Chapter 3

“Are you hungry?”

His dark eyes studied her and he tilted his head. “What?”

When he still didn’t reply, she wrung her hands together. “I’ll get you something to eat.”

Grace moved to the tiny stove and threw some noodles and eggs into the pot to make a simple bowl of noodles for him. She didn’t have any meat, but she chopped what vegetables she had and added them too.

She set the tiny table and poured them both a glass of water from the sink. He moved cautiously to take a seat when she set the bowls down.

“Eat, but don’t eat too fast. It’s quite hot,” she said.

She didn’t mean to treat him like a child, but his presence made her nervous even as there was something incredibly calming about him.

He lowered his head and ate his noodles quietly. Grace also stared at him in silence.

Normally, she’d come home and hate the feeling of being alone, confined in a tiny space. For some reason, the loneliness that she’d usually feel seemed to have disappeared. Could it be due to the presence of another person in the room?

After he had finished eating, Grace cleaned up the plates. “I usually sleep with the lights on. I hope you don’t mind,” she said. Ever since she was released from prison, she had gotten into the habit.

“That’s fine.”

Grace took her pajamas into the bathroom and shut the door to brush her teeth and change. Was it weird having a man alone beside where she’d sleep? Yeah. Probably.

But she didn’t feel triggered by his presence of fearful.

If he’d wanted to hurt her, he wouldn’t have defended her on the street.

When she exited and lay down on the bed, he took his position on the floor.

The room was silent save for the sound of the heater. If she listened hard enough, she could hear each breath he took.

It was a steady rhythm, peaceful even.

Grace closed her eyes and focused on sleeping. This was her routine every night because it was almost impossible for her to relax. Even being out of jail, at night she would always dream of her time in prison.

She would be beaten, shamed, and abused… and every finger would burn with the pain of being broken and the nails being torn off…

She’d wake up screaming, fingers curled, terrified, and heart pounding.

However, oddly, that didn’t happen tonight.

She slept until sunrise and was not visited by her usual nightmares.

As she awakened, she rolled over to look at the figure lying on the ground beside her bed.

Still here.

him? Because she was no longer

she even knew it, she had gotten out of bed, squatted down, and placed her hand on his cheek.

real, and not something from her

night, she really had taken

came to herself, she found that he was already

Her face heated with embarrassment. “I… I just… that… If

hurry, but after she had

eyes widened with a trace of

you don’t want to, just pretend I didn’t say anything,” she

opened and he spoke

some other man, it would’ve sounded like

a simple question of “want” or “don’t want” and she assumed he meant it to mean his presence here. She didn’t read any

and a smile slowly formed on his lips.

him smile. Although it was very light…

***

Grace got ready to go back to work. When she left money on

her gone, the room was eerily

light vanilla scent or somewhat nervous energy filled the space. He rolled up the quilt that he’d slept on

maybe snoop a bit.

left the apartment, there were already people waiting

they respectfully greeted him, “Mr.

Jason responded

looked at the twenty-dollar bill in his hand. It had been many years since someone had given him money like this. On the contrary, for as long

“The woman who was with you last night is a contract worker of the

“Prison?”

reckless driving and killing Jennifer

“Grace…” he

she was also a good political marriage candidate, he thought that if he had to marry someone, then she wouldn’t be

who would’ve thought that Jennifer would end up

Grace knew about his past relationship with Jennifer, how would

considered that twenty-dollar

his hand, brought him into her home, and said she’d wanted him—just for

can find on

are you interested in

***

home. He said that since she had been released from prison, she should go home to pay her respects to her

died when she was

a few months after mom died, and her stepmother gave birth to another daughter,

maternal grandmother in the countryside. Grace’s grandmother cared for her until third grade, but had to leave her. Fortunately, her paternal grandfather

in college and at the top of her class, her father finally warmed to her. He eventually started to show off to

and her stepmother cared about her well-being, even if only out of pretense. Even her half sister tried to get on her good

her worthy of love in her family’s eyes. She knew it was only because he was the heir of the Stevens Corporation. However, at that time, she still couldn’t help but

To be loved.

that everything was just

stepped

was mostly the same. Pictures of the three of them.

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