Page 27 of His Obsession

“Liz, wake up, baby,” said a deep garbled voice.

I opened my eyes to a spinning, wavering world. My eyelids were heavy, and I didn’t want to move. I rubbed my eyes, wiping away the blur; the deep-seated ache spread across my face, causing me to cry out.

“Alek?” The cobwebs in my brain clearing out, allowing room for thought. My fingers clawed at Alek’s arms as I tried to get closer to him. “He was here, Alek… he was here…” My body trembled with fear.

“It’s okay, Liz. I’ve got you.” He wrapped his arms around me and held me tight as I sobbed. “I’m sorry, I should have been here sooner,” he confessed.

“He told me to choose,” I pulled away, stuttering between sobs, “your life or mine.” My hands dropped from him and covered my face gently. I could feel the swollen, tender flesh under my palm. Alek pulled me back into his arms and hushed me, kissing the top of my head.

“Shh,I know, baby, you won’t have to choose.” He assured me. “Let’s look at your cheek.”

I wiped my tears away and sniffled. Looking at Alek, the concern was evident on his face. I didn’t think I’d seen him express anything but stoicism or anger. It was refreshing to see the action match the feeling with him.

“It’s okay, just tender,” I said, as he lifted my chin with his finger.

“Well, let me see anyway,” he whispered, his eyes sweeping over my cheek, my eyes, and neck. What he must have seen satisfied his curiosity, and he sat back, redirecting his gaze.

I shoved the covers off and squeezed past him. I needed some space. This was just a little too much for me.

“Where are you going?”

“I need to use the restroom,” I told him. Standing slowly, I put my hand on the nightstand, still feeling off-kilter. I walked to the bathroom, glancing back to make sure he was still there and closed the door behind me. No sooner had I closed the door than I cried, muffling the sobs that I could no longer contain.

The mirror that tells no lies confirmed the reality of my situation—this was not a dream. My eye darkened. My cheek was swollen with a minor cut. It wasn’tasbad as it felt. Dried blood crusted on my cheek and ran down to my ear and into my hair. I needed a shower; if not for the blood, to get the rank smell off my body.

I pulled a fresh towel from the cupboard and turned the faucet to hot. It didn’t take long for steam to fill the room and the air to become stifling. Adjusting the temperature, I stepped in and scrubbed my hair, watching the water run down my chest, crimson with my blood. I washed the rest of my body, taking great care not to touch the cut on my face.

A quiet knock on the door startled me. “Yeah?” I called out, my voice shattering the tranquility of falling water.

“Just checking to see if you were okay. You’ve been in there a while,” Alek said.

That didn’t sound right. I couldn’t have been in here that long. “I’ll be out in a minute,” I told him. I scrubbed my body again, this time with vigor until my skin turned red, and the water ran cold.

Chills ran across my skin as water droplets trickled down my body to my toes and swirled into the drain.

I wrapped a towel around myself and stopped at the door, pausing before opening. Alek was on the other side, in my room, and I had no clothes in here.

“Um, Alek?”

“Yeah?” His voice close, just on the other side.

“Can you turn around? I need to get some clothes,” I mumbled.

“I can do that. Come on out.”

I turned the knob and found Alek with his back towards me, facing the wall. I opened the drawer on my dresser and picked out my matching turquoise bra and panties. I glanced back to see his back still turned; I dropped my towel and snapped my bra into place. I dressed in an old t-shirt and a pair of sweats; they were my comfort clothes.

“Okay, I’m done,” I said.

He turned around, his fingers interlaced behind his neck, stretching.

“I want you to come and stay with me.Please,” he asked.

He asked me… Alek Jackson asked nothing of anyone. He told me what to do and expected me to follow.

“Alek, I don’t know.” I had everything here. “For how long?”

He released his hands from their hold, and they swung down to his sides. “At least until this is over. I made a mistake. It obviously isn’t safe for you here.”