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 hold

as if all the tough facade she had

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

why Ellie went to L City was to visit

with them. But none of that ever happened.

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

an answer. All of them just looked at her with

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

talking about them at first. She tried to

her grandparents had passed away and

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

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 it through and they didn't want to make her

hearing the story, she didn't

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

known, she would not agree to

mourned until she

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

so hard for her

let's eat something first." He places a breakfast platter on the table in front of her.

looked up at him, surprised, "Why are

looked miserable. Her eyes were red and swollen, but she couldn't keep her

last night? No matter what happens, I will be with you. You are not

looked at him with a blank expression.

know if she should

it sounded really tempting when he told her

over Ellie.

what

mark on her. She had stayed away

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

realized it, but she was happy when

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