A glimpse. A single glimpse and a spiral of actions and reactions spawned, creating a binding chain of events that only procured tears. Unshed ones swam in his wide eyes, a glassy dam preventing them from willingly spilling over, leaking down the pale expanse of his cheek.

Bruises. Patterned marks that obtrusively lined your skin beneath the fabric you so futilely used to conceal evidence of affliction. The shattering of his heart crumbled like glass, tearing his insides as a reminder of his humanity. What was he to do?

Instinctive reflexes caused a hasty hand to shoot out at you, seizing your wrist, yet managing a feeling of tenderness in his hold, a silent understanding of the toll caused. The air felt disrupted, lightheartedness dissipating into bone-chilling rue and fear. His insides twisted.

"He’s hurting you, isn’t he?" Spencer asked though the truth was glaring, wishing his words to be denied, reluctant to believe such a devastating truth. That the man who proclaimed to love you and had impossibly been deemed worthy enough to be your love was destroying the beautiful delicacy he held.

Your silence sucked the air from the room and tore it straight from his lungs, stealing his breath as though they’d been punctured, deflating what was left of him. He inhaled shakily, desperate for a single breath of air to fill his devoid lungs, waiting for his heart to start up again, but it remained still, horror filling his body.

"This," Spencer stressed, soft hands delicately holding your arm just short of the bruises. He gave your arm an imperceptible shake for emphasis, praying his message would seep into your mind and take form. "This is not love. The very definition of love entails a deep-seated and rooted affection. Hurting you does not show affection. It shows hatred and disregard for your safety and more importantly; you."

Spencer’s hand slowly slipped from your arm, fingertips brushing against the smooth, battered and blemished skin in a tentative gesture that spoke more words than he could properly disperse. He sighed helplessly, resorting to nothing short of a pleading look, wishing he could plant the notion behind your eyes and give you the proper lenses to see the truth.

"I… I care too much to see you hurt like this. I can’t see you hurt like this," he admitted, his voice scarcely above a whisper. "Please don’t let him ruin you. You’re smart and beautiful and- and the best thing I have in my life. I won’t lose you to someone as selfish and illogical as someone who could ever dream of harming perfection."