Captivity of Love

On our wedding anniversary, Eugene tied me up on the rooftop of an unfinished building.

He sat calmly before me, playing a video with deliberate slowness.

In the video, my father knelt repeatedly, begging Eugene for my sake.

My eyes burned with rage, but Eugene kicked me violently, snapping, "Do you feel distressed seeing your father like this? But how can it compare to even a fraction of the sorrow I felt when I lost Megan?"

The sudden pain caused me to arch my back, and darkness clouded my vision, almost sending me into unconsciousness, yet I was powerless to scream.

Earlier, Eugene had silenced me with boiling oil, turning my breath into a torment.

The pleasure of making me suffer was evident on Eugene's face.

He grasped my chin, his eyes bloodshot, his hatred brimming. "Sherlyn, how could you be so despicable as to have Mega bullied to death? Sherlyn, why didn't you die instead of her?"

He shouted the last line, roaring like a beast at me.

"Megan?" I thought, struggling to recall the face that matched the name.

Finally, a youthful, pretty, and vivacious face emerged from my memory.

It dawned on me. Eugene not only loved Megan deeply, but he also believed that I had orchestrated that bullying.

……

Eugene and I grew up together.

In our third year of high school, we both made it to the elite class, ready to fight our last year for our dream universities.

With my current abilities, I was guaranteed admission to my dream school, with a shot at the best two schools.

Under my supervision and tutoring, Eugene could easily make it to a nice university too.

It all depended on whether he could hold on for this final year.

But then, Megan transferred to our school.

She was beautiful, fair, and slender, with a smile that curved her eyes into crescents.

She wore a modified school uniform that accentuated her figure to perfection.

At 17 or 18, boys were full of passion.

Countless boys had their eyes on Megan, Eugene among them.

His parents were strict, not allowing him to make any mistakes.

The vigorous Megan was like a rose blooming in his ivory tower, irresistible to him.

When Megan arrived, I was secretly in love with Eugene.

I couldn't bear to see him fall from grace under Megan's influence.

So, I repeatedly tried to prevent their interactions.

After a few failed attempts, Megan grew to hate me.

She confronted me in the stairwell, away from others. "Sherlyn, just wait and see. Eugene will be mine sooner or later."

Little did I expect that she would stage a bullying scheme, specifically targeting her and Eugene, to frame me and drive us apart.

What a childish and foolish act!

Yet both Eugene and I fell for it.

I saved Eugene that day, but Megan died accidentally in that alley due to the thugs' recklessness.

As I recalled the past, Eugene closed his eyes, hiding the sadness in them. "Sherlyn, you killed Megan."

……

I calmed down and looked into Eugene's furious eyes, shaking my head frantically.

I tried to convince him that I hadn't orchestrated the bullying.

Eugene bent down, pressing a burning cigarette onto my cheek, his smile sinister. "Sherlyn, your father is already waiting for you in hell."

Chills ran down my spine, and tears streamed uncontrollably down my cheeks.

A suffocating ache welled up in my chest as if my internal organs were being sliced by sharp knives.

"You killed Megan, and this is what you deserve. If you hadn't planned that bullying, Megan and I wouldn't be separated by death."

The first sentence was spoken through gritted teeth, filled with seething hatred.

But the second sounded calm, tinged with barely perceptible agony.

I knelt on the ground, staring at him.

Tears flowed into my mouth, leaving a bitter taste.