~JESSICA~
The loud music from the club almost burst my eardrums.
Geez! How do people cope here with the noise and everything?? So much for coming to a club!
I should have just stayed at home and had a good sleep.
“Stop deceiving yourself, Jessy. It's not like you'll be able to sleep at home” I silently said and rolled my eyes.
As usual, Grace was the center of attention and almost every guy wanted to talk to her there. I watched as she hugged people she knew, laughing beautifully while I stood there like a statue.
Her eyes fell on my face and she waved with her fingers for me to come closer. I shook my head negatively, politely refusing.
I wasn't ready for some introductions. And so, I turned and made my way to a seat at the bar counter.
I sat on it and took a quick glance around the club. The lights were almost blinding my eyes, so I had to squint my eyes to be able to grasp a look at my surroundings.
The small club was almost crowded with people, most especially young boys and girls like Grace and they're all dancing.
“Oh yeah, you're talking like you aren't young yourself” I berated myself.
I was just twenty two while Grace was eighteen.
Grace was right, my dress was the longest tonight as all the other girls were putting on really short, sexy dresses and they're all looking so beautiful.
I must really look like a primary school teacher as Grace said.
The club wasn't a big one, or a club where the rich go to. It was a sub standard small club that wasn't expensive. Reason why high school students had the money to be here.
“Good evening, ma'am. Do you want something to drink??” a male voice asked me and I turned to face him.
“Yeah, anything that has enough alcoholic content in it. Any drink not more than $30” I replied as I didn't know what drink to take. I rarely take alcoholic drinks.
He turned and walked away and I searched carefully for Grace with my eyes and I saw her dancing with some group of girls.
Thank goodness it's girls! I would have gone to drag her out if she's dancing with so many boys like that.
I turned and faced the counter, then I felt someone tap me on my back.
It's Grace with all smiles on her face.
“Come on, Sis, let's dance,” she said. She's literally screaming because of the loud music playing.
“I don't feel like it. Besides,you know I don't know how to dance” I screamed back.
“I'll teach you” she said and began pulling my hands but I pulled back and shook my head.
“Stop being so stuck up and serious. Come, let's dance” she persisted.
“No, thanks. I already ordered drinks” I said. “Go enjoy yourself”
She frowned and pouted her lips, then walked back to her friends and resumed dancing.
The bartender brought me a full bottle of an alcoholic drink and a glass cup and I began drinking. It wasn't long when I started feeling tipsy.
But I kept on drinking and lamenting and crying my eyes out as I remembered everything that happened during the day.
My really drowsy and tipsy eyes caught sight of a man standing close to me with another man beside him.
“This is the club I'm going to buy….” Part of their conversation reached my ears before I zoned out and placed my head on the counter table.
When I raised my head up, I caught sight of the man who's standing beside me now staring curiously and weirdly at me with a funny look on his face. A teasing, mocking look!
How long has he been staring at me like that??
“You…” I pointed my fingers at him. “What are you staring at??”
He didn't bat an eyelid at me but kept staring.
“You bastard…why the hell are you staring at me…. like that?” I slurred.
The alcohol was taking effect on me already and I couldn't stop myself even if I wanted to.
“What are you looking at?? You men are just the same. Bunch of betrayals, bunch of heartbreakers. You all are scums, dirty pieces of trash. Stop staring at me, the fuck!!” I screamed loudly and began hitting his chest hard with my fist.
I saw him raise his hand as if he's stopping someone and stood, allowing me to hit him.
“Liars. All of you are liars. I pray you all men rot in hell. I pray you all burn in ashes. You all men shouldn't have been born” I yelled drunkenly and kept hitting him.
People were starting to watch and I felt someone starting to drag me.
“Sis, what the hell are you doing??” I heard Grace yell at me.
My eyes were already closing and I was slowly losing consciousness.
“I'm so sorry, Sir. She's drunk and doesn't know what she's doing. I'm so sorry, Sir” I heard Grace apologize to the man.
I was still muttering inaudible cuss words as Grace dragged me out of the club. It was outside the club that I collapsed on Grace's arms as I finally lost consciousness.
~DANIEL~
I was walking around the club with my escort, Mister Anthony. We're checking out the new property that would soon be mine.
I own a multinational business and have my finger in property development on five continents. Sutherland enterprises—is an enormously successful property development business.
I buy properties I so desire and renovate to my taste or sell it off whenever I want to. And so I heard of this club in this rural area in America and I drove down from California to take a good look at it before buying it.
It was on the tour round the club that I saw a nerd looking lady drinking heavily at the bar counter. I was amused at the lengthy dress she wore, the sandals she wore, the glasses on her face and the way her hair was tied up. An inappropriate dressing for a club.
She's looking funny and with a grin on my face, I stood staring at her as she's fascinating to watch. I was really surprised when she began to yell at me and spat out cuss words from her mouth and was shocked when she started to hit me on my chest.
Her outburst showed that she's suffering from a heartbreak and letting it out on me and so I stopped Mister Anthony when he wanted to interfere. I allowed her to hit me if it would ease the pain in her heart.
A reason why I'm against love, why I hated love so much. Love is a terrible feeling that will hurt and break you and leave you in so much pain and misery.
One look at her and I was reminded again and again never to fall in love- never ever.
A young lady came towards us and apologized to me as she dragged the drunk lady out of the club. I was still staring at the exit of the club when Mister Anthony called back my attention to him.
“Sir, are you okay??” He asked me.
“Yes, I'm fine,” I replied.
“I'm buying the club” I announced and he nodded.
“I'll make the necessary arrangements, Sir” he replied.
With one long, last look at the club, I walked out of the club still replaying the incident that just happened in my head, and someone, I had a feeling that I was going to meet her again.
~DANIEL~I couldn’t breathe.I stood frozen in the hallway, staring at the closed door Jessica had locked behind her.She knew.She saw the video.My heart was pounding so loud I could hear it in my ears. My skin felt like it had been set on fire, and yet I was cold all over.I wanted to run. Smash something. Turn back time.But I couldn’t do anything.The one person I never wanted to hurt, the only woman who ever made me feel like I was truly home…now looked at me like I was a monster.And maybe I was.I stumbled back into our room, collapsed on the edge of the bed, and grabbed my phone with shaking hands.I opened my messages.Scrolled down to the one name that made my stomach churn.Crystal.I tapped her number and typed without thinking, my hands trembling with fury.Me: You evil, manipulative bitch. You recorded us to set me up, right?? And you sent the video to Jessica.Me: Do you even realize what you’ve done?Me: You just destroyed the only real thing I ev
~JESSICA~I didn't need to stress myself for too long as the truth presented itself to me so easily.Three days later, it happened.I was at home, folding laundry in the bedroom, when a message pinged on Daniel's phone.It wasn’t like me to snoop. I trusted him.But something about the preview made my stomach twist.“Hope she likes the view. You look so intense when I was in control.”—Unknown Number.What view??I was about to pick up his phone when my own phone beeped.It was a message from the same unknown number that texted me before.My heart pounded. I tapped the message.Attached was a video.My fingers shook as it loaded.And when it did….My world shattered.It was Daniel.Naked. Dazed. In bed.With her.Crystal.She was sucking his dick, her face toward the camera. Smiling. His eyes—barely open. Lips parted. He was clearly enjoying it.Another video entered and I played it.Daniel was passionately and aggressively making love to Crystal. Kissing her lik
~DANIEL~It was like breathing in smoke every time she looked at me.Jessica.So beautiful, so trusting. So undeserving of the storm I had dragged into our lives.Every moment I stayed silent was another cut across my soul.Every fake smile was another weight on my chest.But I had no choice.If I told her the truth, I’d lose her.If Crystal sent that video, I’d lose her anyway.So I chose the only path that gave me a small chance of protecting her heart….by pushing her away.Letting her hate me would be easier than letting her love me while knowing I betrayed her.God, I hated myself.She was slipping through my fingers, and I was the one loosening the grip. ~JESSICA~I started to notice little things.Daniel would flinch when I touched him.He kept locking his phone.He had stopped mentioning work stories.He even missed dinner two nights in a row.And then, I found his cologne in the laundry basket…my favorite one, the one he wore the
~JESSICA~Daniel came down for breakfast like a ghost…polite, quiet, and distant. I wanted to go upstairs and call him because he's wasting so much time upstairs till I saw him coming down. He sat across from me at the dining table, thanked Kareem for the food, and barely said a word. No morning kiss. No teasing smirk. Not even a brush of his fingers against mine like he always used to do.I tried not to panic. Maybe he really was tired. Maybe he had too much on his mind.But I watched him closely as he ate.His eyes never met mine.His smile never reached his eyes.And the warmth I had grown used to in his presence had faded, replaced by a wall I couldn't see through.“Daniel?” I asked softly.He looked up quickly, startled, as though I'd yanked him out of some deep, dark thought.“Yes?”“You're quiet. Is everything okay?” I asked.He hesitated for a moment too long. “I'm fine,” he replied, his voice calm, guarded.“You sure?” I asked again, giving him a s
~JESSICA~When I woke up the next morning, I found out that Daniel wasn't besides me.The side of the bed was cold and empty.How long had he been away?? When did he leave exactly??If he just left the bed, his side of the bed would still be warm.My chest tightened, panic creeping in despite the soft hum of the heater and the faint scent of lavender from the pillow he’d fluffed for me.I sat up slowly, clutching the robe he’d draped over the headboard. “Daniel??” I called out, hoping he might be somewhere in the room but got no response.I came down from the bed and walked out of the room.“Daniel??” I called as I walked towards the sitting room, but got no response.I met Kareem cooking breakfast in the kitchen.“Good morning, madam” he greeted me.“Morning Kareem. Do you know where my husband is?? Did you see him leave this morning??” I asked him.“Not at all. I don't know where he is and didn't see him leave either” he replied.“Alright, thanks” I told hi
Crystal stared at Daniel lying on the bed. He looked ruined. Breathless. Undone. But his gaze held something she hadn’t seen in a long time.Desire.Passion for me or for Jessica, she didn't really care.Everything was working according to plan. She already got Daniel in her bed and have had one of the best sex in her life.She had drugged his drink. A drug that made him high, horny and to hallucinate.The bartender had helped her out with it. She had bribed him with so much money with the promise that the drugs wouldn't kill Daniel, but just make him high and horny, and she really wanted to have mad sex with him.The bartender had agreed to add the drug in Daniel's drink and that's how it got to this point.Crystal had reserved the room for the sex and had set cameras in the room before Daniel could come to the bar.Everything was being recorded. Every single thing and she couldn't be more happier.Finally, her plans are working out.She wasn't done yet. “Sit up, baby” she sai