Chapter 21: My father


    shback


    Marie had not stopped thinking about her first kiss after the incident that had urred yesterday or


    last night if she put it correctly. When Iyan had dropped her back home, he had insisted she keeps her


    jacket even though it was already cold for him too.


    The moment she had stepped on the threshold, she had been scared Rupert Lewis would already be


    there, waiting for her, but luckily nothing as such happened. Rupert had been in a deep slumber, and


    she had also quietly gotten into her own room, locking it just in case he did wake up, and she lied in her


    bed, unable to sleep.


    She knew she was dragging it till too far but she had been drawn to Iyan, she had indeed felt it a few


    times that he understood her, without her having to say a word at all. She imagined if he really liked her


    that much, the blush from her cheeks refused to leave her alone with her thoughts and her cheeks


    heated up at the thought of his arms engulfing her, protecting her from the world while he held her still,


    kissing her.


    The night fell and the day was already here, at 6 am sharp, the knock on her door startled her, bringing


    her out of her reverie. She realized she had not even slept all night.


    “Out of the room, on the breakfast table,” Rupert yelled on the other end of the door.


    “Yes sir,” she cried from in bed, her heart was in her mouth by now. Everything about Rupert Lewis


    struck fear in her heart, the kind of fear she could not get rid of, even if she wanted to.


    She had no other choice, this was the routine she had to follow every day when Rupert Lewis was at


    home, breakfast at 6, news at 7 and leaving for work at sharp 8. At night, he was already on the dinner


    table at 7.30. He liked to follow the clock’s rules very strictly and made sure Marie did too.


    Marie stood up, she felt a bit weak because of theck of sleep, but still got up and brushed her teeth


    to reach the breakfast table that was on the ground floor.


    Rupert was in the kitchen when she arrived at the breakfast table. It was a grand table that could easily


    amodate more than 20 people at once. She took the seat as far as she could, on one far end of


    the table and waited. It was the rule of this house, the one who was in the kitchen could not be


    interrupted or else the one interfering would receive punishment.


    And thus, one could easily make out that the rules of the house were made by Rupert for his own


    convenience and could be broken only by him- after all, who else knew about the rules he had made up


    anyway…


    Marie recalled the first time when she hade from Italy and tried to prepare breakfast for her


    father as a gesture of peace, after all, who else was she left anyway in the world but that had been her


    first mistake: entering the kitchen without asking Rupert. And the punishment that she had gone


    through, still made her heart sit every time she thought of it.


    Indeed, Rupert had locked her in the cold freezer for 3 hours. That is just how he was, he reacted well


    and normally when everything went his way, but one had to let things get out of his control to see what


    he really was- sick to the core.


    Rupert got out of the kitchen now, he ced the benedict omlette and some orange juice on the table


    and sat right opposite to her. She waited for him to sit down, no one could start eating until he did.


    Rupert John Lewis was a man now in his fifties, he had not gotten married after his rtionship with


    Marie’s mother, Lucy. She had been thest woman he had been attracted to and he was


    heartbroken after she had left. He was still as fit as a fiddle, he really took care of his diet and physique,


    that was probably the reason he did not age much, his face barely had any wrinkles upon them and his


    nose sat sharp, like that of a wolf dog.


    He swallowed a bite from his te, his fork still in his hand and knife neatly set aside. He was


    observing Marie now, she had been quiet and somewhat nervous today. He could tell looking at her


    bodynguage. Something about the way she sat right now, in front of him made him want to throw her


    right now on this table and make her scream; the fear she felt, the way she trembled when he was


    inside her turned on the animal inside Rupert. But it was something else today.


    “Anything on your mind honey?” he asked strictly.


    His voice alone made Marie jump up. She had really been lost in her own world of thoughts.


    “No,” she said hesitantly and started munching her breakfast forcefully, she knew Rupert liked the te


    to be finished, he did not tolerate wastage.


    Her father did not say anything, but he kept an unflinching eye on her all the while she had been eating.


    After their breakfast, Rupert insisted that he dropped her to school which she denied, but she knew that


    her opinion would not hold water. He was adamant and as soon as they got to school, Marie was


    about to hop out of the car anyway, she could not bear the presence of this man for any further, it made


    her sick.


    Right then Iyan appeared out of nowhere from amongst the crowd of the studentszily creeping their


    way inside the premises of Edmont High. Iyan could not sleep all night either, it was evident, his puffy


    eyes had big eye bags underneath them but the glow on his face was unmatchable to anything else in


    the world. He had been waiting at the gate for Marie to arrive, though he did not have any sses


    today, but he just wanted to see her once before she got inside school.


    But first, he got to see the luxurious Benz in which Marie arrived, her father being the driver. From


    inside, Marie had already seen him approaching and she prayed inside her mind that Iyan did not


    come this way, she did not want her father to know about Iyan at any cost.


    But Iyan had already seen her, he made his way to Rupert’s car, smiling along. Rupert had been sharp


    to observe the boy very well, a teenager of around Marie’s age, maybe older and the smile he had on


    his face let out all his feelings towards his daughter.


    “Good morning sir, I hope you’re doing fine,” Iyan bent to the car’s open window on the side of the


    passenger seat where Marie sat. He looked at her and smiled even wider, “How are you?”


    Marie kept quiet. She knew what a ruckus that would cause, her legs shivered thinking of Rupert’s


    wrath. Rupert’s face grew stern however seeing Iyan and he observed both of them for a long moment


    before speaking.


    “Who are you I might ask?” he looked at Iyan.


    Iyan’s face grew taut with consciousness, “I’m a ssmate sir, I just wanted to show Marie around


    and help her with a few subjects as well,” he exined, hoping it would work.


    But nothing was going to work in this case. Rupert knew the type of girl Marie was, she would


    receive a lot of attention in schools and any other ce she would go to, that was the reason he


    wanted to keep her just to himself, locked up in his cage for his own use- his attraction to her had been


    instant the moment he had seen her in Italy and he had decided that very day that she was his, only


    his.


    “My daughter doesn’t need any of your help, you can go now,” he ordered Iyan, giving him an


    authoritative and threatening look. Marie understood well enough what that meant.


    Iyan looked at Marie to see if she wanted to react to that but she refused to look up at Iyan, she knew


    she just couldn’t, what would she tell him anyway…Looking back at Rupert who was still stern upon his


    words and his death re intact.


    Assuming she just had really strict parents, he decided to leave but said to Marie whose eyes were


    still glued to her feet, “I’ll wait for you in the library,” and went away.


    As soon as the boy was out of sight, Rupert looked at Marie and she felt her gaze harden upon her,


    he ced his hand on her shoulder and pressed it hard enough for her to wince out a soft cry and said


    to her,ing dangerously close to her, “No other love in the world is like the love of a father has for


    his little girl…” His hot breath fanned the side of her face and she kept her face down, a tear rolling


    down her cheek by now.


    He caressed her sharp shoulder bones with his thumb and Marie could not even help flinching. Her


    stomach turned in nervousness whenever the thought of him forcing himself upon her came back to


    her, it had happened that night after he had locked her inside the freezer, she could not forget that night


    even if she had wanted to.


    He removed his filthy hands from her, and his fingers curved the staring wheel now as he looked


    straight and ordered Marie, “Be home before 3.”


    She nodded and got out of the car as quick as she could. The car stormed away with a ruffle. She felt


    weak standing on her own feet this time, she wondered if she even had the strength to go to her


    sses, her torturous moments inside that house came back to her, one after another and she just did


    not feel like she was ready to face all these children or most importantly, Iyan right now. She turned to


    the gate and went to the back garden of the high school.


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    There, she chose a small corner that was barely visible, she decided that she needed the bunk and the


    break from the sses today. She sat on the grass, in the shadow of arge tree and got her wooden


    notebook out. She started writing.


    ‘Dear diary,


    If mom had been alive, I would have never been handed over to this beast…I wonder if she is still


    watching over me. But I’m not going to fail her, she wanted me to study well and go to college and build


    my own life- the circumstances might be tough right now, but I have to be strong, she was strong too,


    only for me. She kept fighting with a disease like leukemia to give me a better life, to provide for me, to


    be my strength and I have to do that too, I have to fight, to be my own strength…


    Dear diary, I have to tell you about someone else, his name is Iyan. Iyan is my first friend in this ce,


    he is really kind and caring to me, he makes meugh too. Oh, how I’ve forgotten tough with a


    friend…What happened to Kathy still kills me on the inside, Iyan is my first friend after Kathy actually…I


    really like him. He’s smart and sarcastic and he seems a lot like me, lost and trying to find his way…’


    “Do all girls do that?” she got interrupted by a voice that now stood right over her. She shut her


    notebook immediately and looked up to see Scott. He had a ser ball in his hand and he turned the


    ball around his hand, while he watched her write in that notebook, of course, focusing on the ball, he


    could not quite notice what she was writing and neither could he read upside down.


    “What are you even doing here??” Marie shouted at him in exasperation and immediately started


    collecting her things to get up and leave.


    “Why do you dislike me so much?” Scott asked her with a teasing smile.


    Not looking up at him, she retorted, “Dislike is not the word, hate is, I hate you Scott,” she rified now


    looking up at him. He was extremely irritating if he did not already know about this.


    Scott’s grin just grew wide in return, he was so pleased as he answered her, “There is a thin line


    between hatred and love Marie Lewis.”