That Imperfect Addiction

-39-

Felicity

Birds chirped as gentle sunlight came through the curtains. I'm not a morning person, I admit, but there are some mornings when I feel less irritate to wake up.

These kinds of rare mornings often makes me think of my mother and her beautiful flower shop. I still remember how much I loved to wake up with the sweet fragrance of flowers. It felt like home.

Only this time, I wasn't home. Nor was I in my apartment. I was at Asher's, in his guestroom.

I slowly flutter my eyes open and blinked for them to adjust in the bright light. I took few minutes to sat up and look around, observing the room which I failed to notice last night.

It was pretty big for a guestroom. The walls were colored with the lightest shade of blue, almost white, and the beddings and covers were a contrast of grey and white. Over all it gave away the cool and calming vibe.

But I wasn't feeling calm, nor was I crying like last night. I was staring into space, feeling numb.

I sighed and leaned back on the headrest. Last night was awful. I was nearly raped and murdered. I ruined Sasha's beautiful dress. I lost my mum's most beloved piece of jewelry. Asher was mad at me and scolded me like a child.

It was a disaster. The embarrassment only made me want to stay lock inside a room and isolate myself from any kind of human contact.

I groaned, whined and sighed in self misery while replaying the whole night inside my head. It started out perfectly fine, only for me to ruin it towards the end. Frustration and anger replaced my numbness quite quickly.

"Ugh!" I groaned louder when my eyes met the clock. It was nearly 9.

'Perfect! Now bless him with your tardiness'

I lazily moved my eyes around the room and noticed the small table in the corner of the room where a bag was placed neatly. I got up from the bed and walk towards it to check it.

A big part of me sighed in relief to find clothes inside the bag, as I seriously didn't wanted to ruin his sister's cloth any further, whereas the other part was worried for being a burden on Asher.

I emptied the contents on the bed and found some new inners and a simple knee length sundress. The embarrassment doubled as I realised my boss brought these things for me.

'Did he went out for shopping himself? Oh dear lord!'

I stopped myself from overthinking and inspect the dress I found. I was glad the dress was nothing fancy but when I saw the price tag attached to it I was shocked to see it's price more than a normal pair of shoe. I mentally note down the total amount and decided to pay him back as soon as I receive the next month salary.

I quickly took a shower and got dressed. The dress was half sleeved so most of my bruises were hiding behind the piece of cloth but few light dark blue markings were still visible. My skin was looking pale and death and my eyes were swollen a bit.

The numbness returned as I observed myself in the mirror. If I think hard, I can still feel his disgusting hands on my skin.

'One....two....three...' I clenched my eyes shut and took deep breaths to calm down the anxiety.

I blinked back the tears and pulled my damp hair into a messy bun. Once I was done tugging the ends of my sleeves slightly lower to cover every bruise, I was ready to leave the room; mentally no but physically yes.

I walked down the stairs slowly, so lost in my thoughts that I failed to notice the massive human standing near the kitchen, keenly watching my every move.