Break, p.1
Break, page 1
Copyright © 2023 S. E. Green
All Right Reserved
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Cover Design – S. E. Green through Canva
Editor – Faith Cavalier
Proofreader – Scarlett’s Proofreading Services
Alpha Reader – Aurora Hope/El Rivers
WEBSITE – segreenauthor.com
Dedication
To the abused.
To the broken.
To the freed.
Table of Contents
Dedication
From the Author
Trigger Warnings
Song List
PART I
Chapter 1 – Ethan - 19 years ago
Chapter 2 – Vincent - 16 years ago
Chapter 3 – Max - 14 years ago
Chapter 4 – Ethan - 11 years ago
Chapter 5 – Vincent - 10 years ago
Chapter 6 – Max - 9 years ago
Chapter 7 – Ethan - 5 years ago
Chapter 8 – Vincent - 2 years ago
Chapter 9 – Max - 1 day ago
PART II
Chapter 10 – Max - Turning Gears
Chapter 11 – Ethan - History
Chapter 12 – Vincent - Just Doing my Job
Chapter 13 – Ethan - Villains
Chapter 14 – Max - Damn Dog
Chapter 15 – Vincent - What an Asshole
Chapter 16 – Ethan -Questions
Chapter 17 – Max - Fuck Indifference
The File
Chapter 18 – Vincent - This Shit is Bananas
Chapter 19 – Ethan - Tattoos
Chapter 20 – Max - Jesus Christ
Chapter 21 – Ethan - Paper
Chapter 22 – Vincent - Making my Move
Chapter 23 – Max - Feels Good
Chapter 24 – Vincent - Hiding From a Girl
Chapter 25 – Ethan - Sick
Chapter 26 – Max - Jealousy Sucks
Chapter 27 – Vincent - Wanna Skydive?
Chapter 28 – Max - No Hiding
Chapter 29 – Ethan - Eden
Chapter 30 – Max - Holy Fuck
Chapter 31 – Vincent - There She Is…
Chapter 32 – Ethan - Procedure
Chapter 33 – Max - Same, Mina
Chapter 34 – Max - The Light
Chapter 35 – Vincent - Keep Your Secrets
Chapter 36 – Ethan - Promises
Chapter 37 – Vincent - Must. Fucking. Sleep.
The Letter
Chapter 38 – Max - Absolutely Not
Chapter 39 – Vincent - This Motherfucker…
Chapter 40 – Ethan - Strike
Chapter 41 – Max - Let’s Go
Chapter 42 – Vincent - It’s Miss Bardot
Chapter 43 – Ethan - Monopoly
Chapter 44 – Max - Being Followed
Chapter 45 – Max - Need You
Chapter 46 – Vincent - The Thing Rocks!
Chapter 47 – Vincent - I’m in Heaven
Chapter 48 – Ethan - Glass
Chapter 49 – Danny - RAGE
Chapter 50 – Max - Little Dove
Chapter 51 – Ethan - Darlin’
Chapter 52 – Vincent - Sweetpea
Epilogue – Mina - Orchards
A Note from the Author
About the Author
Books by S.E. Green
From the Author
I live for music, so I often get inspired by many different styles of songs and artists when I write. While some books that I write are inspired by multiple songs, sometimes it’s a one repeater for me. Music just sort of sucks me in and puts me in a particular mood - one that I hope you feel when you listen to the playlist I’ve created for BREAK.
This story came to me while I was ruminating over my own past abusive relationship, along with being an ear for friends of mine who were and are going through similar situations. It rocked my world that so many men and women face vitriolic words and hatred from the ones they swore to always love. You are not broken, just maybe bruised a bit, but if you look ahead and find the path that you’re destined to travel, my greatest wish is that you hit the ground running when you find it.
My main female lead, Mina, is strong in her own way. She maintains her conviction throughout the book, staying true to who she is, but she’s never broken. Sure, she may feel like she’s on the cusp, but her men not only earn her trust, but feed her thirst to live. Mina could do it on her own, but she craves the love she finds in them. She’s been through a lot and came out of it by taking control of her own life. She also feels no guilt stealing Max’s furbaby, and he claims her as well. I hope you enjoy reading their love story as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Trigger Warnings
Please know that there could be some triggering topics addressed that include:
Bullying, childhood abuse, verbal abuse, physical abuse, domestic violence, mentions of past rape, suicide, violence.
Having experienced abuse in my past (one sexual assault and one physically/verbally abusive relationship), I sometimes draw from how I felt and recovered from it. Everyone reacts differently to trauma, so if you doubt that my character(s) reacted in a believable way, please keep in mind we are all wonderfully different. My therapist told me that our bodies tend to subconsciously protect itself the best way it thinks will keep us the safest. Please seek help if you are being hurt or have been hurt in the past. We all want you safe and feeling loved!
Song List
Alone by Joe Alexander Shepard
ANXIETY by Tony Ann
Ascension by Helen Jane Long
Aura by Raban
Autumn Romance by Anne Sophie Versnaeyen
Be A Hero by Euphoria, Bolshiee
A Beautiful Distraction by Michele McLaughlin
Beauty in Betrayal by Lennard Kastner
Brilliant Day by Steve Horner
Burning by Ludovico Einaudi
Canzone Africana IV by Ludovico Einaudi
Divenire by Ludovico Einaudi
Dragonfly Keeper by PHILDEL
The Earth Prelude by Ludovico Einaudi
Einaudi: Giorni Dispari by Ludovico Einaudi
Escape by Raban
Evening Sky by Austin Farwell
Experience by Ludovico Einaudi
Family by Dustin O’Halloran, Hauschka
Fire by Gunnarsson
The Flying of a Leaf by Mattia Vlad Morleo
Glittering Water by Jiří Horák, Eklipse
GRIEF by Tory Ann
I Give Up by Elijah Bossenbroek
Journey by Helen Jane Long
Lady Labyrinth by Ludovico Einaudi
Limbo by Ludovico Einaudi
Lionheartby Stephan Moccio
LOST by Tony Ann
Love Is A Mystery by Ludovico Einaudi
Love Stream by Brice Davoli
Metamorphosis by David Clavijo
Momentary by Edvard Kravchuk
No More Tears by Distant Cowboy
Nuvole Bianche by Ludovico Einaudi
Perseverance by Michele McLaughlin
Petrichor by Evalian Massey
The Pigeon River by Biny Andrews
RAIN by Tony Ann
Raindrop by Jiří Horák
REFLECTIONS by Tony Ann
A River of Dreams by Alexei Surovykh
SEREIN by Tony Ann
Snow by Fabrizio Paterlini
Soleil by Stephan Moccio
The Sound of His Insanity by Lucas Kirby
Stella Del Mattino by Ludovico Einaudi
Storm Away by Helen Jane Long
TIME by Tony Ann
TIME (PT. II) by Tony Ann
Tranquil by Borrtex
Unlocking the Mind by Samuel Bohn
Waterways by Ludovico Einaudi
Wild Sideby Roberto Cacciapaglia
Wind’s Caress by Mattia Vlad Morleo
Chapter 1
19 years ago
Ethan
“Seriously, Max. It’s not supposed to go like that! You have to pull this part out before putting in the darts, or they’re gonna bend and won’t fire!” Vincent complains as he tries to pull his new Nerf gun out of Max’s hand to show him how to load it.
“Back. Off. I can do it!” Max yells back.
Watching him get angry as his dirty fingers slip and slide over the plastic is annoying. I wish he’d just let Vincent do it so they would stop fighting and we can just play already.
I roll my eyes when Vincent yanks the gun out of Max’s hand. “Just let me do it. You’re going to break it, you jerk!”
Max’s face turns red as he glares at our friend. “I’m not gonna play if you’re gonna keep being a… a dick.”
Looking up, my eyes widen at Max and then I look around to make sure none of the parents at the park heard him. Whispering, I wa
Max walks over to the edge of one of the swing sets that holds in the wood chips, grabbing a stick on the way, and sits down. Digging the end into the ground, he waits while Vincent tries to load the gun, then asks, “Where’s Danny anyways? I thought he was supposed to bring his guns over too, so we can all have one?”
Vincent doesn’t pay any attention to Max’s question while trying to pop the chamber out. “This stupid thing won’t budge!” he whines, then tosses it to the ground.
“He’s probably just eating lunch,” I remind Max, then walk over to pick up the Nerf gun and try to pry it open. “Ugh, my fingers are too big for this. We need something small to bend in here to pull it out.” Looking around for another stick, I didn’t see any that wouldn’t break in half.
“Go ask that kid over there,” Vincent tells me, pointing at a little girl who’s playing in a sandbox by herself. “She’s got a bunch of toys that I bet could pry this stupid thing open.” He puts the gun in my hand and pushes me toward her.
Glaring at him, I roll my shoulder to get his hand off me. “Stop pushing me.”
“Just go ask her, would ya?” I don’t know why he can’t do it. He knows I don’t like talking to people I don’t know. At least it’s not someone older.
“Fine.”
Marching over to the sandbox, I stand on the side and wait for this stinking kid to look up at me so I can get one of her toys. That mom with the old church lady face is staring at me again, and I try not to get frustrated with my friends for making me talk to a toddler. “Hey,” I say, trying to get her attention.
The little girl stops moving for just a second before looking over at that lady on the bench, and then she keeps digging her hole while ignoring me. She has really dark brown hair that’s in one of those fancy braids going down her back, and a dress that looks like someone made it for her. I don’t know how old she is, but she’s so little that I bet she’s only like four or something.
“Hey, do you hear me? Can I use one of your toys for a second? I gotta fix my Nerf gun,” I ask again, tapping my toe on the edge of the box she’s in.
Finally, I get her to look up at me. She grabs an ugly brown bunny and hugs it to her chest as she looks me over. Big ol’ brown eyes that match her hair peek through the long bangs on her forehead. “You want one of my toys?” She looks down at a couple of them in her hand and frowns. “Which one you want?”
Okay, maybe she’s not four, but she’s really small like she could be. I squat down because it seems like I’m scaring her. Pointing at one of the digging tools that looks like a metal rake, I ask, “Can I use that one? Just for a second.”
She doesn’t say anything, but she nods her head and then hands me the one I was pointing at. “Thanks,” I tell her, and then use one of the tips to dig open the chamber. The plastic on this stupid thing bends and cracks, but finally, I get it to pop open. Sighing happily, I set her toy back down in the sand next to her. “Got it. Thought it was gonna break, but it didn’t.”
Her voice is quiet, so I lean in to hear her better when she says, “I’m glad it’s not broken. You guys playing shoot the bad guy?” She looks over my shoulder. I look behind me at Vincent and Max, who are standing with their arms crossed, watching and waiting for me to come back over.
Turning to face her again, I smile. “We were gonna play, yeah. But we only got a couple of guns right now. Our friend is coming with two more so we can have even teams,” I tell her.
She bites her lip and then nods her head again. “I never played that before. Can I shoot your gun?”
Looking down at the Nerf gun I’ve got set on my knees, I think about it. I probably should let her try it since she let me use her toy; it’s only fair. “I don’t got any of the darts in it right now. Let me go put some in and I’ll let you shoot it for a minute, if you want.”
She gives me a huge smile and sits up on knees, moving towards me a little. “Really? Sorry, I didn’t say please when I asked. But I meant to… and thank you for lettin’ me shoot it.”
“It’s no big deal. I’ll be right back.” Grabbing the gun, I run over to my friends to get some darts so she can try it out. Thankfully, Danny is finally here, so we can actually play instead of standing around while Vincent and Max fight with each other.
“‘Bout time. Did you fix it?” Vincent asks, holding his hand out for the gun to check it over. I don’t give it to him just yet.
“Yeah, I fixed it. I just gotta grab some of these darts. I’m gonna let that girl shoot it really quick,” I tell him, squatting down to grab a handful of the green foam bullets he shoved into a plastic bag.
Danny pushes the bag away with his foot. “Why are you lettin’ her do that? Come on, man. Let’s just play. My mom said I only got like an hour before I have to go back home.”
I slap his foot and try to reach for them again, but Vincent picks up the bag before I can get any of them. “Seriously, Ethan. Not now,” he snaps at me, then looks at the other two. “Okay, who’s with who? Wait, are we gonna do teams or are we going solo today?”
“Solo,” Max says, leaning over to snatch the bag away from Vince. He shoves a handful of darts into his pocket and loads his gun.
“Guys,” I say, standing with my hands on my hips. I look back and see that the little girl who helped me is still on her knees, watching us and obviously waiting for me to come back so she can try out shooting this thing. “I told her I’d let her try this out. It’ll only take a minute.”
Danny glances over to where I was looking, and then rolls his eyes. “Nooo. Are you kidding me, Ethan? Baby Willie? You are not taking one of my guns over there for her to touch.” He backs away, holding both of his guns and an extra bag of darts out so I can’t reach any of them.
“Who?” asks Max.
“Freaking Wilhelmina Bardot. She’s six, and this annoying baby that lives next door to me. They just moved in a few months ago. My parents keep having dinner with them and she’s always freaking there. I’m not kidding, she’s not touching my Nerf gun. If you take it over there, I’m not gonna let you use my stuff,” Danny says, and I know he’s not going to give in. He never gives in and always has to be right.
Rubbing my hand over the back of my head, I look back over to her and see that church lady talking to her now. She’s not smiling anymore, but she keeps looking over at us like she’s waiting for me.
“But I told her she could ‘cuz she let me use one of her toys to fix this thing,” I tell them, holding up the empty gun.
“She’s what, like three? Just leave it be. She’ll get over it,” Max says as he loads up his gun.
Danny smirks at me. “I’m telling you, you don’t want her to touch your stuff. She’s gonna break it and then follow you around everywhere. Just ignore her. It’s what I do.”
Sighing, I give in. “Fine. Give me some dang darts.”
“Finally!” Vincent cheers, dropping to the ground to fish out more darts from the bag. “You guys don’t even know what you’re in for. These things have this rapid-fire trigger on them and they hit hard.”
Looking back over at Wilhelmina, I see her picking up her toys while that lady, who I guess is her mom, stands over her with her arms crossed. I feel kind of bad for not going back and letting her shoot the gun, but they’re right. She’ll get over it and forget.
Once we’re all loaded up, we run away from each other. I only look back at the little girl one more time to see her and her mom walking to the cars in the parking lot. She reaches up to hold her hand, but her mom pulls it away, bends over to point in her face and yells at her for something.
I feel guilty again, but only for a second because I feel a dart hit me in the back. I turn around to see Danny laughing his butt off as he runs over to the jungle gym. Forgetting about his neighbor, I laugh as I chase after him and pull my trigger to nail him in the ankle just as he starts to climb the rope ladder.
Taking aim just as he gets to the top, I nail Danny again, this time in the back of his head, and he screams back at me, “No face shots! That hurts!”
“Don’t be a baby!” I call to him as I turn and chase after Vincent, who’s just gone up the tube slide. These guys are so bad at this game, and I smile, knowing that I’m gonna kick their butts, just like I always do.
