Page 5 of Taking Control
I’ve never felt so fucking weak.
“Oh, I never expected you to get hold of me,” she replies standoffishly. “I mean, let’s face it, Lucy, you have neglected our friendship for so long that I barely know who you are anymore.” Her words hurt me, striking like a hot iron.
“Please don’t be like this, Kim,” I plead. Again, with the fucking pleading. It’s all I do. Plead for it all to end, plead for my life, plead, plead, plead. I’m sick to death of pleading.
“Well, then how should I be?” she questions.
“I don’t think this is the time or the place for this,” Michael interrupts.
“I couldn’t care less what you think,” Kim hisses at him and I inwardly scream at her, begging her not to continue talking, but my silent requests are ignored. “You are the reason for Lucy not speaking to me.”
“You better watch your mouth,” Michael says and my heartbeat races as he gives my friend the death stare, the same stare that makes my fucking lungs feel like they are closing up and leaves me struggling to breathe.
“What are you going to do? Hit me?” Kim retorts and Michael steps in front of me, pushing me behind him.
I desperately try to get Kim’s attention and try to convey to her that she needs to shut up, be quiet, keep it zipped, so that I don’t suffer for her words when I get home.
She’s about to open her mouth, when she looks at me, watches me, gauges my reaction.
Eyes wide with fear.
Head subtly moving from side to side.
Tears being held back by biting my tongue so hard that I draw blood.
She sees all of that, and she clamps her mouth shut, her eyes returning to Michael and her shoulders slumping.
“Let’s just go, Michael,” I whisper as I wrap my hand around his arm, trying to show him my need for him to get me away from here. I give his arm a gentle squeeze and he looks at me. Seconds pass before he visibly relaxes and puts his arm around my shoulders, dragging me to him once again.
He turns us in the direction of the office doors, but Kim didn’t get the message as clearly as I thought as she says, “You two run along now. Don’t worry about the people who were left worried about you, Lucy. You just go and play whatever game it is that you started.”
Game?
A fucking game?
I fight the urge to turn back and really show her how this is not a fucking game. Hell, I wouldn’t even wish my life on my worst enemy.
I bite my bottom lip as Michael moves us to the doors.
I want to tell her the truth. I want to let her in and make her see that this is the only way that I will ever be free. I want to scream and shout and tell everyone what an abusive asshole Michael is, but it’s not the time.
Not yet.
I just have to wait.
Wait to get my happy ending.
Wait to see if my friends will forgive me and wait to tell them that I don’t love Michael.
Kim obviously believes that I do. She couldn’t be farther from the truth.
“And just so you know,” Kim says, her voice a little higher now that we are a few feet away from her. “It’s no good crawling back to me when you realise your mistake, Lucy. I’m done, and so is Cal.”
Chapter Five
Tomorrow
I run a bath. Lock the door.
