I heard the sound of the door opening but didn't bother checking who it was until a familiar smell of cologne hit my ears. I hurriedly sat up from the bed, and there he was standing beside the door, his eyes hooded. His predatory eyes, looking at me, were watching me.
I stood up from the bed, moving to where he stood, my eyes pleading for him to trust me. Uncontrollable tears left my eyes, seeing him after a long time.
"You have the audacity, crying in front of me like the victim when you are nothing but a whore," I winced at his words as he shouted at my face.
"If you think for a second that your tears would change anything, then you are wrong. You better save them because I plan on making you suffer," he said, gripping my cheeks with his hand. I was looking at his eyes, the dark orbs that I adored the most which only had admiration and pride for me once. But now all I could see was anger and hatred in them.
"I hate you, Normani Parker. I loathe your existence. I can't even stand looking at you; you mean nothing to me. "Absolutely nothing," he said, clenching his jaw. "Was this your repayment, to hurt me for taking you from the life you once knew?. Is it." I shake my head, crying.
"I'm going to make you scream in such pain that you wish you were dead, but I won't give you death even if you beg for it." He tightened his grip on my cheek.
"Nikolai," I pleaded, my voice shaky. "Just let me explain; please just let me explain once."
"What could you possibly say to justify what I saw?. You know, I didn't want to believe it when I saw the picture, but then you proved me wrong." Each and every word he said was like a dagger in my heart. I knew I deserved it; I betrayed his trust, but I just wished he would give me a chance to explain myself.
"You betrayed me, Mani; you betrayed every trust I had in you. YOU BETRAYED ME!" he shouted the last sentence.
"Why did you do it, Mani? Why. " He shouted again, to which I just lowered my gaze, tears pouring down my eyes, and I tried to control myself to steady my breath.
"Answer me, damn it. Why" he shouted at my face.
"I wanted to tell you about me and Jason."
"You and Jason!" he shouted in a dangerously high voice.
I started shivering badly from all the crying and all the anger he was emitting. He seemed like a different person. His eyes were full of hatred and anger.
"Yes, we knew each other in the past, but that was it. Nothing happened between us; please believe."
"Believe you; you want me to believe you. I found you naked underneath him, and you say there's nothing between the two of you." He spat, and his face hardened.
"I was waiting for you, and when he came into the room, he planned all this, so please Nikolai." I would never do this to you."
"You played a nice game, I give you that.You made me believe you wanted the relationship between us to work, but all along, you were whoring yourself." I winced again at his words.
"Why, Mani, you don't like being called a whore?. That's what you are after all. a whore" All this time, I was just looking at his eyes, searching for the person who would do anything just to please me, who would hurt anyone that looked my way in a bad manner, but he wasn't there; it's like he never existed.
He gave me one last look before shoving me roughly to the ground, and I did everything possible not to land on my stomach. I watched him stare down at me with so much hatred and anger. I knew he wouldn't trust me again, and I doubt he ever would.
How was I supposed to tell him the truth? How was I supposed to get him to listen when he wouldn't even believe a word I said? I watched his retreating back as he left the room, locking the door from outside.
I can't let him go; I need to sort out whatever mess and miscommunication there is between us. Jason wasn't working alone. I remembered him mentioning a bitch, but who could it be? Who would go to this extent just to cause a rift between Sin and me?
I must get to the bottom of this; crying won't solve anything. I need to find out who is behind this, and I can't do this alone if I am trapped in this room. I need Samantha and Zoey's help; they are the only ones I trust.
I wiped the tears off my face, feeling determined.
♤♤♤♤
I woke up feeling like my head was splitting into two. I raised a hand to my head, trying to soothe the headache. I couldn't take any medicine because of the baby. Stifling out a yawn, I continued to lay on the bed, thinking of a way I could convince Samantha and Zoey to believe and help me.
I patiently waited for Samantha to come in like she has been doing for the past week. An hour passed, two hours, and still I didn't see her. I was beginning to lose hope of her coming today when I heard the sound of the locks coming undone. The door opened, and like usual, she had a tray of food in her hands.
"I brought breakfast," she said, entering the room. She kept the tray of food on the table but didn't bother looking at me.
"I'm just going to take a quick shower first," I said, pointing to the door, and she nodded. I needed to shower first; it might soothe the headache, and I could muster a bit of strength and courage. I got off the bed, feeling a little dizzy. I opened the bathroom door.
Stripping myself off, I got in the bathtub. The water was warm. The water felt so good touching my skin. I closed my eyes, relaxing my back.
My mind drifted back to yesterday, reciting every word Sin said to me, especially the ones that stood out when he told me how much he hated me. I felt a pang in my heart, and unknowingly, tears dropped from my eyes.
No matter how much I recall everything, it still doesn't feel real to me. It was like a bad dream; I so desperately wanted to wake up from it but couldn't, no matter how much time I tried. I remembered the way he always looked at me and the way he did yesterday. More tears fell from my eyes. It is the same person, the same sin. The one who owns a big part of my heart It hurts a lot when the one who has shown you nothing but love tells you they hate you now. It hurt so much.
I got up from the bathtub and dried myself, leaving the bathroom. I entered the room, and Samantha was still there. She looked lost in thought. I made my way into the closet and put on the first piece of clothing that caught my eye.
I got out of the closet. My eyes went to the tray of food on the table beside the bed, then to Samantha, who was sitting on the couch. I don't have any appetite, but I need to eat. I signed and took the tray and sat on the couch. I started eating, even though I wasn't that hungry, but I had to eat even if I didn't want to. I looked at Samantha, and she looked like she hadn't slept for days.
"Sam," I said, and she took a deep breath before letting her head rise to meet my gaze. She didn't say anything; she just kept staring. It was hard to read her face; I didn't know what she was thinking. Her face was blank and void of any emotion. Nonetheless, I still tried again.
"Sam, just let me explain first, then you can choose to hate me or not, but at least give me the benefit of the doubt and let me explain myself." I pleaded with her, my eyes blurry with tears.
Her mouth parted like she was about to say something, but no words came out. She let out another sigh, her head cast down like she was in deep thought, before lifting it up to meet my eyes again.
"Fine, explain"' A relieved breath left my mouth, and my lips stretched into a small smile.
"It was true that Jason and I knew each other in the past," I say, wetting my bottom lip as my hands fudge with each other. "He was my ex-boyfriend."
Samantha's eyes widened, and she sat up straight with a confused expression on her face. "Wait... boyfriend:" She asked, and I nodded. "From what you told me before, you only had one boyfriend in high school who was nothing but a scumbag after he cheated on you with your cousin at your parents' funeral." She asked again with furrowed brows.
"Yeah, you are right. That scumbag was Jason," I said, confirming her thought. Her mouth opened in a gasp, like she couldn't believe what I had just said.
"I always knew he was a scumbag, but what I don't understand is, if he hurt you so badly, why did Sin walk in on the two of you in bed with you naked?" she questioned, looking more confused than ever.
"I told you I planned on telling Nikolai about the baby. Right" I asked, and she nodded. "So, I had already gotten ready and put on the lingerie I bought from the Victoria Secret store. I was waiting for Nikolai but ended up falling asleep. When I woke up, I felt a presence beside me and thought it was Nikolai, just for me to find out it was Jason. " I said to her, "
I continued to narrate everything that happened and what Jason had said about a woman being involved and how he set me up so that Sin could walk in on us. I watched as her face changed from different emotions, from confusion to shock to relief and finally anger.
"I can't believe that dickhead." She snapped angrily, her fists clenched together. "When I get my hands on him, I'm going to chop off his balls and feed them to him." She had an evil smirk on her face.
"I'm so sorry, Mani, that I didn't believe you." She apologized, and she gave me a guilty look.
"It's okay, Sam. What matters is that you do now." I take her hand in mine, giving it a squeeze.
"We need to tell Sin about this," she said boldly.
"I tried Sam, but he won't even let me talk." "He is really hurt," I said to her, and she furrowed her brows.
"He can be really stubborn, but he loves you a lot, Mani." I have never seen him like this before; his emotions were bare for everyone to see.
"We could try getting to the bottom of this."
"What do you suggest we do?"
"If we can just find out who his partner is, that is why I need you and Zoey's help. You both are the only ones I trust here to help me out," I pleaded, my voice cracking a little bit.
"I will tell Zoey, but you should rest. Stress isn't really good for you right now," she says, helping me up from the couch and back to the bed. " rest"
She walked to the table to pick up the tray, giving me a slight nod before walking out of the room. I felt a part of the burden leave my shoulders, and I could see a glimmer of hope. I just pray this works out.