IMMURE

Chapter Two: A New Life

He watched her empty eyes as he washed her body. Melanie sat naked in the bathtub, while Lorenzo, gently massages her scalp with the lavender scented shampoo. Her long, inky black hair stood out against her pale skin. Her mother was a blond and so was her father, but she had inherited her grandmothers glorious hair, and chocolate brown eyes.
No wonder she was named Melanie meaning beautiful darkness. Her dark features were what made her completely irresistible, and they were what drew Lorenzo to her.

He still remembers the day he saw Melanie for the first time.
How she walked around the college campus, a new freshman, confusion and excitement sparkled in her eyes.
He remembers how he intentionally bumped into her, just to get a closer look, and how she giggled at her clumsiness.
Gosh her laugh was adorable. And then he remembered how his heart stopped when he stared into the most bewitching pair of brown eyes.
He could never forget how his heart leaped out of his chest in that moment, how he was suddenly so aware of his every breath, how she captivated him like no other female ever had.

What was it about Melanie that drove him so crazy? What did she have that the others didn't? Why can he not stand the thought of not having her next to him always?
These questions remain unanswered even today.

Melanie lay still in the tub. The hot water really helped with the soreness of her body after a hideous, morning fuck. She moaned softly as Lorenzo massaged the perfect spots on her scalp. He was practically an expert now. He knew her body as well as she did, if not better.
"Does that feel good?" He asked softly.
Melanie simply nodded.
"I love you Mel. I love you so fuckin much."
Melanie didn't say or do anything. She simply started at the wall in front of her, blinking away the tears that were clouding her eyes.

After a long, relaxing bath, Lorenzo dressed Melanie up and tucked her back into bed. He sat next to her, with a food tray on his lap.
Melanie started at the tray. It was the same food everyday.
Grilled Chicken breast, mashed potatoes, boiled beans and carrots, and a cup of hot chocolate, for dessert.
Sometimes if Lorenzo felt generous or if she begged him enough to satisfy his ego, he'd replace the chicken with steak and maybe the carrots with corn. But mostly, this is what she got, and she had to eat it or wait a whole day till she was greeted by the same, morbid tray again.

Lorenzo picked up the fork and knife and started cutting the meat. 
"Enzo...."
"Hmmm?"
"Can I eat it myself?"
If it were any other day, he would have straight up refused. But since he felt a hint of guilt for being too rough with her in the morning, and she knew he did, he allowed her to eat herself.
With a sigh he replied.
"Fine. Here." He placed the food tray in her lap and watched her as she gently cut the chicken and placed it in her mouth.

By the time she was done, there was a quarter of the breast, along with two carrots still left untouched, on her plate.
She handed over her tray to Lorenzo who was slightly puzzled at why she didn't eat the whole thing. She had done this a few days ago too. But then she claimed to feel sick, hence the lack of appetite. But what was wrong today?
"Why didn't you eat the whole thing?"
"I-I'm not hungry...."
"You haven't even touched your hot chocolate. Is something wrong Mel? Are you ill?" He asked, deeply concerned.
But Melanie didn't say a word.
She knew that at some point, the little that she did eat, would also be rejected by her system, causing her to throw up. But she didn't know what the reason for this was.

She wondered if she was pregnant. Pregnant at 22 wasn't what she ever imagined herself being. But could she be? What's the point? Having a baby with this monster is nothing short of a curse. It would only tie her down to him, and if she'd ever have a chance to escape, her baby would hold her back. And she was not okay with that.
She couldn't even tell by her period, since she hadn't had hers for months due to being starved.
But somewhere deep down she knew that even if she were pregnant, it wouldn't be long before she had a miss carriage.

"Mel...are you....pregnant?" Lorenzo sprung the question on her out of the blue.
'I probably am, but who cares? The baby will die any day now.' She thought to herself.
"Answer me!" He raised his voice making her flinch.
"I-I don't k-know." She stuttered.
"When did you get your last period?"
Melanie felt  fury pump through her veins at the question.
"You and I both know I've not had mine for months now due to your starvation ritual!" She retorted sassily.
"Watch the tone angel. I will only be so tolerant with you." He hissed, sinking his nails in her cheeks, as he tightly held her face.

He released her, making her gasp, as a sob escaped her lip.
He sighed and pulled her in his arms. She didn't fight him. She wasn't strong enough to anyways.
"I'll call a doctor tomorrow. We need to know if you're pregnant Mel." He said softly, kissing her forehead.
"And if I am?" She asked barely above a whisper.
Lorenzo grinned from ear to ear and spoke.
"We'll be the best parents ever!" He declared excitedly, hugging her tighter.
'And what if I don't want it?'
Of course she didn't say it out loud. He would have probably beat the shit out of her if she did, and ended up killing the baby anyways, if there was one.

The next day, Lorenzo entered the cabin with a friend of his who happened to be an obstetrician.
"Hello Melanie, I'm Kiara. Lorenzo has told me so much about you."
A beautiful female, with icy blue eyes and wavy blond hair sat next to Melanie.
Melanie simply smiled, glancing at Lorenzo, who's threatening eyes told her clearly
'Don't dare utter a word, or I will kill her.'
"I know you suffer from anorexia, but if you're pregnant, you're going to have to eat more. Ok?" Melanie was appalled by the lies Lorenzo had fed Kiara. But she simply nodded and let it slide. She didn't want to insight Lorenzo in killing another innocent person just to prove to her that he controlled her.

"Alright. I'm gonna take some blood samples. And I'll let you guys know the results this evening:"
"That would be great." Lorenzo said, faking his charismatic smile.
Melanie flinched as the needle poked her flesh and she watched her blood filling the syringe.
"All done. I'll call you up in the evening and let you know."
"Thanks a lot Kiara. I owe you one." Lorenzo gave her a quick hug.
"Oh anytime. I'm glad I could help. Fingers crossed." She said chirpily and Lorenzo walked her out.

Lorenzo tried to be Nonchalant about the whole thing but he was definitely anxious about the result. He checked his phone every time it pinged. He was really hoping Melanie was pregnant. All he'd ever dreamed of was having a family with the love of his life.
And now he did.
Kiara rung them up excitement laced her shrill voice.
"Congratulations!! She's pregnant! Two weeks!"
Melanie felt her world shatter into pieces when she heard Kiara's voice on the other end of the phone. Lorenzo quickly thanked her and killed the call.
He rushed to Melanie and picked her up, giving her a twirl in his arms.
"Mel we're gonna have a baby!" He roared in excitement and joy.

He put her down and hugged her tightly.
"Thank you Angel. I promise I'll be the best father to our child. I'll never let anything bad happen to either of you." He pulled away and looked at her blank eyes staring on the wood panel floor. She was obviously in shock. But that didn't stop Lorenzo from saying something he really wanted to.
"You know the best part about you being pregnant?"
Melanie looked up at him, and replied with a bitter smile.
"I'll be stuck with you forever." A tears flowed down her cheek as she admitted the ugly truth, more as a fact she'd have to accept.
Lorenzo smirked in satisfaction.
"Exactly."