Chapter 15 An Uncomfortable Shopping Trip
Just as I was about to open the door to my dorm room, shielding my eyes from the sunlight streaking in through the windows my roommate had as always, left open, my eyes fell on the middle-aged man, sitting on my bed.
Closing the door, I placed my backpack on the chair with trembling hands and disbelief jarring me in place.
“What are you doing here? Who let you in? This is a girl’s dorm for Christ’s sake”, I seethed, clenching my teeth, trying not to curse off my “fiance”. But truly, I was petrified as he shot me one of his creepy smiles, eyeing me from head to toe like I was a piece of meat, and wasn’t even trying to be subtle about it.
“Now, now, dear! Is that any way to talk to your future husband?”, he cajoled, his voice sweet like poison, making my stomach turn as I took in his lumpy frame and pasty skin.
“And I know the guard. Plus, who can stop me from meeting with my own wife”, he slyly continued, getting up from the bed and nearing me until I was against the door. I held my breath, a tsunami of emotions ranging from anger, regret and fear brewing within me as I tried to look as unaffected as possible.
“I am not your wife”, I bit out, pursing my lips. He grinned a malicious grin, making me want to crawl out of my own body as his round bulgy face got too close to me. He eyed me in the most perverted way possible, licking his lips, and grossing me out to the seventh hell. Fear clawed at my veins, making me freeze in place.
“Not yet, But you will be soon”, Benjamin replied.
“Well, let’s not tardy now, shall we? I’m here to take you shopping for your wedding dress”, he joyously told me, painfully ingraining into me the fact that my life was in fact over. To be spending the remainder of it with h…him? I was so fucked. I blinked back the moisture gathering in my eyes, trying to muster as much enthusiasm as I could as I gave him a small, reluctant smile.
I should at least try to be cordial with him.
“But I’ve got class…”, I started, hoping to get out of this.
“Oh! Nonsense. You have class on a Sunday?!” He raised a bushy brow at me, seeing right through my white lie.
“I’m meeting with a frie…”, I tried again. But was cut off.
“Look girl, just because I’m playing nice doesn’t mean I have to continue to play nice, so stop being a little bitch”, he warned, his creepy smile still intact. But I could sense the underlying threat. And I did not want to know what it entailed.
He was a fucking sociopath! How could he threaten me whilst maintaining a friggin smile?
“I…I’ll get my stuff and meet you downstairs?” I suggested, to which he nodded.
He left and I could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
And for the first time ever, I wished my parents had never taken that money to send me to an ivy league university. Why couldn’t I just have gone on to community college and told my ambitions to fuck off?
I guess this is what happens when small people dream too big dreams.
I collected myself as best I could, trying to brace myself for whatever may come, keeping my volatile brain at bay.
“Oh! Hey, Ash”, a snarky voice sounded just as I was nearing the staircase, which happened to belong to one of Natasha’s minions.
As if it couldn’t get any worse.
“What?”, I snapped at her, tumbling down the edge of my patience.
“Now there’s no need to be snarky. I just saw Daniel’s uncle leaving your room. So what were you doing in there with him? Bumping the uglies? Having a rehearsal of the ‘wedding night’?” she taunted, laughing at me, making me feel humiliated more than I ever thought was possible.
“I bet he takes you whenever he wants to, doesn’t he? I mean, he did buy you after all, didn’t he?” she continues. I clenched my fists. My teeth gritted as fresh tears pooled in my eyes.
What hurt the most was that she wasn’t wrong. Technically.
“What? Silent, innocent little Ash has nothing to say?”
I brushed past her, ducking my head down, trying to hide my tears.
I wanted to clap back at her, say something equally cruel back.
But it wouldn’t matter. Nothing I did would ever fucking matter.
The whole college would talk of me, and label me as a glorified prostitute bride.
I wheezed, trying to swallow back my sobs as I dabbed at my eyes.
All I wanted to ask God was why me? Why did it have to be me?
I realized I didn’t have time to deal with the reality of my life falling apart so I did the only thing I could do. I dried my eyes and put on a neutral mask which was so fragile that it could come off with the smallest trigger. I ignored everyone gossiping and their eyes following me around as I neared the parking lot.
“How about something with a deeper neck, darling? The dresses you choose are so boring and not at all fun”, Benjamin said through his teeth, his composed face coming off for just a second.
For the past 30 minutes, he’d been trying to make me select the sluttiest dresses which either had the lowest back which went down to my ass or the one with cleavages that made my boobs almost pop out.
“I’m not comfortable in those dresses. They’re really revealing”, I said in a small voice, uncomfortable under his constant scrutiny. He glared at me in warning when he noticed that the lady showing me the dresses was catching on to the fact that I was not a gushing, happy bride.