Dark Places

Chapter Six

I finally realize just how hungry I am. For not eating over four days I’m practically starving.

I finish off the steak and potatoes within a couple minutes. Ethan looks up from his book again. He studies me for a minute before getting up.

After a few seconds he comes back with another plate of steak and potatoes. He takes the other plate and sets it on the counter. Before he gets back I’ve eaten half the steak.

He sits down and watches me. I don’t like when people watch me; especially while I’m eating, but I’m too hungry and too tired to care. I finish within seconds. Ethan keeps watching me.

I sit quietly, embarrassed to have eaten so much.

“When’s the last time you ate, Elaina?” He asks quietly.

It’s no secret that I haven’t eaten in awhile. There’s no point in lying. “Um, a while.” I say quietly.

“How long?” He asks with a shred of anger in his voice. I flinch; I don’t want him angry at me. His features soften. “I’m sorry. I’m not angry with you.” He says softly.

I take a deep breath. “I haven’t eaten in a little over four days.”

He slumps back in his chair. He looks… pained? I don’t understand why he would be in pain over this. “Why?”

I give him a slight shrug. “No appetite. I don’t really know.” I lie. I don’t want him to know why I never had an appetite.

He watches me for another minute or so. I squirm under his gaze. Why does he do that? “You’re too nervous and scared to eat. You lose your appetite because of it.” He states. How did he know that? “You decided not to eat for days?” He raises his voice a little in disbelief.

I manage not to flinch this time.

I look down at the table, twisting my fingers in my hand. Doesn’t make any sense why he would care anyway. Maybe I was reading this all wrong. Maybe he was raising his voice for…. I have no idea why else.

I stand up slowly. I hope he lets me walk away. “I think I’m going to go to bed.” I begin to walk out of the kitchen. He doesn’t make any sense. I’m too tired to discuss anything right now.

I hear him sigh and then the scraping of his chair against the tile. “Wait, Laina. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have yelled.” He sounds calm. I have a feeling he’s going to be a handful if I stay here.

I don’t stop walking. I walk down the hallway and glance over my shoulder. “It’s okay; I’m just going to get some sleep.” Hopefully he lets me go to the bedroom; I don’t want to get into a conversation right now.

I hear his footsteps behind me but I don’t turn around to address him.

“Please, stop, I just want to talk.”

I walk into the room and turn on the light. I have nowhere to run to now.

Huh, funny thing to say when I’ve been running for over four days.

How did I end up here? Why did I trust him enough to let him take me here?

I turn around and sure enough he’s standing there. I sigh. “I’m really tired, Ethan.”

He crosses his arms and leans against the doorframe. “Okay, alright. If you don’t want to talk about what happened to you, then I’ll respect that. But from now on, you’re going to eat, and you’re going to sleep. And tomorrow, depending on how you’re feeling, we’re going to go get you some clothes.” He sighs. “And I’ll try not to raise my voice at you. But if I do, you have to tell me that you’re uncomfortable. I’ve just seen this happen to someone before, and it didn’t end well. You have a voice around here, Laina, so please use it.” He pushes himself off the frame. “And please get some sleep. Goodnight, Elaina.” He walks out of the room before I can respond.

“Goodnight, Ethan.” I whisper to him. I know he didn’t hear me, but I said it anyway.

I’m not sure how I feel about being in a store with a camera. I wonder what my mother’s doing right now. I wonder if she’s worried, or if she’s even noticed me missing.

I sigh and pick up my backpack, zipping it up and laying it on the dresser. I could’ve taken more of my belongings with me, but honestly, I wanted to leave my old stuff and start completely over.

So far, my plan’s working. I’ve managed to stay under the radar and I’ve managed to meet a nice guy willing to take me under his wing. The only problem is I don’t know when he’s going to wake up and realize he made a mistake bringing me here.

I pull the quilt back and slide under the covers. The quilt is surprisingly soft, and the pillows are amazing. I’ve been away from a bed for far too long.

Despite me being exhausted, it takes a while for me to sleep; my thoughts turning to what Ethan said about seeing this happen before. I really want to know what he’s talking about; I feel like I barely know him at all, yet I’m living with him.

I clutch my medallion and slowly start to relax. Darkness comes, and the monsters of my past soon follow.

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FYI, I'm changing her name; it makes me cringe now. 😅