𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚐𝚒𝚛𝚕(𝙰𝙲𝙾𝚃𝙰𝚁)

𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 𝔱𝔴𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔶-𝔱𝔴𝔬

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙
age: 28

    I used to love going out. But that was when it was me and Eden. When Elio dragged me out to a bar, I usually spent the night watching him flirting with other females while I drank until I blacked out.

"I'm going to the restroom," I declared, getting to my feet. "Will you order for me, babe?"

"What do you want?" he asked, not even glancing up from the menu.

"Seriously?" I demanded. "We've been here hundreds of times, and you don't remember my order?"

"You can't expect me--"

"Fine!" I cut him off, a sigh of frustration leaving my lips. "Whiskey mixed with sweet vermouth and cherry garnish."

"Was that so hard?" he grumbled. "What do you want to eat?"

"I'll just get a burger," I mumbled, crossing my arms. He raised a brow at me.

"I'll get you a salad," he decided.

    I scoffed, not answering. I went to the restroom, staring at myself in the mirror. I turned on the sink, splashing my face with some cold water.

    I had been wary around Elio for the last year. He hadn't hit me again, but he had been meaner than usual. And he'd stopped trying to hide his affair, which hurt.

    I turned to the side, staring at my waist in the mirror. He'd been making lots of small comments about my body lately. It looked fine to me. But Katina was smaller than me. He couldn't compare me to her.

    I made my way back to our seat. My drink was already there, and I could've cried from relief. I began drinking it immediately.

"How many of those are you gonna drink tonight?" he murmured, the question a rhetorical way to hurt me.

"Why did you invite me out if you're just going to insult me?" I demanded. "You can do that at home for free."

"I thought maybe we could have a nice night, like old times," he snapped, slamming the menu down. I flinched.

"You're the one who started with the insults," I pointed out.

"No, you started by getting snippy just because I didn't remember your order," he snarled.

"Because you're my husband, and I remember everything you like!" I argued. "If you want to be a good father, you have to start paying attention to details."

"Lower your voice, we're in public," he chastised. I shut myself down, my face tinged red.

"Fine," I said quietly. "Can we just start tonight over again?"

"Yes, we can," he decided.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

    I was mending one of Elio's shirts while I sat in my bed that night. He hadn't come home yet. I knew where he was, but I'd stopped caring.

    He had thrown the shirt at me and said, "That needs mending. I'm going out."

    When I'd asked him where he was going, he simply said, "Eve, I can either lie to you, or hurt your feelings. I think you know where I'm going."

    I flinched as the door slammed open, poking myself with the needle. I let out a harsh breath, sucking the blood from my finger.

    The stench of alcohol and perfume covered Elio. I wrinkled my nose as he closed the door and collapsed on the bed.

"You reek of that slut Katina," I informed him, placing the fabric, needle, and thread on the nightstand. 

"Get over yourself, Eve," he said simply, getting on top of me. "We don't love each other. I can fuck whoever I want."

"And could I fuck whoever I want?" I challenged, raising an eyebrow

"Calm down," he said, rolling his eyes. He began unbuttoning the front of my dress, but I clutched his hand, stopping him.

"I don't want some whores leftovers," I scoffed, pushing him off of me.

"Don't be like that, Eve," he groaned, his words slurring. "Come on, we haven't tried in a few weeks."

"What if I can't get pregnant?" I demanded, my fists clenching.

"That won't be acceptable to my father," he said to me, shaking his head.

"He could send me home," I insisted, hope gleaming in my eyes. "You could marry someone else."

"He'll replace you, but he won't let you go home," he sighed. "He'd likely kill you."

   The words killed any hope I ever had of going home. I threw the covers off of myself and got out of bed.

"Where are you going?" he demanded.

    I didn't answer him. I went next door to Eden's room, letting myself in. She jumped, putting her book down.

    Her red hair was twisted into a bun on the top of her head and she wore an elegant, maroon nightgown made of silk.

"Eve, are you okay?" she asked, her eyes filling with worry when she saw me.

    I shook my head, going to the bed and crawling in. She sighed, wrapping her arms around me as I began to cry.

"I don't want to have a baby," I sobbed, hiding my face in her shoulder. "I'm not ready."

"It'll be okay," she insisted.

"What if he hits the children like he hit me?" I whispered, having been too scared to utter the words aloud yet.

"He hasn't hit you in a year," she reminded me, pulling back to glance at me. "And I don't think he'd do that."

"I know that if I have kids, I'm going to love them more than anything," I explained. "And I don't think I could handle seeing them hurt."

"He knows what it's like to be abused by a father," she pointed out. "He won't hit the kids, Eve."

"I wish my mother was here," I admitted. "She would know what to do."

     I started sobbing harder at the thought of my mother. Eden sighed again, stroking my cheek.

    She held my face in her hands as I cried. She leaned in and before I knew what was happening, she kissed me.

     I pulled back, my eyes wide, my sobs ceasing. I stared at her, unsure of what to say or do. She looked at me like she couldn't believe what she had just done.

     But then I dove back in, grabbing her pretty, pale face and kissing her passionately.