Dangerous Desire. (Woman x intersex)

eighteen.

"W-what are you doing here?" Aya asked. She wasn't expecting any guests, and certainly not the temporary lover that stood in her dark hallway. They smiled widely, but Aya could tell there was something more sinister behind their eyes.

"Just having my dinner, can't you see?" They responded back as they took the palm of their hand and licked the blood that dripped from the tips of their fingers. Aya heard the cry of a baby, gasping and looking down, the tears streaming down her face as her cries turned into screams as her baby boy laid on the ground ripped into pieces.

"Mama! Mama wake up!" Shaq yelled as Aya screamed bloody murder, sitting up and holding her chest as she panted. She looked around, running her hands through her hair as she tried to calm herself down. Shaq stared at her in fear, her eyes mirroring his as they looked at each other. It was late at night, their love making completely exhausting them both. Shaq had fell asleep on her chest as they laid in silence, Aya falling with him.

Until her nightmare woke her out of her sleep.

"Are you okay?" He asked gently as he rubbed her cheek. She nodded, before shaking her head as the tears welled in her eyes.

"Who is Josiah? You were saying his name in your sleep before you started to scream." Shaq asked. Aya cleared her throat, swallowing back her tears as she rubbed her face with her hands.

"What time is it?" Her voice was hoarse, but not from screaming out of her sleep. She looked over and sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair, Shaq staring intensely at the side of her face.

"After three. What's going on, baby?"

"Nothing."

"Don't lie to me." He suddenly growled causing her to look up at him with annoyed eyes. She huffed, flipping back down on the bed and rubbing her forehead.

"Remember when I told you I had my own stuff I don't talk about? When we were at Barcade?" She asked quietly. Shaq nodded as he caressed her collarbone while staring down at her, his head resting on his fist so he can look her direction.

"Well..Josiah is that. The son that I don't talk about."

"You have a son?" Shaq asked.

"Had. I had a son." Aya's voice cracked, the image of the small casket embedded in her brain from the funeral eight years ago. Shaq sniffed, Aya looking over to see tears streaming down his face as he stared down at her stomach.

"Oh, you are such a sweet boy. Don't cry for me.." Aya whimpered as she touched the side of his face. He shook his head, Aya wiping the tears that dripped down his chin as he laid his head down on her shoulder.

"What happened to him?" He asked quietly as he wrapped an arm around her waist. Aya sighed shakily as she stared up at the ceiling.

"I was twenty-three. Fresh out of college. I was dating this guy and he had gotten me pregnant a few months into us dating. My parents are the traditional type so of course we got married before we told anyone, but he was..the usual asshole. Abusive, didn't care about the baby. Didn't care about me. I only kept him around because he was older and I didn't have my own money yet. I didn't get my trust fund until I was twenty-five because my parents felt that's when people reach full maturity so I didn't spend it on a damn Porsche." She chuckled lightly at the memory, wiping the tears that streamed down her face.

"Um..I had Josiah..and the man came to the hospital drunk. So drunk that he tried to have sex with me that same day I gave birth. I caught an infection and got really sick because he ripped open my stitches and gave me a staph infection that almost killed me. So I had to get a hysterectomy that same day and it made him even angrier. So..one day I just packed up and left with Josiah and went to live with my parents . They didn't mind at all, until one day Dre came to the door claiming he was sober and wanted to work on our marriage. My parents pleaded with me for me to try..so I moved back in with him and things were good for a few months. Until one day..I came home from my new job..and.." Aya tried to hold in her sobs, her chest moving up and down as she moaned in anguish, sitting up and covering her face.

"It's okay, it's okay.." Shaq comforted her, his own tears streaming down his chin as the pain radiated from her to him. Aya let out a long sob, as if she was holding it in for the longest time while shaking her head.

"I found him passed out..and the baby..my baby..was in the tub with water covering his head. He drowned when he was supposed to be taking a bath..the bastard got so drunk that he left him in the tub and passed out." Aya sobbed, pressing her face into Shaq's chest as she cried. Shaq shook his head as he held her to him, the anger and sadness vibrating through his body. Her pained screams and sobs pulled at his heart, Shaq crying quietly as he held her for dear life.

"Mama.." Shaq whimpered as he touched her cheek. She looked up at him with pained eyes as she nodded, wrapping her arms around him as she sniffed.

"It's okay, papa. I'm okay."

"Did he go to jail?" He asked quietly causing Aya to stiffen. She swallowed hard, slowly pulling away and looking up at Shaq who just stared down at her with sad eyes. All the nightmares she had started to become clearer in her mind, the bond between the two lovers being glued by one familiarity.

"I think that's another thing we have in common. Not just pain. I told you I'd be able to understand."

"What do you mean?"

"The same night I found my baby...I killed his father, but I got the charges dropped for temporary insanity. It was expunged from my record."