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.

wrapped herself with her shaking arms to hold herself. Her tears

as if all the tough facade she had shown him earlier had started crumbling.

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

reason why Ellie went to L City was

going to spend some time and have a few nice meals with them. But none of

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,

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

However, she started to panic after she didn't hear anything about her grandparents for the whole day. She went

about them at first. She

that her grandparents had passed

cold in their lives, but this sickness caught on them all of a

they seemed to know how little time they had before they passed. They told the neighbors not to tell Ellie. They said that they might fight

she

during their last visit to J City. She didn't believe that any sickness could just take their lives.

she would not agree to let them leave.

she decided

had returned to Ellie's house and saw her sitting on the bed,

so hard for her

a breakfast platter on the table in front of

him, surprised, "Why are you

were red and swollen, but she couldn't keep her

Francis sighed, "Did you forget what I told you last night?

looked at him with a

know if she should trust him.

really tempting when he told her she would not

over

didn't know what

traumatic mark on her. She had stayed away

hate the idea of getting

was happy when he was around.

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