My body immediately obeys. My hands are on the band of her underwear, slowly pulling it down her legs. My mind, however, is in hell.
If this happens… If this continues… Then I can only imagine how far she’ll go. She’ll make me do heinous things that will forever stain my soul. So what if Miss Moe won’t remember? I will. That’s enough.
My hands stop.
A battle ensues inside of me. The outside force wrestles for control with my inner self as I force my arms backward.
“Huh?” She smirks. “Interesting.”
She exerts more strength. I do the same, straining to combat her influence.
My fingers twitch, itching to touch Miss Moe as the Scarlet Lady wishes. But my mind is stronger, forcing my limbs to remain immobile.
The Scarlet Lady laughs.
The pressure inside of me builds the more I resist. The veins on my body become enlarged and tense.
A loud popping sound erupts in the air. My vision becomes foggy as the veins in my eyes pop. Blood pours down my cheeks.
The pain resounds through my entire body, but instead of fearing it, I welcome it as the chains around me dissipate. I fall to my knees, breathing hard, just as I regain full control over my body.
“Boring!” She calls out. “You’resoboring, Nykander.”
I clench my fists and grit my teeth as a murderous intention takes root within me.
“You really think you’ve won?” She chuckles. “Crawl to me.”
My eyes widen.
“Crawl. Now.”
To my utter shock, my body obeys. I drag my knees forward until I’m in front of her, head bowed, forehead to the ground in a pious position.
“Good boy,” she purrs. “Control is just an illusion, Nykander. I let you believe you had it for a second. But I owned you, all along.”
“F-fuck you.”
“Language! That’s not how you speak with your friend,” she says in feigned outrage.
“You’re not my friend. I don’t know what I ever did to you or why you’re torturing me like this, but leave Miss Moe out of this!”
“Ah, but I can’t leave her out of this when you’re so easily rattled when I bring her up.” She laughs. “But I will let you in on a secret.”
She leans in conspiratorially, her mouth close to my ear.
“You should have taken the chance to enact your fantasies tonight. Your Moe already thinks the worst of you.”
“W-what?”
There’s a wicked satisfaction in her voice as she continues.
“Let me show you.”
22
The walls are foreign. The smell of wood drifts to my nose as steam envelops the room. But I cannot seem to move away from my spot. I stand there, still staring at the closed door after Nykander left.
The events of the day still seem surreal. The fact that yesterday I was leading a simple life and now I no longer have a home. The fact that I thought that despite our differences, my family had some affection for me. But it all shattered in the blink of an eye.
