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.

to hold herself. Her tears

all the tough facade she had shown

by herself now. Everyone had left for real. She was really

L City was to

But none of that ever happened.

groceries. She wanted to surprise them and didn't call. But when it was getting dark, and they were still not home,

All of them just looked at her with

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

talking about them at first. She tried to

her that her grandparents had passed

lives, but this sickness caught on them all of a sudden. With

told the neighbors not to tell Ellie. They said that they might fight

the story, she didn't believe

their last visit to J City. She didn't believe that

she had known, she would not agree to let

she mourned until she decided to

house and saw her sitting on the bed, holding her knees, her head buried

wondered why it was so hard for

He places a breakfast platter on the

looked up at him, surprised, "Why are you still

swollen, but she couldn't keep her

her, Francis sighed, "Did you forget what I told you last night? No

with a blank expression.

know if she should trust

sounded really tempting when he told

took over Ellie.

know what to

traumatic mark on her. She had stayed away from men

She didn't hate the idea of getting close to

just realized it, but she was

what she