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.

because of him? Because she was no longer alone

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

real, and not something

she really had taken a

was

just… that… If you don’t have anywhere to go,

hurry, but after she had said it,

eyes widened with a trace

pretend I didn’t say anything,”

mouth finally opened and he spoke

some other man,

from him, it was like he was just asking 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 ambiguity into his words, even if there had been, she realized her answer would be the

her, and a smile slowly formed

was the first time she had seen him smile. Although

***

while Grace got ready to go back to work. When she left money on the table for him to

her gone, the

rolled up the

to look around, maybe snoop a

he finally left the apartment, there were already people waiting

they respectfully greeted

go,” Jason responded

in front of him. Jason got into it and looked at the twenty-dollar bill in his hand. It had been many years since someone

who was with you last night is a contract worker of the Sanitation Service Center. She

“Prison?”

convicted of reckless driving and killing Jennifer Atkinson. She was sentenced to three years of imprisonment and had her lawyer’s license

expression bland. “Grace…” he whispered. “Well, this is

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

would’ve thought that Jennifer would end up dying

his past relationship with Jennifer, how would she

considered that twenty-dollar

brought him into

you can find on Grace Cummins on my desk

Then… “Sir, are you interested

***

asking her to go home. He said

mother died when

died, and her stepmother gave birth to

father favored his “new” family, which led to her being sent to live with her maternal grandmother in the countryside. Grace’s grandmother cared for her until third

finally warmed to her. He eventually started to show off to

became the best it had ever been. Her father regarded her as an honor, and her stepmother cared about her well-being, even if only out of pretense. Even her half sister tried to get on her good side—something that had

family’s eyes. She knew it was only because he was the

To be loved.

accident, she realized that everything was just her

stepped

same. Pictures of the three of them. Not

The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

Comments ()

0/255