Stranger danger

“You're nothing but a mistake! I hope you die and rot in hell!” 

“The only thing keeping you in this house is that child in your womb! I can't wait to watch my son throw you out on the streets as soon as you deliver!” 

“You can never reap from where you did not sow, you wretched slut!” 

Those comments kept Charlene up that night, her stomach in tight knots. Her fingers fiddled with each other, the taste of metal suddenly lingering on her tongue which turned out to be her own blood as a result of biting her lips too hard. Nothing hurts more than rejection, she should know, she's been rejected by everyone all her life. 

As she sat there in tears, still hearing their distant voices, she shivered from fear and from cold as a result of the cold floor she was sitting on. She stared down at her baby bump, her heart twisting in pain. There was no way that she was going to let those people take her baby from her. She might have made a horrible mistake by getting pregnant in the first place, but her baby was all she had and she wasn't going to let anyone take him away.

“I can't stay here,” she sniffed, getting to her feet and throwing the door of the wardrobe open, pulling out her bag. “They'll kill me and take my baby.” She whispered, a chill running down her spine in fear. 

“Noah doesn't care about me, he'll let his family have their way.” She muttered, biting her lip as the thought of her baby daddy ran through her mind. She thought he was all she needed to escape her wretched life, but he turned out to be her worst nightmare. 

Charlene had fallen pregnant after a night's encounter with the wealthiest businessman in the country. It was a mistake, she never wanted to keep the baby, but she was promised a huge amount of money to keep it. Noah's family had promised to take her in and treat her as their own, but they turned on her as soon as Noah travelled out of the country.

Why did they take her in and make promises to her in the first place? Why did they insist on keeping the baby if they despised her? Why did Noah agree to this even when he never looked her way once? These were all questions that she wished to get answers to, but no one would say anything to her.

“I'll take care of my baby by myself.” She whined, dragging her bag out of the room. Everyone was asleep, she would leave quietly and never come back, never ever.

Carefully, she dragged her bag down the stairs and out of the house, running like her life depended on it and never looking back. With sweat pouring down her face, she stopped a taxi and told the driver to get as far away from the city as possible. 

“I'll protect my child,” she whimpered in the back of the taxi, rubbing her baby bump. “I'll make sure they never find you, my baby. I'll protect you with my life.” She sighed, her eyes shutting as she drifted off to sleep.

… SIX YEARS LATER …

Charlene shot daggers at the bald man in front of her, her fists tightening in anger. She struggled to stop herself from punching him across the face, he was the landlord, and he was getting on his nerves.

“I will have your money on your desk by noon tomorrow.” She told him, doing a terrible job at hiding the rage in her. She couldn't help but wonder why men felt so entitled to a woman's body. Why did they think that because they had a penis, they could demand for anything and get it?

“Think about it, Charlene.” The landlord's crinkly face twisted into a smile and she struggled to hold back her scoff.

“I will not sell my body to you, Mr Banks. Like I said, I will have your money at your desk by noon tomorrow. Leave immediately or I'm going to..”

“I'm leaving.” He huffed and walked out of the coffee shop. She watched him leave and then sank into her chair, releasing a huge breath. 

That wasn't the first time that a man had tried to take advantage of her body, it was a daily occurrence for her, and it aggravated her every single time.

The bell at the door chimed and Charlene looked up only to find Vicky strutting over to her. They were friends from high school.

“Hey.”

“Oh, hi Vicky. You came at the right time. I have to pick Harry from school.” Charlene said breathlessly as she juggled taking off her apron and putting down her messy hair from the bun she had tied it in earlier.

“That's fine, I have nothing better to do anyway. My boyfriend is out of town.” Vicky rolled her eyes, her jaw resting on her palm.

“I'll be back soon. Business is slow today so try not to doze off.” She chuckled, handing Vicky the apron before hurrying out of the coffee shop. She got into her car and speedily made her way to her son's school.

“Harry!” She called out, sighting the little boy near the field, speaking to a strange man. Her brows folded in concern, her head tilting as if to get a better look.

The man was wearing a black mask that covered his nose and mouth, and he was also wearing a suit, his hands tucked into his pockets. Charlene hurried over to them, quickly pulling Harry to the side as soon as she got there, a stern look on her face.

“Who are you and what are you doing with my son?” She immediately threw a question at the stranger who was simply staring at her. She gazed into his gorgeous blue eyes, and found herself sweating even though it was cold out. She couldn't understand why her heart was racing, or why the masked man was making her uneasy, but she didn't like it.

“Mummy, it's okay. He's my friend.” Harry said behind her but she shushed him. 

“Harry, how many times have I told you not to speak to strangers!?” Charlene scolded her son while the man stood there, staring at them. He didn't move, he didn't speak, he didn't act.

“And you, are you a creep? How can you simply walk up to a little boy and befriend him? Is that what you guys do?” She fired at him but he didn't flinch, his eyes didn't blink either.

“I'm going to report this to the school, they need to be more careful with whom they let in here. Stay the fuck away from my son or I'm going to make you regret it, creep!” She added in anger.

“You're going to make me regret it?” He asked, almost scoffing. His voice was as intimidating as it was mesmerizing, leaving goosebumps on Charlene's skin. Something about him felt familiar, she knew it.

“Yes! Who the fuck do you think you are anyway!?” She yelled at him and took Harry's hand, leading him away in a hurry.

The masked man stood there staring at them, his hands balling into fists. He felt disrespected, and he wasn't one to tolerate disrespect. He didn't know who that woman was, but he was going to find her and make her pay for insulting him. Obviously, she had no idea that she was playing with the devil himself.