Mad Woman✓

3. Wild eyes

"So it goes, he can't keep his wild eyes on the road." 

   POV JOE ALWYN:

When I wake up, with a heavy feeling on my chest, I instantly realize that I'm not in my own bed. Or in a bed at all.

I slowly open my eyes and look around.

The heavy feeling on my chest is Taylor's head.

The hard surface we're lying on is the bathroom floor.

Taylor was too scared to go back into her bedroom last night. The curtains were open and there was no way we could have closed them without them seeing it.

She didn't say she was scared but her eyes spoke volumes.

And it only made me want to protect her more. I know that I shouldn't want to, that I don't have to.

I know she would be perfectly fine without me. No doubt.

She's probably stronger than I am. She is way more fearless without a doubt.

But the way she looked last night...

It was like a deer feeling the presence of the hungry coyote.

Like a deer looking into the headlights of a car in the middle of a highway.

So she ran like any sane person would do.

She ran to her bathroom with the safety of the roller shutters.

I reach to open a low cabinet and find some towels. I take them out of it and carefully hold her head as I move from underneath her and shove the towels beneath her head.

I sit up straight, my back against the bathtub, and take my phone from my pocket.

It's almost 5.

My eyes wander over the room. The two sinks with the fancy black faucets. The big, walk-in shower and the golden bath.

It's not too big, but it looks very expensive nevertheless.

"You like it?"

I look up and her eyes shimmer in the dark. The makeup she wore last night is a little smudged over her face. And kisses of black lipstick are probably all over my face.

"It's very nice", I nod.

"Yeah, I like it too. It's a bit much, but who cares, I love it", she chuckles. Her voice is tired and I notice the tense set of her jaw.

"Do you think they're still outside?" I ask softly, my voice low.

"I don't want to think about that."

"You should go back to sleep."

"No. You should though."

"I'm not tired."

"Me neither."

I look down at the marble floor and sigh, "Do you always live like this?"

"What do you mean?"

"This fear. These... these men out there..."

"Not always."

"But most of the time?"

"Yes, most of the time."

"I'm sorry about that."

I can hear her swallow. Every sound is just a little louder because of the darkness in the room.

"Don't be. It's fine, it's my own fault anyway."

"Are you ever going to tell me who they are? Or why they're here?" I ask, already knowing the answer.