Chapter 4

"Heh, break up?"

George gently stroked my face.

"You want to break up with me just because I slept with someone else and not you?"

"You want to get laid that badly? Is that what you want? You slut!"

He pronounced my verdict with absolute finality.

Just like my grandmother and my uncle.

Bastard.

Slut.

But I had escaped that "home" a long time ago.

I work hard to support myself, and I gave real love in my relationships.

I did nothing wrong.

I've taken good care of myself.

I am not a bastard.

And I am not a slut.

Maybe it was my calm gaze that set George off.

He ripped out the IV needle, ignoring the beads of blood on my hand, and dragged me to the car.

Everything was spinning, and I couldn't even manage to call for help.

"Don't you want to get laid? I'll give you what you want!"

Eyes bloodshot, George ran one red light after another.

I was thrown back and forth in the car, and I secretly slipped my hand inside my clothes and found the phone I had hidden back in the hospital room.

George gripped my arm, and when we got home, he threw me into the bathroom.

I slumped weakly to the floor.

George picked up the showerhead and poured it down over my head.

The freezing water made me shiver all over, and I couldn't stop coughing.

"Didn't you want to get laid? Let me wash you up first!"

My sorry state amused George, and he smiled with pleasure.

"Look, without me to protect you, you've gone from a dead dog to a drowned rat."

"Nellie, say you won't break up, and I'll forgive you."

"I'll sleep with you, and I'll love you just like before."

"Say it! Say you won't break up!"

George was like a madman.

He tore me down, yet he couldn't bear to let me go.

My uncle and the rest of them forced me to stay home and do the chores.

But him?

Why was he so furious?

I curled up in the corner, trying to ignore the needle-sharp headache, forcing myself to stay conscious.

Crack!

George slammed the showerhead onto the floor, then came over and hauled me up.

"Why won't you talk? You still want to leave, don't you? You're mine! I didn't agree to let you go!"

"I'll give you what you want right now!"

He shoved me hard onto the bed and tore at my already flimsy hospital gown.

I clutched at the collar and stared hard at George.

He'd hidden it so well.

Right now, I couldn't find a single trace of the gentle boyfriend from before on him.

It made me even more certain.

Every bit of concern he'd ever shown me was fake.

"You really disgust me."

I said it with a sigh.

George's movements froze.

"As much as I loved you a day ago, that's how much you disgust me now."

"I never denied my past, but you kept hiding your true face."

"You don't deserve my honesty, and you don't deserve my love."

By the time I finished those few simple sentences, my voice was completely hoarse.

George finally snapped back to himself.

He lowered his head and suddenly started taking off his clothes.

"You're just saying that out of spite. You're angry that I never really made you my girlfriend."

He stripped off his jacket in one smooth motion and pulled me over to the window.

"I'll make everyone see that you're mine."

Then, slowly but with brutal force, he pried my hands away and peeled off my clothes piece by piece.

I fought back with everything I had, and in the middle of the struggle, I thought I heard someone knocking at the door.

I drew up my legs, and then kicked out as hard as I could.

"Agh!"

George doubled over, his face flushed red as he looked up at me.

The noise outside the door grew louder.

"I told you, George, you're not worthy."

George tried to get up, but I had already opened the window and sat on the ledge.

"What are you doing! Get back here!"

George's face went tense at once. Ignoring the pain, he got up and slowly edged toward me.

I looked at him once.

Then I turned and jumped from the windowsill.

"Nellie!"

George and the group of people behind him rushed to the windowsill.

But they grabbed nothing but air.