DEMENTED | Ethan Dolan

CONTAGIOUS

It was all so very happy in the beginning. Or maybe she was just blind then, too.

But the happiness was very short-lived, lasting only a couple of months when Daniel broke his sobriety record of a whole year on the day of their six-month wedding anniversary. To Y/N's surprise, she walked in on him belligerently flinging their expensive china collection at the wall, going off on how miserable he was in their marriage and how badly he just wanted her to go away. Y/N was heartbroken, and terrified of course, so after failing to calm him down she ran to the room and packed a bag, attempting to flee the scene. It was only when her drunk husband noticed her about to walk out the front door that he broke down crying, apologizing profusely as he begged her stay. Promising her he would change. That he loved her more than life itself. Asked for forgiveness.

And she gave it to him.

Things only went downhill from there. He blamed her for everything. Called her a coward for trying to leave him in the first place, calling her heartless for wanting to leave him in such a vulnerable state. Despised her for "taking away his alcohol" and "forcing him to sober" when they first met. That she was idiotic to fall for him. That their children would come out just like him, and that would be her fault. For a long amount of time, she would believe him. She would think she was deserving of all this torture, up until she found a beautiful house online located in a quaint town, far far away from him. She dreamt of divorce constantly, and had a great friend in that department that would help her out greatly.

But here's the thing about Daniel. He hated her, but she was his routine, and although he spewed horrid shit at her on a daily basis, he couldn't bear the thought of her leaving him. The one who'd stop him from leaving the house in his intoxicated state and driving off, potentially killing him and other innocent souls. Y/N was his safe haven in a way, so he'd threaten her life if she were to even think about leaving.

She left anyway.

The abuse was mostly verbal, mental, and emotional. Rarely physical, but there have been moments here and there were he had caused bruises and marks on her. Marks that have gone away quickly, but remained engraved in her spiraling mind. Daniel was not the man she married, the humorous, hard-working individual who showed her nothing byr kindness the first few months of their relationship. He was a dream, that turned into a cruel nightmare, and she realized she deserved better than that.

Leaving him was like escaping Hell. But she'd rather go to Hell than to go back running into his arms again.

-

Every single night for the past two weeks, Y/N wakes in her bed without any sort of memory as to how she got there. The last thing she'd remember was doing a simple activity such as reading or preparing dinner, then she would black out and that was it. Oh, and the excruciating pain she'd feel digging inside her skin was also very prominent. Her paranoia is accelerating, she knows it, every single extra minute she spends time in that household. Now that Rose mentioned it, and the erotic dream she had, she could begin to feel his presence.

Of course it couldn't be easy to banish The Seeker from his own home. She should've known better than to think some sage and some inscense would do that trick. But she doesn't want to be afraid in her own home, not again, so she's toughing it out. Maybe she needs a weekend away? Perhaps it's the toll of moving away and trying to forget the man who ruined her life now catching up with her. Maybe it's some of way her subconscious is using to cope, of maybe it's PTSD from her abuse. Whatever it is, she needs a vacation.

Y/N was just scrolling through some potential inns nearby she could stay in, all the while her computer glitching out for absolutely no reason, when all of a sudden her doorbell rang. Not expecting visitors, Y/N confusedly gets up from her chair and opens the front door, yet again forgetting to look through the peephole. She froze with immediate fear and shock at the sight of the familiar man standing on her front steps right now. The man she escaped from, who she left behind in order for a better, healthier life. The man who instilled constant anxiety and paranoia within her. Belittled her. Tortured her. Screamed at her.