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THIS CHAPTER IS WRITTEN IN 3RD PERSON POINT OF VIEW
Allen woke up when he felt someone"s weight on his chest. He squinted his eyes in attempt to sharpen the blurred images before him and stroked his fingers on the side of his forehead briskly, before he lowered his gaze on the woman lying down on his chest tranquilly.
He slightly rose up and cleared out the strands of hair on the cheek of the lady to make certain she was his wife. He went back to lying down when his instinct proved him right. A smile drew on his lips while his hands fondled Vanessa"s hair. He unconsciously kissed the top of her head. Her hair smelled like strawberries – sweet and tempting.
"Thank you… for staying."
He kept hold of her wife inside one of his arms. She seemed to be in a deep sleep so he can freely proceed on doing anything that pleased him. He can"t really show his wife some affection whenever she"s awake because he"s not used to it. It seemed far out of the ordinary for him. Most of the time, when he sees her, anger and hatred consumes his whole being. So, instead of showing her loving kindness, he only howls at her. This is also the reason why sometimes, he chooses to just avoid and ignore his wife.
He knuckled down on Vanessa"s soft and smooth hair, resting over her shoulders like a settling dust cloud. He felt bliss as he played around with it. He held onto its strands upward and twirled them around with his fingers. He seemed like a child, a babe in the woods, who found happiness as the strands of his wife"s hair fell in between his fingers.
He thought that Vanessa has already left him for Zian. He had a bad dream earlier - she was already packing her things up and was decided on breaking up with him. Everything felt real.
“Van… Please… Don"t go.”
That is what he begged his wife for in his dream, but she didn"t listen. He knelt down before her, but he just couldn"t stop Vanessa. She left and his life became miserable. So, he felt relieved and he was able to breathe more freely when he woke up with his wife in his arms.
He didn"t mean to give Vanessa away or to give up on her. Those words has only spitted out of his mouth because of anger. He really didn"t mean them. He knew to himself that he can"t live without his wife. He can"t lose her despite what happened – he"d be lost to the world. This is why when Vanessa yelled at him and told him that she"ll leave with Zian, he felt down in the dumps, as if his body was poured onto by ice cold water. His heart sank into fear - what if his wife leaves him? Can he live through it?
He broke off when he felt that Vanessa moved. She rested one of her thighs on his crotch area. He wrinkled his forehead as his wife made him a leg pillow.
“Vannie… Are you already awake?” He asked. But he didn"t hear a word from her. Apparently, his wife was sleeping like a log. He"s really not sure why he bothered asking when she really couldn"t give him a response.
“Tsk… Van, you"re so heavy. I can"t breathe.” He complained as he pushed Vanessa away. But the truth is, he really doesn"t find her heavy. He"s just starting to think their position is a bit awkward. He"s really not used to it. He feels odd stumbling upon gestures of sweetness between them. He thinks they"re ill-suited for it.
He was startled when Vannie moved. She pulled away and rolled to her side. Now, his wife is facing the other side of the room. He can stare at her without restrictions as she cannot see what he"s doing. His eyes locked on Vanessa"s shoulders which are wrapped by a bandage. He was supposed to stroke it with his hand, but he changed his mind. It might sting if he does that.
His senses just got him to close his eyes hard. He can"t help himself but feel sorry. It"s his d.a.m.n fault why his wife is in such condition – why she lost consciousness and why she was confined in the hospital. He really didn"t mean to hurt her that bad physically. But because of extreme anger and jealousy, he lost himself and pushed her on the wall so sternly.
That night, it wasn"t his intention to have beaten his wife so badly. Extreme anger grew his sensations – he seemed to have blacked out and lost sanity. He"d just steer clear of himself and realize what he has already done once Vanessa cries her heart out. That"s his weakness, his soft side. Of course, he feels sorry for her, especially when tears don"t stop from falling on her face. Whenever he"s in so much anger, he tries to s.h.i.+ft his hard feelings onto some other things – wall, table, or mirror. He doesn"t really care what he"d slam his fist or where he"d stomp his feet onto.
It"s also Vanessa"s fault – why does she keep on going out to meet with Zian? He"s trying to keep her away from him, but she"s being so stubborn, which brings him to hit the ceiling. It causes bad blood whenever Vannie deliberately disobeys him. For him, what he wants is plain and simple - to always stay inside the house and to fend off the others, especially that a.s.shole, Zian.
He"s working on sorting things out between them, but as time pa.s.ses by, their relations.h.i.+p as husband and wife gets even worse. As a matter of fact, he has grown sick and tired of their problem. If he could just leave Vanessa for good, he has done it a long time ago. But there"s something about her that makes him want to stay, which he still doesn"t know what.
After minutes of being plunged in some deep thinking, he decided to get up. Vanessa might notice that he is already awake for some time, but still doesn"t get up. One more thing, he already needs to use the toilet.
He slowly got up of the bed, then sat down on the edge of it for a while. He can feel that his wounds on the face were burning and his whole body was writhing in pain, especially his abdomen. He can"t help but curse Zian inside his mind. "That a.s.shole!" He gathered all his strength and forced himself to stand up. Then, he wobbly walked towards the shower room.
To look at himself on the mirror was the first thing he did when he entered inside. Cursed words reeled off his mouth as he stared at his face - he had a number of bruises with one on the side of his lips. He has only seen those wounds, caused by his old friend, close up just now. He is feeling regretful for not fighting back. He should"ve punched Zian to death so all of his problems would come to an end.
He turned the faucet on and started was.h.i.+ng his face. But his senses got him to stop, then he placed both of his hands on the sink when he felt the pain caused by the cold water flowing through his wounds. They sting. Can he just wake Vanessa up so that she could treat his wounds? He really wanted to, but his ego eats him up - he can manage it on his own, he doesn"t need Vanessa.
He continued to wash his face and tried to pay no heed to his stricken wounds. Well, those should be nothing compared to the heavy heart he endured at the moment. He took off his pants and boxers, which were the only things he"s wearing, and then he proceeded to bathe. His body seemed viscous, maybe because he was so drunk and wasted last night.
When he got out of shower room, he stumbled upon Vanessa who has just woken up. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, facing his direction. He avoided her gaze. She was showing him a sweet smile, but he didn"t know why. If he remembered it correctly, they had a huge fight last night; they almost broke up. But why is she wearing all smiles, like nothing has happened?
“Why are you smiling? What"s your problem?” He irately regarded. Then, he noticed the sudden change in Vanessa"s reaction - her smile perished and her face looked like it rained on a parade.
Vanessa stood up and was about to enter the shower room when he suddenly pulled her. “Tsk! s.h.i.+t, I"m talking to you! Don"t turn your back on me!” It was yet too early for his howling, but he couldn"t do anything. He really didn"t like it when his wife ignored him.
Vannie bowed her head down when he heard him breathe so heavily. She said, “It"s nothing. You don"t even remember. Maybe it was just a dream.” She bitterly answered.
“The h.e.l.l! What are you talking about?!” He boldly demanded.
“Nothing…” His wife directly answered as she pulled her arm back and headed to the shower room. He was left with a wrinkled forehead. He just couldn"t understand what his wife was talking about. What was that thing he couldn"t remember? Tsk, he could only shake his head. Ever since, his wife has lived a life full of drama.
He was about to go downstairs to the kitchen when he suddenly heard Vanessa"s cellphone ringing. He automatically ticked off. "f.u.c.k! Don"t tell me he has still not stopped from bothering my wife? d.a.m.n it!" As if kicking a high gear, he looked all over Vanessa"s bag and took out the ringing cellphone from it. He didn"t even glance at who was it that"s calling; he just answered the call.
“h.e.l.lo? Vannie?”
It was a lady"s voice. He moved the cellphone away from his ear and looked at the name of the person that"s calling. He thought that it was Zian, but it turned out to be just Leila. Then, he breathed a sigh of relief.
“Vannie? h.e.l.lo!” Leila repeatedly conveyed from the other line. He wanted to turn the phone call down, but his wife"s cousin might have something important to say. He just talked back even if he really didn"t want to talk to her.
“Yes?” He sluggishly responded.
“Hey, Vannie. Is that you?”
He rolled his eyes. Obviously, he felt bored and uninterested. “She"s not here.”
“W-who"s this? Allen?”
“Yes. What do you need?!” He sternly asked.
“Wow, it"s a miracle! It"s a good thing you came home, a.s.shole!” He was stunned to the cursed words that spitted out of Leila"s mouth. d.a.m.n that woman! She really has the guts to talk to him like that. He was also supposed to curse her back in revenge, but he was not in the mood to do so.
“Where is Vannie?” Leila asked.
He turned his eyes to the closed door of the shower room. He can hear the running water from inside. “She"s taking a bath Why?"
“h.e.l.lO?!” He yelled impatiently when he cannot hear any word from Leila.
“Yes, I"m still here! Don"t shout!” Leila sloppily answered.
“How is Van?”
He rolled his eyes once again. Seriously, are they going to exchange stories? “She"s fine.” He plainly answered even if he really wasn"t sure if his wife already felt good.
“Good to hear that. Remind her to take her meds, okay?!”
He frowned. Who was she to give him commands? He thought. “And why should I take orders from you?” He responded in an authoritative voice.
“f.u.c.ker! Just so you know, she"s your wife! Don"t you want her to feel better?”
He felt unsure, but his heart seemed to have softened. Of course, he wanted her to feel better. He breathed deeply, “Which medicine?”
“The one on the side table, inside the blue box. If her shoulders hurt, let her drink that.”
He walked towards the table right away and reached over for the box of medicine that Leila was referring to. He read the instructions outside of it, but none of which could he understand. “Tsk, fine.” He sighed. “And what else?” He asked.
“That"s all! Hey, Allen! d.a.m.n you! Don"t leave your house, okay? Don"t leave my cousin alone, you a.s.shole, or I"ll kill you. I"ll beat you to death —”
He didn"t wait for Leila"s lecture to finish - he ended the phone call. He"s getting fed up! He really hates a woman that"s both a nagger and a blabbermouth. He finds it discordant in the ears! She doesn"t act n.o.ble and her mouth reels off only cursed words. He feels very grateful that his wife"s personality is far from that of her.
The door of the shower room suddenly opened right after he placed the cellphone down the table. Her wife came out with her body covered only by a bath towel. His eyes bulged and his face turned red and hot. Because aside from Vanessa"s crying, one of his weaknesses is his wife"s flawless body.
“W-was there someone who called? Who was it?” Vanessa asked him.
He came to his senses and swallowed hard. He turned his eyes to a different direction. He had to do that, because if not, he might lose control of himself and do something to the freshly bathed Vanessa.
“Your cousin.” He plainly answered.
“Leila? W-what did she say?”
He s.h.i.+fted his eyes back to his wife – she was waiting for his answer. He stared at her, and in just no time, the lascivious sensation turned the red flag to a bull.
He reached for the box of medicine and hurled them over in front of Vanessa. “There! She said you should drink those!” He snapped as he took the cigarettes and the lighter from the drawer and headed outside the balcony of the room.
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