His approach was awkward, shy. Her friends giggled behind her. Then he punched her in the arm and ran away. “Oh, honey. That’s just what boys do. It means he likes you,” grownups told her.

Tonight, her face purple and swollen, that’s what she tells police: “My husband loves me.”

Jayne Martin is the author of “Tender Cuts,” a collection of microfiction, and “The Daddy Chronicles-Memoir of a Fatherless Daughter.” She lives in California but dreams of living in Paris. Visit her at www.jaynemartin-writer.com and follow her on Twitter and Instagram.