(Thompson White's Mansion – 4:00 PM)Sitting alone in the living room, engrossed in going through the last set of documents for the week, Thompson heard the doorbell ding to his surprise.His father was in his room upstairs. He hadn't seen Roseline leave the house earlier too. Even though they were out, they knew the door's passcode wasn't activated, so there was no reason to use the doorbell."Was it a visitor?" he thought, but he wasn't expecting anyone.Besides, his gatekeepers were specially trained force men and wouldn't allow anybody they weren't familiar with into the house without consulting him first.Unsure, he listened as the doorbell dinged again, before standing up to check out who it was."Surprise!" Berry yelled as soon as he opened the door, smiling widely and swinging her arms excitedly in the air."What are you doing here, Berry?" Thompson asked, alarmed at her sudden appearance, his eyes giving away how much he feared the trouble her mere presence would stir if thing
(Thompson White's Mansion – 2:30 AM)Roseline's head felt heavy and her body ached all over as she watched Thompson, who was fast asleep beside her, his body intentionally turned away from hers on the bed.She had not been able to bring herself to close her eyes since after she bit Thompson's upper lip as the only way to break free for some air.After he had screamed in shock, and maybe pain too, he didn't say any other thing to her. Even at the dinner table, he only talked with his father, ignoring her completely like she was invisible.Roseline knew how scary Thompson got when he yells out of anger, but she was more worried about his silence, because now, she couldn't even guess what was going through his mind or how far his anger had stretched.After hours of sleeplessly watching Thompson's back, she suddenly felt so suffocated. Her chest tightened and her stomach felt uncomfortable, it made her want to throw up.Beating her chest lightly with her hand folded into a fist, she slowly
(Thompson White's Mansion – 1:30 PM)"Finally, Dad! Welcome to my home," Thompson spoke as he majestically walked in."Roseline, how have you been? C'mon, I deserve a hug. I had a hectic time at the office." His eyes turned to Roseline, his arms opened for a hug.Thomas turned briefly to him and nodded, the painting still in his hand, before proceeding to take a seat, his eyes returning to inspecting the painting again.Roseline's legs felt too cramped to move an inch from where she stood. Fear brewed in her mind as she glanced briefly at the painting in Thomas's hand.Short of words, regretting why she hadn't considered the possibility of Thompson returning earlier, why she didn't use the other bedroom, or even lock the door. She regretted why she even had to agree not to paint again.Fighting back the tears that had gathered in her eyes, her guts twisting with hatred for Thomas, she watched Thompson's eyes slowly move from where she stood to his father's hands.She watched him twitch
(Thompson White's Mansion – 11:05 AM)Since after Roseline returned from her trip to Cameroon, it had been difficult for her to use the master bedroom, the one she shared with Thompson.Normally, when Thompson was out for work at the office, she would spend her entire day in the room reading Liya Xe's books on Goodnovel.The author's stories resonated with her, and she would always comb through the internet for any news on her upcoming café book signing.These days, she read in the second sitting room upstairs instead, only going into the room furnished with just a mattress when the house workers wanted to clean, as she wouldn't want to disturb them.Thompson returned home late and tired every other day, and she had been busy meeting his father. They hadn't really had time to talk about how unusually unsettled she had become in the house, especially in the room.She still slept in there, though, just because she didn't want to cause any strife between herself and Thompson. But it was a
(Mr. Thomas White's Office at the Headquarters of the Zones Group – 3:22 PM)"I think there's something you need to know. You have a very hard-to-understand sense of fashion. Anyone ever told you that?"Roseline bit her lower lip in post-embarrassment as those words Thomas had said to her a few minutes ago in his office returned to her head."What a personality!" she sighed as she scrunched up her face in a scowl, walking as fast as the overbearing heels she wore could allow.Her back wet with sweat, the dress stuck to her skin, her chest heavy with the weight of the humiliation she had just faced, her stomach rumbling from skipping breakfast because she had woken up an hour to the meeting time and had to beat the early morning traffic, she had left the company building, praying she wouldn't have any reason to ever come back there going forward.---(Thompson White's Mansion)With Thompson at work and the house attendants not having checked in for their evening rounds yet, the mansion
(The Lounge at the Headquarters of the Zones Group - 11:15 PM)Roseline had just finished her second cocktail order when Thomas's secretary returned to the lobby to tell her he was ready to see her now."Five more minutes and I'd have been out of here," Roseline cussed under her breath before standing to follow the smartly dressed secretary.She had been waiting for over an hour, with everybody who had passed by staring strangely at her. It was uncomfortable.She knew it would be, when Thompson, just because his father made a rude comment about her outfit the last time, had forced her to wear a gown that was most suited for parties and heels inches above the length she was most comfortable in."But I'd be meeting him at the office. Don't you think this is too flashy?" she had asked him as she stared at the long red sequin dress with the reflective discs attached to every inch of it."It doesn't matter," he had replied simply, dismissing her complaint.Roseline, embarrassed out of her m