One

Chapter Nineteen

-a little warning like the last chapter. This chapter is a lot more serious that what's I would usually write but I wanted to try it. If you don't want to read about domestic/sexual abuse, feel free to skip to the end. Thank you for reading xx

Dianne kicked and squirmed underneath Ethan as he held his hand over her mouth, waiting with baited breath to hear a knock on the door. After a moment or two, there was still silence and Ethan smirked.
"You're lucky," he snarled, "that could have ended badly." He removed his hand from her mouth and stepped away from where she lay on the bed. Hastily, Dianne pulled herself up against the headboard and curled her small, shaking body into a ball.
"So, care to apologise?" Ethan asked as he leaned against the wall, his arms crossed.
Dianne wrapped her arms around her knees. "For what?" Her voice was high-pitched and barely louder than a whisper.
Ethan shrugged his shoulders. "Hmm, I don't know. Maybe for ruining my relationship? Or feeding Jasmine your stupid little lies."
"Ethan, please. I promise I didn't. I've never spoken to her, I don't even have her number!" Dianne pleaded, trying desperately to ignore the fast pounding of her heart.
"Pfft," Ethan scoffed. "Why should I believe you?"
"I've never once lied to you!" Dianne said, her voice suddenly much stronger. "Not once! I was always honest, and I still am now."
Ethan stood upright and stepped towards the bed. "So," he began, "you used to enjoy it when I fucked you, did you not?"
Dianne hesitated and curled herself tighter still.
"Don't lie Dianne," Ethan said slyly, "did you or did you not?"
There was no way she could win. If she said no, he'd accuse her of lying and he'd do it. If she said yes, Dianne was sure the inevitable would happen. Feeling her mouth grow dry with fear, Dianne knew her voice just wasn't going to work. She nodded her head slowly, hoping saying 'yes' would be better than 'no', and watched Ethan's face, trying to work out his next move.
He raised his eyebrows and nodded. "Guess you are honest then. Good answer." With her breath hitching in her throat, Dianne shrank into the headboard as much as possible, hoping some sense would cross his mind. Ethan reached for his belt but seemed to change his mind and stopped. "But, I'm not in the mood. Maybe later." Dianne had to restrain herself from breathing a sigh of relief knowing it would only agitate him more. Instead, she remained expressionless and unmoving as she watched Ethan leave the room, closing the door behind himself. She waited for a couple of minutes before she heard the faint noise of the tv through her little apartment before pulling her phone out of her back pocket and tapping out a quick message to Joe.
Come get me.

Joe ripped his gaze from the view out of the cab window and looked down at his phone resting on his leg. His scanned the message quickly as his phone unlocked and, feeling a sicky feeling in the pit of his stomach, he replied straight away. With his phone between his hands, Joe looked at the cab driver through the mirror and spoke to her.
"Excuse me, I'm really sorry but would you be able to turn around? My girlfriend uh-" Joe faltered, unable to give a reason. The driver met his gaze in the mirror for a second and smiled a motherly smile; Joe knew he could trust her. "She just messaged me to go and get her."
The driver nodded knowingly having picked up on the worry in his voice, and quickly found somewhere to turn around just as another message from Dianne rang through.
As quickly as possible.
"Uh, could you be as quick as you can?" Joe asked, trying his hardest to keep all of his words from blurring into one. He was properly panicking now.
"I'll try," she said kindly.

I'm on my way.
Joe's message sent waves of relief rippling through Dianne's body as she sat curled up against the headboard of her bed, not daring to move in case it angered Ethan. She knew the front door was double locked but having lived with Ethan for a while, she also knew that once the football was on, he would be none the wiser of anything going on outside of the game. With her phone tucked neatly down the front of her jeans poking out over the waistband under her hoodie so Ethan wouldn't be able to get it, Dianne crept out of her bedroom and snuck down the corridor into the main room. Taking small and cautious steps, she walked through the room and straight to the front door. Dianne undid both locks as quietly as she could before hiding herself behind the wall in case Ethan looked round- he wouldn't be able to see her. Standing with her body pushed up against the wall, Dianne waited for what felt like hours for a soft tap on the door.