Nothing But Fire

Chapter 5

Things were good for a while. Kenna had figured out how to keep Alex from getting mad at her.
She kept to herself mostly, except for when he came over after work and wanted to be fed.
She spent the days with her head in her books, then her alarm rang around 4 and she went to the kitchen and started making dinner for Alex. He was usually there around 5.30 and she had learned from a past mistake that he wanted dinner to be hot when he arrived. After eating, he told her to do the dishes then meet him in the bedroom. They had sex and when he was finished, he took a shower then left again. She hadn't seen any of her friends for two weeks. Ellie and Harry had called and texted, but she hadn't answered them. She didn't want to see them and first it had been because she had gotten a black eye from when Alex struck her, but once that disappeared, it just didn't feel right to go out partying with them. She hadn't heard a word from Shawn though, and every once in a while when there was a knock on the door, she hoped it was him. He always knocked before using the key she had given him. She had told him once that he didn't have to knock and he had told her that he didn't want to walk in on her dancing around naked to Justin Bieber. The thought made her smile, then her thoughts were interupted by the alarm on her phone.
She turned it off, left her economy essay on the laptop then went to the kitchen.

Alex had texted her about what he wanted for dinner earlier so she had taken a quick walk down to the grocery store by the corner to get all the ingredients.
She started making the chicken parmesan he had requested and was finished when he walked into the kitchen at 5.32.

"Smells nice." he said and sat down by the table. Kenna gave him his plate with food then sat next to him.
"How was work?"
"Like usually, boring. Did you get much done today?"
"Yes, I'm done with my economy essay soon. It is due tomorrow so I will have to visit the school tomorrow and hand it in."
Alex shook his head and took a bite of his food, "I've been thinking. Your school, it takes up to much time, you should drop out." She just looked at him, trying not to show him her reaction,

"I don't think-" she started,
"I don't care what you think. If we are going to live together, you need to be focused on the housework, not some boring school work."
"Live together? I didn't know-"
"Of course you didn't know, you do not pay attention. I left some papers here, all you have to do is sign your name then I will move in and this will be my flat too. It's perfect, I won't have to drive around england for some food."
She didn't want to sign some papers for him to take over the flat, hell the flat was not even in her name. Her dad had bought it for her before he and her mother moved to spain so he was sure she always had a place to live. It had been her 20th birthday present and she was not ready to sign the lease over to Alex.

"Alex, I don't think that you taking over my flat is the best idea." He stopped eating and dropped his fork down on the plate, looked up at her and bit his lip,

"Humour me, why don't you think that's the best idea?" She didn't want him to freak out, she had made it a week without him laying a hand on her, she wanted to last another.

"What if you get tired of this flat, or of me? Do you really want to sign up to something this permanent?"

He laughed, "Permanent? You think I'm afraid of making something permanent?"
"No that's not what I mea-"
"I'm not hungry. Come here, I'll show you something permanent." He said and dragged her up from the chair she was sitting and pushed her up against the kitchen counter. He pulled her dress up and she knew what he was doing when she heard his belt touch the floor. His right hand were holding her down on the counter as he entered her.

"Please stop..." she begged, but he kept going and tears fell down her cheeks and landed on the counter,  she cried as he pumped her over and over again. He was usually kind when they were having sex, but this wasn't sex,  this was him proving a point. That he owned her. He finished inside of her and once he had caught his breath, he took his jeans back on and grabbed her hair, standing her straight up again and he whispered in your ear, "In 9 months, you'll see how permanent we are." He said and she shook her head, "I'm on the pill, alex, you know that..." He laughed and pushed her down again, "Oh those white pills in the bathroom? Yeah, that's only sugar tablets. You'd be surprised how much those pills look alike." She was shocked, had he really switched her pills?

Something happened, she felt something snap inside of her and she fell down to the floor, her face in her hands as she cried. She had been able to hold off the crying until he left before, but something had changed today and she was broken. He had broken her. All she could think about now was bringing his child into the world and how much she didn't want to do that. Alex was in the bathroom now and Kenna calmed herself down and looked up at the drawer in the kitchen which held the knives. She pulled herself up and walked over to it and took out the biggest knife she could find.

She held the knife behind her back and walked down the hall toward the bathroom. The door opened and Alex looked at her with a bored look.

"What?" He spat and she shook her head, "I will not give you a child, Alexander." she said and took out the knife from behind her back. Alex took his hands up and took a step back, "Wow, Kenn take it easy with that. It's sharp."
"I know it is, which makes it perfect for meat cutting." She held the knife towards him with a shaky hand, he didn't look nervous, just disturbed.

"You won't hurt me, Kenn. You love me and I love you. You're just confused right now. Put the knife down." He took a step towards her and she shook her head, "Don't!" He kept his hands up, "Okay. Look, Okay, I'm sorry Kenna. But you don't want to hurt me. I'm the only one who knows you, who loves you. Even your parent's abandoned you and moved to a different country! If you hurt me, you will be all alone in the world, you don't want to be alone. Do you?"

They looked at each other and the wheels were spinning in Kenna's mind.

"But you...you hurt me! You hit me!" Now Alex looked surprised, and he shook his head,

"What? No, Kenna I would never hit you! It was a nightmare, you told me about it. You were shaking when you woke up and you told me all about how I had slapped you twice. But it was only a nightmare, baby. You haven't been the same since then."
She started lowering the knife, "I...I haven't? It was a nightmare?" Alex nodded and she dropped the knife to the floor as she said over and over again "It was a nightmare."

Alex walked over to her slowly and wrapped his arms around her. "Shhh baby. Come here,I'll draw up a bath for you." Alex lead her into the bathroom and started filling the tub with water. When it was finished, he helped her undress and put her dress, phone and hairband on the toilet seat, then he helped her get into the tub and he started helping her get clean with one of the sponges.
"I was thinking that I could stay here tonight." He said and she nodded, "But you never stay the night."
"No, but you need me."

"I don't-"
"Are you questioning me? What do I think of that?" He looked at her with an annoyed look, she didn't answer and he stopped cleaning her with the sponge. He took his hand up to her hair and for a second it seemed like he was going to caress her, then he pushed her head under the water and she started struggling to get up again. He kept her under the water for a few seconds and she started clawing on his arm, trying to get him to take her up again. When he did, she caught her breath and tried to get out of the tub,

"Where do you think you're going? We're not finished here." He said and pushed her back into the tub, "You're hurting me!" she cried and he shook his head, "I'm not doing anything, this is all because of you. Because you don't stop questioning me!" He pushed her down under again, for a longer time this time and when she came back up he dragged her out of the tub and stood her naked in front of him, holding her up by her hair.

"Look at you, you think you're so perfect with your long hair and perfect body. Let's see what you are without it all!" He spat and reached over to the cabinet and took out a pair of scissors. He turned her around and she felt him cutting her hair very sloppy. When he stopped, he pushed himself against her bum and drew the scissors down her stomach gently.

"Stop it, Alex, please I beg of y-" she started screaming as the scissors were cutting into her flesh.

"You do not tell me what to do!" He yelled as he kept drawing them over her stomach. She was crying and kicking around her, trying to get free from him but he kept a firm grip on her until he pushed her down to the floor. He walked over to the bathroom door and looked back at her, "You are nothing now." He said and slammed the door shut. She was lying on the floor in a pile of her own blood, she couldn't move but she knew she had to call an ambulance if she were to get out of this alive. She saw her phone lying on the toilet together with her dress and she reached over and took it. She pressed the number into the phone and waited for them to answer, but just as they did, things went black for her.