Obsession (1) ✔

E P I S O D E - 34

Once we had cleared up, we decided to turn in early. I was emotionally exhausted from dealing with everything. I didn't expect to be in this predicament when I agreed to take this job. I don't regret meeting Elena, never that. In fact, I started to believe that fate really existed. If I hadn't agreed to work for Joel, Capone wouldn't have hired me and I wouldn't have met Elena.

Fuck, when the hell did I become to sentimental?

Suddenly, I felt soft fingers on my massaging forehead while we were watching Captain America Winter Soldier. I had to admit, she had a good taste in movies. Shuffling closer to my body, she forced me lay my head on the pillows stacked up behind me.

"You'll get permanent wrinkles if you keep frowning like that." She played with my hair, massaging my scalp. It was my weakness. I could fall asleep soundlessly on a rock if she started doing that to me.

"It's just a lot going on." My eye became heavy.

"Is it because of me?" She paused.

"No." I spoke softly, wrapping my hand around her waist. "Never you."

Gulping, she searched my face for the truth. Once satisfied, her warmth left me suddenly. When she returned, she had her sketch pad with her. I sat up properly look at her most private possession. I've known her for over two months now and had seen in doodling away in the thick black binder but never once was graced with the chance of seeing what was in there.

"This is what she looked like." She flipped to a page of a women with sad eyes in grey sketch. That was Daniella alright. She was looking out into the distance, hair tied neatly behind her back in a neat bun.

"Wow." The hairs looked like it was alive. It looked so realistic, I was left speechless. My stomach dipped. The eye lashes, the shading the highlights and the shadows. "Wow."

She hid her blush under the curtain of her long hair.

"Can I see more?" I stretched my hand out but didn't touch the book. She contemplated a while before finally handing it over.

Flipping the page, I found wolves from different angles, scattered around the pages. There were areas just shaded in, what seemed like she was practicing fur technique.

"In art you're always learning." She explained. "You might have one technique nailed but if you're not good at another one, you might ruin the whole picture."

I wanted to ask her if she ever wanted to have an exhibition but I held myself back. I knew there was no way Capone was going to risk his secret from getting out by letter Elena interact with the people from outside.

I had yet to figure out as to why he held her captive.

I kept flipping through, mesmerized by her creativity. I loved seeing a practice technique on one page and a full blown perfect picture on the next. I couldn't even form words when I reached to the part of her experimenting with body shapes and positions. There were nude females and males which made me slightly jealous.

"Don't worry, they are all internet reference." She laughed.

Sometimes, she drew people without any references. Faces, random eyes, nose, lips, ear. Just for practice. I landed on a page near the end where it was just a busy collage of random faces when two among them had me sit up in distress. My heart palpitated, stomach churned. Picking my questions carefully, I looked straight into her.

"Are these from memory or did you just made these up?" She looked down at the faces, glanced over the face without pausing on anyone, particular. Then she lifted her chin, looked me dead in the eyes with a down turned mouth and said "No, I think it was just people's faces I made up I guess. I didn't have a reference. I was just trying out different structures and forms, really."

Her statement held such conviction and innocence in them that it physically made my chest hurt. I gave her a closed smile before turning the page over quickly.

I wondered what must have been done to Elena as a child for her to forget what her own parents would have looked like. How many traumatic events did her mind must have suffered through to come to a point where she drew two perfect pictures of Sofia and Alberto from memory and not even recognise them as her mom and dad?

It was the first time ever, since meeting her, I felt sorry for her. I didn't say anything, honestly didn't know what to say. And here I thought my PTSD was the worst thing ever. We were nearly at the end when I couldn't contain myself anymore. Closing the sketch pad, placed it on the night stand before pulling her into me, cuddling her like a teddy bear making her squeal in laughter.

I was never big on cuddling. I grew up alone and I prefer to be alone but Elena changed that. I felt empty when I wasn't touching her and not only that, I slept without a nightmare knowing she was right there.

"You're too big." She mumbled against my chest.

"Thank you." I chuckled, thrusting my pelvis against her thigh.

"Not that you idiot." She laughed softly against my chest. Her head on nestled on my bicep, one leg in between mine. This time around, I played with her hair until my arm became numb and had to transfer her on to the pillow. 

I watched sleep peacefully until the movie finished and the T.V. screen went dark. I wanted her until I knew she wasn't going to whimper because of another memory-less nightmare she was having for the past two weeks.

I'd do anything to keep those nightmares away, to keep her from harm way, even if it meant I had to kill Mason Capone.