Broken (Five minutes freewrite)

'Relax and tell me everything from the very beginning.'
I don't quite remember the beginning. I mean, I know what happened, but I couldn't say why I got involved with Harvey. He looked good, I guess, but not really to die for...
Maybe I enjoyed the attention, the rides in his red car, going places, eating out most days. I'd never had such a life before. My folks were rather tight with money and did not believe in spoiling a child.
Going out with Harvey was like getting access to a whole new life, one that I dreamed about as a child.
It mind sound silly, you know, but when I was younger I used to imagine driving with a handsome guy in a white convertible, the music blaring. That's what being in love looked like for me.
'Go on.'
I'd be lying to say I didn't enjoy playing house at first. Me and Harvey moved in together when my Mom died. He did not like the old house, always said it smelled like poor people, but when his business went bust he couldn't afford anything else.
I always thought we'd get married, but he kept pushing it back. It was set to happen when he got back on his feet, only that never happened. I don't think he even tried. Any time he got some money he'd disappear with his friends for days on end. He never told me where he was going and I was afraid to ask. I knew there were other women, I'm not stupid, but he always came back to me and we'd had dinner together and he'd be nice for a couple of days. Until he got some more money to blow.
Things started to go really bad about a year ago. He wanted to sell some of my Mom's stuff, not really valuable stuff, like her old china set and some ivory figurines she had inherited from her grandmother.

'That's when he got violent with you?'
Yes. Not just because of the money, he didn't like me talking back to him. He said a wife has to show respect and when I reminded him we weren't even married he hit me again.
He started to bring home his drinking buddies, I guess it was cheaper than going to the pub. I spent those nights in the bedroom, with the TV really loud, so I didn't have to hear their stupid jokes.
I remember one night they got so drunk they trampled all the flowers in the garden... Vandals, that's what they were.
'You say you don't remember the night of the assault that put you in hospital, but I'm curious to know why you wouldn't testify at his trial?'
'He'll get what the law says he deserves, doesn't matter much what I say and anyway what good would that do me? What's done is done. No going back to dreaming of charming men in white convertibles, wouldn't you say?'

Story written for @mariannewest's freewrite challenge. Today's prompt was: "vandals". New prompt every day. Check out her blog.
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