Chapter 6

Chapter 6

KYOMI POV

The door closed with a soft click as the lock latched into place. Everything I had been holding in; all the pleas, the curses I wanted to reign down so badly to the man, the air I’d been holding inside of me, all evaporated into the dense air.

I dropped flat on the floor, thankful that I was already on my knees when my legs gave out. A thick lump clogged my throat with so many emotions I wondered how I was able to breathe. A few minutes passed by with me curled in the fetal position against the floor.

I wanted this whole thing to be a dream. A long, visceral nightmare I was caught up in and that somehow I was going to wake up and find myself in my parents’ house and in my bed.

But the sting from my scalp, the softness of the carpet beneath my body… The damn suffocating scent that I was engulfed in…

All of it was too real to be a nightmare.

Tears poured down the side of my face. I sobbed into the carpet until my throat dried up; until every single cell inside of my body hurt like hell.

And when I was spent, I gathered the little remaining energy inside of me and walked into the room he had pointed at earlier. On any other day, I would have marveled at the beauty of the interior of the bathroom.

But the iniquity of that night prevented me from finding pleasure even in the simplest of things.

I felt like a shell; a frail, ghost of my former being, and that alone was enough to gut me to incuriousness.

I hopped into the shower and washed away the clammy sweat off my body. The hot water felt like a soothing balm on my achy balm. I realized just how the fear and suspense of the night had caught up with me and wrung all of the energy that was left in my muscles.

And when I stepped out, I felt so fresh. Despite everything else.

I walked into the closet to find something to wear. The bigger, rational part of me knew that the action was stupid of them all and that it might just add to HIS twisted reasons for keeping me here against my will, but mine were drenched in rain, and fear could be smelled from the worn-out fabric.

I found a black shirt that looked to have been worn once, then pulled it on.

That rich cologne assaulted my nose so hard that I reared back to steady myself. It was even more powerful than anything I ever felt before.

And his shirt? It felt like I was wearing him. I felt his ghostly presence around me, behind me, beside me… The feeling was so overwhelming I was convinced that wearing his clothes was all wrong in all forms of the word.

But dang… It was so soft… Soothing even. Totally unlike its owner who seemed to find joy in tormenting others.

I stepped out of the closet and rocked to a stop when my gaze fell on the sight of a tray with a plate of food on the nightstand. The rich scent of those cakes I smelled earlier wafted around me, and my stomach grumbled invitingly.

I wetted my lips, then took careful steps towards the tray before eyeing it like the food was some alien shit I had never seen in my whole entire life.

While in reality, it was some creamy mashed potatoes, some greens and a hearty steak. On the side were two blueberry muffins, and next to them was a glass of orange juice.

My neck craned as I watched the door, wondering who the hell came in here and brought me food.

I realized I was not going to get the answer, so I dropped down on the carpeted floor near the bed and pulled the tray along with me.

I eyed the food one more time, and when my stomach twisted in knots, I lost the fight. So what if they were poisoned?

At that point, dying of poisoned food would be the most graceful way to die

Any normal person in my situation would have decided to boycott the meal: but everything that happened that night wrung me dry. And I knew that if I was going to survive that man’s monstrosity, then I was going to need every little bite.

I ate the food like it was the first time I had been introduced to the concept. And by the time I set the empty glass on the tray, I was wiped out.

My eyes fought to close themselves, and I knew it was futile to try to stay awake. I was worn out, and all I needed was to curl up in my bed and sleep right away. And then hoped that maybe, just maybe; everything that had happened in the past few hours was nothing but one of my horrible visceral nightmares!