WURAOLA

FOUR

I didn't know how to feel.

To cry or to scream? But I knew how confused I felt.

I remembered how my mother screamed for them not to take me.

They did anyways and I was in another country. I know it didn't snow in Nigeria. I watched enough documentaries and movies to know that I was in one of those countries filled with white people. As if the handsome stranger wasn't enough proof that I was kidnapped.

One thing I did know was that it didn't feel as scary as I thought it would. I had never had any reason to want to leave the four walls of my house because like my mother said, the world was a scary place.

Men were evil. Women were evil. Evil had no gender. It didn't pick a side.

I walked into the kitchen that was almost the side of my house and found food covered in a tray. I pursed my lips and opened it. I frowned at the unfamiliar food in it and pushed it away. I wasn't eating that.

"Is there something wrong, bambino?" I froze at the sound of his voice and was quick to look down at my uncovered feet. He scared me but at the same time, he didn't.

His hair was black and looked like he had run his fingers through it one too many times. His eyes were dark brown but the white area around it looked red. He was wearing a charcoal suit that matched the color of his hair with a white shirt underneath it.

"I don't eat things like this" I mumbled shyly, probably because I had never had any reason to talk to anyone else. There was no balance in my life anymore and I wasn't sure if I liked that.

I just wanted hot chocolate and a sandwich.

He didn't reply and I looked up at him. His jaws were clenched and I could tell I had offended him.

What did I do? He was the one who brought me here.

"Sit down and fucking eat the fucking food." He snapped and I shook my head. I had a very sensitive stomach. I wasn't going to eat something I didn't like.

The last time my mother had forced me to try out some food she bought at a restaurant, I was on the toilet seat for hours and puking at the same time. Never again.

"I can't eat it" I didn't understand why he was forcing me to eat whatever that was.

I didn't like it and I wasn't going to eat it. His eyes blazed and I took steps away from him. He smelled like Tolu after he had too much to drink. Except the piss part. He smelled nice.
You know that feeling when you have a new dress and you just bury your nose in it. Yeah, like that.

"Sit down" his voice took on a deadly turn and I frowned, looking away from him.

I sat down and he walked towards me, causing me to inch away from him slowly while the stool creaked.

"Come here, Wuraola before I lose my fucking temper" he growled and tears welled in my eyes.

My vision blurred from my tears and I felt a tear drop on my wrist before another one dropped in my palm. I sniffled and he held the food up to my mouth with a fork.

My lips parted as I bit into it. I chewed the tasteless thing for as long as I could while he watched me.

I hated it here.

I finished the food and I could already feel my stomach churning, ready to spill it out. He held my chin up with his calloused fingers and I couldn't lie. He was handsome.

"Good girl. Go upstairs. Vince will bring your clothes to you." I nodded but he didn't let my chin go. I let my eyes trail from his neck down to his exposed arms. He was covered in tattoos. His face, his neck, his knuckles.

"You like what you see, angel?" his voice was raspy and I felt my cheeks burn in embarrassment. He chuckled and let my chin go. His hand trailed along my chin and I shivered in delight. I had never felt anything like it before. The tingles flashed straight to my core and I gulped.

"What's wrong?" his brows furrowed and I looked down. I didn't feel comfortable telling him that. He would probably yell at me.

"Nothing" he hummed, not pushing it any further. He pulled back and shoved his hands into his pocket.

"Up you go, baby" he nudged his chin in the direction of the stairs and I eagerly walked away from him. I was more comfortable in my own space. I was confused. I was not so scared. I felt slightly liberated but I missed the familiar comfort of my room.

I stepped into the room and walked to the window. I couldn't help but smile at the beautiful view. There was a big pool, like the ones I saw in movies and just lush greenery many feet away from the pool. I touched the window and exhaled.

I sat down on the bed and swung my legs back and forth, Bored out of my mind. I laid on the bed and kicked my legs into the air.

"Ms. Wura?" I jumped in surprise and my eyes went wide while my heart skipped many times. I looked towards the door and I frowned at the male standing there.

"You" I trailed off, trying to remember when I had seen him. He was a tall man, built like a giant and there was a barcode tattoo peeking out from his neck, just above his collar.

"What's your name?" I asked, sitting up while kicking my feet. He gave me a small smile and walked towards me.

"Vince. I'm truly sorry" he said softly and I remembered who he was. He was the one who had injected me with something. His brown eyes were soft and I hummed, nodding.

"Would you like me to get you anything?" He asked and I shook my head. His soft eyes contradicted his humongous frame and he sighed.

"A saw quite a number of books in your room and I can get you some" my ears perked up and I looked at him with a smile.

"You read too?" I asked and he chuckled, nodding.