Adalia

Zack's expression of bewilderment suddenly drifted into one of angered impatience. He began to rapidly tap his foot against the ground as he took my face in his hands.

"Lyla, are you going to tell me? Who did this to you? Why is your face so bruised?"

"Zack, don't ask. I can't really tell you," I said and took his hands, pulling them away from my face.

I turned around and looked up at the ceiling, trying to come up with something to say; anything.

"Why don't you want to tell me? Please tell me. Was it a man?" He anxiously questioned.

I felt I had let too much time pass without taking action. My unreasonable fears had taken complete control over my life and actions. Perhaps telling Zack was the way to go. Telling him everything. That way, I could get away from all the lies and finally take a step towards freedom. The thought added a hint of tentative hope as I pictured myself living a happy life away from Ian and with Zack. Now that I had finally told Zack about my feelings, I felt the continuation of lies would ultimately be redundant at this point. But on the other hand, my telling Zack the truth would potentially put him in a serious confrontation with Ian. Zack could even end up hating me for lying to him for so long and living a double life. I hadn't even told him my actual name.

"Lyla, come on. What the Hell is going on?" Zack said as he walked over to face me.

"Look, there are a couple of things I've been meaning to tell you for some time now," I nervously said and began to unconsciously pop my knuckles.

"Yeah, I've noticed. Again with the mysteries. You're so hard to figure out," He sighed and irritable nodded.

"I know. But this really isn't easy for me to just come out and say. I mean, you're probably going to hate me once I get through saying what I need to. And I want you to know that it's okay. I won't be mad if you end up hating me. After all, I deserve all the resentment in the world for what I've done to you. I also want to let you know that I never wanted things to get this far between you and I. If anything, I wanted to avoid you at first, because I just knew--"

"Okay, stop going around in circles, and just tell me already! I've known all along that there is something you've been hiding pretty much since day one, so I'm not likely to be surprised," He shot out.

"Okay. Damn it, this is hard. I don't even know where to begin," I sighed.

"Well, you're gonna have to begin somewhere. I'm tired of the secrecy."

"Okay, first off; my name isn't Lyla."

"Your name's not Lyla? You mean you gave me a fake name that day?" He said in disbelief.

"Yeah. I just basically blurted out the first name that came to mind that day. I'm really sorry about that."

"And you had me think your name was Lyla for two years? Lyla, I mean... whatever your name is. Because you do have a name, don't you?"

"Yeah, it's Adalia. Gosh, I'm--"

"Adalia? Where have I heard that name before?" Zack said, fused with thought.

"Well, when--"

"No, hang on. I know I've heard that name before. Shit, that's right!"

"What are you thinking?" I hesitantly asked.

"I tattooed that name on someone. Yeah, but who?" He said to himself.

"You tattooed that name on Ian Watkins. Lostprophets, remember? At the MUSINK festival?"

"Yeah, that's definitely it! Hold on, are you trying to tell me you're--"

"I'm that girl. The name you tattooed on Ian is mine."

"You're that girl? The one he was talking to me so much about? I mean, he went on and on about you. What the Hell? This has to be some cruel joke you're playing on me. You're Ian's Adalia?" He said in disbelief as he squinted.

"I'd rather you not refer to me as Ian's Adalia."

"So what do you want me to refer to you as, then? What is it you've been playing at this whole time? I mean, you and I hung out at the festival. You acted as if you were alone. Damn, when in reality, you were with your husband and his band. Because you're married to him, aren't you? Who am I kidding; you've been married to him this whole fuckin' time. No wonder you were on stage during their set. Man, how could I have been so stupid not to see you were lying to my face for so long? I'm so dumb," He angrily grunted.

"No, you're not dumb. I'm the dumb one. For hurting you and sustaining that lie for so long. Can you forgive me?" I asked and put my hand on his arm.

He harshly snatched it away from my reach and took a few steps back.

"Okay, I expected this type of reaction," I sighed in defeat.

"I guess I'll just go ahead and leave you be. You're not gonna have to worry about seeing me again. I feel bad about you sister, though. I made a commitment. But I went ahead and screwed everything up. Bye, Zack. I'm sorry for causing all this shit and not being brave enough to confront things. I really do have feelings for you; don't doubt that, please. Thanks for the tattoo, and well... everything," I trailed off as I walked to the exit.

"No, no, no. Don't leave," Zack called out and caught up with me.

"What is it?"

"You still have so much you need to clear out for me," He said and grabbed me by the arm.

"Ow, don't grab so hard. What do you want me to clear up for you?"

"Why did you sustain that lie about your name being Lyla? Why did you tell me that was your name in the first place?"

"I don't even know the answer to that question. I didn't want you to know my real name for some reason. See, when I met you, I was already getting pretty involved with Ian. And you just kept kind of popping up. The more I saw you, the more I started liking you. And I guess giving you a fake name was just my way of shielding myself from things."

"What things?"

"I just didn't like the fact I was having feelings for someone other than Ian. And at the same time, I liked the idea of having you around. Letting you know about my marriage to Ian would have changed our relationship. You know, it would have made it awkward and I didn't want to screw things up," I explained, not quite grasping my mixed motives.

Understanding myself was something that was growing to be more and more difficult each minute that passed.

"Well, you basically screwed things up from the start, Lyla-- I mean, Adalia. Feels weird calling you that."

"Yeah, I'm just really sorry. Look, if you never want to talk to me or see me again after this, I'll totally understand. After all, I acted like a huge bitch. I can't even say how sorry I am," I said and looked down.

"No, there's still something I want to know," Zack suddenly said.

"Hm?"

"You still haven't told me about your bruises. Who did this to you, L-- uh, Adalia?"

"Just stop," I said and looked away.

"Come on. That's really the main thing I wanted to know. Tell me. Please?" He anxiously insisted.

"You really want to know, don't you?" I said, earning a very anxious nod from Zack.

"And you won't leave me alone until I tell you, right?"

"Can you please stop dragging this out and tell me already! Who hit you like that?"

"Ian," I simply responded, looking straight into Zack's concerned eyes.

"Ian? You mean, he did that to you? What the Hell?"

"Yeah, he did this to me. It's actually a regular thing I deal with. Not so big of a deal anymore."

"Not so big of a deal? Are you out of your mind? He's hit you more than once, right? This isn't the first time?" Zack anxiously asked as he apprehensively rubbed his forehead.

"Of course this isn't the first time he's hit me. He's only been doing it for like, two years," I sarcastically responded, letting out a light chuckle.

I instantly winced and gripped the side of my abdomen as I felt a sudden lack of oxygen pierce through.

"Years? But we've been seeing each other all this time. You mean to tell me you were getting beat on the side even though you spent all that time with me? I don't believe this," He scoffed in disbelief.

"Well, believe it. Now that I've pretty much told you everything, I'm leaving. I just want to thank you, though."

"Thank me? For?"

"For giving me that feeling of happiness when I thought I could never experience a feeling like that again. Bye, Zack."

"How long?" I suddenly heard Zack call out.

"How long, what?" I replied, confused.

"How long are you planning on dealing with that bastard's shit? Come here," He said and walked towards me.

"Let me get a better look at you."

"Zack, let's just leave it at this. Now that you know everything, I don't think it would be a good idea for us to continue seeing each other."

"I don't care what you think, Adalia. I'm not leaving you alone. I need to be with you."

"So you don't hate me? Not even because I maintained a fake identity around you?

"No. I could never hate you. I probably would if you would have done it for other, vain reasons. But I understand you really had no other alternative. You've just been a victim of that son of a bitch's cruel abuse. There's no way I'm leaving you like this; unprotected. And especially since my sister went through the same thing, it just makes me hate that fucker even more. I swear, if I had him in front of me, I'd--"

"You'd do nothing, Zack. I don't want you to get mixed up in this situation and end up doing something you'll regret in the future," I nervously warned.

Why had I told Zack everything? I knew it would just fuel him up. This situation was getting too out of hand.

"I've already been mixed up; for years. And when I told you I loved you, I meant it. I don't want you to live through this anymore. Where is that motherfucker?" Zack growled between clenched teeth.

"Why? What are you planning on doing?" I hesitantly asked.

"Just tell me," He insisted.

"He's not currently in Seattle. He's in the middle of doing a video shoot. Won't be back for some days."

"Huh. Living his life all comfortably while you're here, miserable. Unbelievable," He sighed.

"Yeah, I don't even want to go back to that damn house tonight. I mean, I dread everything about it. It's just become something of horror to me."

"Then don't," Zack shot out and took hold of my hands.

"What?"

"Don't go back to that place. Not tonight, not ever."

"Well, I can't go to Josie's apartment because he'd automatically know once noticing I'm not in the house."

"Don't go there, either."

"Well, then where am I supposed to go? I don't have anywhere else."

"Stay with me," He said and gently stroked my cheek bone.

"With you? But, Zack--"

"Just do it. Why have you got to lose?"

"Uh, my life, for starters," I scoffed.

"Are you that terrified of that man? Look, come stay with me a couple of days. I'm staying at Claudia's house, remember? Just come with me and that way, you'll have time to figure out what you're gonna do."

"But, Ian--"

"Stop it. Would you rather go back to that house and wait until he comes back so he can continue wasting your life away? Or would you rather be taken to a place that's safe and secure? He won't find you there. Come with me," He insisted.

"Oh, he'll find a way. I'm sure he'll hunt me down."

"Look, you need to make a move and put an end to this situation already. Let me help you. I'm gonna close the shop up now. You coming?"

I looked at Zack with tentative wonder, not yet quite able to conceive what he had just offered me. The opportunity I had been waiting for since what seemed like an eternity.

"Yes. Yes, I'll come with you.

"Alright, watch your step," Zack said as he walked through the entrance of the house.

"Zack, this is a pretty nice place," I commented while taking a look around the place.

"Yeah, my sister liked nice things. Plus, I always try to keep it nice and neat because I know that's what she would want," He said with a grin.

"Yeah, I can tell. It looks very nice."

"Okay, so there are four rooms. I'm staying in the master bedroom. I mean, if you want, I can go to another room so you can be more comfortable. It wouldn't be a problem for me," He suggested and shrugged.

"No, stay where you are. I'm fine with any room. It's okay."

"Okay, well the rooms are down that hall. Feel free to take a look at each one and take your pick."

"Sure, I'll go do that now, I guess. Thanks so much, Zack. You really have no idea how huge this favor is. You're truly a life-saver. I mean, to take in a liar like me in your house. It's just incredible.

"Hey, stop referring to yourself like that. I would do it any day. Anything for you, Adalia," He reassured.

"You're just... too amazing," I said and rose on the tips of my feet, gently placing a kiss on his cheek.

"Uh, uh, yeah. You should, uh, go check the, uh, rooms out n-now," Zack stammered.

"Uh, okay. I can't thank you enough!" I exclaimed as I walked down the hall where the rest of the bedrooms were located.

The rooms were aligned not many feet apart from each other, all with semi-open doors. I slowly walked over to the first of the three rooms and pushed the door to a wide open crack. The walls were painted a sea blue, with paintings of aquatic life sprawled across the wall; just like Claudia's room at the clinic. There were multiple boxes all assorted with black markings on them, one on top of the other.

"Hm, might have been used as a storage room," I whispered.

There were all sorts of collectibles marked on each box. Childhood dolls, stuffed toys, sea shells. I couldn't help but smile as I looked further into the room, taking in each subtle detail. Claudia's whole life story was basically within these four walls. I suddenly came across a dusty photo album. Curiosity got the best of me and I soon found myself flipping through its pages, embracing Claudia's memories. I flipped until I came to the very end of the album; past the childhood holidays, birthdays, parties; everything. I noticed there was one picture at the very end, flipped on its front side.

"Every minute away from you is torture. Wish it could be 4AM forever. Love always, your soul seeker," I read aloud.

I then slipped the picture from inside the album and turned it over. I instantly let out a sharp gasp and dropped the picture...