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.

with her shaking arms to

she had shown him earlier had

Everyone had left for real. She was really all

went to L City was to

few nice meals with them. But none of that

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 that something could

the neighbors but never really got an answer. All of them just

they looked at her. However, she started to panic after she didn't hear anything about her grandparents

talking about them at

the neighbors told her that her grandparents had passed away and it had already

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

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

she didn't

last visit to J City. She didn't believe that any sickness could

had known, she would not agree to

mourned until she decided

house and saw her sitting on the bed,

for her to accept that they had spent a night together.

a breakfast platter on

looked up at him, surprised, "Why are

swollen, but she couldn't keep her

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

him with a

if she

told her she would not

over

didn't know what to

a huge traumatic mark on her. She had stayed away from

She didn't hate the

realized it, but she was happy when he

She wasn't sure about what she was feeling, but she knew that she cared about him.