I'm not in love

Dreams Into Reality

Gwen struggled to sleep that night. She tossed and turned, her dreams filled with dark, suffocating tunnels that made her feel trapped until they would open up in the same way the tunnels had always done--but never quite like this. Her breathing hitched as she stared at the wall across from her. The darkness didn’t help her find peace. It wasn’t long before she gave up on the attempt to sleep and got out of bed. In the bathroom she brushed her teeth then went into the kitchen for a snack and something stronger than beer. As it turned out, the second bottle was just what Gwen needed to finally get some restful sleep.
The next morning, the sun came pouring in through the windows. Gwen groaned as she pulled herself out of bed. She looked down at her clock. It read 7 AM. Great, so she wouldn’t have breakfast, although she was starved. She heard a tired voice whisper behind her.
"Is everything OK? you woke up in the middle of the night." Wolfie mumbled.
"Couldn't sleep. How did you know I was awake?"
"I never sleep."
Gwen smiled slightly at them. They was right, she couldn't remember the last time they'd actually slept. And even if they were sleeping now, she knew that there was no way they could sleep again after what happened last night. Gwen thought back to the scene from last night and tried to shake off the image that had flashed through her mind when she'd woken up.
She sat on the couch trying not to think about any of it. It didn't matter anyway, she was here now. That was all that mattered. She reached over and rubbed Wolfie' s belly. Wolfie purred contently. Gwen stood and went to the fridge in search of some coffee. She pulled a carton of milk out and poured herself some, still too exhausted to pour more than an inch. Gwen grabbed the cream off the counter, added some to her cup, and drank it straight away.
"So why didn't you sleep?" Wolfie asked.
"Hm? Oh, sorry, kept remembering yesterday with Mark and everything."
"He's gone now, darling, nobody is going to hurt you anymore." Wolfie said reassuringly.
Gwen nodded and finished her coffee in one swig. She walked into the lounge and sat down next to Wolfie. Gwen took another sip of her coffee. There was no way she could ever eat anything. This was bad enough already without her having an empty stomach making things worse. Suddenly Gwen noticed that Wolfie was sitting closer than usual. Gwen tilted her head slightly.
Wolfie seemed to sense her unease. "Don't worry, love. You are safe here. Nothing can hurt you." Wolfie kissed her cheek softly. Gwen felt warmth blossom in her chest.
"Thanks, Wolfie," Gwen replied.
After finishing her coffee and putting the mug in the sink, Gwen headed upstairs to take a shower. As she got ready, she started thinking. Did Wolfie mean what they'd said earlier today? Had they really meant what they'd told her last night? She decided that no matter how much she wanted to believe otherwise, she didn't need to. No one was coming for her. Not anymore.
When Gwen stepped out of the bathroom wearing clean clothes, her stomach growled loudly. "Hungry?" Wolfie asked her.
"A little bit. I haven't eaten since breakfast and I'm sure you haven't either."
Wolfie yawned. "Not really hungry, but I'll make us something when we get downstairs."
Gwen shook her head. "It's ok Wolfie. Let me take care of it."
"But--"
"Wolfie. If anybody comes for us, they will come looking for me. Let me do this instead." Gwen insisted. She saw Wolfie reluctantly acquiesce. After a few minutes, Gwen heard Wolfie pad downstairs and the sound of pots and pans rattling around in the oven. "Here you go, my love." Wolfie placed a large bowl full of pasta sauce in front of Gwen. "Eat!"
"Thank you, Wolfie."
Gwen picked up a fork and dug into her food. It tasted amazing. It had been awhile since she'd had homemade pasta. Gwen ate a couple spoonfuls before noticing how quiet it was. When she realized that Wolfie wasn't moving, she looked up from her plate. Instead of seeing Wolfie standing where she usually stood, she was staring at the door.
"What's wrong?"
Wolfie looked down at Gwen and smiled nervously. "Nothing at all, my dear. I'm just a little worried that someone might be outside listening."
Gwen laughed nervously and set down her fork. She pushed her chair back and got up to check herself in the mirror. "Oh, don't worry about it. Nobody is here."
Still unconvinced, Wolfie followed Gwen back to their table and watched her sit back down. Gwen finished eating while waiting for Wolfie to finish. She wondered if Wolfie was nervous about being alone with her. After eating, Wolfie helped her clear the dishes. Once everything was cleaned up, they sat down together on the couch.
"Do you want a movie to watch?" Wolfie asked.
"Sure! Something light. What's on tonight?"
"Let me look."
They spent the rest of the evening watching movies. At one point, Wolfie put a blanket around Gwen and snuggled close to her.
Once the credits began to roll, Gwen asked quietly, "So, how was your day?" She glanced over at Wolfie to see how she was responding. To her relief, Wolfie seemed happy.
"Good!" they said brightly. Gwen chuckled at their enthusiasm, glad that Wolfie had found someone who loved them.
Gwen moved her hand slowly along Wolfie's back. She had to work up to doing it. She liked touching Wolfie, liked feeling her muscles beneath her hand, liked feeling her hair brushing against her neck... Gwen ran her fingers along Wolfie's spine slowly, reveling in the feeling.
"Gwen?"
Her eyes flicked up from Wolfie's shoulders.
"Yes?"
"Um..." Wolfie paused, then blurted out, "Are you... scared?"
Gwen stopped running her fingers along Wolfie's back and leaned back to look at them properly.
"Of course not," Gwen said firmly. "I' ve spent most of my life living in these dark caves. Of course I'm afraid sometimes."
"Why?" Wolfie asked.
Gwen shrugged, "Most people have nightmares sometimes, right?"
"Of course."
"Well, maybe I'm just used to it."
"You're scared of the dark?"
"Not really. Just of things that can't harm me. I'm just a little bit jumpy and edgy sometimes. Don't know why. It doesn't happen very often though."
"That's scary."
"Yeah, I guess. But it's nothing that you or I aren't used to." Gwen paused to study Wolfie's face. "Why?" she whispered, her voice suddenly filled with fear.
"Nothing. Don't worry, love."
Gwen sighed and closed her eyes briefly. She could tell that Wolfie meant what they'd told her the night before. Maybe they were right and the memories weren't as important to her as they once were. She opened her eyes again and looked down at the ground. "Maybe you're right." She muttered before pulling back and getting up. "If you want a movie, I better go get one now before you change your mind."
Gwen made her way down the stairs and walked into the kitchen. She walked towards the cabinet and pulled out the bag of popcorn they always kept for their late nights out. It was a tradition in those old days, especially when they would go to the pub for some drinks. Back in those days, they could stay out later than normal and still get home on time. Before everything happened.
The microwave dinged loudly, announcing that the popcorn was done. Gwen reached out and took the bag, setting it onto the countertop. She turned around. She froze. Mark had come through the back door and was standing only five metres away from her. She hadn't seen him. Why wasn't he speaking?! He stared at Gwen, his eyes never straying. His expression was hard to read. All Gwen could feel was pure panic bubbling inside her. Her heart raced rapidly as she tried to figure out what to do. Should she just walk past him? No. Not unless she wants him to follow her like everyone else did. She should run. She should scream. Anything would help get rid of him. Her thoughts were racing and her breath hitched everytime he took a step forward, threatening to catch her. Gwen couldn't think. She knew she had to escape, but somehow Mark managed to move even faster and grab hold of her arm.
"Hello Gwen," he whispered. Gwen squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the pain that was bound to come. A wave of dizziness washed over her. She could hear Mark chuckle. "I wouldn' t be so quick to give up your freedom yet. We still have a lot more to talk about." Gwen tried to pull her arm away from him. "You're going to listen to what I have to say, aren't you?"
Gwen didn't reply. She just kept trying to break free. Mark's grip tightened painfully. He let out a growl that caused Gwen to freeze completely.
"I thought so." He tightened his grip. Gwen winced slightly from the sudden pressure. "Now, stop fighting me and we can talk."
"Never," Gwen spat out. Mark tightened his grip even further. Gwen gasped from the pain. She could hear the bones in her arm creaking from the force, but she refused to let Mark see any sign of weakness. "Never." Mark let go of her arm and Gwen collapsed onto the floor. She lay there, her body shaking and tears streaming from her eyes. She could feel blood seeping from her arms. Mark approached Gwen slowly. He stood over her, looking down at her with an evil grin. He reached down and grabbed her by the waist and lifted her off the ground. He brought her across the room, his smile widening each time her feet touched the ground. Gwen screamed in desperation as he continued to drag her toward the basement door. Once he got to the staircase, he threw her down the steps, letting gravity carry her down. Gwen hit the bottom hard and rolled down the stairs. She hit the concrete floor with a loud thud. The air was knocked out of her lungs for a few moments after she landed. She lay there for several seconds, trying to recover before finally rolling over and pushing herself up onto her knees.
She tried to stand, but fell back to the floor immediately. She whimpered in frustration before getting back up again. With a great deal of effort, Gwen managed to regain her balance. Using her elbows for support, she slowly started making her way down the hallway. She was halfway down the hall when she heard Mark's footsteps coming after her. She could feel his presence closing in on her.
"Come on. You promised. Let me have my way," he yelled. "You are mine, Gwen. Don't fight me. Come here."
Gwen ignored him. If she could just make it to the end of the hall, she figured that she could turn the corner. She began running harder, praying that she would make it. As she neared the end of the hall, Mark began walking faster. He caught up to Gwen and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Gwen gasped in shock, but didn't struggle. As he squeezed her tighter, she could hear something crack. Gwen felt the coldness of a piece of bone pressing into her back. Mark released his hold and grabbed Gwen's arm.
"No," he whispered in a sickeningly sweet tone. "Don't try to run away. Now, come here... or this will become much worse."
Gwen tried desperately to keep her breathing slow, but she ended up gasping for air and wheezing like she was having trouble catching her breath.
"Just give in. You're no match for me anymore," he continued, squeezing her arm harder.
Gwen shook her head, trying to deny that statement, hoping that if she could get Mark to believe it, he would release her. However, it seemed that her efforts were fruitless. She could sense him starting to squeeze harder again.
"Mark! Stop!" Gwen cried.
He let go of her arm for a brief moment as his other hand went up to his ear and tapped it gently. Almost instantly, Mark's grip returned. Gwen let out another gasp as he pushed her towards the wall. She fell forward, landing against the wooden wall behind her. Mark grabbed her arms, his hands squeezing around hers painfully.
"Let go of me," Gwen hissed between clenched teeth. Tears pricked the edges of her eyes.
"What am I supposed to do if you won't obey me? Will you beg for mercy?"
"No."
Mark chuckled.
"How brave of you," he mused aloud. "Very well then, I'll do what I must to make sure you understand the consequences of your actions. This time however, it won't be as simple as 'let go', Gwen. It will be much much different..." He let go of Gwen's hands and cupped her face, dragging his thumb down her cheeks. "...It will be much much harder."
He leaned in closer until his lips brushed against Gwen's cheekbone. Her whole body tensed at the contact. His breath tickled her skin. Gwen shivered violently, struggling to move out of his grasp. Suddenly, he pushed his hips closer to Gwen's own.
"What did I say about begging?" he whispered into Gwen's ear, his voice low and soft. Gwen whimpered softly. She was beginning to feel lightheaded. She could feel Mark's warm breath on her neck. She could smell his cologne. She could feel his fingers digging into her shoulders. She felt him leaning in closer to her, almost as if he was preparing to kiss her… "Oh… don't you look beautiful. How wonderful…" His breath caressed her ear causing goose bumps to spring all along her body. "How wonderful it is to finally meet you... after all these years…" His fingers dug deeper into Gwen' shoulders. Pain shot through her and her knees buckled beneath her.
She closed her eyes and forced a small whimper. She didn't want to feel anything anymore. She wanted him gone. She wanted to forget all of this ever happened. Forget he ever showed up and that everything changed. Everything was okay before. What was happening now? The feeling of Mark's warm body pressed tightly against hers sent chills of fear down her spine. She could feel his breath hot against her neck. His fingers were digging even deeper into her shoulder, eliciting a cry of discomfort from Gwen. The sound of the door being opened caused them both to jump. Gwen opened her eyes. She looked towards the entranceway in confusion, only to see that she'd been completely unaware of its existence. It was strange. It made no sense. But what really shocked her was that she felt Mark push her behind him. Gwen turned to see who was there.
Standing on the doorstep, Wolfie stared at the mess of blood that was on the floor, then at Gwen, where they grabbed her and held her close. Their gaze lingered a bit longer than usual, causing Gwen to shift uncomfortably under their gaze. They blinked multiple times to bring her into focus and looked straight ahead. Gwen watched as they quickly moved across the room and crouched down next to Mark's limp body. Wolfie carefully placed  hands on either side of Mark' head. After a few minutes, they jumped up in surprise and turned around facing Gwen.
Wolfie looked at her, concern plastered on their face. Gwen gave them a weak smile. She knew that Wolfie had probably seen her collapse in front of the door when Mark pulled her away. She hadn't noticed when it happened, but apparently, Wolfie had.
“What happened? Why does everything seem to be so blurry?” she asked in confusion, raising her voice. “Why is everything so loud? Is it because my ears hurt?”
“Gwen, we need to get you out of here,” said Wolfie in a worried tone. “Are you alright? Does your arm hurt? Are your ribs broken? Can you walk?”
“Yes, yes, I’m fine!” she replied with a laugh. “My shoulder hurts though. So does my ribs. That’s why I called for help. Mark was holding me down while doing whatever he was doing. And when I tried to escape him, he squeezed too hard. I can’t feel my arms. I think he broke something.”
“Well, we don’t have time for that right now. Get moving. Hurry!”
Wolfie stepped aside and gestured for Gwen to exit the room first before following after her and shutting the door behind them. She walked slowly as she followed Wolfie into the living room. Wolfie quickly bandaged Gwen while she whimpered in pain. She took a deep breath as Wolfie finished wrapping her shoulder.
“I thought I told you not to run,” said Wolfie, looking at her.
“Yeah, yeah… sorry,” she replied, wincing slightly at the slight ache that still remained from the impact. “But, how else was I going to escape? I didn’t think that he wouldn’t have gotten off me and started beating me to a pulp if I had kept fighting him!” she complained.
Wolfie raised an eyebrow at Gwen’s comment.
“If you continue to complain like this, you may wind up in the hospital for a couple of days. You have been very lucky today, and you know that. Mark is quite dangerous. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
“Of course, I do,” Gwen replied, giving a quick nod. “And you’re absolutely right. I shouldn’t have fought back and I’m sorry.” She sighed deeply and shook her head. “It wasn’t like I was thinking clearly anyway. I was just scared. He was hurting me. Please don’t get mad at me… please?”
She stopped talking and just looked at Wolfie. They stared at each other for a short while, neither one willing to admit defeat. Then, Wolfie sighed loudly and rolled their eyes.
“Alright, fine,” they said. “I’m not angry, Gwen. Just promise me that you will always listen to me before you do something so stupid again. And don’t worry, you aren’t in any danger. As far as Mark knows, you are perfectly fine. No need to panic.”
Gwen nodded eagerly.
“Thanks Wolfie. I promise."