In the Night

12 • Soft Spoken, Gentle

E M E R S O N

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She was beautiful. The angles of her face seemed inhuman, unnatural. The sparkle that shone even in the darkest times in her periwinkle eyes never failed to amaze me. Her hair, dark as the night, silky and smooth, like caramel. I was tempted to reach out and twirl my fingers through the strands, but I ignored my unsettling and weird urges.

She was wearing a big fluffy faux fur coat, making her look elegant. Although, I could see that she was shivering in the cool summer air. When she sat in the stool next to me, I could see that she was wearing a thin slip underneath the coat. No wonder why she was cold.

"I'm glad you came back." I spoke softly. She looked at me, those intense eyes boring into my soul. She was fiery within her facial features, but soft-natured and carefree otherwise. A walking, talking contradiction.

"I didn't know you'd be here." She replied, gesturing to the bar. It was empty, aside from us and the lone bar tender. He was far enough away to not hear our conversation, and no doubt he didn't understand us very well, anyway.

My heart dropped a little at her reply. A little shot at my ego. Here I was acting as if I was all she thought about, while the truth was that I was probably the last thing on her mind. Either way, she was constantly relaying in my thoughts. I couldn't help it; I'd lay there at night in my room and my mind would drift to her. The girl with the sun in her eyes and the light in her heart.

"Oh." I said monotonously. I cleared my throat when she didn't reply and asked the question that was burning to escape my tongue. "So, uh, where did you go after dinner?" I asked curiously, changing the subject. Sunni seemed on edge, her eyes red from tears, and not to mention the winces that cross her face every time she fidgeted in her seat.

"Back to my room." She replied nonchalantly. Anger suddenly rolled through my body, but I tried to keep it at bay. Why was I feeling like this? Was it because I knew of the sadistic and torturous habits of her husband? Or was I beginning to care for the unfamiliar stranger in front of me?

"Was Simon up there?" My voice was clipped and even, my face pinched to hold back anger and fury. If he touched her...

"Yeah, he was. He is my husband, after all. We share the room." She said pointedly, stirring her drink with the short black straw. I breathed heavily through my nostrils. Sunni's attitude was getting on my nerves, for her to act so casually about the recent information that had come to light. She was being brutally abused by someone who was supposed to care for her, love her and cherish her, and she was pushing down those emotions and hiding them from the surface.

"Yeah, obviously." I spat. I immediately regretted it after seeing the look cross Sunni's face, but I pursued my argument. "Just tell me one thing." I seethed. My eyes flitted over to her body, landing on the dark swirls of blood pooling under her skin. My heart raced. "Did he touch you?" I whispered.

Sunni glanced down, her mouth moving but no words coming out. She fidgeted in her seat, not looking up from the ground. The bruises along her skin seemed fresh, and they looked vicious and malicious. I swallowed, my heard heavy with the sight of this broken girl sitting next to me. She seemed lost, and hopeless. Dark circles encased her eyes, as if she hadn't slept soundly in years.

"Fuck." I whispered, rubbing my eyes. How could someone be so cruel? Especially to a girl like Sunni? My body was reacting enormously to this news, and I didn't know how to feel. Anger, rage and pure fury coarser through my veins, but I couldn't speed my thoughts up to match the racing emotions travelling through my body.