The cold breeze I felt as soon as I stepped out of the plane reminded me of the rainy night I escaped from Free city two years ago. It was the most unforgettable night of my life. After a few steps, I felt very uncomfortable in my stomach. It was exactly how I felt when I fled this city. It was the feeling of doubt and fear for a change.
The cold weather gave me goosebumps as I battled with my heavy luggages. It wasn’t just the luggages that felt heavy, my heart was heavy and filled with revenge. I pushed through with my burdens and luggages from the plane area to the terminal area where I bumped into something hard. ‘Oh my goodness’ I hissed as I tried to pile up my scattered bags back up on the carrier.
“I am so sorry ma’am, I wasn’t looking”. Everything in the city remained the same. Nothing had changed. The busy terminals, the cold weather and a familiar voice that is always following me around. I needed no second guesses, I could recognize this voice anytime, anywhere and any day. He helped me with my luggage and attempted to take the carrier from me when our hands touched.
That touch! It was the softest touch I have ever felt. He paused as soon as our hands met and looked at me with all curiosity. I looked at him weirdly but it didn’t stop him. He looked at me with all the care and attention in the world and touched me again. “Hello!! What’s going on?” I pushed him away slightly.
He shook his head and quickly looked away. “I am sorry ma’am, you just look so much like somebody I know” he apologized and helped me with the carrier. He added his luggage to the carrier and pushed it towards the exit. I walked behind him slowly as I tried to fight all urges to hug him. He looked the same apart from his hairstyle that he had changed.
His new hairstyle made him more attractive, unlike his hairstyle two years ago that gave him the features of a nerd. His glasses were fashion glasses now, two years ago he had medicated glasses. He hasn’t changed his perfumes in two years, his smell was the same, with just one sniff, my brain recognized him. He was my savior, my advocate, my very own Harrison and my brother in law.
He stopped a taxi and waited for me to walk closer before he asked me; ‘Where are you heading?”. I was almost led to tears by his act of kindness. All my life, he has been the only man that has genuinely cared and looked out for me. This was his nature, a soft gentle man. “Queens hostel” I replied. He nodded and helped the taxi driver with my luggage. He opened the door and waited till I was sitting in the car.
“I am really sorry ma’am. I mean for bumping and for behaving like a psycho. It is just that you look so much like my …” he hissed. “You look so much like a woman I know. Same height, same smell and touch. I am sorry if I scared you” he apologized sincerely. It was so hard to not cry and hug him but I held myself. I nodded and gave him a soft smile. I knew it was needed and necessary.
Harrison has a problem with hiding his feelings. He is always like an open book, easy to read and accessible to others. Revealing myself to him out of pity would only jupatize my chances and set me up for failure. I looked at him and we exchanged glances for a few seconds before he looked away. In those few seconds, I could see hesitation and confusion in his eyes.
He paid the taxi driver and stood as watched the car zoom off. I kept looking at him till he was out of sight. I closed my eyes and exhaled. It was just day one in Free city and I was about to be rattled off. Forty minutes later, I was standing in front of Queens hostel with my bags. The hostel staff helped me with them and waited at the reception with me till I got a room.
As I collected the room access card from the receptionist, I saw a familiar figure. ‘308’. It was the same hotel and room number Harrison and I spent the night two years ago when I first escaped from doomsday. Memories flooded my mind as soon as I entered the room. From the interior designs and blue sheets that looked like they haven’t been changed in two years but neat. They created a flush of heat waves in my chest.
I tipped the hotel staff that helped with my bags. He bowed slightly and shut the door behind him as he walked out. I fell on the bed with my back and closed my eyes. It was a long flight of eight hours and my legs were aching and my stomach still had the uneasiness of doubt. I freshened up wrapped myself in a towel as I searched one of my boxes for pajamas. After three minutes of unboxing, I got one.
I stared at Free City from the window with a cup of hot ginger tea and a black pajamas. It felt so unreal but it was. I was in the same city I was threatened with death and abandoned. I chuckled at the accident scene I had just witnessed from the window. ‘Serves whosoever right!’ I hissed. I closed the curtains and sat on the sofa in front of a round table and dropped my tea.
I picked my diary on the table and flipped through the pages till I got to today’s date. I picked my pen and started writing.
“Dear diary, today I left Bombay city for Free city. For two years, I have dreamed of just one thing, ‘Revenge’. Today I made the first step to the journey of a thousand miles. It was a boring flight and a tempting arrival. On my first day, I bumped into the most unexpected person. The only man I had wished to be heated to, Harrison.
It was almost as though he could see through my soul despite how unrecognizable I had become. Today marks the beginning of a new chapter for me”.
I dropped the pen and flipped my diary to the last page and read out the names of everyone that made my life a living hell. I had written the list a year and eight months ago. It was written in the order I wanted revenge.
Gerald
Mr Fernando
Rubby
Mom.
I ran my fingers through the list and my heart dropped as the pictures of how my body was covered in bruises flashed through my mind. “It is time”, I concluded.
The first person on my list was no other person than Gerald, my husband. He was the main reason I fled the city in the blasting weather. I closed my eyes and the memories of that night played back in my mind like I was in a cinema but the difference was that I was watching my life on a screen. It was on a Tuesday morning and I had just finished scrubbing Gerald's bathroom floor when he walked in with his mistress. He tapped her ass and she giggled in response. I looked away and quickly made steps to walk out when he called me. “Mira”. My heartbeat was loud enough for the whole world to hear. I was scared for my life. His voice was terrifying for me,it was my biggest nightmare. “When is this?” He asked, softly. I slowly turned around and my eyes started getting ready for tears. His soft tone was only a sham, he was nothing like that. He moved away from his mistress and bent down to pick a strip. As he raised it up, my whole body trembled. “Are you dead?” He asked, gently
Gerald gave me multiple slaps as he dragged me out of the bathroom. “How dare you!!” he pushed me out of the room to the hallway. The maids and other domestic staff looked away and returned to their duties. This was no news to them, they had watched him throw me down the stairs before. “Please sir, I didn’t sleep with another man, please sir, believe me” I pleaded because my life depended on it. Gerald paid deft ears. He took me to a room I nicknamed doomsday and pushed me hard till I fell on the floor. Quickly, I supported myself with my hands to protect my baby. It was an instinct and reflex. Gerald brought out a whip and lashed it on me. He gave me several strokes till I started tasting blood in my mouth. “Did he fuck you good? How dare you” he pushed me against the wall. This time,my hands failed me, I dashed my abdomen against a casted frame on the wall. Gerald didn’t stop till I started feeling uneasy. My anus tightened like I was having a contraction, in a blink of
He touched my neck with the back of his hand and immediately his eyes popped. “Turn the car around. We need to get her to the hospital. She wasn’t lying”. They nodded and turned the car around and turned on the siren. I was almost unconscious when we got to the hospital. I had flashes of when I was hurriedly rushed inside lying on a stretcher. I woke up after sixteen hours in a strange hospital room. It was deja vu for me when I opened my eyes. I scanned through the room for Gerald again and sighed in relief when I noticed he was not in sight. I looked again for Harry in anticipation to tell him about my weird dream and how I almost got into trouble with the cops. My anticipation crashed when I didn't see him either. I laid there and dozed off. I woke up after an hour and everything became clear. The hospital room was unfamiliar and the sharp but painful pain from my abdomen hit in. I panicked and tried to touch my abdomen but I couldn’t. The Iv on my arm stopped me. I
Within eight months, I earned enough to achieve my first goal. It was getting plastic surgery on my face. When I first mentioned it to Felix, he kicked against it. “There is no need for that!, you can use that money to get another degree, get a property, or something else. You are beautiful”. I disagreed with his opinion. It was what I needed. This disagreement caused a partial rift between us. Felix got back from work one day and ignored me as usual but I stopped him. “You are upset. It is not necessary. You already stated that it is my money and my body too!”. He looked at me and walked past but he stopped. “I care about you Mira, believe me when I say this. You are beautiful”. I knew he couldn’t understand and I had to make him. “It is necessary. I look at myself everyday and still see the abused girl from a year ago. I still feel intimidated. Did you notice I took away the mirror in my room? It is because I am scared to look at myself, '' I explained, panting. He held
It was the most passionate kiss I had shared with anyone in two years. It had a soft dangling feeling that made my stomach spark. It was a guilty pleasure. I enjoyed the softness of his lips on mine and how gently he sucked on my lower lip. It was nothing I had never felt before. Peace. I got carried away and almost forgot I was acting. Quickly, it felt like a light switched on in my head, reminding me of my position. I pushed him away and in a blink of an eye, he felt two resounding slaps across his face. “How dare you? Are you roaming mad?” I lashed out without holding back myself. My voice echoed in the room as I was the only person yelling. Harrison held his face and stood there like a statute, surprised and dumbfounded. “Get out! Get the hell out of here before I call security!” I threatened pointing at the door. This was the play button for Harrison. “Listen, I am sorry! I swear, I wasn’t thinking at all” he walked slowly towards me but I moved away from him. “I
“What!!!” He exclaimed with so much shock in his face and voice. “She left? Have you contacted the police?” He asked. “Should I contact them? Shit!! This is a mess. Just a fight? Alright brother, I will see what I can do from here”. He hung up and buried his hand in his hair. “Why in heaven's name did you agree to get married to a man who doesn’t love you?” He said slightly frustrated and angry. I looked at him without words because it was the same question I ask myself daily. I opened my mouth but my eyes opened up its floodgates. Tears flowed down instead of words. “Stop this Mira! Stop it! Crying won’t help anything. If you need help, you need to open your mouth and ask for help” he hissed. Help was what triggered a signal in my head. I looked at him with pleading eyes and nodded in agreement. “I need help. Save me” I pleaded with sob bubbles popping out of my nose. Harrison took off his glasses and sighed heavily. “I can fix you a lawyer that can get you a divorc
Harry looked at me with a chuckle, “I should be apologizing that you are suffering because of this. Gerald is living in my dad’s shadow” he concluded. I rolled my eyes and he understood I wasn’t in the mood to back up or defend my husband’s bad behavior. He moved his hand on my waist and slowly rubbed my back in a comforting manner but instead all he heard was a hiss. “What’s wrong?” He asked curiously. I looked away and tried to escape his grip but it was too late. He held me back and came behind me. His breath on my neck was warm. It was electrifying. It was the first time I experienced Romance. He touched the hem of my tee shirt and my body gave me away. My sudden consciousness he noticed. “Relax, I wouldn’t do that”. I blushed shyly. I loved how he looked and took care of me. He slowly raised up my shirt and his expression was a frown. “What the hell!!” He spat angrily. “You have new wounds and healing wounds. Gerald!”. Harrison was more upset than I expected. He
Harrison moved closer to me and pulled me into his arms. His hands around my waist, my butt against his groin area and his lips on my neck. I felt comfortable but my conscience peeked me. “Harry, isn’t this too much? I am still married to your brother “ I slowly moved away from him. I didn’t need his words to know he was sad. “Mira, can you please not remind me that you belong to my brother?”. His voice was fierce and different from what I was used to. “I am not going to be reminded of how miserable I am. You are no longer with him. You are with me now!! With me!” He started again. He pulled me closer this time gently and leaned on my shoulder. “Babe, I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I hate the idea of sharing you” he sighed. I understood how he felt and I wasn’t going to blame him for what fate did to us. I extended my hand to comfort him. I stroked his face and ears. “It’s fine, I am sorry for bringing him up, I just felt we were too close”. Harry ignored me a