Black Romance Chapter 15

The muffled sound of crying crept through the wall, growing louder and softer, then loud again .

Picking up my head, Aubrey was crying uncontrollably in her room . The same as she had been every night . Climbing out of bed, I tip-toed over to the wall beside my couch, pressing my ear to the wall .

Her sobbing was a mixture of labored breathing and moans of sadness . Through the painful moans I could make out the single word she kept repeating—'why?'

I've asked that same question . . . And never got an answer .

Laying my hand on the wall, I lifted my index finger, ready to tap the wall and reach out to her, just so she knew she wasn't alone . I wanted to do what Samantha had done for me and give her a friend in this hell .

You know what happened to Samantha because of you . Do you want the same thing to happen to Aubrey?
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The sharp edge of my nail hovered over the torn wallpaper, ready to tap . But I stopped myself . Aubrey had grown quiet, her audible tears now a few heavy breaths as I assumed she had cried herself to sleep .

Stepping away, I climbed back into bed, laying flat on my back with my eyes on the ceiling . I remembered being like Aubrey . That feeling of despair and sadness that was so overwhelming there was no where for it to go but out .

Then one day you change . You stop feeling sad . You stop feeling lost and blaming the world for this shitty hand you've been dealt . You learn to deal with it . You learn to work with it and not against it .

It didn't fix a fucking thing, but it made living a little more tolerable . I hated thinking that I had accepted this life . I felt like I had let myself down after all the countless promises I made to never give up .

You haven't given up, Jessie, you've just smartened up . This isn't how your story ends .

Deep down I knew I was just waiting .

Waiting for that perfect moment to tip my world on its axis and give Virgo the middle finger .

Closing my eyes, I drifted off to sleep . A sleep where my nightmares consisted of the life I should have and not the one I was living in .

Who else could say that their nightmares were actually dreams about good stories and happier times?

Only people who had nothing to live for .

People like me .

# Next Morning

I watched Aubrey wipingher eyes as she sat at her table . Sniffling, her hand was shaking as she tried to apply her eyeliner . Stopping for a moment, she let out a breath and looked up at the ceiling .

Her cheeks were streaked in fresh and old tears . The water would drop off her lashes, tracing dried up streams as they plopped onto her lap . I wasn't sure if she noticed the small circle stains being left on her thigh from the mixture of mascara and water .

She's going to need to change .

Virgo would frown on such an appearance if he saw her like that . He expected perfection . I didn't even want to think about what he'd do to her if he walked in on her right then .

Leaning back over, she tried to put on her makeup again, but she just couldn't do it . The tip of the liner kept creeping up towards her eyeball, threatening to stab her in the pupil . Dropping it onto the table, she drove her fingers against her temples and hung her head .

"Here, let me help," I said as I stepped to her side .

Her eyes shot open as she whipped her head in my direction, staring at me like I was insane . "What are you doing? We're not supposed to talk, you're going to get us in trouble . " Aubrey's eyes darted around the room, searching for Vin .

"He's not in here right now, he went out front to take care of something . " Grabbing the eyeliner, I held it between my fingers . "Don't worry, we're alright, I won't get you into trouble, I promise . "

"Alright—we are not alright if you haven't noticed . " Her voice was cold and empty as she turned to look at herself in the mirror . "Nothing will ever be alright . "

She looked so defeated, and all I wanted to do was make her feel better . I didn't want her to end up like the other girls that just vanished into thin air . I didn't want her to think that this was all that was left for her .

Because there was always the chance that one day things could change . The right person could walk in that door and free her . It wasn't out of the realm of possibilities that a man might see her and want to bring her home .

Maybe that man would be a good man, a man who would love her, shower her with gifts and affection . Maybe that same man would set us all free .

You're lying to yourself, Jessie, you know you are .

Chapter end