The unraveling of us
Rafe’s possessive and jealous behaviour leads you to question the relationship and one night goes too far.
Trigger warning // abuse, jealousy, possessive behaviour , violence. DARK.
This will be a series
You weren’t sure when Rafe’s love began to feel more like a cage. In the beginning, it had been intoxicating the way he looked at you, like you were the only person in the room. His attention made you feel special, chosen. But as time passed, the intensity of his affection twisted into something darker, something suffocating.
You had always been a Pogue, one of the “lower” class on the island, and Rafe had always been the Kook. It didn’t make sense when you first got together. You had always been worlds apart he, with his money, his power, and his perfect life; you, with your friends, the laughter, the simple joys. But somehow, against all odds, it had started. And for a while, it felt like maybe he was different, maybe he’d see past the social divide between your worlds.
But it didn’t take long for the cracks to start showing.
It started with little things. He’d make snide comments about your friends, the Pogues. “Don’t hang out with them too much,” he’d say, voice dripping with superiority. “They don’t know how to treat you right.”
Then came the jealousy. The first time you caught him glaring at JJ, you thought you imagined it. But when it happened again, and again, you realized Rafe had a problem with anyone who so much as looked at you.
“Just… don’t talk to him, okay?” he’d say, his voice tight, watching as JJ cracked jokes from across the room. “He doesn’t respect you. He doesn’t care about you like I do.”
It didn’t take long before those comments turned into orders. He’d show up uninvited when you went out, glaring at your friends, making you feel like you couldn’t be anywhere without his eyes on you. He’d show up at the Tannyhill parties, always hovering close by, a constant reminder that you were his. And he made it clear that no one else could get too close.
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The night of the party, the tension between you and Rafe was palpable. The car ride over had been thick with silence. You had tried to talk about the things that had been bothering you, but he’d just brushed you off, the same dark glint in his eyes.
“Why do you always make this harder than it needs to be?” he muttered, his fingers clenched tightly around the steering wheel. “I just want you to be mine, Y/N. Why can’t you just be with me and forget about the rest of them?”
You had tried to argue, tried to explain that you loved your friends, that you didn’t need his permission to spend time with them. But it was no use. Rafe didn’t listen. He was too focused on controlling you.
The party was a blur. Music thumped in the background as you mingled, laughing with your friends. But every time you caught someone’s gaze, you could feel Rafe’s eyes on you, burning a hole into your back. You could practically feel the possessiveness radiating off him.
JJ was the first one to approach you. His easy grin spread across his face as he handed you a drink. “You look like you’re surviving this chaos,” he joked, nudging you playfully.
“Just about,” you laughed, relaxing for the first time that night.
But then you felt it Rafe’s presence, looming behind you. He didn’t say anything, but his gaze was like a storm. His jaw clenched as he watched you and JJ laughing together, and you could see his grip on his drink tighten.
“Don’t talk to him, Y/N,” Rafe’s voice was cold, cutting through the lightheartedness.
You turned around, your heart sinking. “What?”
“I said, don’t talk to him,” Rafe repeated, his voice lower this time, dark and sharp.
JJ glanced between the two of you, raising an eyebrow. “Dude, relax. We’re just talking.”
“I’m not talking to you,” Rafe snapped, stepping closer to you. His eyes never left JJ, full of something dangerous.
“Rafe, please, stop.” Your voice wavered as you tried to step between them. But before you could reach him, Rafe grabbed your arm, yanking you toward him with a force that made your chest tighten.
“Don’t touch her, Rafe!” JJ’s voice was sharp, his stance protective as he took a step forward. “Get your hands off her!”
Rafe’s eyes darkened, his lips curling into a sneer. “You think you can just take her from me, JJ? You think you can have her? She’s mine.”
Your stomach twisted at his words. Mine. That’s what he always said, but you’d never felt more like something to be possessed than you did right now.
“Rafe, this isn’t you” you started, trying to pull away from his grip. But his hold only tightened, and you winced as his fingers dug into your skin.
“You don’t get it, do you?” Rafe hissed, his voice trembling with rage. “I can’t lose you, Y/N. I won’t.”
“You’re losing me right now,” you said, your voice breaking. “This isn’t love, Rafe. You don’t own me!”
The words hung in the air, heavy and final. For a moment, Rafe just stood there, his eyes wide, his breath coming in harsh gasps. Then, without warning, his fist flew toward JJ.
There was a sickening crack as Rafe’s fist connected with JJ’s jaw, sending him stumbling back into a group of bystanders.
“Stop it!” you screamed, trying to break free from Rafe’s hold, but he held you tightly, his grip unyielding as he glared at JJ, his chest heaving.
“You’re not going to take her from me,” Rafe spat, voice thick with jealousy and possessiveness.
“I don’t want her like this,” JJ groaned from the floor, wiping blood from his lip. “You’re destroying her, Rafe.”
Tears welled in your eyes, your heart breaking as the reality of everything you’d been ignoring finally hit you. You had let this go on for far too long. You had let Rafe’s obsession cloud everything. But tonight, it had gone too far.
“You don’t own me!” you shouted at him, voice trembling with fury. “I’m not yours to control! I’m leaving!”
Rafe’s face twisted with rage, his eyes wild as he reached out to grab your arm. “You’re not going anywhere,” he growled.
But the anger in his voice didn’t scare you anymore. You yanked your arm out of his grip, your heart pounding in your chest as you turned and ran out of the house, not caring where you were going, just knowing you couldn’t stay any longer.
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The cool night air burned against your skin as you fled the party. Your mind was clouded with anger and fear, the stinging words from Rafe replaying in your head. You didn’t know where to go, didn’t know what to do. But you knew one thing: you couldn’t stay at that party, not after what happened.
As you walked the streets, your thoughts raced, and you tried to ignore the panic bubbling up inside. You had to get away from Rafe. You had to get away from the suffocating grip he had on your life. But your feet carried you back to his house anyway, against your better judgment. Maybe it was the familiarity of it, or maybe the fear of what would happen if you didn’t.
You let yourself into the large, quiet house, the door creaking as you pushed it open. The silence felt oppressive, thick with the tension that had been building between you two for weeks. You told yourself you were just getting your things, that you’d leave for good this time. But even as you made your way inside, you knew you couldn’t escape him so easily.
And sure enough, there he was, standing at the foot of the stairs when you walked in, his jaw tight, his eyes cold.
“You thought you could just leave?” Rafe’s voice was low and filled with menace, every word dripping with danger. His posture was rigid, his expression unreadable.
You swallowed hard, your heart racing. “I couldn’t stay there. You hurt him, Rafe.” Your voice cracked as you spoke, but you refused to back down.
“I hurt him?” He stepped closer, his presence overwhelming, as if the very air between you two had thickened. “You think he respects you? You think you can just waltz in here and run off with someone like him, after everything I’ve given you? After everything I’ve done for you?”
His words felt like poison, but you tried to stand tall, trying to gather some semblance of courage. “You don’t own me, Rafe. You never did. I’m done.”
The words barely left your mouth when he was on you, his hand shooting out and grabbing your wrist, squeezing with a painful force. His grip felt like a vice, and for a moment, you thought you might not be able to breathe.
“Done?” he sneered, his voice low and dripping with malice. “You think you can just walk away from me like you’re some fucking saint? You think you can just break everything between us and get away with it?”
Your breath hitched in your throat as he dragged you across the room, slamming you against the wall. The impact made your head spin, and you gasped, trying to pull yourself together. His eyes were cold, calculating, as if something had snapped inside him.
“Rafe, please let go,” you begged, but the words seemed to fall on deaf ears. His face was twisted in a mixture of anger and desperation.
“Do you know what you’ve made me do?” he growled, his voice shaking with barely contained rage. “Do you have any idea what you’ve put me through? I loved you, Y/N. I gave you everything. And you repay me by running off with him? With that?” He spat the words like venom.
“Rafe, stop it!” you cried, tears welling in your eyes. “You’re scaring me!”
His grip tightened on your wrist, pulling you closer to him, until your faces were inches apart. His breath was hot against your skin, and for a moment, it felt like the world had gone silent, just the two of you in the storm of his rage.
“You think you’re going to leave me, huh?” His voice was barely a whisper, and you could hear the venom in it. “You think you can have him, and forget about me? You think I’m just going to stand here and let you walk away like that?”
Your heart was racing. “Rafe stop!”
But he wasn’t stopping. His hand moved to your throat, gripping it with startling force, and you gasped, feeling the pressure against your windpipe. Panic shot through you, but Rafe’s eyes were wild, fevered with jealousy and anger.
“You think you’re leaving me?” he snarled, shaking you slightly, his other hand digging into your arm, bruising you. “No. You’re not going anywhere, Y/N. Not now. Not ever.”
You struggled beneath his grip, trying to pry his hand from your throat, but he was stronger than you, more furious than you had ever seen him.
“Rafe, please stop!” you begged, fear thick in your voice.
But there was no recognition of your plea. Only rage, possessiveness, and a deep, twisted sense of entitlement.
“You think I won’t hurt you?” Rafe spat, his breath coming in ragged bursts as he shook you again. “I’ll make sure you never forget that you’re mine!”
Suddenly, something snapped inside you. A surge of adrenaline coursed through your veins, and with every ounce of strength you had, you brought your knee up into his groin.
He staggered back, gasping for air, his hand flying to his stomach.
“You think I’m yours?” you shouted, voice hoarse with anger. “You don’t own me, Rafe! You never did!”
Rafe’s face contorted with rage as he lunged at you again. “You little bitch!” He slammed his fist into your side, making you stumble backward, the force of it sending you crashing into the nearby coffee table.
Pain exploded in your ribs as you hit the ground, but you scrambled to your feet, your body trembling. You could taste blood in your mouth, and the fear inside you was growing this wasn’t just anger anymore, it was violence.
“Get the fuck off me!” you yelled, trying to push him away, but Rafe was relentless. He grabbed your hair, yanking you back by it, making you cry out in pain.
“You want to leave me?” he hissed through gritted teeth, dragging you backward across the floor. “You think you can just leave like everything’s fine? Like you didn’t belong to me?”
He threw you back against the wall with force, the back of your head cracking against it. A sharp pain shot through you, and for a moment, everything went blurry.
But you couldn’t give up. Not now.
Your hand found a nearby lamp, and with shaking hands, you swung it toward him. It crashed against his shoulder, and he howled in pain, stumbling back.
For a brief moment, you thought he might hesitate maybe, just maybe, he’d realize what he was doing.
But there was no slowing down. Rafe was a storm, and you were nothing more than debris in his path.
He grabbed you again, pulling you roughly toward him, his grip like steel, his eyes wild with fury. “You want to run away?” he growled. “You want to leave me? I’ll make sure no one ever touches you again. No one will ever love you like I do. No one will ever want you like I do. You’re mine, Y/N.”
You fought back, your heart pounding as you kicked and shoved, but his rage kept coming, relentless and dark. He pinned you against the wall, and for the first time, you felt truly trapped. The pain was unbearable, the suffocation of his control too much to bear.
You gasped for breath, your heart hammering in your chest. “I’m leaving, Rafe.” The words were barely a whisper. “And you can’t stop me.”
For a moment, his grip faltered, the haze of anger lifting for just a second, but then the dark glint returned to his eyes.
“No, you’re not,” he snarled, his voice venomous. “You’re mine. You’ll never leave me. Ever.”
The suffocating fear returned, but with it came a new resolve. You couldn’t stay. Not anymore. You couldn’t let him break you any longer.
Gathering every ounce of strength you had left, you shoved him off, running for the door.
“Don’t you dare leave!” he shouted after you. But you didn’t look back. You didn’t stop. You just ran, the sound of his voice following you as you fled into the night.
You didn’t know where you were going—but it didn’t matter. You were free.
And you were done with him.