Salvation

Chapter 23: How I faced the consequences (NEW)

Chapter Twenty-Three: How I faced the consequences

Newly added 2022

The taxi cab slowly pulls up outside the house. Everything is silent for a moment — I take a deep breath in. The fair paid before I open the door and step out onto the concrete. I grip the bag in my hands, trying to focus all my nervous energy on the straps.

When I open my front door, I do not know what I will face; I push my feet to walk forward and up the path. The doorknob is cold as I turn it and push the door. The air sticks in the back of my throat, and my blood rushes around my body. The thumping of my heart is all that I can hear.

The smell of bleach hits me, masking the scent of stale beer. I frown; the house is quiet and cold. I put my bag down beside the stairs; the lights upstairs are off. The smell of bleach grows stronger the closer I get to the kitchen; I notice that the blood, beer and vomit stains have been removed from the carpet—a chilling feeling pricks at my skin. David never takes care of the house like this. The kitchen is empty, and slightly wilted roses sit in a vase, cut and arranged. The realisation of missing the special dinner that he was making me hit me, and my heart sunk under the weight of the guilt.

"David?"

No reply comes; I pick my bag up from beside the stairs and make my way to the bedroom. I need to unpack and begin to make a plan on how I am going to tell David that I lost my job and how I will find a new one.

I use my shoulder to dunt the door open, and the smell of beer and vodka hits me. The light coming through the open curtains shows David sprawled over the bed, still dressed and holding a half-empty bottle of cheap vodka. Loud snores come from him as I pull the bottle from his hand and set it on the bedside table. His eyes flutter, all bloodshot and red.

His rough, cold hands push my touch from him, and I sit on the edge of the bed, watching him groan. David holds his head, sitting up and cursing the sun. Then, blinking the sleep away, his movements are lazily, and he lifts his head to stare at me.

"Hi," I whisper, and he grunts in reply.

David rolls to the other side of the bed, avoiding me and my touch. My chest aches, almost missing him when he is right in front of me. He stands from the bed and disappears into the bathroom; seconds later, I hear the shower running.

Alone, my thoughts immediately turn back to Nathan. I feel like I am drowning in him, and in my heart, I know that I am willingly allowing it; I am making no attempt to swim. I think that a part of my heart will forever be lost to Nathan, but I know that I am not worthy of him, and he would never think of me as anything but his assistant and friend.

David walks out of the bathroom, his skin glistening and a towel wrapped around his waist. I smile at him, but he glares in response. He grabs jeans and top from the drawers, and I play with my hands, picking at the skin around my thumb.

"So, how are you? Did you manage okay without me?" I ask him, my throat drying.

I look up at David; he zips his jeans and pulls on his blue t-shirt. His jaw is set tight, and he looks straight through me, reducing me to nothing with only a look. But then, I realise what he is doing; he is ignoring me because I left and ignored him, and my chest collapses in on itself. The coldness in his eyes shines, almost as if he knows that his behaviour has clicked in my mind.

"I am sorry, if I wanted to keep my job, then I had to go and help with the contract,"

David does not reply; instead, he grabs the vodka from the bedside table and leaves me alone, feeling cold and rejected. I begin to wish that I had never left Nathan and that he didn't see my bruises. I wish for a lot of things.