Chapter 28 28
|| Author Pov ||
“What the hell is going on!”
Rosa’s soul almost left her body when the loud growl reached her ear. Her lips trembled like a leaf as she turned her head aside, just to witness the familiar figure of her aunt, looking at her in disbelief and a hint of rage.
Rosa’s lips parted as her eyes met Carolina’s. Rosa’s heartbeat paced up as she saw her aunt approaching towards them. Rosa’s scared soul stood there, her eyes roaming on the floor, her lashes continuing to blink.
“What happened, Kevin? Did she just slap you?!” Carolina roared viciously, walking near them and touched Kevin’s face. She then turned back to face the trembling girl.
Rosa’s lips shook as she looked up at her aunt, “M-mum. I–”
“DID SHE JUST SLAP YOU?!” the growl escaped from Carolina’s lips and she raised her hand and struck it right across Rosa’s soft cheek.
The hard slap sent the little girl’s face to the side, leaving an intense handprint on her soft cheek.
Kevin’s lips parted in shock. Carolina’s nose flared in anger and she stared at the little girl who was holding her cheek.
“Mom!” Kevin immediately held his mother’s arm. “Leave me, KEVIN! HOW DARE SHE?!” Carolina tried to jerk him away, throwing daggers at Rosa with her eyes.
The crystal-clear drop escaped from Rosa’s eyes, rolling down her cheeks as it found freedom.
“Just how dare she raise her hand on my son! FROM WHERE DID SHE GET THE COURAGE?!” Carolina screamed at her. She glared at her son.
“Leave my arm, Kevin!” she jerked herself away and grabbed Rosa’s hand roughly.
“Look at me!” Carolina ordered, holding Rosa’s wrist tightly. Rosa looked at the ground, her chest filled with extreme pain, releasing it through her tears. Her hiccups were silent.
“I told you to look at me, Rosa! How dare you raise your hand on my son, huh? LOOK AT ME!”
Rosa flinched, her lips and stomach trembling with each low hiccup.
Kevin closed his eyes in frustration. His anger now turned into frustration as he realized he’d messed up. Still, the anger lingered in his mind because no one had ever raised a hand on him except Rosa.
His eyes found her face; she was all scared.
Her eyes barely wanted to look at her aunt. She was trembling like a leaf. He also knew this was the first time someone had raised a hand on her.
“Who gave you the guts to hit MY SON?” Carolina gritted her teeth at the little girl. Rosa slowly shook her head, the hiccups taking over. She was hurt to the core.
“I SAW IT WITH MY OWN EYES! WHY DID YOU-” Carolina jerked Rosa vigorously in anger. The little girl became even more terrified. She shook her head.
“M-Mum! Mum! I-I didn’t. I–brother tried–” she mumbled, but the feeling inside her didn’t allow her to finish.
What would she tell her? That her son forced her? Harassed her? Would she even believe her?
“YOU STAY UNDER MY RESPONSIBILITY! I looked after you all these years! And this is what you give in return! THIS is what I receive from you?! HUH!” Rosa just flinched at her loud roars. Her heart was ripping apart.
She immediately shook her head, still trembling. “Mum. Mum! I-I didn’t. Mum–”
“SHUT UP!” Carolina shouted, earning a low hiccup from Rosa.
“I CAN'T PET AN UNGRATEFUL BEING ANYMORE! GET LOST!”
“GET OUT OF MY HOUSE AND NEVER COME BACK!” Carolina’s words shocked Kevin and he immediately looked at his mother, while Rosa’s heart stopped beating for a while.
All the color drained from her face as she couldn’t just believe what she heard. She looked at her aunt, her vision blurry from tears.
“Mum, b-believe me. I’m s-sorry, Mum.” she mumbled, her whole body shaking in fear.
“I don’t want to listen to anything from you! Get out! Right now! GET OUT!” Carolina grabbed her hand. Rosa panicked.
“Mum! Mum! I’m sorry—p-please forgive me. Mum, pl-please.” she begged but Carolina dragged her out. Kevin gulped down, his hands fisting into a ball as he heard her pleadings.
Rosa’s sense blurred. “Mum! MUM! I’M SORRY, MUM! I will never do this again! Please, Mum! Forgive me!” she cried, struggling to free her hand from Carolina’s tight grip.
Her throat throbbed with pain as she looked behind at the man responsible for all of this. Her eyes shed tears as they met Kevin’s cold eyes. Her eyes pleaded with him, but he looked at her with clenched teeth, his jaw tightened as he stared at her miserable state.
Without saying a word, her pain filled eyes blamed him for all of this.
Kevin witnessed her tear-filled lavender eyes, which shed one last drop before she turned away.
Reaching near the main door, Carolina glared at the little girl who was crying. “GET OUT! DON’T SHOW ME YOUR FACE EVER AGAIN! UNGRATEFUL WRETCH!” She released Rosa’s hand with a rough jerk, causing her to fall out of the gate.
Innocent Rosa whimpered softly in pain, her voice barely audible. Carolina glared at her one last time. Rosa’s heart twisted painfully when she watched the door slowly closing before her, the last sliver of light slipping away and leaving her face shrouded in darkness.
Rosa immediately stood up and ran to the door, but the door already closed, leaving her in the darkness.
Carolina sighed and closed the door. She turned back to see Kevin standing there like a statue. His eyes were directly staring at her, as if he couldn’t believe what just happened.
Carolina ignored his stare and walked near the stairs where Kevin was standing.
“Mom!”
Kevin’s voice stopped her from walking further as she looked at her son.
“Have you gone crazy?” he asked in disbelief, making her raise her eyebrows at him.
“She dared to slap you, Kevin! I don’t want to know any reason! No matter what, she has no right to raise her hands on you! And I’m fully aware of what I’m doing!” Carolina yelled, causing Kevin to furrow his brows.
“And for this, you’ll throw her out of the house?!” Kevin’s eyes jerked towards the door as he heard Rosa slapping the door from outside. Her voice barely audible, muffled by hiccups.
“Kevin, it’s none of my concern! Go to your room! Ungrateful wretch like her shouldn’t be living with us!” Carolina spoke venomously, her eyes warning Kevin.
“Mom! Are you out of your mind? She has nowhere to go! For us, she’s a family member! Stop this! I’m getting her in!” As Kevin moved from his place, Carolina’s words stopped his steps.
“If you disobey me, Kevin, remember you’ll see my dead body!” this froze Kevin as he looked back at his mother with steel eyes.
Carolina looked at her son one last time and walked up the stairs, leaving the man behind.
He looked at the door. Her hits created small thuds on the door. His fist tightened. His numb eyes gawked at the door.
Rosa’s heart thumped inside her chest. How could her aunt do that?
Tears streamed down as she hit her small fist on the large door.
“Open the door, please, Mum. I’m sorry.” hiccups took over her mumbles as she slid her body on the marble floor, her palms and head resting on the door.
“Pl-please open.. hic! I am– hic! sorry. I won’t do that again.” her voice became slow and low. Tears rolled down from her cheek to her quivering chin. “Open the door, please.” her low voice reached nowhere but to herself.
Was her aunt serious?
Would she never let her in?
Where would she go?
Questions roamed inside her head. All the thoughts brought darkness into her vision. Is it the end of her life?
Her heart twisted in pain. She couldn’t just tolerate it. The reality ripped her apart.
Her eyes blankly stared at the floor. Her hands trembled when the cold wind passed through the place.
The fine hairs on her skin rose up, a delicate reaction to the icy air that shivered her body.
Rosa once again slapped her small fist on the huge door that created only a little thuds. The freezing air drained all her energy. Winter was yet to come.
The moon cast thick clouds. The night seemed pale tonight. All was silent, and coldness enveloped the city.
Hours passed.
The midnight grew colder. The moon clouded. The moon’s silver rays fell on the soft skin of the little girl. Her body curled into a ball on the cold marble floor.
Her body quivered in the cold, and her soft skin pressed against the icy floor, turning her into a shivering, fragile figure, but her mind was lost in the depths of a dream.
As she lay there, trembling in her dream, a presence stirred in the shadows. From the corner of her mind, she felt a figure approaching, dark and ominous, its energy thick with an unsettling vibe.
The air grew heavier as the figure moved closer, its footsteps almost silent but filled with a quiet menace. The dream blurred and she couldn’t escape the pull of the looming figure, the dark aura sending a chill deeper than the cold floor beneath her.
But the dream consumed her senses. The huge figure reached near her small frame. His cold blue eyes gawked at the little figure for a while, watching her curled up like a fluffy rabbit. His presence held something powerful,
Dominance.
For a moment, the atmosphere skipped, the cold breezes paused, and his gaze turned colder, watching her body tremble in coldness.
He crouched down, his movements smooth and calculated, before reaching for her.
Without a word, he slid one arm beneath her knees and the other around her waist, lifting her with effortless motion as if she weighed nothing, lighter than a feather.
Rosa moved uncomfortably in his arms. Her hands instinctively reached for his neck. In her sleep, she slowly wrapped her small arms around his neck.
Rosa’s dream lightened for a moment, her lashes fluttering, and through her blurred vision, she saw the familiar cold eyes. But her dream pulled her in again, thinking it was just a dream.
Her body sought warmth and she clung to him.
Meanwhile, the cold blue eyes gazed at the red handprint on her cheek. The bone of his jaw clenched.
“Sleep.” He whispered in his cold, deep, slow voice.
“It’s over now. You won’t see them again.”