Paint My Walls and Shade Me (Eminem)

Chapter 12 - Paint My Walls and Shade Me

Chapter 12

I just stared at Marshall. I was speechless because obviously, I didn't know what to say. I hadn't known Marshall for that long but saying that he loved me was way beyond of my comprehension.

I didn't know what made him say it. I also didn't know why he felt that way towards me since we had just known each other for a short period of time. We hadn't even been together for a week so how could he even say that he loved me?

Was he joking?

Surely, I could sense that Marshall was already done joking around with things such as love. He already grew up out of that, and so was I.

And to top it off, I would be leaving to see my ex, Chris, once again with no idea of what he was going to do to me. Maybe he would beat me up. That was it. I could guarantee that he would beat me up again.

Why did he even show up again? I was already happy with my life.

But if he didn't show up...what would happen?

If he didn't show up, I knew that I wouldn't be staying in Marshall's place now since there was going to be no threat in my own house.

Maybe everything really did happen for a reason.

"It's too early to say," I cupped his face using only just one hand.

"I know," he agreed. "But I just want to let you know how I feel. Ready to go downstairs and eat some breakfast?

I nodded at him and we both got up from the bed. I arranged his sheets first and joined him in the bathroom to brush my teeth. Marshall had a new toothbrush in his bathroom and he let me have it.

We went downstairs and saw that Nathan was already up with breakfast already served on the dining table. "I didn't know that you can cook," I told Marshall's brother.

"You still don't know a lot of things in the house," Nathan replied. I didn't really know that Nathan could cook. I thought that his only talent was to pop out of nowhere.

***

I went to the office first. I wanted to keep my job so I would do everything to keep it. I was now in the office of CEO. "Laurie," he greeted. "What brings you here?"

The CEO of the company that I was working at was a good man. I guessed he was in his early sixties? "Can I just work at home?"

"You already finished editing for the next two months, right?" he asked and I nodded. "But why not go to the office?"

"Um..."

"Tell me, Laurie," he said. The CEO was the closest to a father that I had. We weren't that close but I felt sincerity in his eyes. "I promise I won't tell," and with those words, I decided to tell him everything that had happened with my life. He listened without asking any questions and I felt very grateful for that. "Do you not want me to call the police and file a restriction order?"

I didn't know how Chris managed to get out of jail, but the last thing I wanted to do was to put the CEO's life in danger. Even though I knew that he was a powerful man, Chris was more dangerous that he would ever be.

"You having a relationship with a famous man made your life more challenging, huh?" he chuckled like he was amused of what was happening in my life right now.

"Absolutely,"

"Very well," he said. "We'll be having contact through email."

***

Marshall wasn't the only one who I needed to concern myself with in getting back together with Chris. There was still Jill.

I planned not tell her but I knew that my conscience would somehow kill me if I did that. I didn't want her to worry about me missing but I knew she would worry more when she knew that I would be back with Chris.

And of course, I didn't know what to do.

I, of course, didn't want to tell her.

Jill could be scary and overprotective. She might even kill Chris in a blink of an eye. That was how she cared for me.

And Jill wasn't the one I wanted to go to jail, it was Chris himself.

"I hate my life," I mumbled to myself as I was on my way to Jill's apartment. Good thing it was just a few distances away from the office. As I walked quietly, I was figuring how Chris managed to get a hold of my number.

I changed my number right after he went to jail. But even with me changing my number, I didn't live in the same apartment as before. So how did he know?

But of course, Chris knowing my information was another story itself.

I changed my direction and went back to Marshall's house. I decided not to tell Jill. If I told her, she would maybe lock me up inside her apartment and I couldn't afford for that to happen since Chris would make Marshall his target if that ever happened.

I arrived at Marshall's place and saw that he wasn't there. Nathan wasn't there also. I didn't know if his kids were there but I knew that this was the perfect time to leave this place. It wasn't dark, but if this was the perfect time, I could wait for Chris to come and fetch me...and the thought itself sent shivers down my spine.

I readied my bag that contained everything that I would need to survive with Chris.

I knew that he was going to use me for money too that was why I decided to keep my job. I would have had quitted being an editor but my job was one of the factors of why I was still living.

I grabbed a pen and a paper and wrote something to Marshall. What I wrote wasn't that long, it was just a sentence.

I sneaked in into Marshall's bedroom and placed my note on top of his bed.

And with that, I left his house, not looking back with only just a note I left to him saying, 'Thanks for loving me.'