11. Don't Look Back

~ Kelsie ~

When I finally accepted that he really had left and wasn’t coming back, I found myself standing there, blinking back tears.

Was he really avoiding me because I was only eighteen? Or was there something else?

I remembered the disgust on his face… and then his words came echoing back to me, locked forever in my head.

…You have no clue. No idea what you’re doing. How can you? You’re a child.

I stormed into the dining room because I didn’t know where else to go. But the moment I stepped into the room I saw that wine bottle on the table.

My cheeks were hot from the glass I’d already had—and from the embarrassment of his rejection.

“Just a child, huh?” I muttered, picking up the bottle and not even bothering to pour it into the glass. I just tipped my head back and took a swig.

It was a little too much all at once. I coughed and spluttered a bit. But it didn’t matter. As soon as I could breathe, I took another one. Then another.

Soon, the warmth from the alcohol began to spread th