Finding Our Souls

5

While everybody gets engaged in playing games and singing, Joelyn stealthily walks out of the group and looks for a lone and peaceful place to sit. Stephan notices and follows her so he could talk to her in private.

Joelyn inhales the cool air and exhales her stress out.

"Inhale the good shit and exhale the bullshit" Says Stephan from the back making Joelyn chuckle.

"Lmao where did you learn this from!?"

Stephan: "Just heard it from a friend"
Joelyn: "What brings you here?"
Stephan: "I'm curious to know about this legendary girl das why I'm here to ask her"
Joelyn: "I'm no legendary girl bruh"
Stephan : "Well you seem like one"

"Why were you running from that car the other time?"

"Sorry?" She asks in puzzlement.

"I saw it, you were trying to escape something and hopped in the bus as soon as it came close"

"Yup, my fear."

"And what's your fear?"

"..."

"You can talk to me Joe" he assures looking through the window of my soul, in short they exchanged eye contact.

"Well..."

Joelyn: It all happened when I was 18 year old. I was done with school and ready to look for a job, a guy named Troy met me online, he talked to me about job offers trying to help. One day he then asked me to meet up with him, I'm not the type to meet anyone I don't know but it was an official one. He called me to his office where he occupies the job as a manager. He did my interview and I finally found a job. I have an aunt, aunt Marisa, she was the one who brought me up, I'm an orphan and I was living with her until I got the job and I had to move apart from her, I went to live in an apartment offered by my office. That night when i shifted, Troy called me and ask me to meet him at a club. I didnt want to go, but he said he urgently needed to hand me some office works and he can't be dropping them at mine. I called a taxi and reached the club. There, he gave me my work and I was just about to leave when he asked me for a drink, I wasn't sure to be staying so I left. That night his bestfriend, Chris Stones, had observed me to the fullest.
The next day was my first day to job, Chris landed there and was talking to Troy inside his cabin when I had to return him the completed work.

"Here Sir, I've completed all the pending work of last night and I need your signatures on em"

"You're a full of confidence lady I see" Chris had complemented.

"That I am, but thank you"

After this short exchange of words, Chris tried his maximum to contact me, he took my number via Troy and tried to meet up, it went on for days, we talked and met up, we started living together at his. At a point he started treating me like shit, I couldn't understand why?, his obsession was vast and dangerous, he started hurting me. Every night he came home drunk and would abuse me, he would either whip me or use his force upon me. I still remember the day he... he... he stuffed my mouth with chilli powder and used a knife to carve my skin without pity. He would torture me till I scream and try to escape from this pain. Every night it was like this and every morning it would be like,

"Im sorry Joe, I didnt mean to, you know I was not myself,"

I would understand and ask him to never drink again even though I knew he would...

One day I was to go out and I caught him kissing a street-hoe, grabbing her breast, I was so hurt at that point that I sat there watching both of them in disgust.

I went back to his house and took my belongings and left from there, he was home right after I left and he was annoyed to another level. I would never forget that day when he barged in my apartment, broke everything around, he saw me, ripped my clothes in shreds and threw it all on the floor,

"WHY THE FUCK YOU LEFT FROM THERE"
He yelled in domination.

"I fucking saw you cheating on me with that bitch, fucking leave from here now!"
I yelled back trying to defend myself.

The only thing he said was,

'You're gonna regret raising your voice at me bitch'

He forced himself on me and raped me, yeah he raped me, broke my virginity, tore apart my dignity and murdered my self-esteem. And before leaving, he took a knife and cut open the wounds he made earlier, leaving me in my own blood and tears, all naked and weak, he left through the door throwing the knife away.

I never tried to contact him again. He is a psychopath, a fucking cunt, a rapist. I wanted to leave my job as well, but I had signed a contract for the job and I had to complete the 5 years.

Everytime we passed by each other, we never looked at each other nor tried to talk at all.

The day you saw me rushing in fright was the day he tried talking to me. He wanted to come back into my life and I would at no cost allow this to happen.

"I know it doesn't look like I've been through shit like that, I know"

Stephan looks at me all shocked and in wonder how I'm still standing strong.

I could see a tear drop from his eye as he looked at me for a while.

He pulled me in a hug and said,

"Im really sorry Joe, I didn't expect that, that MF ruined you, Im so sorry for unveiling these pain"

"Can I see your scars?"

I nod and raise my sleeves. He gently caresses the wounds and looks at me.

"Joe..."

"Yeah?"

"These look fresh..."

I swallow hard and look at the injuries all over my arms,

"Joe, you hurt you and re-open these scars?"

"I do"

He wraps his arms around me and whispers,

"You used to, now you won't" and allows me to rest in his arms under the clear and full of stars sky, unaware that somebody had seen us.