrational irritation), and across the street toward a car that was already waiting for him with the door open.

Amelia's head was still swimming, but it didn't escape her notice that the car was nice.

Like, really nice... like having Amelia thinking 'I don't belong here' kind of nice.

"Stay awake," the man's voice said suddenly, sitting beside her as the car peeled away from the curb.

He held her chin to force her to look at him, but she couldn't quite focus on him.

"C-concussion," she stammered, trying to stay conscious, "b-broken... femur. Need... hospital."

"We're headed there now," he said, still holding her chin, "stay awake."

"Foster," she choked, blinking, "t-tell them my name. Amelia Foster. They'll be able... to..."

"Stay awake!"

She didn't. She lost consciousness, and no matter how much he tried to rouse her he wasn't able to get her eyes to stay open.

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