Melaine

Chapter 13

"Are you sure it won't kill me?" She mocked his cooking skills and he took mouthful spoon of soup holding her gaze and Melaine bit her inner cheek at the effect he's having on her.

"Nope, I didn't die Miss Melaine so you can have it", he spoke in over dramatic manner that made the girl chuckle. One thing that Rohan noticed was that she had been opening to him little by little and he knew, there would be a time when he'd tear her open completely for him and him only. Melaine shook her head at him and sipped her soup, enjoying the spoon on her tongue that had his taste of tongue and saliva. Any normal person would have considered the act as gross and sick one but Melaine had never been fit on the definition of being normal, at least not for him. Besides, love itself is gross in taste and sick in mannerism that's far from the normal for anyone.

"Come on, it's not that bad", he complained lying down on his back.

"I didn't say anything!" She retorted back bringing spoon to her mouth and he wondered if her sole attention was on the spoon itself rather than filling her empty stomach.
"Enjoying the spoon?" He teased and she stared at him grimacing.
"I didn't find your spoon funny."
"But judging by your face you're finding it quite tastier than..."
"Who's the boy before in your room?" Her question put him to silence and now, she enjoyed the control over him.

"Who?" Rohan tried to play it dumb though he knew she must have heard them in the room and the thought, he hoped didn't arouse him. If he hadn't found her passed out outside his room, he must've thought him losing his sanity for hearing her voice during his climax.

"The one with you..."

"He's a friend." He answered briskly.

"Just friend?"

"I'll help you clean up the mess at your house."

"Thanks"

-
"Laine, give my teddy back!" The boy shouted and ran after his sister who's giggling running downstairs and turned back to stick her tongue out at her brother. The boy reached for her sister's hair from behind, tugging handful of them and the girl yelped when her balance gave away beneath her pink slippers falling down the stairs.

"Laine!" The boy shouted in horror and ran to his sister who's crying in pain on the floor clutching her elbow.

"What happened?" The man came running from his study room, the immediate he heard her crying and looked at the girl sitting on the floor holding her elbow.

"Laine slipped from the stairs", the boy told the man who knelt before the girl, inspecting her swollen joint and tried moving her arm that made the young girl whimper in pain.

"It's broken. I'm taking you to the doctor." The girl nodded as he cupped her face and wiped her tears with his thumbs. The man scooped the girl up in his arms and carried her outside the house towards his car to hospital. The boy stood there at the last step of stairs, glowering at the man and went to pick up his teddy bear clutching him closer to his chest.

-
Rohan sprawled out on her sofa after moping the floor and Melaine went inside the kitchen to make dinner for them.
"Need any help? He asked sauntering inside the kitchen and grabbed apples and celery from the refrigerator.
"What are you doing?" Melaine asked grinding pepper on chicken.
"I'm making celery salad and potato skillet." He answered pulling out a knife and started cutting the apple in cubes. He put the cubes and celery in a bowl while Melaine fried marinated chicken in a pan. They made the dinner together. Rohan gave her helping hand in the kitchen cleaning the mess along with constant teasing much to her annoyance. They laid the table together and settled down on the chairs for dinner.
"Doesn't it look like a date?" Rohan smirked rubbing his hands at the delicious aroma of food.
"Seriously?" She groaned shaking her head at him. Rohan took chicken piece in his plate and cut it with knife putting in his mouth with fork. He looked at Melaine and swallowed before asking,
"So...how's your ex..."

"Why are you asking?" Melaine abruptly cut him playing with potato chunks with her fork .

"Trying to make a conversation, nothing else." He turned back to his food but not before giving her a suspicious look at her odd behaviour towards him.

"He's sweet and good at the start...and everything went fine with dates and picnics but..." Melaine bit her lower lip collecting words before continuing, "One night we're at the cinema, I was waiting for him by the car when a boy started hitting on me and when he came out he punched that boy breaking his nose and started beating him badly. I pulled him away but it had scared me at that night because that boy didn't know I had already been taken and he's trying to get friendly."

"He's possessive ?" It's statement rather than a question.

"Yeah...and later, he's getting overprotective of me. I couldn't go out anywhere with my friends. I had to cut all ties with my male friends and couldn't leave house without his permission. He's abusive and demanding in the bedroom too."

"He's a sick bastard." Rohan muttered.

"One night, he crossed his limits. I had to go out to check on one of my old friend and when I came back, he made a big fuss out of it for betraying him and he started beating me. He would've killed me that night if it weren't for my best friend who happened to come at our place. She had called the cops and he's arrested for domestic violence."

"Now, he's out of the jail?"

"Yeah and it's his way of letting me know that he'd get back at me". She referred to the incident and Rohan balled his fists at the thought of her being abused at her ex's hands and now he's playing with her mind to tell her he still has hold over her.

"He won't hurt you, I promise you." Rohan assured her squeezing her hand on the table and she nodded getting up gathering up the plates and put them in dish pan. Melaine plugged the drain adding dish soap and ran the water to make bubbles. She soaked the sponge and started cleaning the glassware. Rohan propped himself on the shelf watching her working on the plates and he dipped his hand in water blowing bubbles on Melaine's nose.
"What are you doing?" Melaine wiped her nose and Rohan splashed good deal of soap water on her, soaking her blouse. She stared at him gasping and splashed bubble water on his face and hair.

"That's even", she smirked as she scrubbed the pan. Rohan's lips quirked up at the corner, and he again splashed her face with his hand laughing at her flustered look. Melaine turned to him with raised brow and grabbed his hair dumping his head inside the dishwasher.
"Melanie!" He coughed spitting water from his mouth and she rolled her eyes at him.
"It's Melaine, Rohan."
"It's Ro-wan not Roan like a stupid animal breed."
"Roan!" She teased him overemphasizing her pronunciation.

Melaine cleaned herself in the bathroom changing her clothes and by the time she came down in the kitchen, Rohan was in his white vest smelling of soap and shampoo after taking shower in the guestroom. He handed her coffee mug and they both sat in the patio.

"His name is Dan." Rohan told her making her comfortable with him since she had confided in him about her past relationship.
"You can say he's my ex... my first male." His voice dropped at the one of sentence feeling ashamed of himself.

"You're into men?" She didn't sound astonished or accusing but understanding.

"Sort of...sometimes but not in romantic way." Rohan assured her, not wanting to give her any bad idea about himself.

"Why was he at your place?" She pressed further tracing circle the brim of her mug with her finger.

"He wanted it, or maybe I wanted it but it's best to see him once in a while than letting him ruin my reputation at school."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's say he knows some bad stuff about me and he can exploit me."

"He's blackmailing you?" The mere thought entertained her and stirred excitement inside her.

"You can say it but it's consensual what we had..."

"He's forcing himself on you". She verbalized the thoughts that he had been denying for so long. Rohan didn't answer her because he knew she's right about Dan and him in a sick relationship.

"Don't see him anymore." she spoke in a low voice.

"I'll try"