Upon hearing Joshua's question, Emanuele feels her body lean forward, almost as if the "yes" is already implied. But her mind wanders long before she finally manages to answer: "H-how are you going to do this?" A slightly arrogant smile draws itself on his thick lips. "Don't underestimate my talents." My goodness. The girl stares for seconds at his mouth, so close they could kiss at any second. What would it be like to feel pleasure without losing your virginity? Was there a way to do that? She swallows her shame and asks once more: "But... I'm serious. How are you going to do this?" Joshua raises one of his eyebrows. "No one has ever touched you? Have you... Never touched yourself?" "No." They are silent for a few seconds. Joshua thinks that's funny, but he doesn't laugh. Not least because that could send a completely wrong message to her. The man slides his hands to her waist, holding her firmly. Then he faces her and says very slowly: "I am going to stimulate you, your
When Emanuele woke up, Joshua was no longer in bed. Startled, the girl looked at the clock on the wall, wondering how long she had been out. Then she realized that she had been there for twenty minutes.Slowly, the redhead raised her torso, sitting up. She was still only in her panties.Part of her brain still could not discern what was true and what was not. Had she imagined all this? The subtle tremors that still ran through her fingers and toes, as well as the small hint of a shiver down her back, were proof that yes, it was real.Emanuele stood, testing the firmness of her own legs, and got dressed. Why had Joshua left the room? It seemed a bit rude. Or was that usually the way things happened, and she wasn't used to it?As she was about to leave the room, the man opened the door. He was carrying two mugs, one in each hand."Hey, Sleeping Beauty."The girl blushed with embarrassment."Oh, hi.""Hi. Here. I thought you might be in need."She takes a sip of the cold drink, but can
The redhead says nothing, but feels her heart racing. Although he doesn't name names, Emanuele knows he is talking about the family member, the man who tormented him so much that the after-effects were still present more than forty years later. And as if that were not enough, this man would take longer to die than expected.Not that she believed that with the death of Joshua's abuser, he would get better or overcome his internal adversities. That healing was personal, and if he didn't make an effort, it would be a vain struggle. To depend on external factors to get rid of that pain was useless and even dangerous.Joshua is trembling. Anger? Fear? Emanuele says:"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to.He looks at her with such intensity that it almost hurts."I have to."The man simply gets up and props himself up on the bed. Soon after, he lies down under the fluffy pillows and places Emanuele beside him. The two of them are looking up at the ceiling and smelling each o
Two weeks have passed since then. Sitting in the town square, Thabata holds a questionable bottle of an equally questionable drink. The girl takes a sip and then looks away. Joshua really had kicked her out of his life as if she were little less than trash. And even worse, to trade her for the sewer trash that was that new tenant. She couldn't understand how that sassy, boyfriend-stealing cow had managed to gain everyone's friendship so quickly. Amanda and Amora kicked her out of the party, simply throwing away any and all consideration they might have had for the last few years of friendship. And that dead fly of Johnny's was a key part of the tragedy. Everything was going wrong, and it was all the bumpkin's fault. Staggering, the girl stood up. None of the five assholes wanted to talk to her or even hear what she had to say. They just said that "that conduct was unacceptable," and some variant of "you are a bad person." No, she was not bad. The real wretch disguised in sheep's c
Two paramedics were looking down on her, with their white uniforms and medical instruments she didn't know the names of. Frowning, it took Emanuele a while to figure out where she was. The first thing she noticed besides the strangers examining her was that she was lying on a stretcher. The second thing was that she was no longer on the street, surrounded by curious people, buses, trees, and birds. The third thing was that her nose hurt like it was broken. And it probably was. The rest of my body hurt too. It felt like a truck had run over her several times. Her lungs were burning when she breathed, and her throat wasn't so good either. My God, she really wasn't born for this. Still trying to reorganize her thoughts and wondering where she was, the girl saw that next to her a handsome and concerned young man was holding her hand. He was answering the questions the doctors were asking, but she couldn't understand them. Maybe she needed some stronger medication. Maybe they were for
Emanuele knows that she doesn't deserve Johnny's forgiveness or understanding. If they were in opposite places now, she herself would hardly be so generous. Maybe her mother was right. Maybe she really was doomed to be a crawling worm upon the earth, causing a succession of misfortunes along the way and hurting those who wanted her well.While the doctor examined her broken nose and prescribed a series of ointments and medicines, the girl could only stare at the boy. After she told him about her kiss with Joshua, Johnny let go of her hand and moved away to a corner of the room. He didn't avert his eyes from her, but he didn't seem at all receptive either.Thabata might be a disgrace, but Emanuele herself was not far behind. At least that was how she felt.When the doctor finally finished his consultation, the girl decided to ask, more to confirm the information than anything else:"Can you send the bill to Emanuele River?""The bill goes to me." Johnny mutters. The doctor looks at t
Johnny gently wipes another layer of ointment over Emanuele's bruised skin. The girl shivers slightly when the boy's fingertips touch her wounds. He apologizes and tries to soften the impact of the contact, but there is not much he can do. The cuts will hurt for at least a few days before they close, and compared to the pain of the broken nose, that was nothing.As the girl was about to begin her account of her life, the thoughtful young man interrupted her and decided that she had better take her medication, including the ointment. Now, for example, the former bride swallowed a painkiller.After the whole procedure was over, the girl closed her eyes and lay back down next to Johnny. It was the first time she would tell all, at least briefly, about what it was like to live with the monster she once called her mother.Emanuele begins by talking about her father. She had never met him, but she knew that he was still alive somewhere. This conclusion was the result of a little research on
And in fact, they did not spend that night at Johnny's parents' house.Emanuele was grateful for many of the wonderful things that were happening in her life, despite everything. One of them was the true friendship that she was slowly building with Gustavo, Andrew, Amanda and Amora. Even the twins were really excited to see her and Johnny as an official couple.After all, the two had agreed to give up the party house that the two had, the same house where the meeting took place, so that they could spend a quiet night. Emanuele sent a text message telling Joshua that she would not be returning to the apartment that night, and that he need not worry. Alexandra's brother replied with a basic "okay".Inside the car, Johnny held Emanuele's hand gently and firmly, as he had done a few hours ago when they were leaving the hospital. In his other hand was a small backpack with what he called provisions. The girl decided not to ask any questions.Seeing the number of buildings and lights dimin