3.

We sit in the car silently while he drives back home. I stare at him and observe his face, it’s completely neutral, and I can’t read him. “Zen?” It comes out as a whisper but he turns his head towards me as soon as I call him. “What is it? Does it hurt somewhere? We should go to the doctor, yes we should. I’m taking a turn.” He turns his gaze back towards the road. “No, no, I’m okay. Are you okay? Why are you so quiet? Talk to me.” I lean on the seat and stare at his face and watch his expressions soften a little. “I’m fine. I just, I just can’t stop imagining what would’ve happened to you if I didn’t come down to look for you.” I can see the restlessness in his eyes, while he runs his fingers through his hair.

“How did you know I was there?” I ask him while caressing his arm to help him relax a bit. “The power went off and that’s when you screamed I guess. It was pretty clear that someone screamed so I went down and was calling out for you. When you didn’t answer me, I understood there was something wrong.” He clenches his jaw and his knuckles turn white, as he tightens his grip on the steering wheel. “Zen, it’s okay you were there for me, like always. You saved me.” I lean my head on the window and stare outside and watch the street lamps as we pass them.

The rest of the car ride was completely silent. Not one word was spoken in between us, Zen was completely zoned out. When we arrived, he got into the house and went straight into his room. He didn’t say goodnight, and when I asked him if he wants dinner he shook his head no, instead of replying to me verbally.

After taking a shower and washing the dirty, musty smell of Joe off myself I decide to go check on Zen. He must be hungry; I should take some late-night snack for him. So, I walk into the kitchen and start making some butter popcorn for him. He loves them, there was one time we ate so much of these, that the next day both our stomachs were upset. Those were good times I must say.

After I’m done making the popcorns, I walk to his room and knock on his door. But there was no response, so I wait for a while and slowly get in. The room is completely dark; the only source of light that is in the room is coming from his phone screen. The light is illuminating his face, his eyes are closed and he has headphones on. I tiptoe in and slowly place the bowl of popcorn on his side table and sit by him. After staring at his face for a while, I place my hand on his cheek and caress it softly. His eyebrows knit at first, with his eyes still closed. When I keep caressing it with a light touch, he relaxes his face and slowly opens his eyes.

“Belle.” He whispers while pushing my loose hair strand out of my face with his fingers. I smile at him and slowly bury my fingers in his hair to give his head a little scratch, which he always enjoys. “You got me all worried my Belle.” His hand goes down to my neck and it starts to massage the area, where the skin has bruised up from Joe’s dirty touch. My eyes start to water up, feeling so lucky to have someone like him. He is so good to me; I don’t want to ever lose him. “I’m fine Zenny, you worry too much.” I lay beside him and slowly get under his comforter.

He smiles at me and slowly wraps his arms around my body, and pulls me closer to him. I rest my head on his chest and wrap my arms around his neck. I feel him sigh and bury his face in the crook of my neck; he inhales my scent and pulls me closer to him. Making our bodies melt into one. “This feels nice.” He kisses the bruised area of my neck and smiles against my skin. I blush hard while caressing his back. This feels nice; this is the best feeling in the world. I could be here all day, every day.

It was a lazy Sunday when all of a sudden I hear Mrs. Fleming squealing. I peek out of the kitchen too see what’s going on, and see there in the middle of the living room she was standing with Zen and Alisha. “I’m so glad dear you’re here. How’s your dad? Heard he’s launching a new eco-friendly car?” She makes her sit beside her and takes her hand in hers.

Did I mention that Alisha’s dad is almost as rich as Zen’s dad? And oh does Mrs. Fleming love rich people. Sometimes I wish I had a rich father, maybe then she would like me too. Sighing, I head back to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Who am I kidding I will have to prepare a feast; Mrs. Fleming would like Alisha to see how much she cares about her. “Isabelle, hey Belle?” Zen knocks on the counter trying to get me out of my thoughts. “Oh sorry, I was just...” I scratch the back of my head, staring at him while gloomy eyes. “Can you send two cappuccinos to my room, please? Thanks.” He doesn’t wait for my answer and quickly head out and vanishes into the hallways. “Sure I can,” I mumble to myself, staring at the dough I was kneading.

“Where are you going?” Mrs. Fleming grabs hand as I was about to knock on Zen’s bedroom door. “Coffee...” Even before I could finish, she yanks me away from the door and pushes me down on the floor. All the hot coffee spills on my torso and within a few seconds, I crash on the floor. The cups smash and I land on them. I feel the burning sensation all over me, as I look down I see some of the broken pieces have lodged themselves into my skin. I stare at her in shock but she just looks down at me with disgust and hatred. “Zen asked me to get them coffee, that’s why I was going in there,” I explain myself and slowly stand up holding my belly. “Always ready with an excuse.” She glares at me before walking away. I feel my tears roll down my eyes, the pain starts growing. It’s quite unbearable. I don’t know what I have ever done to her.