Status: updating when I can :)
Drowning
twenty-two
The camera had been installed for weeks, but the fights always took place in another room. This whole idea started to become a joke to Hannah since she only gained more bruises and blows than she could handle. The only reason it was allowed to be installed was due to the suspicions Bradley had about being robbed. He had taking a liking towards Marisa, a very rare occasion since she was Hannah’s friend, but Marisa wasn’t about to let that “friendship” go away just yet.
For his sake, the camera was installed so he could see if somebody was breaking into his home. However, it was all for Hannah’s sake. Many sleepless nights had passed with him being out drinking or passed out on the other side of the bed. It left her fearing for her life, thinking that maybe he would figure out Marisa’s whole purpose of setting the camera up.
He was smart, to an extent. Fights occurred in the other room just so the camera couldn’t catch it. Marisa was smarter with the fact that she had access to the camera by connecting it to her computer.
“It would be so much easier to call the police, you know.” Marisa told them the day she brought the camera over. She knew Bradley wouldn’t have it any other way, so her words were more directed towards Hannah. “This is totally unnecessary.”
It was true that Hannah rejected the idea to call the police multiple times. She just couldn’t bring herself to it after having a long history with Bradley. It took about a month of convincing before Hannah agreed he should rot in jail, but decided to take the riskier way out.
Hannah had been standing in the kitchen when he arrived back at his flat. The door shut calmly, but even the sound of it made her jump. Over the months, his mood swings became completely unpredictable. His calm state was very likely to be falsely interpreted because ever since she played around with him on a day she thought was good, it ended all of her assumptions. She had to play it by ear.
She was supposed to be cutting a banana into pieces, but the process came to a halt since she heard the door. He didn’t take his shoes off by the doormat; his footsteps were louder than normal. Suddenly his figure came into view. Hannah’s heartbeat increased due to either being fearful or being in love. To this day, it was still hard to decipher.
The car keys landed on the table noisily. He removed his coat from his body and draped it over the chair, and that’s when he and Hannah made eye contact. It was the moment of truth: was it a good day or a bad day? She was frozen on the spot until he looked away from her with a blank expression.
Sometimes neutral days were okay too.
Bradley disappeared into the living room, the television raised to a decent volume. It sounded like some rerun soap opera, but then the channels changed, stopping on a station that played a boxing match. It was settled on that for now, and Hannah felt at ease again and continued to make her smoothie.
Having her boyfriend, who she was not so secretly frightened of, sitting just a room away made her feel without a doubt unsafe, but yet somehow the kitchen gave her some peace. It was the room she was used to the most, cooking meals for when he came home around dinner time. Besides that, she also knew where each dangerous utensil rested. Each knife placement was memorized in case it needed to be used. She felt like she knew his own place better than he did. She seemed to spend more time here than he did, and she didn’t even live here.
Her feet padded across the tile to get to the fridge, opening the freezer door to dump ice cubes into a glass. The noise made Bradley lower the volume on the television, Hannah tried to not to make it look like she tensed up.
“What are you doing?” He asked curiously.
“I’m making a smoothie.” She told him, showing all the ingredients spread out on the countertop. “Would you like one?”
The question alone brought a disgusted look to his face. His eyes scanned the bananas and strawberries lying out.
“You know I hate that flavor.”
Her heart sunk to her stomach. “Oh, I can always make you a different-”
“No, no, no…” He repeated several times in a row, each growing more and more irritated than the first. “Then, you’d have to wash the blender out and clean up the mess you’ve already made. And I’m not wasting any more of the fruit.”
“Okay.” She replied delicately, trying to slide the ice cubes in the blender as quickly and quietly as possible. His stare was making her nervous. “I could make you something else?”
“Why wasn’t there anything made when I got home?”
It was the question, or anything remotely similar, that started it all. This is what started all of the fights – Hannah having unexplainable excuses as to why she didn’t have anything done the way she wanted it.
Her inability to respond immediately was beginning to set him off. The impatient look on his face was only going to get worse, bringing a fist full of intended bruises with it.
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted, let alone be home on time.”
He groaned considerably loud. “Well, does it look like I’m late today?”
“You could have told me.” Her voice was small. The ice was still the only ingredient poured into the blender so far.
“Well God, Hannah, not everything is about you!” He shouted. Her once steady hands now trembled. “It’s not that simple to blurt out I lost my job to my fucking girlfriend!”
“Bradley,” She said with wide eyes and sympathy. Her feet were moving before she could thinking, guiding her to comfort him. “I didn’t know. I-”
“Don’t pity me.” He spat.
The lightest touch she gave him on his shoulder was brushed off in the most repulsive way. He leaned forward on the countertop and Hannah stood vulnerably on the tile. Her sad eyes looked at her lover to see his next move. Grabbing the glass was definitely not what she expected.
The glass hurled passed her on the right side. It was barely inched from her face, causing her to flinch. She couldn’t do much more than stare at Bradley. His teeth were gritted, a raged expression plastered on his face, still holding the stance after he reeled the empty glass.
From the amount of force Bradley put into the throw, Hannah knew the glass shattered into bits and pieces. She felt a few pieces hit her back, some sticking into the skin of her arms. Her body remained frozen, except for her right hand reaching for her left arm to remove the glass. It stung as she took out a significantly larger piece, and she wasn’t quick enough to not feel the blood oozing and smearing.
Hannah gazed at her fingertips, noticing the dark color and now her hand trembled from shock. By the time she looked up, Bradley’s eyes were already on her, a finger pointing in her direction.
“You told them.” He said accusingly. The sick, twisted grin gave her an uneasy feeling. “You told them, didn’t you?”
“Told what?” She choked out.
“Don’t play stupid with me. You got me fired. You told them about the drugs.”
“Bradley, no!” She pleaded, each word bringing her closer to tears. “Brad, they would have checked the house. I would never do that.”
“You think you have it all bad here?” His tongue swiped across his bottom lip in attempt to suppress the smirk. It only made it worse because now he chuckled. “Baby, I gave you everything you ever wanted.”
His lean figure came closer to Hannah, moving at a pace so slow it creeped Hannah out. She stepped back instinctively, the sharred pieces digging into the bottoms of her feet.
“I don’t have it bad, Bradley. I love you.”
“What the fuck do you expect me to do now?”
There was never a right answer. He asked her these questions on purpose for the reason to use her as a punching bag. And by the distance decreasing between them, the chances of this happening was very likely.
“Answer me, damn it.”
“You can find a new job! I can find one too.”
His hand made contact with her cheek, the slap sounding like a gunshot that initiated the start of a war. She’d lost count on how many wars there had been.
Her head turned by the force of the blow. She reached for her cheek that was probably reddening by the second. It stung so bad that it was going numb. Her fingers were barely noticeable as they grazed her cheek.
“Are you out of your fucking mind? You think I’d let you go find a job? I already let you prance around the school, and God only knows what you’ll do behind my back.”
Her mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out. She was still stunned like she was every time this happened. The tears were more visible now, so she thought it would be best to crouch down and put the glass into a pile. It wasn’t the smartest idea, but Bradley was blocking her path to the broom.
Halfway to the ground, a hand severely grasped her arm. The once yellowing bruises were now forming back into fresh ones.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m cleaning the glass.” She answered timidly, bending down one more only to be brought back up.
“No. I’m not done talking.”
It was hard to pretend like she wasn’t expecting the worst. Her expressions had to show she cared about what he was going to say. Her weary eyes revealed just the opposite.
“I see.” He nodded, his tone as cool as ice. “You’re just sick of me talking. Everything I do or say is a fucking joke.”
“No, Brad, I-”
He shoved her back as he forcefully let go of her arm. He walked around the cabinets and opened one up to expose the rest of the glasses stored on the shelves. One by one, he took a glass and kept chucking it in her direction, each one of them missing by inches or even centimeters. Cries fell from her mouth as more broken glass made contact with her body.
“You want something to clean? Here, this is something you can clean!”
Soon enough, Hannah was surrounded by a pool of broken glass, the shards now making it through her shirt. She had her hands covering the area by her ears and temples on both sides of her face.
“Stop it!” She cried helplessly. “Stop it! I’m sorry! Just stop it!”
The next glass in his hand dropped to the floor, but not hard enough to break it. The clank caused Hannah to open her eyes that she didn’t even realize she shut. She only made it as far as seeing the cup roll on its side before a hand went straight to her throat roughly, pushing her back against the wall once more. Her head collided with the wall as she landed with a thud.
“Don’t you fucking talk back to me.” He warned, only being more forceful.
Hannah flew both of her hands to his wrist in attempt to push it off of her. He was relentless, and she truly thought it might be the end. As that thought occurred, the hand was released only to be replaced by the other, which was locked in a fist and connected with her jaw.
The swing was so powerful that she heard the crack. It sent her toppling over to the floor, knees and palms sinking into the shattered glass. The pain was so excruciating, it was hard to focus on the foot on her back, forcing her whole body to collapse to the floor.
“This is your fault.” He told her coldly. Hannah could see his foot out of the corner of her eye. “I shouldn’t be the one to blame. I could still have my job now if you didn’t open your bloody mouth.”
“I told you,” She coughed, bringing a finger to her mouth. She was tasting blood, so there was no surprise she found some resting on the corner of her mouth. “I did not say anything.”
“Don’t you dare lie to me!” He hollered.
Hannah gathered enough strength to straighten her arms out, knees still buried in blood and glass. Her vision was blurred to the tears, but even from this perspective.it was obvious to see Bradley was still enraged.
“Please, Brad...” Her plea came out in a whisper. It was so weak, she absolutely despised it.
She didn’t know it, but she’d been panicking. It was the fear of the unknown, what he was going to do next. It was the sheer terror of him towering over her in the same breathless state she was, but for totally different reasons. Mixed in with the smell of blood, all was too much to handle. She felt like she could barely breathe. But when the presence of Bradley disappeared, she took the opportunity to stand and run into the open bedroom.
“Hey, come back here!”
His voice boomed down the hallway, and Hannah felt satisfied as her thumb pushed down on the lock. She breathed deeply as few times, blinking rapidly since her vision was still faltering. The calming moment was ruined by a loud banging on the door.
“Open the door, Hannah.” His fist slammed into the wood, rattling it and making Hannah back away slowly. “I said open the damn door.”
Her frantic mind thought of places to seek shelter or escape. Under the bed was no option considering how tight of a space she’d be crawling into. The bathroom was a safe bet. It was another door to lock, another barrier put between them. She wasn’t going anywhere unless she had a guard by her side. Underneath mounds of her clothes in a drawer she reserved for herself was a loaded pistol. There was only two bullets, but hopefully enough to do the deed.
“Why must you always be so difficult…” He muttered along with other words Hannah couldn’t comprehend.
Then, the door suddenly slammed against the wall. He had used so much force that the lock broke off, and she was faced with a fuming man, broad shoulders raised as he took a deep breath. It was let out with a malicious and cynical laugh, and Hannah knew he caught her red-handed with the gun.
And it wasn’t that he was keeping a secret from her either. The gun he was holding came into view from being hidden behind his back.
“I dare you.” He emphasized his words while he continued to laugh. “You couldn’t kill me last time. What makes you think you could do it this time?”
Hannah didn’t have much time to think. While she still had her strength, ignoring the smell of blood all around her, she pulled the trigger. It boomed throughout the whole apartment, but it was obvious she hit the target.
Bradley fell backwards on the open bedroom door, feeling his right shoulder in pain. Hannah watched as he held his left hand over the wound for a moment before bringing it away. Blood dripped off of his fingers, and more spilled out of the open wound through his shirt.
“So close, Hannah!” He said sarcastically. “Looks like you’re going to have to try again.”
Without warning, Bradley shot, but purposely missed on the right side of her face. The bullet went straight through the window, causing a much louder noise.
“You’re turn.”
Salty tears mixed in with the blood. Hannah didn’t know how much longer she could play this game. His look was of pure evil, and she was completely terrified for her life.
Harsh banging could be heard on the front door for a couple short seconds. Brad glanced down the hallway, waiting to see what was going to happen next.
“You called, didn’t you?” The gun was pointed back at her face.
She cried and shook her head feverishly.
And then it all happened so fast.
The door burst open and the police were shouting a mixture of orders at Bradley. Hannah ducked instantly, hearing his second bullet firing right where her head used to be. Bradley’s agonizing screams followed immediately after, and Hannah watched as he fell to the ground. Three policemen came into the bedroom. One knelt next to her boyfriend, holding a stun gun while the second man put Bradley’s arms behind his back so his wrists could be placed in handcuffs. The third police officer made his way to Hannah, kneeling down by her, asking if she was alright.
Bradley was sat up, and then brought to a stand where he was led out into the living room. The police officer and Hannah followed afterwards, and the tears began to fall again when she saw Marisa standing by the door with a fourth officer. Hannah sprinted towards her best friend, holding her tight and crying on her shoulder.
Spit flew in her direction, and both girls dared to look at the culprit.
“I hope you rot in hell, Marisa.” He said, and Marisa threw him the middle finger. His eye softened as he looked at his frightened girlfriend, clinging on to her best friend for dear life. “I’m sorry.” He said quietly. “I love you, Hannah. Please don’t leave me for this.”
The policemen continued to drag him out of the flat while he started yelling his apologies at Hannah. She began to cry again, resting her head on Marisa’s chest again. One of the police officer’s came over and set a hand on Hannah’s shoulder.
“I’m going to need to bring you to the hospital to get checked out.” His hand then made its way to her face where he inspected the cuts and bruises, which trailed all the way down her body.
Hannah nodded, understanding him and hoping she didn’t have to look at a mirror anytime soon. The officer walked off into the kitchen to meet up with another officer where the blood and glass-filled floor was being photographed and then swept up.
“How did you know?” Hannah cried, using both her hands to grasp both of Marisa’s shoulders.
“I guess I was looking at my laptop at the right time.” Again, she was brought into an embrace. “But, it’s okay. You’re safe now. Everything is going to be alright.”
For his sake, the camera was installed so he could see if somebody was breaking into his home. However, it was all for Hannah’s sake. Many sleepless nights had passed with him being out drinking or passed out on the other side of the bed. It left her fearing for her life, thinking that maybe he would figure out Marisa’s whole purpose of setting the camera up.
He was smart, to an extent. Fights occurred in the other room just so the camera couldn’t catch it. Marisa was smarter with the fact that she had access to the camera by connecting it to her computer.
“It would be so much easier to call the police, you know.” Marisa told them the day she brought the camera over. She knew Bradley wouldn’t have it any other way, so her words were more directed towards Hannah. “This is totally unnecessary.”
It was true that Hannah rejected the idea to call the police multiple times. She just couldn’t bring herself to it after having a long history with Bradley. It took about a month of convincing before Hannah agreed he should rot in jail, but decided to take the riskier way out.
Hannah had been standing in the kitchen when he arrived back at his flat. The door shut calmly, but even the sound of it made her jump. Over the months, his mood swings became completely unpredictable. His calm state was very likely to be falsely interpreted because ever since she played around with him on a day she thought was good, it ended all of her assumptions. She had to play it by ear.
She was supposed to be cutting a banana into pieces, but the process came to a halt since she heard the door. He didn’t take his shoes off by the doormat; his footsteps were louder than normal. Suddenly his figure came into view. Hannah’s heartbeat increased due to either being fearful or being in love. To this day, it was still hard to decipher.
The car keys landed on the table noisily. He removed his coat from his body and draped it over the chair, and that’s when he and Hannah made eye contact. It was the moment of truth: was it a good day or a bad day? She was frozen on the spot until he looked away from her with a blank expression.
Sometimes neutral days were okay too.
Bradley disappeared into the living room, the television raised to a decent volume. It sounded like some rerun soap opera, but then the channels changed, stopping on a station that played a boxing match. It was settled on that for now, and Hannah felt at ease again and continued to make her smoothie.
Having her boyfriend, who she was not so secretly frightened of, sitting just a room away made her feel without a doubt unsafe, but yet somehow the kitchen gave her some peace. It was the room she was used to the most, cooking meals for when he came home around dinner time. Besides that, she also knew where each dangerous utensil rested. Each knife placement was memorized in case it needed to be used. She felt like she knew his own place better than he did. She seemed to spend more time here than he did, and she didn’t even live here.
Her feet padded across the tile to get to the fridge, opening the freezer door to dump ice cubes into a glass. The noise made Bradley lower the volume on the television, Hannah tried to not to make it look like she tensed up.
“What are you doing?” He asked curiously.
“I’m making a smoothie.” She told him, showing all the ingredients spread out on the countertop. “Would you like one?”
The question alone brought a disgusted look to his face. His eyes scanned the bananas and strawberries lying out.
“You know I hate that flavor.”
Her heart sunk to her stomach. “Oh, I can always make you a different-”
“No, no, no…” He repeated several times in a row, each growing more and more irritated than the first. “Then, you’d have to wash the blender out and clean up the mess you’ve already made. And I’m not wasting any more of the fruit.”
“Okay.” She replied delicately, trying to slide the ice cubes in the blender as quickly and quietly as possible. His stare was making her nervous. “I could make you something else?”
“Why wasn’t there anything made when I got home?”
It was the question, or anything remotely similar, that started it all. This is what started all of the fights – Hannah having unexplainable excuses as to why she didn’t have anything done the way she wanted it.
Her inability to respond immediately was beginning to set him off. The impatient look on his face was only going to get worse, bringing a fist full of intended bruises with it.
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted, let alone be home on time.”
He groaned considerably loud. “Well, does it look like I’m late today?”
“You could have told me.” Her voice was small. The ice was still the only ingredient poured into the blender so far.
“Well God, Hannah, not everything is about you!” He shouted. Her once steady hands now trembled. “It’s not that simple to blurt out I lost my job to my fucking girlfriend!”
“Bradley,” She said with wide eyes and sympathy. Her feet were moving before she could thinking, guiding her to comfort him. “I didn’t know. I-”
“Don’t pity me.” He spat.
The lightest touch she gave him on his shoulder was brushed off in the most repulsive way. He leaned forward on the countertop and Hannah stood vulnerably on the tile. Her sad eyes looked at her lover to see his next move. Grabbing the glass was definitely not what she expected.
The glass hurled passed her on the right side. It was barely inched from her face, causing her to flinch. She couldn’t do much more than stare at Bradley. His teeth were gritted, a raged expression plastered on his face, still holding the stance after he reeled the empty glass.
From the amount of force Bradley put into the throw, Hannah knew the glass shattered into bits and pieces. She felt a few pieces hit her back, some sticking into the skin of her arms. Her body remained frozen, except for her right hand reaching for her left arm to remove the glass. It stung as she took out a significantly larger piece, and she wasn’t quick enough to not feel the blood oozing and smearing.
Hannah gazed at her fingertips, noticing the dark color and now her hand trembled from shock. By the time she looked up, Bradley’s eyes were already on her, a finger pointing in her direction.
“You told them.” He said accusingly. The sick, twisted grin gave her an uneasy feeling. “You told them, didn’t you?”
“Told what?” She choked out.
“Don’t play stupid with me. You got me fired. You told them about the drugs.”
“Bradley, no!” She pleaded, each word bringing her closer to tears. “Brad, they would have checked the house. I would never do that.”
“You think you have it all bad here?” His tongue swiped across his bottom lip in attempt to suppress the smirk. It only made it worse because now he chuckled. “Baby, I gave you everything you ever wanted.”
His lean figure came closer to Hannah, moving at a pace so slow it creeped Hannah out. She stepped back instinctively, the sharred pieces digging into the bottoms of her feet.
“I don’t have it bad, Bradley. I love you.”
“What the fuck do you expect me to do now?”
There was never a right answer. He asked her these questions on purpose for the reason to use her as a punching bag. And by the distance decreasing between them, the chances of this happening was very likely.
“Answer me, damn it.”
“You can find a new job! I can find one too.”
His hand made contact with her cheek, the slap sounding like a gunshot that initiated the start of a war. She’d lost count on how many wars there had been.
Her head turned by the force of the blow. She reached for her cheek that was probably reddening by the second. It stung so bad that it was going numb. Her fingers were barely noticeable as they grazed her cheek.
“Are you out of your fucking mind? You think I’d let you go find a job? I already let you prance around the school, and God only knows what you’ll do behind my back.”
Her mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out. She was still stunned like she was every time this happened. The tears were more visible now, so she thought it would be best to crouch down and put the glass into a pile. It wasn’t the smartest idea, but Bradley was blocking her path to the broom.
Halfway to the ground, a hand severely grasped her arm. The once yellowing bruises were now forming back into fresh ones.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m cleaning the glass.” She answered timidly, bending down one more only to be brought back up.
“No. I’m not done talking.”
It was hard to pretend like she wasn’t expecting the worst. Her expressions had to show she cared about what he was going to say. Her weary eyes revealed just the opposite.
“I see.” He nodded, his tone as cool as ice. “You’re just sick of me talking. Everything I do or say is a fucking joke.”
“No, Brad, I-”
He shoved her back as he forcefully let go of her arm. He walked around the cabinets and opened one up to expose the rest of the glasses stored on the shelves. One by one, he took a glass and kept chucking it in her direction, each one of them missing by inches or even centimeters. Cries fell from her mouth as more broken glass made contact with her body.
“You want something to clean? Here, this is something you can clean!”
Soon enough, Hannah was surrounded by a pool of broken glass, the shards now making it through her shirt. She had her hands covering the area by her ears and temples on both sides of her face.
“Stop it!” She cried helplessly. “Stop it! I’m sorry! Just stop it!”
The next glass in his hand dropped to the floor, but not hard enough to break it. The clank caused Hannah to open her eyes that she didn’t even realize she shut. She only made it as far as seeing the cup roll on its side before a hand went straight to her throat roughly, pushing her back against the wall once more. Her head collided with the wall as she landed with a thud.
“Don’t you fucking talk back to me.” He warned, only being more forceful.
Hannah flew both of her hands to his wrist in attempt to push it off of her. He was relentless, and she truly thought it might be the end. As that thought occurred, the hand was released only to be replaced by the other, which was locked in a fist and connected with her jaw.
The swing was so powerful that she heard the crack. It sent her toppling over to the floor, knees and palms sinking into the shattered glass. The pain was so excruciating, it was hard to focus on the foot on her back, forcing her whole body to collapse to the floor.
“This is your fault.” He told her coldly. Hannah could see his foot out of the corner of her eye. “I shouldn’t be the one to blame. I could still have my job now if you didn’t open your bloody mouth.”
“I told you,” She coughed, bringing a finger to her mouth. She was tasting blood, so there was no surprise she found some resting on the corner of her mouth. “I did not say anything.”
“Don’t you dare lie to me!” He hollered.
Hannah gathered enough strength to straighten her arms out, knees still buried in blood and glass. Her vision was blurred to the tears, but even from this perspective.it was obvious to see Bradley was still enraged.
“Please, Brad...” Her plea came out in a whisper. It was so weak, she absolutely despised it.
She didn’t know it, but she’d been panicking. It was the fear of the unknown, what he was going to do next. It was the sheer terror of him towering over her in the same breathless state she was, but for totally different reasons. Mixed in with the smell of blood, all was too much to handle. She felt like she could barely breathe. But when the presence of Bradley disappeared, she took the opportunity to stand and run into the open bedroom.
“Hey, come back here!”
His voice boomed down the hallway, and Hannah felt satisfied as her thumb pushed down on the lock. She breathed deeply as few times, blinking rapidly since her vision was still faltering. The calming moment was ruined by a loud banging on the door.
“Open the door, Hannah.” His fist slammed into the wood, rattling it and making Hannah back away slowly. “I said open the damn door.”
Her frantic mind thought of places to seek shelter or escape. Under the bed was no option considering how tight of a space she’d be crawling into. The bathroom was a safe bet. It was another door to lock, another barrier put between them. She wasn’t going anywhere unless she had a guard by her side. Underneath mounds of her clothes in a drawer she reserved for herself was a loaded pistol. There was only two bullets, but hopefully enough to do the deed.
“Why must you always be so difficult…” He muttered along with other words Hannah couldn’t comprehend.
Then, the door suddenly slammed against the wall. He had used so much force that the lock broke off, and she was faced with a fuming man, broad shoulders raised as he took a deep breath. It was let out with a malicious and cynical laugh, and Hannah knew he caught her red-handed with the gun.
And it wasn’t that he was keeping a secret from her either. The gun he was holding came into view from being hidden behind his back.
“I dare you.” He emphasized his words while he continued to laugh. “You couldn’t kill me last time. What makes you think you could do it this time?”
Hannah didn’t have much time to think. While she still had her strength, ignoring the smell of blood all around her, she pulled the trigger. It boomed throughout the whole apartment, but it was obvious she hit the target.
Bradley fell backwards on the open bedroom door, feeling his right shoulder in pain. Hannah watched as he held his left hand over the wound for a moment before bringing it away. Blood dripped off of his fingers, and more spilled out of the open wound through his shirt.
“So close, Hannah!” He said sarcastically. “Looks like you’re going to have to try again.”
Without warning, Bradley shot, but purposely missed on the right side of her face. The bullet went straight through the window, causing a much louder noise.
“You’re turn.”
Salty tears mixed in with the blood. Hannah didn’t know how much longer she could play this game. His look was of pure evil, and she was completely terrified for her life.
Harsh banging could be heard on the front door for a couple short seconds. Brad glanced down the hallway, waiting to see what was going to happen next.
“You called, didn’t you?” The gun was pointed back at her face.
She cried and shook her head feverishly.
And then it all happened so fast.
The door burst open and the police were shouting a mixture of orders at Bradley. Hannah ducked instantly, hearing his second bullet firing right where her head used to be. Bradley’s agonizing screams followed immediately after, and Hannah watched as he fell to the ground. Three policemen came into the bedroom. One knelt next to her boyfriend, holding a stun gun while the second man put Bradley’s arms behind his back so his wrists could be placed in handcuffs. The third police officer made his way to Hannah, kneeling down by her, asking if she was alright.
Bradley was sat up, and then brought to a stand where he was led out into the living room. The police officer and Hannah followed afterwards, and the tears began to fall again when she saw Marisa standing by the door with a fourth officer. Hannah sprinted towards her best friend, holding her tight and crying on her shoulder.
Spit flew in her direction, and both girls dared to look at the culprit.
“I hope you rot in hell, Marisa.” He said, and Marisa threw him the middle finger. His eye softened as he looked at his frightened girlfriend, clinging on to her best friend for dear life. “I’m sorry.” He said quietly. “I love you, Hannah. Please don’t leave me for this.”
The policemen continued to drag him out of the flat while he started yelling his apologies at Hannah. She began to cry again, resting her head on Marisa’s chest again. One of the police officer’s came over and set a hand on Hannah’s shoulder.
“I’m going to need to bring you to the hospital to get checked out.” His hand then made its way to her face where he inspected the cuts and bruises, which trailed all the way down her body.
Hannah nodded, understanding him and hoping she didn’t have to look at a mirror anytime soon. The officer walked off into the kitchen to meet up with another officer where the blood and glass-filled floor was being photographed and then swept up.
“How did you know?” Hannah cried, using both her hands to grasp both of Marisa’s shoulders.
“I guess I was looking at my laptop at the right time.” Again, she was brought into an embrace. “But, it’s okay. You’re safe now. Everything is going to be alright.”
♠ ♠ ♠
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Due to finals and holiday festivities, there was a month delay on the update, but here it is! hope you enjoyed :)