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. Her tears started falling.

she had shown him

had left for real. She was really all

why Ellie went to L City was to visit her grandparents.

going to spend some time and have a few nice meals with them. But none of that ever happened. What was waiting

she arrived. She assumed that they went out for some groceries. She wanted to surprise them and didn't call. But when

got an answer. All of them just looked at her with sad faces

beginning, 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

at first. She tried to

grandparents had

but this sickness caught on them all of a sudden. With their age, it took their lives

they passed. They told the neighbors not to tell Ellie. They said that they might fight it through and they didn't want to make her worry. They also told

story, she didn't believe them.

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

had known, she would not

she decided to

her sitting on the bed,

it was so hard for her to accept that they had spent

something first." He places a breakfast platter on

up at him, surprised,

swollen, but

forget what I told you last night? No matter what happens, I will

him with

didn't know if she should trust

sounded really tempting when he told her she

took over Ellie.

didn't know what to

traumatic mark on her.

the idea of getting close to

just realized it, but she was happy when he

she couldn't see him, she felt lost. She wasn't sure about what she