Weightless

They pulled up out front of one of the most expensive restaurants in the city 20 minutes later. Her father turned off the car, opening the door for her mother. Chloe climbed out by herself. Her father gripped her mother’s waist, passing the car keys to the valet. Chloe was silent as she followed behind them. It seemed as if the entire place had been rented out by her father’s company, which didn’t surprise Chloe. The business definitely had the money for it. People were walking around, and Chloe realized it was actually a party. She assumed there would be a dinner after there had been a sufficient amount of mingling, so she excused herself and escaped into the bathroom. She breathed heavily as she closed the door behind her. There were so many people here. It was suffocating. She sent Zack a quick text, letting him know that she was fine before calming down and returning to the room. She quickly found her parents and lapsed into the role of the perfect daughter.

“There you are, Chloe.” Her mother smiled sweetly, Chloe almost gagging on her fakeness. “I was wondering where you had disappeared to. This is Mr. Barker. He owns the company.”

“So nice to meet you, Mr. Barker.” Chloe spoke softly, taking the older man’s hand.

“Likewise.”

“Look, honey, there’s Marcus. Why don’t you go say hello.”

It was an order, not a question. Chloe didn’t dare disobey, though her body had become rigid with panic. She hadn’t seen Marcus in almost a year. She wasn’t supposed to see Marcus. But her mother was pushing her away and Chloe forced her body to move. Her parents had never believed Chloe or Zack or even Zack’s mother. They had blamed it all on Chloe and were still in love with Marcus. As she got closer, she planned on veering to the right and escaping into the bathroom again, but his dark eyes caught hers. A smile broke out on his face. He pulled her into a hug and she squeaked in fear.

“I’ve missed you so much, Chlo. You look so fucking hot tonight. Why did you ignore my calls? I wanted to make things better you know.”

“Marcus, let go of me.” She responded quietly.

“You know I never meant to hurt you, baby. I love you so much, I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you. That’s why I did those things, Chlo. I had to keep you close.”

His eyes locked on to hers as he held her at arm’s length. She tried to pull away but he gripped even tighter. She winced slightly.

“Let go of me.” Her voice shook, but Chloe infused as much strength into it as possible.

“Don’t make a scene, Chloe. Look, I’m willing to forgive you. I still love you. Let’s just start over, okay?” His voice was low, almost a growl.

Chloe felt the fear building inside of her. She tried to pull away again but his hands were like steel on her biceps. His eyes started to cloud over in anger as she shook her head. He dragged her over to a secluded corner, obscured from the other partygoers view. She started shaking violently, scared out of her mind. Marcus shoved her up against the wall.

“I know you love me, Chloe. Why are you making this so difficult?”

“Stop it, Marcus.” She whispered.

His right hand moved to her throat, holding her head straight, forcing her to look at him. She could see the unadulterated rage building in his eyes. He squeezed gently and she whimpered in response. He smirked.

“You’re mine. You always will be. Don’t you ever forget that.” His mouth was right next to her ear, his breath tickling her neck.

Marcus released his hold and shoved Chloe away. She stumbled slightly in her heels, gasping for breath. He stalked away, leaving Chloe to recover from the encounter. She slipped into the bathroom, digging for the make up in her purse. She saw that tears had leaked from her eyes, causing her mascara to blur slightly. She wiped it away and noticed the hand shaped bruises already forming on her arms and neck. Chloe fumbled for her cover-up and had just finished putting the last of it on her neck when her mother stormed in.

“Chloe Marie!” She cried. “It’s time for dinner! Get your ass out there now!” She stomped out, Chloe following in her wake.

As she sat down, fortunately seated far away from Marcus, Mr. Barker stood up. Chloe tuned out most of his speech, though she did manage to catch the fact that her father had been promoted, the reason for this celebration. She smiled just as she should, and clapped her hands. Her mother kissed her father’s cheek daintily, beaming, as her father stood there proudly. After that, the food was brought out and everyone began to eat. Chloe pushed her salmon around on her plate. She picked at the side potatoes and salad. Eventually the chatter died down as the night went on and Chloe found her and her family saying their goodbyes. The ride home was unsurprisingly silent and Chloe escaped to her room as soon as the car had stopped.