Occhiolism (#2 in the Hajar Series) [ON HOLD]

three

chapter three - canine

song of the chapter ; carry me home - jorja smith

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GLASS WHIPPING BY her head, Farah shrieked back in surprise, ducking just in time for it to miss her. Her eyes widened upon barely avoiding the object, watching with parted lips as it shattered against the wall, falling to pieces on the hardwood flooring, right by her bare feet. Her legs shook gently as she moved back towards the table, wincing as the edge dug into her lower back. Her pupils searched the room for an escape from the oncoming danger, but she knew there was no fleeing from this situation.

Nothing could save her now, no one could. With no one seeing what was happening, no one witnessing, she would just be the girl that cried wolf. No one would believe that Noah Schnieder, son of the business magnate Richard Schnieder, would ever abuse his girlfriend. His family was too respected, too upper-class and wealthy for her to simply make claims like that without it being publicized. His parents were highly regarded and were powerful enough to shut her up if she wanted to make the domestic abuse known. They would sue her to her last penny and then ruin her reputation.

She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Truly. She had two options, and both entailed the demise of her wellbeing and livelihood. She could either be sued for millions for defamation (even though she would be telling the truth) or continue to live her life under the firm hand of fear that Noah brought down on the daily until he was finally satisfied with the ruination of her.

"Noah, please," Farah whispered, "Calm down."

Farah regretted the words the moment they left her mouth-- for they only angered him further. She flinched back as his fist reached forward into the drywall, seemingly shaking the entire apartment and its contents. He had missed purposely, he wanted to scare her first. To instill a bone-chilling, hair-raising dread so deep that it would seep into her soul. If he wanted to hit her yet, he would've done so already. Like a lamb and a lion, he wanted to establish his power and dominance clear enough for her to read.

"Don't fucking tell me to calm down!"

What came next wasn't unexpected, but it was sudden. Farah yelped as his fingers suddenly coiled around the hair that was coming out of her high ponytail, yanking it so backwards she thought her neck would break. She shut her eyes tight as he moved closer, her heart beating hard enough for her to hear it in her own ears. Noah stood towering above her, grinning maliciously at the way she was trembling, so fiercely that her entire body was quaking with tremors.

And then, he pulled on her tresses again, feeling a giddy sensation of satisfaction when another sound of pain left her mouth. "Look at me," He ordered, forcing her spine at such an awkward angle she was convinced it would snap in two. "Open your goddamn eyes before I fucking open them for you." He wanted to see the pain he caused her, he wanted to see the tears. All for him. These emotions she was feeling-- fear, dread, hopelessness-- were all things he enjoyed receiving in response.