SHAWN MENDES IMAGINE #15: Treat You Better. Warnings: some light cussing, physical and verbal abuse (I wanted to mention in case anyone is triggered by it.) "Shawn!" I called from upstairs in our bedroom. I waited a second for a response. "Yeah?" He replied, from the bottom of the stairs. "What do you need, babe?" "Can you help Sofia finish cleaning her closet?" I walked to the top of the stairs, looking down at him. "I started it for her, she needs help finishing. I'll start on ours." He nodded at me, walking upstairs and into our daughter's room. "Okay, Sof. Let's clean this up." I shuffled my feet against the carpet, walking into our bedroom. I opened the storage closet, sighing. "Where do I even start?" I decided to start from the bottom. I got down on my knees, looking for parts to clean out. I raised an eyebrow, pulling out a box that I didn't even recognize. I put it on the bed, opening it. I let out a subtle gasp, pulling out my Polaroids from more than a decade ago. I pulled one specific one from behind a few others. It was a picture of me and my ex-boyfriend Tyler. He was giving me a piggyback ride. I stared at it, flashing back to that moment exactly. ••• "Ty, don't drop me!" I screamed, laughing and holding onto him for what seemed like dear life. "Did you get the picture, Dee?" My friend Danielle grinned at me, nodding. She pulled the picture out of the bottom of my Polaroid camera, sticking it in the case, waiting for it to develop. I got off Tyler's back, taking the picture in the case from Danielle, putting it in my back pocket. "I'll see you later, Dee." I wrapped my arms around her neck. "Be careful with him." Danielle whispered into my ear, while I hugged her. I nodded slightly, pulling back. I got into the car with Tyler, opening the window, waving goodbye and blowing a kiss to my friends. Ty took my hand in his, smiling to himself. "I'm such a lucky guy." We drove back to his apartment, and I got out of the car, waiting for him to lock it. He threw me the door keys, and I ran over, shoes in hand, to unlock the door to the apartment. I walked inside, turning on the lights and putting my shoes down by the door. I locked the door after he walked in, as he put the car keys in the top drawer. I shuffled my feet down the hall to the bedroom. "Ty! Come unzip my dress, my hand won't reach." Tyler walked in, tie loosened, smiling at me. He reached for my zipper, pulling it down slowly, glancing between my eyes and my lips. "Better?" I nodded, as he kept his arms around my waist. "I told you, don't loosened your tie like that. You have to undo it properly to keep it from getting creased." I smiled up at him. I gently untied his tie, folding it around my hand, as he took it from me. "Thank you." He replied, so close to me that I could feel his breath on my soft skin. He pulled away, unbuttoning his shirt. I yawned to myself, tired from dancing for hours. I let my dress slip down, and I pulled on some shorts and a shirt. I tied the strings on the hem of the shorts together, as my heavy eyelids closed, and my blinks got longer. I turned around, met by the scent of faint cologne as Tyler was right there in front of me. "You scared me." I gasped lightly. He tilted my chin up, kissing me gently. I smiled into the kiss, which seemed like he thought was permission. He grabbed me tighter, rough hands roaming my waist. I kissed back at first, a little taken back by the force. He slipped a thumb into the hem of my shorts. I stepped back, pushing him away. "Come on, baby." He said taking a stride closer. I took another step back, tripping over some shoes on the ground. "Stop that. I'm not in the mood." "You're never in the damn mood, are you?" He came uncomfortably close to me. "This is becoming too empty of a relationship. What do I get in return for treating you so well?" "Treating me well? You only treat me relatively well when we're in public!" I said, getting up and shouting up at him. "Don't raise your voice at me." He walked the other way, running a hand through his hair. "Know your place." "My place? Why don't you remind me of my place in this relationship, because I don't feel like-" I screamed to him, only to be cut off by a forceful fist to my eye. I fell to the ground, still in shock from the blow I'd just gotten. "Get up, you baby bitch." He grabbed my arm, digging his nails in, forcing me to my feet. "Sleep on the couch." I ran out of the room as fast as my heavy feet would allow. I sat in the living room, reflecting on what had just happened. Tyler had raised his voice at me before, but never laid a hand on me, until now. I waited for him to fall asleep, and then quietly crept into the kitchen, taking his car keys from the drawer. I silently opened the door, grabbed my flip flops from the shoe rack, and left as fast as I could. I got in the car, silent tears dropped from my eyes. I drove to my friend Shawn's apartment nearby. He wasn't my best friend or anything, but he lived the closest. I parked Tyler's car out front, taking slow steps to the front of Shawn's place, waiting a moment and ringing the doorbell, hoping he would be home. I waited for a minute, and took a seat on the steps in front of his door. A minute later, a sleepy Shawn appeared in the door. I turned around. "(Y/N)?" He took a step closer to me, seeing my face. "Oh my god, are you alright? Come in." I wiped a tear from my face roughly, nodding my head. I took a step into his house. "Sit down." I took a seat on his sofa, as he reached into a high cupboard and grabbed a first-aid kit. He wiped the nail-marks on my arm with an alcohol wipe, making me wince. "I'm sorry." He said, looking sympathetically at me. "Don't say sorry, you're the one helping me." I tried my best to force a smile. He handed me a cold compress to keep on my eye. I planted a gentle kiss on his forehead. "You don't deserve this. I can treat you better than that kid." He looked up at me. I nodded, letting myself fall into his arms. ••• My mind returned to present day, as I shook off the thoughts I just remembered. I caught a glimpse of Shawn carrying Sofia on his shoulders in the hallway. Never would I have thought sitting in Tyler's apartment, that things would get better and I would marry a wonderful boy and have a beautiful girl. I guess things do change for the better. National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) (a/n: someone requested an imagine chapter based on TYB, so here it is! give it some love.)
