I Don't Take Pressure, I Bring It Chapter 1

I'm a born egotist. I never spiral or beat myself up over anything. If someone screws with me, I screw them right back.

As a kid, my parents always favored my elder sister. One Children's Day, they bought her a cake and got me nothing.

I flipped the table and smashed the cake into a complete mess. "Who are you trying to bullshit? If you can't afford two kids, don't have two. If you're that broke, why didn't you just get sterilized back then?"

In high school, my cousin snatched one of my toys. My aunt said that he was still little and that I should let him have his way.

I didn't even bother holding back. I kick him so hard that he howled in pain. "He's not my kid. Why the hell should I baby him?"

After enough incidents like that, everyone around me learns not to test me.

When I grew up, I got engaged to Liam Zeller, my childhood sweetheart.

But the day before the wedding, I caught him cheating on me with my best friend, Mia Shaw.

Liam leaned back against the couch and drawled, "Erica, I'll be honest with you. I'll admit I really did like you before, but after being with you, I realized you're just way too selfish. Any man who stays with you would lose his mind. You really ought to reflect on yourself once in a while."

None of that got to me. I straddled him and slapped him across the face over and over again. "You knew I was selfish and still had the balls to cheat on me? You've got some nerve!"

* * *

I'd just been warming up with those earlier slaps. I grabbed Liam Zeller by the collar and slapped him again with all my strength.

A loud smack echoed through the room.

"Ow! Erica, are you out of your mind?" Liam clutched his cheek and howled in pain, seeing stars. That smug, superior air he'd had moments ago vanished completely.

I kicked him hard in the gut and sent him sprawling to the floor. Then I grabbed the tissue box off the coffee table and started hitting him over the head with it without a second thought.

He rolled on the floor in agony, clutching his head and wailing.

"What am I doing? I'm beating the hell out of you, that's what!" I cursed as I swung at him.

My so-called best friend, Mia Shaw, stood off to the side, looking stunned. It was the first time she'd ever seen me this fierce.

It took her a while to snap out of it. She threw herself at me in tears, trying to stop me. "Eri, stop! This is all my fault, okay? Don't hit Liam!"

"Your fault, huh? Fantastic. You can take a few hits, too!"

I let out a cold laugh and grabbed a fistful of her hair. I yanked her head down, then drove my knee straight into her stomach.

She screamed in pain and collapsed on the floor, clutching her stomach and gasping for air.

Trying to break up the fight? Fine. I'd hit her too!

I grabbed Liam and Mia and laid into them, my fists and feet flying. I didn't hold back.

After a few minutes, they were both huddled in the corner, their faces bruised and swollen.

Liam covered his bleeding lip and forced himself to his feet. He pulled Mia protectively behind him, then jabbed a finger at me and shouted, "You're out of your damn mind, Erica! Look at you right now! You're acting like a complete shrew!"

He panted hard and glared at me, his teeth gritted. "You know why I chose Mia over you? Because she's gentle, considerate, and always puts me first. She's not like you—you're always so aggressive and confrontational!

"You're so overbearing. What guy could put up with that? If you hadn't been so selfish all the time, I never would've ended up with your best friend!"

That made me laugh. Even now, he was trying to gaslight me.

I dusted off my hands and looked down at him. "Cut the crap, Liam. You keep going on about wanting someone 'gentle and considerate', but what you really want is a maid who works for free. I wasn't willing to play that role, so you went looking somewhere else.

"You cheated because you're trash and couldn't keep it in your pants. That has nothing to do with my personality. You're trash, and she's a trash can—you're a perfect match. Don't disgust me."

My words hit Liam right where it hurt. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, sputtering at me. His face turned bright red with rage, but he couldn't come up with a single word in response.

I was done wasting another second on this pair of losers. I turned and walked into the bedroom, kicking the closet door open with a bang.

I grabbed a suitcase and started stuffing all of Liam's things inside—his clothes, his razor, and his shoes.

Liam followed me in. He stared at me in disbelief when he saw what I was doing. "Are you seriously kicking me out over something this trivial?"