You're Such a Gorgeous Nightmare

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Stop. What's that?" I asked Brii as she was getting dressed.

"What's what?"

I knew exactly what it was. Dozens of cuts decorated her hips, like a zebra's stripes. I hadn't noticed them before because, well, we were sort of having sex.

"You know what I'm talking about. Why." I asked, partly shocked, and partly sympathetic. "I know it's another thing you probably don't like talking about... does anybody know about it?"

She shook her head, a no.

"Well, you know you can trust me. If you don't want to talk to me about it, you don't have to. But could you at least stop it? For me?"

She nodded, but there was a hint of uncertainty in her eyes.

"You promise? Please. I don't want you to hurt yourself."

"I'll try. I can't promise anything right now. The only thing I can promise is today."

That worried me. It worried me because I'd once felt the same way.

"Brii, if I promise you something, will you promise me you'll try as hard as you can?"

"Yes." the one word meant everything to me at the moment.

"If I promise you that I won't break your heart, will you keep your promise?"

"Yes."

And that was enough to assure me that she'd be safe from herself, at least for a little while.