At the house, William climbs out first to help Lianna and walks around the car. When he rounds the corner of the car, Lianna closes the door. He watches her walk with absolutely no difficulty to the front door. Did she-“Lianna?” William asks in confusion. She turns back to him and giggles at his expression. “Didn’t you hurt your foot?” She shakes her head.“Ever heard of faking it?” she asks with an amused look. William stares at her in disbelief. He did not think she could be so conniving.“My mother- ““Eurgh, she will never know. Can we go to the town market? I’m starving,” she says as she opens the front door. She waits for William, who is still shocked at the move she pulled.With a soft chuckle, he follows Lianna into the house. They get all their stuff for the market, and William drives them to the large square which is not too far from the house.William strolls behind Lianna through the market in town. He has never been here. He has no idea how Lianna knows about this place,
As William walks to his mother and brother, all the feelings and memories he has suppressed for the last few years rise to the surface. He has to blink the tears of hatred and pain away. He did not think that he would have to deal with this again.He made a deal with his parents. They would focus all their attention on him, and in return, Isaac gets to live the life he wants without his parents trying to ruin it or change it. They get to take everything out on him, but not a hair on Isaac’s head will be touched.Isaac must have done something to anger their mother, but she has no right to violate their deal. She knows there will be grave consciences. His father is not going to let this go when he finds out. William sees his mother lifting her hand again and Isaac braces himself. William hurries and steps in between his mother and Isaac, catching her hand. His mother's face becomes pale when she sees William."William, what are you doing here? I thought-""Have you been hitting him beh
Lianna watches William from her peripheral as they walk back to her apartment. He has not said a word during the trip back. She did not even attempt to make small talk, much less ask him what happened. He had this dark, disturbed look in his eyes that scares her.William opens the door and barges into the apartment with his bags, heading to the bedroom. Lianna trails behind him with her bag. She places her bag on the island in the kitchen and goes to switch on the kettle.“Do you want tea?” she asks into the silence, but there is no answer. Lianna frowns as she slowly walks to her bedroom. What is he doing?She enters the bedroom and sees William sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. His breathing is uneven and he is gripping his hair.“William?” He looks at her and she notices that his eyes are even darker. “What is going on?” she asks, giving a step closer. William shakes his head and stands up. He walks past her, slightly bumping into her shoulder. She bites the ins
Lianna gets out of the cab, pulling her jacket closer to her body. It is freezing tonight. The cab driver asks for the money and she opens up her small bag. She hopes she has some money with her.“Oi, don’t worry about that. I will sort it out,” a man says from the entrance of the building. Lianna watches as a broad-shouldered man comes trudging toward her.He stops next to her and holds a few dollars out to the driver. The driver takes the money and bids them good night.“This way,” the man instructs and Lianna follows the man to the building. They get inside the building and Lianna realizes that it is a gym. Why did this guy ask her here?She scans the place and sees William punching one of the bags. The white bag is covered in red marks. Is it blood?“I apologize for the abrupt invitation. You see, I am not supposed to talk to you.” Lianna turns her head slightly to look at the man. He has a glowering look on his face. He folds his hands in front of him and leans back.“I am Blake,
Once they enter the apartment, William heads to the bedroom, but Lianna grabs his arm. He sighs mentally. He does not have the strength for a pep talk. He cannot deal with this now.Lianna takes William’s arm and leads him to the island in the kitchen. She pulls out a chair and gestures for him to sit. William hesitates.“Please?” she asks with a soft voice. William scoffs and turns to the bedroom. He cannot stand the pity on Lianna’s face.“Sit,” she demands and William pauses. He slowly turns around and sees Lianna searching for something under the sink. With a frustrated sigh, he sits down.Lianna grabs the first aid kit from under the sink. She makes her way back and sits across from William. Great, now she is going to patch him up. William places his hands on the table and watches Lianna remove his wrapping. The sooner she can get this over with, the sooner he can leave. For good.After Lianna has unwrapped his hands, she holds the bottle with saline solutions over a cloth. She ta
William leans against the wall, looking around at his surroundings. There are a few people walking past him, all on their own mission.He turns his gaze to the school building across the street from him. The school building looks abandoned, except for a few children running through the halls. The pale grass in front of the school building makes him feel depressed.He checks his watch and lets out a frustrated sigh. Blake wanted to see him before he went to the color run. And now he is going to be late. He will just explain the situation to Lianna. She will understand. She always does.“Oi, why are you standing out in the open?” Blake’s gravel voice startles William. He jerks his head to Blake and finds him standing around the corner of the wall.“Good afternoon, Blake,” William greets while making his way over to him. Blake lets out a grunt as he leads them around the old wall. They come to a stop and Blake rests against the old wall.William steps next to Blake and crosses his arms.
Light rain tickles Lianna’s face as she makes her way out of the school, William running in front of her. They had finished the color run, but it started to rain while they were cleaning up. They managed to finish packing up and are now hurrying to the car that William arranged for them.“Come on,” William calls over his shoulder, slowing his pace so that Lianna can catch up. She falls into step next to him and he lifts his jacket over them to shelter them from the rain.William leads her to the abandoned building across from the school where they can wait for the car. He ushers Lianna to the nearest wall which serves as protection from the weather. Lianna falls back against the wall and rests her hands on her knees. She tries to catch her breath. William also rests against the wall, running his hand through wet hair.“Ugh, I am soaked,” she says, twisting her shirt between her hands to get the water from it. William turns his gaze to her and notices that her white shirt is clinging to
William swiftly opens the door and enters the apartment, leading Lianna with him. His eyes scan the apartment as he looks for his mother and Evelyn. Where are-“I cannot believe he chooses to live like this,” Evelyn’s voice rings through the apartment. His mother appears from the bedroom with Evelyn on her heels.William lets out a silent sigh, already aware of what is going to happen. His grips tighten on Lianna’s arm, pulling her even closer to him.“What is going on?” Lianna asks in a whisper from behind him. He gives her a quick warning glance and she purses her lips together with a frown.“William,” his mother says with a scornful tone. He steps forward and lets go of Lianna. Another sigh leaves his mouth.“Mother, and Evelyn,” he greets them with a bow of his head. His mother takes a few steps toward him, her arms crossing across her chest.“William.” His mother glares at him. “You should have told me that this was your living condition. I would have told your father you wanted t
William groans softly as he opens his eyes. He looks around the dark room, hearing music from the radio. He lets out a sigh and closes his eyes again.Lianna stirs next to him and he remembers that she is next to him. He turns his eyes to her, looking at her through heavy lids. She has a peaceful look on her face and her arms are wrapped around his chest and waist. A smile spreads on his face as he relishes the warmth and comfort.He turns on his back, lifting her head so that his arm can slither between her neck and the pillow. He pulls her closer to him before closing his eyes. The loud sounds of the nearby apartments allow him to appreciate this life. The one Lianna had shown him. To find peace amidst all the noise and chaos.With a wide smile, William drifts back to sleep.Laughter rumbles through William and his eyes shoot open. He takes a moment to orientate himself. He feels Lianna next to him, talking to someone. He notices his arms wraps around her middle and he turns his hea
The cab stops near him and he hurriedly gets into the car. The facility is quite a drive from the apartment and by the time he gets to the apartment, it is already half past ten.Luckily, Lianna is not home yet, so he has time to take a shower and make himself some food. He sits on the couch as he eats his spaghetti bolognese. His eyes scan all the pictures and books on the bookshelf in front of him. At first, he thought that this apartment might lead him to insanity, but he appreciates the distractions.A photo catches his attention and he gets up, placing his plate on the coffee table. He walks to the shelf and takes one of the pictures that were standing out from the shelf. It is a large picture of what looks like Lianna, but it is not Lianna. William inspects the picture and concludes that it might be Lianna’s mother. She looks exactly like Lianna, except for the green eyes and darker skin, She is holding two baby turtles. William smiles at the picture and realizes that Lianna and
The cab driver bids William farewell and William turns to the facility in front of him. “Harmony Haven Residence” decorates the pale building. He stuffs his hands into his pockets, trying to pull himself together.“William,” one of the nurses greet him. She walks up to him, her hands full of papers and files. “How are you?” She gestures for him to follow her and he obliges.“Busy, but I cannot complain.” She nods knowingly and stops when they reach the elevator. William pushes the button for the doors to open since Nurse Madrich’s hands are full. He pushes the button for the fifth floor and the doors close.“Has anyone else come to visit her since the last time I was here?” he asks. The nurse shakes her head.“We missed you last week, but unfortunately, no one has come to visit Nora. You are the only one,” she says with sadness in her voice. He hums absentmindedly.The elevator comes to a stop and the doors open slowly. William embraces himself and exits the elevator. Nurse Madrich le
William walks through the door of the bedroom, heading to the kitchen. He passes Lianna who is still asleep on the couch. The conversation between her and her dad replays in his head.He stops to look at her, wondering what her intentions are. She has been pretending everything is fine for the last few days. She did not once mention Evelyn or his mother. How can she forget things so easily?A sharp sound pulls him from his thoughts. There is a reminder on his phone.NoraAnother exhausted sigh leaves his lips. He completely forgot about that. He chuckles at himself. He supposes that is why he had the reminder; to remind him.He grabs his suitcase and adjusts his tie. He glances back at Lianna, contemplating whether he should say good luck. He could always just send a text.No, he could not do that.His feet carry him back to the couch where Lianna is sleeping. Her hair is sprawled out on the pillow and she is sleeping in a strange position. How has her back not disintegrated from slee
A knock at the door drags them from the moment. Lianna lets go of William and stands up, making her way to the door. William wipes his eyes and face, ensuring that Lianna would not be able to tell that he cried.“Dad.” William also gets up and waits for John to appear. Lianna’s dad enters and smiles widely when he sees William.“Ah, William. So nice to see you,” John says, holding his hand out and William shakes his hand.“What are you doing here?” William asks, glancing at Lianna who is busy making coffee in the kitchen. Did she tell her dad about what happened? It makes sense.“Lianna called for security, but apparently the threat left. I just came to see whether you two are still okay.” John sits down on the couch and William sits on the chair.“Oh, yeah, yeah. We are fine. So, this is security?” William asks, chuckling at the idea that Evelyn and his mother were so scared about security. It was just Lianna’s dad all along. It’s quite funny.Lianna places the mugs on the table and
There is nothing.He hears his mother arguing and he opens his eyes.“No, lady. Not in my apartment. Thank you very much for dropping, or rather breaking, in,” Lianna says while she drags Rose out of the apartment. Rose tries to fight back, but Lianna has her in a tight hold and forces her out through the door. Evelyn rushes to William to check on him.“Just leave,” he mutters, stepping away from her. She lets out a huff before she stomps past him, calling after Rose.“If you don’t leave, I’m calling security.” William hears Lianna saying from the hallway.“You can’t afford security,” Evelyn remarks. “No, wait, wait.”William walks to the door and peaks his head out to see what is going on. Lianna is talking on the phone to what seems to be security while his mother and Evelyn rush down the hall to the stairs.“Wait till your father hears about this,” Rose calls over her shoulder to William. Lianna finishes her phone call and looks to where Rose and Evelyn disappear down the stairs. S
William swiftly opens the door and enters the apartment, leading Lianna with him. His eyes scan the apartment as he looks for his mother and Evelyn. Where are-“I cannot believe he chooses to live like this,” Evelyn’s voice rings through the apartment. His mother appears from the bedroom with Evelyn on her heels.William lets out a silent sigh, already aware of what is going to happen. His grips tighten on Lianna’s arm, pulling her even closer to him.“What is going on?” Lianna asks in a whisper from behind him. He gives her a quick warning glance and she purses her lips together with a frown.“William,” his mother says with a scornful tone. He steps forward and lets go of Lianna. Another sigh leaves his mouth.“Mother, and Evelyn,” he greets them with a bow of his head. His mother takes a few steps toward him, her arms crossing across her chest.“William.” His mother glares at him. “You should have told me that this was your living condition. I would have told your father you wanted t
Light rain tickles Lianna’s face as she makes her way out of the school, William running in front of her. They had finished the color run, but it started to rain while they were cleaning up. They managed to finish packing up and are now hurrying to the car that William arranged for them.“Come on,” William calls over his shoulder, slowing his pace so that Lianna can catch up. She falls into step next to him and he lifts his jacket over them to shelter them from the rain.William leads her to the abandoned building across from the school where they can wait for the car. He ushers Lianna to the nearest wall which serves as protection from the weather. Lianna falls back against the wall and rests her hands on her knees. She tries to catch her breath. William also rests against the wall, running his hand through wet hair.“Ugh, I am soaked,” she says, twisting her shirt between her hands to get the water from it. William turns his gaze to her and notices that her white shirt is clinging to
William leans against the wall, looking around at his surroundings. There are a few people walking past him, all on their own mission.He turns his gaze to the school building across the street from him. The school building looks abandoned, except for a few children running through the halls. The pale grass in front of the school building makes him feel depressed.He checks his watch and lets out a frustrated sigh. Blake wanted to see him before he went to the color run. And now he is going to be late. He will just explain the situation to Lianna. She will understand. She always does.“Oi, why are you standing out in the open?” Blake’s gravel voice startles William. He jerks his head to Blake and finds him standing around the corner of the wall.“Good afternoon, Blake,” William greets while making his way over to him. Blake lets out a grunt as he leads them around the old wall. They come to a stop and Blake rests against the old wall.William steps next to Blake and crosses his arms.