A Love Trap

"Ellie! Stop... talking... like that!" he spluttered.

Francis might have been with a lot of women, but he took nobody seriously. Those women knew it and they didn't mind.

But Ellie was different. He never thought of treating her badly.

He could not fathom why she had to hurt herself like that.

He was really upset. Not because of what she thought about him, but because of how she saw herself.

The worst part of it was that she called him "Mr. Francis." The fact that she called him "Mr. Francis"

hurt him the most.

Ellie closed her eyes and pursed her lips. She didn't say anything.

Francis grabbed both her shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Ellie, please tell me you're joking." He looked at her, his eyes firm with pleading and frustration. "Please tell me you didn't mean any of what you just said."

Francis' eyes spoke sincerely to Ellie.

She couldn't take another look at him. She needed strength to say what she was about to say, "No, I meant everything I said."

Francis could see right through her lie. He shouted, "Look me in the eye and tell me again! You didn't mean any of that, right?"

Ellie looked into his eyes, her visage as fierce as the crunching in her chest. "I meant it. I meant every bit of it. You may leave Mr. Francis."

Ellie pointed to the door gesturing for Francis to leave.

"Fine!" Francis clenched his jaw and gnashed his teeth in anger.

He let go of her and turned around to leave.

The thud that came from the shutting door made Ellie flinch. As the door closed, the room fell into silence.

Ellie could only look at the direction where he had gone.

shaking arms to hold herself.

the tough facade she had shown

now. Everyone had left for real. She was really all alone.

why Ellie went to L City was to visit her

and have a few nice meals with them. But none of that ever happened. What was waiting for her was the

arrived. She assumed that they went out for some groceries. She wanted to surprise them and didn't call. But when it was getting dark, and they were still not home, she figured

them just looked at her with

she didn't care about the way they looked at her. However, she started to panic after she didn't hear anything about her grandparents for the whole day. She went to the neighbors and asked them about

about them at first. She tried to ask again.

of the neighbors told her that her grandparents had passed away and

a cold in their lives, but this sickness caught on them all of a sudden. With their age, it took their lives very quickly. No one had

They said that they might fight it through and they didn't want to make her worry. They also told them that if the sickness got

story, she didn't believe them.

She didn't

would not agree to let them leave.

days she mourned until she decided

saw her sitting on the bed, holding her knees, her head buried between them

was so hard for her to accept that they had spent

something first." He places a breakfast platter on the

looked up at him, surprised, "Why are

and swollen, but she couldn't keep her

what I told you last night? No

at him with a blank expression.

didn't know if she should

it sounded really tempting when he told her she would not be

took over

know what to

traumatic mark on her. She had stayed away from men

was different. She didn't hate the idea of getting close to

she was happy when he was around.

She wasn't sure about what she was feeling, but she