Thrust Into His Arms

Her snoring just stops after a while and she suddenly starts making desperate gasps for air like she had just been dangerously choked.

I hear her footsteps frantically moving across the room, and then the sound of water running. Accompanied by retching and gargling.

"Why. . . why can’t you just leave me alone?" She shouts in a sobbing manner. "How much longer are you going to be a stain on me?" Her voice comes out low and cracked this time.

She is crying bitterly now. Her cries might as well just become a poisoned dagger.

Gasoline and match because it is tearing me apart, burning me with overwhelming guilt. ’I am sorry. I am very sorry.’ I can say it in my mind, but then why can’t I fucking say it aloud so she would hear?

Would she even want to see let alone forgive me? Just why, why did I have I to be so bad to her? We both would not be here right now if not for all of that. Is there a knife in here?

Cause I’m feeling the urge to cut myself. There isn’t. Of course there wouldn’t be. It’s not like there is a kitchen in here. There is a mirror in the bathroom.

I strike my fist on it repeatedly. The stings of the pieces cutting my skin open is nothing. Nothing at all compared to how she must be suffering right now. I caused all this.

I destroyed her hopes and dreams. Burning alive is said to be one of the most painful ways of tortures. But even that would not be enough. The glass keeps shattering and digging deep into my flesh and tissues with every hit.

It is hurting so much now and I like it. Physical pain is a lot easier to handle than the immense guilt and self-hatred. I did not stop until a large part of the mirror shattered and fell off the wall completely with my blood trailing down it in thick droplets. Now I am thinking of how to explain to the manager that I shattered the mirror without adding that I did it on purpose.

GWENETH

The morning rolls in as usual. It is just the nights that is unpredictable. Last night I was awoken by another vivid nightmare. Taking me back to that terrible moment.

The pleasure and satisfaction in his eyes as he looked down at me. Happy at my humiliation.

I shake the thoughts out of my head and quickly got myself ready to leave the room and go to the restaurant. If only I could be sleeping at the Beach.

Feng shui. . .or whatever they call it, the energy is not strong on positive here as it is not helping with my nightmares.

The bell on the door rings as I push it open and enter. Richard is seated on a table with a young girl. He seems to be tutoring her. So he is smart enough to tutor? I thought he isn’t.

"Good morning." I greet. They both look up at me, "Hey. You’re early."

"I’m always here early." I saw his mother in the kitchen and greeted her when I went to drop my bag. I got a rag and started cleaning the tables. "Thank you so much Richard! I aced my physics test because of you.

You should have seen the way my teacher’s eyes bulged out in shock. Haha." She laughs boisterously. "And my friends. You remember Ingrid?"

"That show off friend?" Richard asked.

"Correct. You should add bitchy because she always thinks that she is number one and that nobody could ever come close because she is intelligent.

But I have been rivalling her these days. And I would continue to do so. So become my private tutor and make me a genius, will you?" She begs in a whining voice. "I promise I will treat you right. My mother would pay you handsomely.

If I tell her she might even give you an open cheque. Isn’t that good enough? What do you say?" Wow. That is quite an offer. I completely thought that Richard would agree. I mean who wouldn’t? But to my surprise and the girl’s too, he said. . .

"No. Let us keep this way. You’re good on your own. You don’t need a private tutor in my opinion. Okay, so we are done here. Say hi to your Dad for me, okay?" He stands up and just leaves. The girl calls after him but he only just waved his hand without looking back.

The girl throws a tantrum before leaving. Shouting and kicking the table. Then she looks at me, "You work here right? Tell him to come meet me at that special spot by his house later tonight.

We are not done talking about this!" She orders with an arrogant flip of her black long shiny hair and does a queen bee walk on her way out.

Her stylish clothes, baby pink puffy fur booths and an expensive perfume scent of jasmine; everything about her says rich brat coded.

When are people going to stop thinking that they do not have control of the world because they are born rich?

I will be an opposite of that when I get rich in the future. If I do get rich. Richard comes out after she leaves, "Is she gone? What was she saying to you?" He asked.

"She said you should meet her at that special spot by your house later tonight. And that you are not done talking about it."

"Sorry. She must have been rude. Harper is way too arrogant and bossy for her own good." He says.

"Why are you refusing to tutor her? She offered to pay you generously." I can’t help my curiosity on that.

"She is a bratty uncontrolled delinquent who got one of her former tutors arrested on false charges of sexual abuse because she did not like him. She enjoys doing terrible things to people that she does not like."

"But she seems to like you." I point out. "She might treat you differently like she said."

"Yeah I know. She will because she is hitting on me. If I take on the tutoring job, she would definitely try to seduce me. I would refuse her and that would not end well for me.

It’s like a trap."

"She is beautiful. Why would you refuse her?"

He snaps his finger, "Good question. We are kinda close. We’ve been friendly neighbors for years now. I kind of see her as my littl—"

He abruptly stops on his sentence and goes to the glass, staring outside with an inscrutable expression that is unusual for him.

"What is it, what are you looking at?" I ask, looking too but not seeing anything strange outside except people passing by.

"Nothing." He replies, but then he opens the door and leaves.