Alyssa's pov:
I can't figure this man out. Sometimes he behaves really nice and sweet, and in a split of second he becomes all scary and controlling. I can never seem to figure out what triggers him.
So I tried to stay silent, but my silence triggers him. If my answers are not to his liking, then he gets triggered. And if I move in certain ways or move too much he gets triggered. What am I supposed to do!
Most of the times when that happens it ends up in him either making me sit on his lap and sniffing my neck, Or kissing me. I understand the kissing, but what's with the sniffing, is he a dog?!
He hates it if I wear clothes which reveal my skin more than necessary. I haven’t been able to wear crop tops, skirts or shorts for all these months.
And somehow he just knows what I'm doing, where I'm at, what time did I sleep at, who am I talking to, how long am I talking with them, what I'm talking about.. Everything...
One time this new guy approached me. He just transferred to the school, so he asked me to help show him around.
I was shocked at first. After meeting Arestair, no one ever dared to talk to me. And having Connor with me, only made it worse. He was like a bodyguard himself.
This guy was new, so that's why he talked to me . I agreed and showed him around. He was actually a very soft spoken and shy person. We chatted a lot, he was nice.
But that day, Arestair shoved me inside the car and drove to an empty field, he looked angry. I wanted to ask what happened but my fear closed my mouth shut.
" The moment someone approaches you, you're ready to talk with them. Are you that easy!! I clearly told you, 'don't talk to any boys.' But you just had to disobey me like that" he said while walking towards me, pushing me and pinning me to the wall.
" Is it fun for you? To disobey me here and there? Is it fun to make me angry? " he gritted his teeth. I quickly shook my head. Tears already filling my eyes, ready to fall any moment.
I forgot that he warned me to stay away from all the guys. Talking to them was not allowed. Connor was the only exception.
It didn’t bother me much because I don't talk to much people anyways and everyone stayed away from me. So I really forgot that he told me to stay away.
But how did he know I talked to a guy when I was at school...
" I..I was just showing..hi..m around th..the scho..ool " I said, full on crying from the pain on my wrists.
He was literally squeezing them to the point it felt like they'd break. It'd surely leave a nasty bruise. I hated being this weak.
That day it ended up in my mouth being assaulted and my neck being filled with blue and purple marks.
This was his way of punishing me. They were the worst, getting hit was better than getting assaulted at this point.
What was worse that this would go on for more than an hour. How can a person kiss someone for that long!
My lips would hurt and I could feel them bruise. He was not gentle at all either. At the end, it would always feel like my lips were gonna just rip apart.
" Don't you ever.. Ever talk to any guy again. Understood? " Was the warning he gave before taking me home.
The whole drive I just cried, the tears wont stop falling. He kept glancing at me and my wrists. My both wrists now had bluish reddish fingerprint marks.
I'm sure I saw something close to guilt on his face, but it vanished as soon as it came.
He stopped the car in front of a pharmacy near my house, bought an ointment and gently started to apply it on my wrists.
He looked so calm and gentle, it was hard to believe that he was the same person that inflicted this pain on me just moments ago . The duality of this man... I could not understand him.
" I did not mean to do this..." was all he said in a low voice.
He applied the ointment on both of my wrists and then on a few spots on my neck which I couldn't see. But based on the pain I felt, they must have bruised bad as well.
There were other occasions when I talked about him with Rae and Connor. Or Rae and Connor mocked him to lighten my mood. But every time he knew. Every single time...
" Are you trying to run away from me dear? You having fun bad mouthing about me? Tell Rae to stop talking shit about me. Tell Connor to stop mocking me" these are the things he'd say to let me know that he knows.
If I deny that we did no such thing, he would repeat the things we said about him on that exact day. Rae and Connor got worried and we stopped talking about him.
It was like he knew everything. How was he doing that. It became very uncomfortable. Rae and Connor are now very careful about what they say. The same goes for me.
The literal threats he gave Connor and Rae made them both stop fighting him. Raechel once punched him in the face because he wouldn’t stop pecking my lips despite my protests.
This only led him to smile evilly. 'Ooh, fiesty" was all he said. The next thing we knew, Rae's grandfather's operations were being stopped and being rejected from every single hospital.
The more delay we did, the more worse his condition became.
He made sure to threaten every clinics and Hospitals. Rae couldn’t leave the city, his men would not let her go anywhere.
In the end, we all had to beg him to stop this brutality. I begged him the most. I never saw Rae so helpless and cry like that.
It hurt so bad to know that I was the reason my dear friend was suffering. He finally let Rae admit her grandfather to a hospital.
He said the only reason he was letting Rae off so easily because I begged him to and because he did not like to see me getting hurt in the process.
What a hypocrite ! He was the one hurting me the most!
He warned Rae that next time, he'd personally go and kill her grandfather. That made Rae completely stop going against him.
Same goes for Connor. They both still want to fight him but are helpless.
My life is literally at his palms now. I had to follow all his wishes, or else he said he'd drag my mom into this mess. She was the one person I could not see getting hurt.
He even shows up at the cafe from time to time. Michael has been a real help and I've been feeling very secure with Michael . For some odd reason Arestair doesn't misbehave with Michael much.
Of course he's shoved around Michael a couple of times, but most of the time he lets him off the hook. Michael has been like the best big brother.
But Arestair coming to the cafe was making all the customers go away, no one came there anymore.
Catherine was too nice to fire me. But I couldn’t see her suffer because of me anymore. So I resigned on my own.
Catherine did not accept my resignation letter. She said I didn’t have to do that and told me to just go on a break. And that I was welcome to work there any time I wanted to.
The days Arestair doesn't come, or doesn’t stay for long due to his work are like Christmas days for me. Those are days that make me feel like celebrating.
All in all, I feel like my life is totally under his control. At least he doesn't bother me about having fun with and sleepovers with Rae and Connor.
But still, I feel suffocated.....
******************
My finals are near and with Arestair causing me so much panic, pain and fear I couldn’t study at all for the past few months.
I've been a mental wreck. My sleep schedule has been all over the place because of my nonstop crying that was caused by none other than the devil himself.
If this went on, I'd surely fail my finals. I want to ask him to stop coming.
But..will he listen to me...
Today as usual he came to pick me up. Mom hasn’t stopped bothering me about him. She thinks he's some sort of prince.
I wonder what her expression would be if she got to know who he was.
I made sure to warn Connor about not telling mom. He's such a gossiper. Mom and him just can't stop gossiping and he just can't keep his mouth shut.
He almost told her a few times. They’ve gotten so close that sometimes it feels like I am the intruder in my own house.
I went into the car. Of course, It's a Tesla today. I asked him a few times to not come in such fancy cars. But he never listens.
I want to ask him to stop coming. But what if he rejects me? What if he gets mad? What if he punished me again.
I kept bickering in my head whether to ask him or not.
" You seem stressed? Something bothering you?" he asked me. He was driving but I could tell his focus was on me.
Now is the time. Maybe he'll say no. But If I don't ask him, how will I know. Maybe he'll agree. Who knows.
" if someone's bothering you, just tell me. I'll take care of them" he said in his deep voice. I could sense the underlying threat behind his words and that sent shivers down my skin.
I need to say it now. Here goes nothing.
" Um..my..my finals are in a month.. So like.. can you stop.. coming? It's ha..hard for me to study while you're h..here" I said As slowly as possible, not to get him angry.
He stared at me a little. " So I'm a distraction for you? " he said.
" N..no.. Not that.." he raised a brow at me..
" y...yes. You...k.kind of distract me.. I ha..have..nn’t be..en able to st..tudy all these t..time. I n..need to conce..n...trate. Or..I wi..will fail!" I hated myself for stuttering so much. Why am I like this.
" Just..just for th..this on.e month. Pl..please. C..can yo..u not come.." he stayed silent for a while. I was ready to be rejected.
" Okay" that answer shocked me. I looked at him, shocked. I was soo ready to be rejected. He pinched the bridge of his nose..
" Look, as much as I hate to admit it, I know that I scare you. And the distress and nervousness I cause you are clear as a day. Plus, I'm aware of the amount of times I've made you cry. " he stopped the car as we reached the school and turned fully towards me.
"I already know how badly I effect your studies. So I'll agree to it. But only for this one month. Once your exams are over, I'll be back. Got it?"
" Yes! Got it. Thank you! Thank you soo much" I was so excited. It felt like a heavy boulder has been lifted off my shoulders.
For a moment, he looked hurt for some reason, but I was too excited to consider that. I just got out of the car and said bye to him.
I was finally gonna have some peaceful time alone and I couldn’t be happier.