Trois / Three

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“Roses are red. Violets are blue. I’m using my hand but I’m thinking of you.”

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I've spent the last week at Nila’s house. She advised me to put in emergency leave so that we can sort out the moving of my belongings and the case for Bruno.

I managed to move all my belongings out of Bruno’s apartment without him being there but with every day that passed and more objects were removed I received messages from him.

It started with him being calm but by the fourth day it got worse, he started threatening my life and letting me know that when he finds me I won't be walking out on him ever again.

With all the hate texts and his frequent voice messages, I managed to get a strong case against him.

“According to the court, I will be appointed someone to transport me to and from work every day and should I feel unsafe he will be stationed outside the house.” I hand Nila the paperwork which she reads through.

“Have you told Jet yet?” she asks as she places the paperwork on the counter. I shake my head as I get up and walk towards the lounge area.

I sit down on the couch and place my feet up on the coffee table, “Arggg, my life is such a mess! I should have listened to you when it came to finding someone by the sober meetings.”

Nila sits down beside me and hands me a cup of hot chocolate, “Oh come on, you were always the one who took care of strays.” she giggles as I give her a death stare.

I sit up on the couch and place my hot chocolate on the table, “Oh how the tables have turned!” her face becomes hard as she looks at me.

“You are not a stray! You are like family and if I was in the same boat and needed someone you'd be there for me too.” she shakes her head as she puts the hot chocolate down.

We exchange hugs, and I can feel my body relax.

We pull away as we sip away at our hot chocolate, a familiar movie playing in the background, “Mmm, Shey! You know you'll need a representative for the trial.” Nila looks at me excitedly.

I furrow my brows as I begin to understand what she means, “He is my boss! No Nila, bad idea!” I shake my head as I slump back into the couch.

She takes my hands and looks at me with her puppy dog eyes, “He is the best in the business and you cannot deny that this man is madly in love with you and will do anything for you.” 

I shake my head and pull my hands out of her grasp, “No, it's not going to happen. Nila this will just confirm everything he suspected with Bruno.”

I get up and walk towards the kitchen, “Shey if you don't want him to represent you then I understand but you are going to have to tell him why you'll be taking off so much.” she stays on the couch.

I lean down on the counter as my head falls in between my hands, “Fine, I'll tell him but I won't tell him what happened. I cannot, you have to promise me that you won't either?”

Nila nods her head and she agrees, “Okay now that we understand each other, are we going to sit at home in sweats all evening or actually go out?”

Nila is the type of girl who likes going out, she is the life of the party and always manages to let us have a good time.

I may be a recovered alcoholic but I've been sober for six years and with Nila by my side I know I won't be led to drink a lot. She has always had my back and knows where to draw the line with me.

I smile at her as she hops off the couch and runs towards her room, “You are not going out in sweats.” she eyes me from top to bottom as she peeks from her room.

I walk towards the room where we spend the next hour and a half getting ready. Nila puts on a red strapless bodycon dress with nude heels and a choker.

Her short brown hair is curled into messy curls and her signature dark eye makeup being applied.

I grab a black off the shoulder, long sleeve crop top and pair it with high waisted leather pants and red heels.

I curl my hair into beach waves and put on a dark smokey eye and red lipstick to finish the look.

I look at myself in the mirror and I am taken back to when I used to come home from clubbing with Nila and Bruno used to be insanely jealous.

“He's not going to be there! And if he is, I'm going to kick his ass.” Nila says with her hands on my shoulders.

I give her a nod before I grab a bag and we head out the door and towards the club.

We stand in line for ten minutes before the bouncer checks our ID’s and lets us walk in. The club is filled with people dancing to a familiar song, the blue, green and red strobe lights making it look mythical inside and the occasional burst of smoke coming from the DJ’s booth making people forget their surroundings.

We find a table where we sit and order drinks for the table. Nila orders herself a shot of tequila while I opt for a virgin cosmo.

We sit at the table for a moment until Nila’s favourite song comes on, “Oh we have to dance! This is my song.” I give her a small smile before she drags me to the dance floor.

We dance and sing a couple of songs, laughing every now again. The night finally felt worth it.

As we move back towards the table Nila orders another round of drinks before she tells me she needs to go to the ladies.

I sit in the dark booth looking around and sipping on my cosmo when a familiar voice talks behind me. “I didn't take you for the drinking type.”

I turn my head to see Jet standing behind me. He was wearing light blue, ripped skinny jeans with a tight grey top and sneakers.

I shake my head as I look from my drink back to Jet, “Non-alcoholic.” I shake my head as he walks around and takes a seat in front of me.

“About this week, I’m-” I get cut off by Jet who just shakes his head.

He looks down at his hands before he looks up at me, worry and concern plastered all over his face, “I know Shey. You don't have to tell me now but if you had to put in emergency leave then it must have been serious.”

I shake my head, my voice caught in my throat as I fight back the tears. I look down at my hands as I recall the events of the evening, the agony of having to tell people that I had been raped and forced to describe how it happened and by who.

I feel a tear run down my cheek as I quickly rub it away. I look up at Jet, “I'm sorry I can't do this right now.” I say before I get up and make my way towards the exit.

Jet’s voice follows behind me as he calls out my name.

I walk out of the door and catch my breath as the tears start to run down my cheeks. My soul is torn apart and I feel like a broken glass that just keeps on getting shattered countless times over.

I let out a shaky breath as I ready myself to go back inside when a hand catches my wrist, “Jet I told you, not n-” I turn around and I am faced with Bruno.

My blood runs cold as he pulls me closer to him, “A fucken restraining order Shey!” he says through gritted teeth as his hold on me becomes harder.

I try to pull myself out of his grip but I am pushed up against a wall, with his body pinning me beneath his.

His hot breath on my neck as he inhales my perfume, he is holding one hand behind my back as he tries to undress me with the other.

“How will you ever learn Shey? You. Are. Mine!” I let out a whimper but his grip only got tighter.

He pulls me away from the wall only to push my back against the wall, my cries for help being muffled by his harsh kiss as he pulls down my top and fondles my right breast.

I move harshly under his grip as I try to come free but he only backs away and punches me in the face causing my body to be thrown to the floor.

I hit the ground hard as I felt my body ache and tears start to fall, “Help!” I cry out “Can someone please help me!” I yell.

I am then picked up by Bruno and thrown into the wall again, my cries becoming more agonising, “You are going to wish you never left me bitch!”

Bruno stalks towards me as I brace myself for another beat, but nothing comes instead he is pulled back by Jet who starts hitting him mercilessly.

Nila runs out as she kicks Bruno in the side and walks towards me, “A-Are you o-okay?

I shake my head as I lift my shirt over my bare breast. My eyes are wide at the amount of blows Jet gives Bruno.

Nila is still trying to find out if I'm okay, “Jet! He's not worth it, we can fight this battle legally! She is in shock, we need to get her out of here.” Nila screams as Jet throws Bruno to the floor.

“Mark my words Bruno, I'll be coming for you! You are going to wish you stayed away!” Jet threatens as he walks towards Nila and me.

My eyes still fixated on Bruno laying on the ground, his face hit so many times it's almost unnoticeable.

Jet holds my shoulders as he looks at me to assess the damages, “Shey? Shey are you okay?” he asks but my mind is still stuck on Bruno.

Jet lets out a breath as he tilts my head upwards by my chin, our eyes meeting and our surroundings disappearing, “Shey are you okay?” he asks again.

I nod slowly as my body starts to relax, “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Jet gives me a small smile, “Let's get you to the ER so we can get that sorted out.” he grabs my hand and leads me to the car.

Nila behind us talking to herself, “Could someone please come and beat me up so I can get rescued? No? No? Okay, okay I get it!”

I shake my head at her antics as we climb into the car and Jet pulls into the main road.

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