Warning: Trigger warning ahead

ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

The following day was slower than normal, most likely due to the fact that I was home. I sat in the dining room with my English textbook and notes open on the table. I was attempting to do my homework while fully aware that Krystian would be coming the next day to assist me in submitting it to school.

I stopped writing while my mind wandered. I couldn't believe I was allying with Krystian of all people. What if all of this was just his tactics of getting me to trust him? A reverse psychology effect? I knew I was willing to take the risk, but was it worth it?

Trust entered the dining room at that very moment. I didn't notice him at first. I despised the idea of his being near me. His presence felt like it was stifling the air around me, making me want to vomit. That was how much I despised him.

I got up, gathered my belongings, and went upstairs to my room. I was suffering from a severe headache, and I suppose Trust was the reason I needed to stop working on my assignment. I closed the door behind me and crawled into bed, placing my closed books and pen by my pillow as I sighed. I wasn't sure when I dozed off, but I did.

The touch did not register in my mind at first. I only felt an airy sensation that I really wanted to go away because it felt so bothersome. When I felt it at first, I brushed my hands repeatedly on my skin, but it wouldn't stop. It became much more unpleasant as the sensitive trail moved slowly to the back of my leg, pushing my eyelids to flutter open.

It was hazy at first, and all I could hear was a pleasant grunt. It took a few seconds for my brain to understand what was going on, and that act made me very cold. I attempted to sit up with my back against the headboard, but the powerful grip on my shoulders held me in place, preventing any further movement. As that face finally appeared in front of me, it felt as if my entire life flashed before my eyes, and all I could feel was dread.

Words. I needed to speak, yell, and scream, but for some odd reason, those actions felt alien to me. My eyes shifted to the door, and my lips parted slightly. I'd usually tried to lock my door ever since Trust kept staring at me strangely, but today, perhaps due to my pounding headache, I simply closed it but forgot to lock it.

"U-uncle Trust," I couldn't recognise my own voice. I was sure he could sense the fear in me and was hoping he wasn't some psychopath who enjoyed the torment of others. I found myself gulping as my eyes stung with tears. "What are you doing?"

"You can fool your sister, but you can't fool me," he said in a malicious tone, and my blood ran cold. I watched with fear as he straddled me with both of his legs, pushing me deeper into my bed. "I knew you were not so innocent."

"Get off me!" I wasn't sure where the courage came from, but I roared so loudly that tears streamed down my cheeks. I couldn't bear to watch him do this to me. I couldn't see myself being assaulted.

"Get off me," I cried, knowing fully well that my abilities had little to no effect on him. "P-please."

Hot tears rolled down my cheeks as Trust spread my legs apart. I watched as a scowl formed on his face as he stared angrily at my jeans. "You are not making it easy by wearing something hard to pull off."

"Uncle—"

"Shut up!" I felt his spit on my face as he leaned closer to me. "I'm only taking what's mine."

"Get off me!" I reached for his neck in an attempt to fight back, but the only thing that got me was a hard slap across the face. It felt like the air got knocked out of me as my face forcefully turned to the side because of the impact of his deadly slap. I could feel my tears rolling sideways now, but I didn't have it in me to wipe them off. I could hardly move.

"Please." It came out as a whisper, but all I could hear was the sound of his zipper. The thought of him about to molest me was worse than death itself. I closed my eyes, but they popped wide open as Trust moved in and began kissing my exposed neck and cheek, which stung terribly.

"Why are you acting innocent when you gave it to the other boy the other day?" he laughed as he fumbled with the buttons on my shorts so he could successfully pull them down. "You should be grateful that I fancy you."

I let out a wide cry as he tried planting his lips on mine. That startled him, and he stopped immediately. "Who wants to even kiss you when I can have something better?"

"I believe you taste better than your sister," he said, tightening his hands around my waist as his tongue traced his lower lips. He kept looking at me like I was his favourite dessert, and all I wanted was for God to somehow save me from this. "Young girls tend to taste fresh."

I observed something shimmering in my eyesight and realised it was my pen, which was resting next to my closed textbook. I ignored Trust, who was on top of me and kissing my exposed neck and reached for the pen, forcefully sending its sharp pointy mouth into Trust's cheek.

Trust let out a loud cry as he fell on top of me to the ground, with both of his hands covering his cheek, which had a pen attached to it. Seeing him tendering to his bleeding cheek, I quickly got up from my bed and raced out of my room.

"Get back here, you bitch!" I heard him howl as I raced down the lobby to the stairs. I had only one thing clouding my head: how to get out of the front door. I knew the gateman would help, but I just needed to get past the front door. With a clouded thought, I misplaced my steps, which sent me down the stairs with a loud thud.

I tried to stand up, but two spots hurt terribly. My right ankle and both elbows. I also felt something trailing down the side of my head, and without looking, I knew it was blood.

"Serves you right!" I managed to look up to see Trust grinning down at me from the top of the stairs. Dread was all I could see, as I feared he would have his way with me if I didn't get out fast. Trying to ignore the pain jolting through every part of my body, I crawled on the floor with my belly as I tried to get to the front door as soon as possible.

"I'm still not done with you," I felt a hand around my already hurt ankle as I was so close to the door, only to be spun harshly to face an angry Trust that had blood trailing from his cheek to his chin. "I was going to go easy on you; now you've angered me. I'm going to go so hard that you'll be wishing for death instead. And what will your sister do?" He spat, "Nothing because she only listens to me."

"Get off me, please!" I yelled so loud, hoping that the security man would have a clue that something wasn't right inside the house.

"Get off you? After doing this to me?!" He pointed at his cheek. "You wish. You're going to pay so badly."

"Uncle—"

"Shut up!" He roared, followed by a heavy slap on my other cheek, draining whatever energy I had left. Cry? Scream? Those actions seemed unthinkable now. I was too exhausted to respond. I was too fatigued to say anything as he fumbled with the rest of my buttons, right there beside the closed front door.

I could sense myself drifting in and out of consciousness. I was hoping I would fall into an unconscious state sooner rather than later. I couldn't imagine being conscious and watching him do these things to me without doing anything to stop him. I just couldn't.

The front door opened, allowing natural light into the living room, prompting me to close my eyes briefly. "Delphine?!"

I felt Trust slip away from me as quickly as he could, and I heard his voice shake at the sight of the person in front of us. "Debby, I can explain!"

Did he? I wasn't sure, because at that painful moment, I drifted out of consciousness.

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

Darkness, blurry light . . .

Darkness, blurry light . . .

Darkness, blurry light . . .

I could hear some beeping as I tried to regain consciousness. Was I in Heaven? I couldn't stop thinking about it when my eyelids opened slightly to reveal a white ceiling above me.

"Oh my God!" I winced a little at the loud, trembling voice. "Doctor!"

Doctor? Was I in the hospital? What was I doing . . . ? Every awful vision that had just occurred to me flashed through my mind. I gasped as I attempted to sit upright but couldn't.

He didn't, right?

My thoughts were cut short as rapid footsteps approached the bed where I was lying. "Sis Debby?" Her face was bathed with tears, and her eyes were big and red as she looked down at me with trembling lips.

"Now you can stop worrying." I turned to the doctor who was patting my sister's shoulder, but all my sister's gaze was on me. "I told you she'd be fine," the doctor said softly. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm just—" I winced as my throat hurt a bit. "Just a little pain at the side of my head and my . . ." The memory of me falling down the stairs enveloped me, and I gasped as I tried looking at my ankle. God, please no.

"It's a minor sprain," the doctor said, as her gaze slowly followed mine. "Two to three days from now, you'll be walking, jumping, and running fine."

I didn't have the time to breathe a sigh of relief, even if I wanted to, as Debby rushed towards me, squatting to my level and cupping my face dearly. "Are you okay? Are you sure you are okay?" 

What was I to say? My true feelings or my wishful feelings. Debby looked and felt broken. Her worry for me and my current state was shown. I didn't want to give her more room to worry. 

"I'm fine, sister," I forced myself to say with a smile. "He didn't get his way with me, and that's all that matters."

Debby shook her head and brushed away the tears that had slipped her eyes. She opened her lips numerous times to say something but then closed it again. I felt an intense gaze on me, prompting me to shift my focus away from my sister and towards the doctor. The doctor's gaze seemed to see right through me, leaving me defenceless and exposed, no matter how hard I tried to disguise my genuine feelings.

"Your sister told me what happened as she was waiting for you to regain consciousness," the doctor offered with a kind smile. "Just because he didn't have his way with you doesn't mean we should take what he did to you lightly. I'm not talking about him being sent to prison, but I'm talking about you."

The doctor dipped her hand into her lab coat's pocket and brought out something that looked like a pamphlet. "We offer every service, including therapy sessions. Why don't you give it a try?" 

She stretched out the pamphlet towards me, and I politely took it. "I'm fine, ma, seriously." I looked down at the words on the pamphlet. 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞. "I don't need this."

"Why don't you hold it in case you change your mind?" She offered, then turned to my sister. "Debby?"

"Yes, doctor Ekanem," my sister quickly wiped her eyes as she turned to the doctor.

"Come with me so we can get some mild painkillers for your sister at the pharmacy department." I felt a small pat on my foot. "We'll, be back soon."

Debby turned to me and placed a tender hand on my forehead. "I'll be back, okay? Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"I'm on this bed; what can go wrong?" I gave her a small smile. She looked like she wanted to cry again, and I hope she didn't. "I'll be fine, sister Debby."

She nodded and rose, still hesitant to leave. The doctor had to move over, encouraging my sister to follow her. I sighed as the doctor and my sister exited the room. I stared down at the pamphlet in my palm, my eyes stinging with tears. Was I not convincing enough? I told the doctor I didn't need this.

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

Debby took us home, and it was relatively quiet. It wasn't a comfortable silence, but I was glad she didn't say anything. I spent the majority of my time staring out the window, hoping to find a distraction that would take my mind off of that occurrence.

"Sis Debby," I began slowly as I rested my back. "The doctor mentioned jail. Is Trust in Jail?" 

Debby remained silent as she examined the road ahead. I noticed her hands quivering on the steering wheel and wondered if it was appropriate to start such a topic at this time.

"The security man rushed after me when he heard me scream and luckily got a hold of Trust while dragging him to his flat at the gate and locking him there while I rushed you to the hospital." Debby startled me by saying. I glanced at her as she continued. "I was red-eyed as the nurses and doctor rushed to treat you. I drove back home after phoning the police, and we arrived nearly at the same time. Trust tried to explain, but I was too upset to let him talk."

Debby hurriedly wiped her tears and took in air. "I feel stupid and horrible for letting this happen to you. I would not have imagined in my wildest dreams that Trust—"

"Sis Debby," I whispered, putting my palm on my lap to stop her. She drove to the side of the road and parked her car before burying her face in the steering wheel and crying bitterly.

I bit my lips as I watched her shoulder tremble nonstop, forcing my eyes to well up in tears. "I'm sorry, Delphine; I am."

"Sis Debby," I successfully dragged her away from her staring wheel, only to see her eyes puffy again. I knew she was crying for several reasons. She was blaming herself for what happened to me, crying because I was nearly raped by the love of her life, who she trusted above anything.

"I'm fine," I replied, wrapping my hands around her and hugging her tightly. I was so sure I needed it badly as well. "You don't have to beat yourself because of me; I'm fine."

I shuddered as I remembered Trust trying to get his way with me. I closed my eyes tightly and took deep breaths. "I promise, I'm fine."

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ♡︎ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

Sorry guys that I couldn't update last Saturday.

This chapter was toned down so many times. Up until yesterday, I was deleting and rewriting some of the scenes that had to do with Trust and Delphine.

What do you think about this chapter in general?

What do you think about Trust? You guys would've hated him much worse if I'd stuck with the original draft.

Do you feel Delphine is doing the wrong thing by hiding her feelings from her sister? How about your thoughts on Debby?

Well, that's it for today's chapter. See you guys on Saturday, hopefully ✨