I cannot tell how I went to my room. But I did not care about anything else. All I did was cry continuously, until I fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, my stomach began hurting. I had skipped both lunch and dinner. And being someone with acid reflux, it was bound to hurt.However, I was still too sad to even open my eyes. I did not want to think about anything else, especially after both mom's and Carlos' betrayal.However, I felt something, or rather, someone close to me. At first, I thought I was hallucinating. Then, the hair on my body stood straight. I felt like I was in real danger.I opened my eyes, and the first thing that came to my mind was to scream! A person! There was someone in my room.The man hurriedly covered my mouth with his hand, blocking the scream. I shivered more, thinking that he wanted to hurt me. I tried struggling against him.But he shook his head at me. “Don't scream! I am not here to hurt you,” he said. I don't know what he did to me, but I stopped struggling.I fearfully watched as he pulled out my drawer, where I usually keep my medicine, and took out the same medicine I took whenever my stomach hurt.I thought it was coincidence until he took a glass of milk. “Drink this,” he said, his voice stern. “Your stomach will stop hurting.“I was shocked. How the hell did he know that my stomach was hurting? And how did he know where I kept the medicine?“You… who are you?“ I asked in confusion. How did he even get into the house? Mom's security around the house was always top notch.“Stop asking questions and take the medicine, little one,” the man said, something like a smile at the corner of his lips.I took a deep breath and took the medicine. But once again, I was shocked. The milk was warm, just like I loved it, always.The man was looking at me silently. And I could not help but be a little curious. “How did you get in?“ I asked again. Even I, someone who had lived in the same house since birth, could not sneak out at night. Mom would catch me. How had he done it?The man wore something like a sneer. “I have my own ways,” he said and handed me a box of food. “Don't skip meals next time. You know very well that you have problems with your stomach…”Somehow, I felt relaxed being around him. He did not look like someone who wanted to harm me.Still, I furrowed my brows when I looked at the sweet food in front of me. “ Is it poisoned?“ I asked.The man seemed frozen for a second. Then, he sighed. “I am not your mother,” he said, and scooped some food, bringing it to my mouth. “Eat!“ He commanded.Even though I did not understand why he said something about my mother, I opened my mouth and ate the food.He scooped the next spoon, but put the spoon back in the box. He shoved the plate in my hands. “Feed yourself,” he commanded again.I looked at him in confusion. But I was just too hungry to turn him down. I had always known that it was bad to accept food and things from strangers. But with the kind of hunger I had, I gave all caution to the wind.The man sat at the side and watched me eat. We did not say a word to each other until I was done.I handed him back the box and looked at his face. “Can you tell me who you are now? Did my mom send you in?“ I asked.The man pursed his lips, looking back at me. “Nope, I am just assigned as your guard.“My lips twitched. “Who needs a guard? I am not a princess or anything. What are your intentions?“ I asked. Of course, I only had the courage to shout at him after I had eaten his food.The man looked at me quietly. “You don't need to know me. And if your mother hears you shouting like that, you will be in trouble for inviting a man over. Go to sleep, you still have classes tomorrow.“I gave out an angry sigh. “Listen to me, young uncle. I did not invite you in,” I said. What the hell was he talking about?The man sneered and forced me back to bed. “You are quite fierce. But don't you call me uncle,” he said as he tucked me in. “Sleep, I will be watching over you…”When I looked into his eyes as he spoke, I felt like he was compelling me to do everything he said. He just seemed powerful for some reason.I shut my eyes for a few seconds. But I opened them again. “What is your name?“ I asked.The man sighed. “Why are you so stubborn? I asked you to sleep!“ He said, his face turning a little cold.I shivered and shook my head at him. “Why did you sneak into my room? Are you here to harm me?“The man pulled the covers to cover my face. “Go to sleep! I won't hurt you,” he said authoritatively.I sighed. Whatever! Even if he wanted to harm me, he would still do it. Anyway, I only had two years to live. After that, I would die and be free from my mother!…Tick! Tick! Tick!My alarm went off in the morning. I turned in irritation. I had not even slept enough. The ringing alarm was just too loud.I stretched my hand to switch it off. I wanted to sleep a little longer. Who cared about being late for class?However, my hand paused in the middle. I sat up with a start and opened my eyes. Carefully and fearfully, I scanned the whole room.Aah! I rubbed my eyes. Was yesterday night a dream? I put my hands on my stomach. It did not hurt. That meant that I had taken the medicine, and I had eaten!But the man…Was that man in my room? Wait! What if he had done something to me? I tried listening to myself. I only relaxed when I felt that I was good.I sighed again and looked at the drawers. That did not seem like a dream. What did he want? How did he get in?I threw away the covers and jumped in the bathroom. I wanted to catch up with my sleep later on.I hurriedly cleaned up and dressed. I took my bag and rushed downstairs. Aah! Relief! Mom and Denny were nowhere to be seen.I quickly had some breakfast in the kitchen, took my water bottle and rushed out of the house. I did not have a chauffer of my own like Denny. Mom had never organized one for me. And she never wanted this conversation.Anyway, I did not care. I walked out of the house. It was still early. I did not need to call for a curb. I could walk slowly.For the first time, I was among the first people to get to class that day. Still, Dan and Emah were already seated, leaving a seat between them for me.“You tried today,” Emah sai
On Saturday, Emah and I went to the mall for some shopping. Of course, I did not get any permission from mom. I left home when she was not around. Actually, it was Emah who pulled me out by force.Emah kept on buying everything that we found on the way. On the other hand, I was only interested in some snacks. I did not care about the other things.I was carrying a few of Emah's shopping bags as we moved around. This girl was always obsessed with shopping.Suddenly, someone walked closer to me, knocking a bag down. “What the hell…” I wanted to shout at the person when he apologized and bent to pick up the bag.But even after he handed me the bag, I remained frozen. This man… it was him!The man looked into my eyes and I saw him smile. He held my hand and put the bag in it. He winked and hurriedly walked away.I remained frozen in place and looked at the man as he walked away. Emah, who had walked some distance away, came back looking for me. “What is wrong?“ She asked as she shook me.
I wanted to ignore her and keep walking. After all, she was never going to be up to anything good.“Hey, you! I am talking to you. Can't you see that there is a visitor here?“ Mom called, her voice turning so hostile that I had to stop.I am sure they must have been surprised. Normally, I would talk to Carlos any time he showed up. This was the first time I had ignored him.But… Did I have to pretend to be good for no reason? He was always good, but not anymore. There was no way I was going to laugh with someone like him when I knew very well that he did not have any good intentions for me.I cleared my throat and looked up at Carlos. He was so silent that I could not tell what he was thinking.“He is your visitor,” I said angrily. “Why do I have to greet him?“ I had not called for him to come, why did I have to be the one to greet him?I turned to walk away, but a pillow hit my head the next second. Turning to look, mom was holding a glass, ready to throw it at me.“Come back here! W
I hesitated for some seconds before nodding my head and walking behind her. I did not see the need to keep hiding from her. I needed to know her plans so that I would find a way to fight for myself.I slowly took a seat, a heavy lump in my throat. I looked at the woman in front of me with some hatred. She was my mom! I was supposed to be so happy around her, to talk to her and share my problems!But here I was, fearing for my own life! At times, I always hoped that she was not my biological mother. But again, who else could it be?“You have to call Carlos and apologize,” Mom said straightforwardly, bringing me back to my senses. I creased my brows. Was she asking me to apologize? “Why should I do it? I just told him the truth…”Mom stood up abruptly, looking directly into my eyes. “Listen to me, you unfilial child! You have to do as I asked you. You are going to be in a relationship with him and do as he asks you. If you have other plans, you can do it after I get what I want!“Tears
I was still shocked by the shout when Carlos pressed me against the wall and brought his lips closer to mine. He was going to kiss me.Instinctly, I turned my face to the side and he ended up kissing my cheek. Still, I felt so disgusted. I used some force and pushed him away, using my hand to wipe off his kiss.And before he had time to react, I gave him a super hot slap on the face. I was mad! What the hell was he planning to do to me?Carlos held his cheek and looked at me like I was some ghost. I am sure he had never expected that I would hit him. “Natalie… you dare to hit me?“ He asked in disbelief. But I was too annoyed to answer him. I walked out of the room and slammed the door shut before walking down the stairs. Tears continuously ran out of my eyes.I met mom downstairs. He was obviously still waiting for us. “I hope you have not done anything stupid,” she said when she saw me.My anger escalated. “Your good son-in-law is waiting for you upstairs,” I said before walking out
I could see a smile appear at the corner of mom's lips, and I felt my heart ache more. Did she rejoice in everything that she was doing?“It is a good thing that you don't want to beat around the bushes,” she said and took her phone. This confirmed to me that she actually had abducted Emah.I swallowed hard and fought back my tears. “Why do you have to go for my friends when they are innocent, mom? Why don't you do all these to me instead? I am the one at fault here!“Mom chuckled and looked up at me. The next second, her eyes turned very icy. “What will I gain from harming you? I don't see the need to kill you when you are still going to be dead within the next two years…”“Mom!“ I shouted, bursting into tears. So she decided to harm my friends instead? Was this woman ever going to be human?She ignored me and made a call, putting it on speaker. The next second, I heard a shriek from the other end.“What do you people want from me?“ There came a voice that I recognized immediately.“
Hell! I felt so disgusted. I pushed his hands away, feeling the urgent need to clean that part that he had touched.“Mia?“ Carlos looked up at me in shock. I think he was expecting me to just enjoy his dirty and disgusting touch. “Are you changing your mind about everything?“I shut my eyes in annoyance. “Just keep your filthy hands off me,” I said. What the hell did he think he was doing?Carlos stopped the car suddenly. I looked out, and froze when I realized that we were in some deserted road. I did not see any other people. “Did you just call me filthy?“ He asked, swallowing hard. “Do you want me to tell you exactly what I want to do to you?“An alarm went off in my head. Ah! I should have known it. I shook my head as I watched him unbuckle his seat belt. “I want to have you, right now, Mia!“ I trembled and widened my eyes. “You… you are not doing anything of that sort to me,” I said and leaned away from him. I was just scared, because I knew that he was capable of doing anythin
…Dave was so tensed that he shook the girl in his hands. He threw a look at Emah. “What happened?“ He asked. Why was she looking like that?Emah felt like crying when she saw her friend like that. Normally, Mia carried her medicine everywhere she went. Whenever she acted up, they would give them to her and she would be fine.However, it seemed like she was too worried earlier that she did not remember to carry them. “She is in need of her pills. She did not carry them with her,” she said. “What should we do? She is in so much pain…”Mia groaned a little louder before she went silent. She had passed out from the pain. Dave felt more tensed. “Miaa!“ He almost screamed. He seemed to have thought of something. He lay Mia on the seat and rushed for the door. “Look after her as I get her medicine. I will be back soon,” he said.Emah nodded. But the next second, she raised her hand to stop the man. “You… you don't even know what kind of medicine she takes…” she sighed, since the man was al