The Heart Wants What It Wants (Completed)

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Joe cradled Val in his arms as she softly cried into his chest. Had he known who Mark really was when they were face to face, he would've Superman punched him into the next millennium. He'd never seen her cry before, and the sight tore at his heart. As she recounted her story, the Hulk raged inside of him, making him want to fly back to Little Rock to find Mark and issue out a grade A smackdown.

***

As recent routine had it, Val arrived home from a two-week stretch on the road with the main roster, two days earlier than she'd expected. The apartment she shared with Mark was dark and eerily quiet. She dropped her bags on the floor and dialed Mark's number, but received no answer. Her calls would continue to go unanswered and unreturned until two o'clock that morning. By then, Mark had finally waltzed into their home-drunk and accompanied by one of his friends.

"Just the welcome I was looking for," Val sarcastically said.

"Sorry, V," Mark's friend Dion replied as he helped Mark to the living room sofa.

"It's alright," she answered, shaking her head in disappointment.

Dion soon departed from the home, leaving Mark and Val alone. Her aggravation had finally been pushed to the limit tonight. Recently, her returns had been the same story-Mark drinking and passing out before he could even formally welcome her back home. However, tonight he welcomed her home, just not the way she had intended.

"Damn, you look good girl," Mark slurred, following Val back to the bedroom.

He wrapped his arms around her and attempted to kiss her, much to her protesting.

"Mark, stop. I'm not in the mood for this shit tonight," she said, turning her head sideways to avoid his kisses.

"Come on, baby. I miss you," he said, keeping a firm grip around her waist.

"I said, 'no,' alright? You're drunk, and you need to just back off."

"Back off? You been gone for two weeks. I deserve a lil' somethin' somethin'."

"Mark, go to bed, please?" she said, pulling at his arms.

What should have been a happy homecoming soon turned into a nightmare as Mark quickly became angry with her continued resistance of his advances. Before she knew it, the two had become embroiled in an argument that took just a few minutes to escalate.

"Mark, let me go! I'm so sick of this shit!" Val said nearly in tears.

"You know what I'm sick of?!" Mark shot back. "I'm sick of you always being gone, and I'm sick of you never wanting to fuck!"

"That's 'cause you're always drunk when I come home!"

"When am I gonna get some attention, Val?" he asked, pinning her against the wall. The odor of alcohol was strong on his breath and almost made Val gag as she struggled against his grip.

"Never, muthafucka! Now, let me go!"

"Oh, I get it," he said, staring at her with malice. "You're fucking someone else, right?"

"Fuck you, Mark!"

"Yeah, I knew it," he replied, taking a drunken step backwards.

Just as Val tried to walk off, Mark grabbed her arms and slammed her against the wall. She gave him a strong shove and before she knew it, he laid a backhand slap to the side of her face. This isn't happening, she thought as the tears streamed down her cheeks. She felt the throb on her cheekbone and bolted to the bathroom, locking the door behind her.