Did it scare you too? Reading what awful punishment she suffered?
Maybe it will get better this chapter.
But what if it doesn't?
----
Waking up in a new place can be scary. Especially after you have been beaten senseless. The horrible sensation of head trauma. The blurred vision. The question of 'is this real?'
As she awoke, the first thing to be noticed.. was the skull splitting pain at the back of her head. She couldn't move at first. In fact she really didn't want to, out of fear she might end up with yet another punishment. She's woken up like this many times before and knew if she showed any signs of life...
"Hey, is she awake yet?" A soft voice is heard somewhere close by.
"How am I supposed to know? She's your girlfriend or whatever you idiot. You check on her."
"She's not my girlfriend."
"Whatever. Just go in there if you're so curious."
There's a sigh and then the sound of footsteps and the door opening slowly. "I-Isabelle?"
(It's... him?!) She blinks a few times though it isn't easy. But her vision clears just enough to make out Sebastian's pointed ears. She parts her lips to speak, but no sound comes out.
"Hey, just relax, you're okay. I found you.. in your basement. I don't know what happened but I was not leaving you and your sister there like that. So I brought you someplace safe."
Isabelle barely hears his words but she can tell by the new surroundings that he saw what went down. (Why? Why did you come back? You weren't supposed to see this.) Tears spill from her eyes.
"Isabelle? No no no please don't cry. You're safe here I promise." He's a bit frantic to make the tears stop. But he can't find a cloth or a tissue so he very carefully wipes them away with his thumb. "Isabelle. I promised to keep you safe. I wasn't kidding." (please don't cry anymore.)
But the tears don't stop. She cries with small gasps for air in between soft sobs. But she's leaning into Sebastian's touch. This is something she would have avoided but now, she doesn't care. She's safe for once. He kept his promise.
----
After some hours of sobbing, breathing, and talking... Isabelle opened up to Sebastian. This was something she was never going to do. But she had to get it out because the pain inside was killing her from the inside out.
She felt so much release just being there in his arms. The pain from her cruel punishment was subsiding slowly, but she was so dizzy she had to keep her eyes closed most times.
"Sebastian.." she speaks just above a whisper.
"Yeah?" He looks down at her.
"I want to apologize."
"For what? You've done nothing wrong, Isabelle."
"For treating you the way I have been. The way I did. You only wanted to help me and.. I only pushed you away."
"No no you have every right to push me away. You don't know anything about me. And when we met.. I hit you! I wouldn't forgive me either." (I still don't forgive myself for that.)
