INTERTWINED FEELINGS

The sun was already setting, and it got darker. She could tell because the illumination in her room got brighter by the time she woke up. She glanced around; everything still lay where it was, and her work was unfinished.

She had a choice, and she failed again.

Instead of remorse, she shut her eyes tight, thinking of better solutions for next time and how to act in the scene.

Not reminiscing after the event.

She stared down at her arm hanging loosely from the end of the bed where she lay. She was exhausted. She was exhausted from everything, and it was time she took action. She clutched the sheet that concealed her naked breasts and tried to sit up. But she couldn't.

To her left, there on her own bed, he lay. He was exhausted too from the past hours of incessant sex, and he lay there snoring. She tried getting up to clean up, but her legs were weak. Weak from fighting back, she laid in and allowed the memories to flood through.

Three hours ago, he had walked into her house; she hadn't noticed because she was buried in the work she had on her laptop with headsets on.

After what seemed like thirty minutes or so, he walked into the room where she sat, and before she could even look up to see who it was, her headset had gone off her head, crashing to the floor.

Her eyes traced the person above her down to the floor, where her speakers lay in absolute shock.

"Haven't you heard I've been calling you?" His voice bellowed in anger.

She could only stare at him.

"Are you out of your mind!?" She retorted back with a nerve twitch.

" What!?"

"You heard me; I asked if you were out of your mind." Her anger was kindled now, and she was already charging out of her seat.

She tried to push him, but he caught her off guard and made the first move. He seized her by the shoulder, pinning her to the wall.

"Are you trying to be a man now, huh?"

"Get off me," she tried kicking.

"Or what?" He shifted his hand to her neck and brought his face closer to hers. You've already learned to disrespect your man now, huh?"

She felt his grip getting tighter, and she could only imagine what could possibly happen next. She saw her life flash, and there it dawned on her how quickly it'd hit the deadlines about a black woman killed in her own home by her boyfriend.

She mustered every drop of moisture she felt in her mouth and spat it out on his face, hoping for the worst.

In seconds, she felt she heard something, and she felt it too. As warm as it felt on her cheek, it was so hard, and it kept ringing in her ears.

"Bitch"

She looked up at him in total disbelief. He had actually slapped her, and she was unable to fight back. Her eyes glistened with moisture forming at the base.

His grip had been loosened as he left the room to wash his face.

She crawled past her speakers and towards the chair where she had sat earlier. She had no strength left, and she needed to get out as soon as possible. She grabbed the phone and tried to make a call. Finding her way around was a hassle for her, as her eyes were blurry from her tears and her palms sweaty. She was trembling while trying as fast as she could.

He returned, washed up from her spit. He looked more refreshed and sober, like he had seen a transgender man. With concern, he looked at her, where she was being snatched up while trying to use her phone.

Calah," He began softly.

She buried her face in her hands, hoping she wouldn't see his face. She wasn't going to forgive him this time, and she was done with him. He walked gently over to where she was.

"I'm sorry," he continued softly, trying to reach out his hand. "I didn't mean to."

"But you did!" She replied shakily. "Please, go away."

Calah, babe, I promise you, I didn't mean it to go this way. I even got you flowers and the candles you asked for."

She looked at him like she was waiting for approval.

And he nodded with a smile. "I truly am sorry, babe."

With that, he grabbed her chin, lifting up her face and using his spare hand to clean the edge of her face down to the circles beneath her eyes.

He began to caress her face altogether. His lips found her forehead and planted a kiss there, bringing it down to her ear and sending his tongue over her temple as if to suck out the pain he had put her through earlier.

He found her lips and placed his there for a while, waiting for her approval. After waiting for some seconds without finding any, he went ahead. And after some minutes, she returned it. That was his go-ahead.

He lifted her on the bed, still locking lips over her.

She felt her senses fly out the window.

"I'm sorry," he muttered again, with his fingers fiddling with her buttons. His hand went through all of them, jerking them and dragging off his own shirt.

He leaned over her and kissed her.

"I love you, baby."

Deep down, she felt it was a lie, and she wanted to fight back, but she couldn't. She was weak. Her body was, and her mind was too. She wanted to say no, but she could feel the skin beneath her shorts breathing wildly and calling for touch.

She wanted a touch, but not from this man.

She lay helplessly and allowed him to handle her.

As expected, he went down rough on her, causing her more pain all over. Where she lay below him, she silently prayed for it to end. And like her prayers getting answered, he did release semen in her, like always. Despite how much they talked about using condoms,

Reality dawned back on her, and she realized she still lay next to him, with her face still hurting and her legs unmovable. She gathered her strength and walked out of the room to get cleaned up.

She took a look at herself in the mirror. She had a black eye and hickies. In disappointment, she took off her clothes and walked into the bathtub.

She sat there, drenched in tears.

She quickly washed up and tried to get back to her phone. There, she realized he had actually left her house.

Just like that, he came over, gave her a fair share of beatings, and had sex whenever he felt like it. That was her routine.

She remembered when she first met him. He was sweet and really romantic, and that could have been the major reason for her falling for him in the first place. He would send her tons of flowers and chocolates, help her with her chores, and even cook with her.

He was everything she would have ever wanted.

Little did she know he had been boldly cheating on her. Until she caught him and couldn't forgive him. He had spent months trying to get back to her, and on her part, she was too soft-hearted. Besides, he was sweet and romantic. And his sex was good. She could forgive him for that.

And that was her mistake. Her love for him had greatly diminished, and she just tried staying with him for fear of being single.

Men didn't like ladies who were CEOs, but her boyfriend did, and she had to stay or she would be subjected to her fear during stormy nights.

And her boyfriend, who had other affairs with his ladies, still decided to keep her. After all, she was a senator's daughter, and she gave executive orders to about three large companies.

He could manipulate her all she wanted. She was scared, and he knew it, and that was his chance to also exhort money and have his bills paid, alongside the influence. And after being manipulative to her, He knew how to make her forget it. Flowers, kisses, and good sex

She remembered that when they first met at the gym, he gave her one compliment, and she had her knees wobbling. She wasn't the type to fall for men easily, but Zach was good at that.

And she realized that the more charming they looked, the more pepper they dished out.

She snapped back from her transgression and picked up her things in order.

She had work at the company the next day, and she had to finish her work. Her headset, luckily, wasn't broken enough to ruin it; just a small part of it had come off.

She got herself into sweatpants and a sweatshirt and went to lock the

or, and got back to work with her system on her bed.

And soon enough, she was fast asleep.