𝐃𝐞𝐛𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 | 𝟏𝟖+

34. intimate

GABRIEL DALTON

✥

I didn't really sleep much. I couldn't. All I could do was stare down at Poppy as she slept, her body tucked into my side still wrapped up in a blanket to cover her body. My stomach has been churning all night.

Even the thought of someone taking a knife to her skin, carving out those vile words whilst she cried out for help. How could someone do that to her? I shake my head to rid myself of these awful thoughts before I start tearing down this house in desperation to find these fuckers.

I meant what I said. I'm going to find them. One way or another and I'll make them beg for mercy, for their lives, for their goddamn mothers.

My eyes flick across Poppy's peaceful sleeping face. It's the morning as the light has started to seep into the room behind my black-out blinds. I raise my fingers to brush away a few strands of hair from her face but I keep away from her skin. The last thing I want is to wake her when I know how badly she needs rest.

I release a long, quiet sigh.

This girl has been carrying around all this shame, thinking that she'll never be able to meet someone who can accept her for who she is. But who she isn't those marks on her body, the marks that were made without her consent. I wish I could project that onto her mind and make her see that I couldn't care less, she's still the most beautiful thing in my eyes.

When I lean over my bedside table to grab my phone, I notice that it's approaching ten o'clock. My stomach growls and I know no doubt that Poppy is hungry too. I quickly punch out a text to her phone, letting her know that I'm going downstairs to make breakfast and that she should come down whenever she wants to.

The longer I stay in this bed, the more likely I am to smother her in a cuddle and risk waking her up. Her rest is more important to me right now. Last night must have taken everything out of her and I'm glad to see her sleep so calmly.

It makes me think what really goes on at her home?

Who is this guy she said she has to do favours for?

Is he the one who did this to her?

I remove myself from my bedroom and head downstairs before I piss myself off. I can't help it. My feelings have grown so fond of Poppy that when anything happens, I'm the first person to want to resolve it.

All I want to do is give her a better life. It's obvious she doesn't love the one that she lives.

I desperately want her to open up to me. Tell me the truth about everything. But I know we're a long way off that, especially after what happened in the early hours of this morning.

My hand latches onto the door of the fridge and I pull out ingredients to start making some kind of breakfast meal. I make fresh coffee and applaud Harriet for bringing in freshly squeezed orange juice.

I start getting food cooked on the stove, practically frying anything I can find. The sound of footsteps echo against the floor and I glance up from the counter to find Poppy meeting the bottom of the stairs.

She's released the blanket she clutched all night and instead she's in nothing but one of my black t-shirts. It's baggy and long on her, meeting the tops of her thighs. Her legs are bare along with her feet. I can't stop blinking to make sure that this is real because from our conversation last night, I thought she'd never take her clothes off again.

My eyes follow her carefully as she walks towards me. Her red hair all over her shoulders, representing a good night's sleep from how wild and crazy it looks right now.