It's been almost two months since I've lived here with Ryan , but our relationship if that's what you call it hasn't improved one bit. He's still just as cold, and almost just as scary as I remember.
The reason I found him so horrifying from the beginning was because he would lock me in a room all by myself for the whole day and only come in when necessary. It was like he knew I would run away, but even I didn't know where I could run away to. I felt like he knew something I didn't.
But eventually he began to trust me more and more, letting me out once in a while, and then unlocking my door completely.
A few days ago I thought he wasn't home so I wandered around, looking at his pictures and things. Maybe I would find the reason why I'm being kept here, and a reason as to why I don't know this man I'm living with.
Suddenly I discovered a mysterious back room in the apartment, but as soon as I put my hand on the doorknob, Ryan appeared out of nowhere and scared me half to death.
He grabbed my wrist in his large hands and pulled me to face him directly. "Do NOT open that door." It was the first words I'd ever heard from his lips, but I obeyed it immediately as if my life depended on it.
That was when I became suspicious. What was he hiding from me?
I sat down at the table as he laid the tray in front of me. It was our usual routine, he would make me something to eat and I would stay quiet. But today, I didn't feel like staying quiet.
"Where do you go everyday?" I asked, breaking the silence. For the past few days he was always gone, but for some reason I never tried to leave. I would wait until he came back everytime.
I stuck my fork into the salad and lifted it to my mouth, pretending I didn't really care, that I was just trying to make conversation. He looked at me with surprise, but didn't say anything.
I swallowed hard. Maybe he didn't want me prying into his life, and maybe he was getting angry with me.
Suddenly he got up and made his way around the table to me, an annoyed look on his face. He placed a hand on the back of my chair, giving an irritated sigh, and leaned down until his face was inches from mine. A shiver ran down my back, but not from the cold. I was scared.
It was a while before he actually spoke, and I could feel his breath on my neck. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."
What did he mean by that? I thought.
"Try me." I said turning to face him. That's when I realized he was much, much closer to me that I had thought. Our noses were practically touching and I could see the outline of the black pupils in his dark brown eyes. I gasped, pulled away from the sudden closeness, and saw the corner of his lips twitch into an amused smile. My cheeks burned in embarrassment.
"Wanna go out for ice cream?" he suddenly said.
A voice inside me shouted Yay! I was glad I didn't have to spend another day cooped up here. But on the other hand, why was he being so warm and... human all of a sudden?
"Uh... okay." I got up and put on a light jacket, feeling a small tingling of excitement.
As we walked out to the ice cream stand, a bouncy ball rolled towards us from across the street and stopped against Ryan foot. A small voice cut through the air. "My ball!" I looked up to see a little boy about four years old running to us. "Can I have my ball back, please?" he said politely reaching to Ryan who had picked up the ball.
"No," was his instant reply.
Tears began brimming in the little boy's eyes and his lips began to pout. "But it's mine..."
