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I look at Aimee and settle down next to her.
"That wasn't weird at all."
"What do you mean?" I turn to her so she has my full attention. I don’t think anything was weird.
"He just goes to an interview at half past eight? I'm marking this as red flag number two, just sayin'."
"Well, I'm not sure what type of job it is. I haven't asked yet. I didn't even know that he was looking for a new job. He works with his mom as far as I know." I bite my lip, peeling a piece of skin off and making myself bleed. "I'll find out when he gets home."
“Okay, I’m just trying to look out for you. Can we turn the news back on now that he’s gone?”
“Oh my gosh, yes! I wanna know what they were saying about missing people.” I grab the remote and turn the TV back on.
“-found out that the four people who were recently rescued, but some of those people have gone missing again. Family and friends have been concerned, and they are holding a candlelight vigil for them tomorrow night, starting at five o'clock. Now, over to Ryan…”
I gasp, and my hand flies to my mouth when I hear that Caleb and Kiyanna have been taken again. Tears start falling from my eyes, and Aimee pulls me close.
“No wonder they weren’t returning my texts or calls. How horrible. Wait, do you think Tyr and I should be worried?”
We stare at each other until I rest my head on her shoulder. I want to say something, and I can tell she feels the same way, but neither of us have the words.
Therapy
Aimee leaves a bit after Tyr goes to his interview. I get up to change back into my sweats and take my makeup off, then sprawl on the bed to wait for Tyr so I can tell him the news.
"Hey, hun, I'm here." Tyr says, hovering over me, and switching on the bedside lamp.
"Hey, babe,” I rub the sleep from my eyes. I don’t even remember dozing off. “Can I call you babe? Is that weird?"
"Hmph," he huffs and walks away from me. "No, that's fine."
"Hey, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'm fine." Tyr spits the words over his shoulder.
He seems off. He’s being short in response and barely stops to talk to me. I can't help if I don't know what the problem is. I stand up and follow him to the bathroom.
"Tyr, you can always talk to me, remember? What job were you interviewing for anyway? It's late, and I know most businesses aren't open this time of night. Is it an under-the-table type thing?"
"Don't worry yourself over it," he shouts from behind the bathroom door. Now I’m getting frustrated.
"I thought we were supposed to be open with each other about everything, not just the shared trauma. I mean, that's kind of how relationships work, ya know," I holler back.
Tyr throws open the door, making me jump. I begin to panic as he stomps over to me. He raises his right hand and grabs me by the throat, just like the night of the bathtub. My hand immediately goes to his wrist, infuriating him further. We turn until the light from the bathroom hits only the right side of his face. Continuing our forbidden dance, I put my fingers over his, trying to pull them from my neck. Terrified, I watch his eyes enlarge with intense fury under his furrowed brow. I’ve never seen him look so hateful. With both my hands trying to get him off of me, my eyes widen in fear, silently pleading with him to stop and please let me go. A stifled gagging sound manages to escape my mouth as I start to black out.
He fully lets go and shoves me away from him, making me fall on my ass. I can see him in my peripheral vision, still standing over me as I slump to the side, my head landing on my outstretched arm. As I open my eyes, I see him instantly change his behavior. He sits on the floor, pulling his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them.
"Fuck! I'm so sorry, Nova! I'm so sorry!" He cries out and rocks himself back and forth. "I don't know what happened. I just saw red. It– It will never happen again, I'm so sorry."
I stare at him in shock, my lips part, and my hands grasp my windpipe. With him near the bathroom, I want to get as far away from that man as possible. I scoot myself beneath the window, far away from him, and mimicking his position. Tears cascade down my cheeks and wet my knees. My breathing becomes labored, and I start to hyperventilate. Sweat mixes with my tears, and my body starts to shake.
"Please say something," he begs.
With my eyes closed, I try to focus on my breathing. I can't talk. I can't think. I can't open my eyes.
Tyr crawls over to me, placing his hands on my cheeks, forcing me to look up at him. I flinch, sucking in a breath.
"Look at me. Please, Nova. I'm so sorry. I don't know what keeps coming over me." I open my eyes slowly, my expression pained. He wipes my tears away and shushes me. "Calm down. You're going to make yourself sick."
