x
“I’m back."
Tie up to the chair I looked around the void but couldn't find him. Suddenly, my chair tilted backwards and I spotted his smiling face silhouetted in the light.
“Did you miss me, Beloved?”
I don’t respond and he chuckles putting the chair back in its position. The tight ropes that bound me ached my joints making me wince.
“It was a beautiful day outside Beloved,” he clapped his hands twice and a chair appeared in front of me. “Winter is coming, so everywhere will soon be covered in snow and everyone will be dressed up in their winter outfits or getting ready for the holidays. I heard they were going to decorate the streets. It's a pity we can't see it but who cares?"
Sitting on the chair, he chuckled as I groaned in agony. “Don’t worry Beloved. I have bought the perfect winter outfit or do you want me to buy some yarn instead?”
I stare at him. “Yarn?”
“Yeah! I know you knit. From what I heard, you made cute sweaters and scarves for your former lover, which were thrown in the garbage." He sighed longly “I wish I was there. I would love, love, love, LOVE to wear them. We would look so beautiful in matching sweaters. Not like we will wear them anyway.”
The words he spoke instilled in me a mixture of feelings including despair and caused me to feel an incurable itch in my head I couldn't scratch, while my eyes twitched in agony. Grinning at my frustration, he put his hand into his pocket and took out a stack of cards decorated in red and green.
“Tada! I made them myself in our favorite colours red and green.” He chirped with a smile. “What do you think, Hmm?"
There was something sinister behind that cheerful smile. “What do you want?”
“I want to play a game with you Beloved,” he replied spreading them out with his hands. “It’s a game we played back in the military camp and I was very good at it.”
He closed them up, did some card tricks and opened them again with a smile. “Red or green?"
I look away.
"Come on, Beloved. Don’t be this way,” he cooed. “Let’s play! I know you must be bored staying in your room all the time and I love playing with you.”
I remained defiant until something forced me to look at him.
“I almost forgot to mention one credible detail. One of these cards has an escape card hidden in it."
I shot him a glare. “Liar,”
He smiled sadistically and looked me in the eye. “I am telling the truth. You just need to pick the right card and I will let you go.”
It all sounded too good to be true but I wanted to get out of here. I was sick of the darkness. Tired of sleeping in the same cold room. Tired of being tied to a chair and fed like a baby. Tired of playing mind games with him.
Tired of him controlling my life.
Not to mention keeping myself together was challenging and listening to his tales of the outside world created an incurable itch I couldn't scratch. After gathering the last bit of determination left in me, I nod and he brings the cards to my attention.
“Red or green?”
I started with his favorite color, “Red.”
He smiled and took out a red card from the deck which had the following instructions: ‘Call the person in front of you three cute pet names that are not common.’
"No way!"
“So you don’t want to leave?” he asked.
I bite my bottom lip and think hard. “My Sweet Mochi Cake,”
Jake blushed.
“My Wonderful Candy Panda"
His eyes glowed.
“My Delicious Red Velvet Cake,”
“Aww Beloved,” At this, he covered his face with the cards and I could swear something was steaming out of his head as his face turned red. "But why are the pet names named after food? Could it be you want to 'eat' me so badly?"
I grimaced.
"It's my turn," he closed his eyes and randomly picked a green card. Opening his eyes, he grinned and stood up placing the stack of cards on the chair. With three strides, he was behind me wrapping his arms around my head.
“My Baby,” he cooed patting me.
I felt my cheeks redden.
Soon it was my turn to pick a card. “Red,”
He picked up a card and showed it to me.
‘Mention a body part you like about the person in front of you. Be sincere,'
‘Is he serious?’ I look for any sign of foul play and find none. Thinking for a while I say, “I like your eyes."
This made him frown. “What do you like about them?”
“They are grey." I reply.
“Liar,” he snaps his fingers and the cold dark room transforms into a scene fit for a fantasy series set in ancient Japan. As a gentle breeze blew the cherry blossom petals around us, Jake undid his hair and let the wind do the rest.
"Admit it, Beloved," he said. "You like my hair."
I stared in awe as his hair fluttered in the wind and failed to notice the smirk on his face. Snapping his fingers again, everything vanished and darkness returned.
Jake picked up a red card. “Fondle the most attractive body part of the person in front of you.” He tossed the card aside and snapped his fingers leaving me in my underwear. “This should be fun."
A chill shot up my spine as he came closer to me and it wasn’t a pleasant one. Shutting my eyes tightly, I waited for him to fondle my breasts.
‘What the…’
I glanced down to see him touching my…my legs?
With my eyes wide open in shock, I stared at him as he caressed both my legs, beginning at my thigh and ending on my toes. When he caught me looking at him, he grinned.
“You thought I would touch your breasts, didn't you?"
I pursed my lips as he chuckled raising my left leg up and running his fingers underneath my thigh sending electric waves through my body. Then things got heated when he played with my big toe and put his pinky in-between my index and middle toe.
"I love every part of you Beloved but I'm not a fan of boobs. They are overrated anyway." He caressed my right leg, “Besides, the best part of a woman is what is in-between the legs.”
The heat on my face intensified as his fingers slowly moved upwards towards my thighs. Biting my lip, I prayed he wasn’t planning to touch a private area. However, he moved down to the soles of my feet and poked into a particular area causing me to jolt in shock. As if that wasn’t enough, he stared at me with lustful eyes, opened his mouth and gently bit my big toe.
I look away embarrassed at how I secretly liked it.
“Do you want me to stop?” he asked staring at me with half-lidded eyes.
I nodded and he smirked.
Did he suspect I was lying?
He kissed each of my toes goodbye before finally putting my feet down.
“Draw a card."
I pick a green card.
“Tell the person about your future plans," he grinned. "The thing is, I already know is what you really want to be in the future so I will tell you about mine."
He was breaking the rules of his game but I let him carry on. Silence hung in the air and the grin on his face widened along with the sparkle in his eyes.
“You know, every night I dream of you sitting down on the chair, knitting a soft wooly sweater with a satisfied smile on your face, humming your favorite song and as your fingers work their magic on the knitting pins, a wedding ring on your finger glows in the dark.” He hugged himself and sighed. “In most dreams, I would come home to your body glowing with our child inside you but the best dream I have is coming home to our two children.”
“Children?”
“Yeah. A boy and a girl. They would rush towards the kitchen squealing ‘Daddy’s Home!’ and I would walk into the kitchen seeing you cook dinner…” There was a huge blush on his face as he looked away covering his mouth with his hand. “It feels so nice just remembering it but it excites me knowing it’s going to be a reality.”
I cock an eyebrow. “Reality?”
“Well yeah. We will get married someday and have our dream family.”
“You mean your dream family?"
He nods to my shock. “To be honest, I would love it if you were a housewife."
"A housewife?"
"Well yes! You don't need to work beacuse I would be working hard to take care of you and our children financially. Besides, I made enough money that would last us for the rest of our lives." He leaned back on his seat with a smirk. “I am even richer than Andrew's father.”
This made my skin crawl. He wants me to be a housewife in this day and age?
“But I am not doing it.”
“Why should I believe that?” I mutter.
“Because I respect you.” He leaned closer. “You are a strong independent woman with goals, ambitions, and dreams! I have seen it in the way you study, talk, walk and fight. It is exciting to think about what career you will take and I will support you every step of the way.”
“By killing people?”
“Yep! It isn't my primary career choice and I admit it was boring before. However, now that you are here, I have a lot of creative ideas to make it more interesting." Then he sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "ESPECIALLY when I get to kidnap my victims and do as I wish with them."
"What?"
"You know, torture them, mind break them, leave them to starve to death..." Then his face twisted into one fit for madness and gave an evil smile."I am not lying to you Beloved. I love shedding blood. I love the look on their faces when I plunge the knife into their hearts! I enjoy swiftly slicing them up and exposing their innards! I love it when they bleed out that beautiful crimson color. I love how they choke on their own blood when I slit their throats! I'm not really a fan of creative killings or guns. Although I appreciate them, I love getting up close and personal. I really love it when I behead them and let the blood gushing out like a fountain covering me in it. It's really...how do I put this...artistic?"
Then he started to giggle. "I love it! I fucking love it!”
I shake my head. "No?"
"What do you mean by 'no'?" he asked through giggles.
"I don't need it." I bow my head. "I don't need money coated in the blood of the innocent."
He stopped giggling.
"I don't need money covered in blood." I finally look up at him. "And I don't need you."
His eyes twitched again. "Beloved..."
"You just said that I am an independent woman didn't you?"
"Well yes but..."
"If you admire me, then don't interfere with my life." I straightened myself up and looked him in the eye. "You said it yourself. I don't need you."
Silence took over the room again as we stared at each other. Jake bit his bottom lip in anger while I tried my best to hide the fear building up in me because he could sense it.
"You aren’t thinking straight Beloved," he whispered.
"What do you mean? I am..."
"How many times do I have to repeat this?" He reached out and grabbed my face. "I am nothing without you."
"You..." but shushed me by covering my mouth with his hand.
"Shh, shh Beloved. You aren't thinking straight." he giggled sadistically. "You need to understand. I can't live without you. I can't eat! I can't sleep! I can't do anything right without you by my side! Life isn't worth living without you!"
Tension built up in me but I stood my ground. "But you did that before we met so..."
"DON'T YOU DARE! DON'T YOU DARE SAY IT. DON’T YOU DARE SAY LIFE WOULD BE BETTER WITHOUT YOU!" He breathed heavily as tears ran down his face. Then he gritted his teeth in fury and grasped my face. "Don't you understand? How empty would my life be without you? Don’t you? It's going to be like this room we are in. Dark and cold. I don't want to live like that. I don't want to go back to that dark empty world where everything is meaningless. I don't like it."
Looking into his eyes, I blink finally showing the fear in my eyes and he noticed it. Grinning, he leaned back and stared at me; his eyes sparkling with some known emotion.
He just sat there.
Staring at me.
“I get it. I get what is going on,” he took out two cards and held it to my face. "Pick a card!"
My instincts arose and I shake my head.
“Oh come on Beloved! Stop panicking." I glance up and he stands before me displaying two cards in his hand. “And pick a card.”
I bite my bottom lip and pick the red one. He looked at it, grinned and showed it to me.
And it only spells one word…
ESCAPE.
ns 15.158.61.54da2
