Until I Met You
Past (36)

Past (36)

Grace

'Your parents want to take your custody back.' The message read. It was from my past lawyer who assigned my foster parents my custody. It was such bad news.

"Your foster parents?" Jake asked me. I completely forgot that he was with me. My mind was going blank. Everything that happened to me under my so-called foster parents supervision, started rushing back to me. Starvation, my dog, beating, the abuse, everything.

"Grace." Jake shook me by grabbing my shoulders. My hand shivered and caught Jake's shirt sleeve in panic.

"Jake. This is terrible. I can't go back. I won't survive this, again." I mumbled to him. Jake took my phone that was ready to fall anytime out of my hand and tugged me to his side, hugging me. I circled his waist and buried my face in his chest. Hugging him like he was my lifeline. Which I somehow felt he was. His steady heartbeat calmed me a bit.

He read the text on my phone and tightened his hold around me. In a calming manner, he started running his fingers through my hair. He must be thinking that I'm panicking for no reason but no one knew the horrors I've suffered with those people.

No one.

"It's okay." "It's alright."

"I'm here."

"Don't worry." Jake soothed me with his words and I couldn't tell him how much I was thankful for his comfort. For his touch, his soothing words and his presence altogether.

I pulled back from him. He grabbed my cheeks from both sides.

"Look at me, Grace. Don't worry. As long as I'm here, no one can touch you."

"You hear me. No one." He said. I nodded my head.

"Stay here, okay?" He told me. I agreed. Then he walked towards his mom. I realized that they were staring at me, already. Jake talked to his mom for a few minutes. Then, he came back to me.

"You're sleeping in my place tonight. Tomorrow, we will meet your lawyer and solve everything." He told me. I looked in his eyes.

"We?" I asked.

"Yes, we. My mom is a lawyer. She'll fight for your case." He said and started to pull me towards them but I stopped him in the middle.

"Jake." I whispered slowly and stopped him from moving further.

"I don't have enough money to pay your mom as my lawyer. I think I should ask my past lawyer to help me." I told him. Jake looked at me, incredulously.

"When have I ever asked you to pay me, Grace? And asking help from your last lawyer? Isn't he the one who put you under your foster parents care?" He asked. I realized that he was right. After I was pushed into another foster home, I complained about my foster parents' to him, but he completely ignored my request. My guardians convinced him that I was being a bratty kid and was trying to escape from them by complaining false crimes against them. And he believed them. Maybe he wanted to believe them. After all, it was too much of a hazard to deal with a kid's problem.

"I told you. Don't worry about anything. Okay." He assured me. I agreed with him. I have no other option anyway.

Before leaving with Jake to my house and grab my few essentials, Mrs. Davis reassured me. She told me to leave everything on her. That she would take care of everything. Somehow, I felt like I could rely on her. I relented. I gave her every bit of information she needed from me. I told her everything that was needed to be said and let the other things slide. They were personal and I wasn't comfortable, anyone knowing them. Jake and I left to get my clothes from my house then we went straight to Jake's house. Jake's parents wanted to spend some time together. So they would come late at midnight.

We ate dinner in silence. Even though I wasn't hungry and was feeling that I would vomit out everything I've eaten, still I forced myself to eat something. All the while, Jake stared at me like I would do something crazy or break down any second, but I didn't. I walked upstairs to Jake's room. He stayed downstairs and cleaned the dishes. I got in his bed to get some sleep but I didn't. I waited for him to come into his room. After fifteen minutes, he did come into his room. He didn't make a sound around me, probably thinking that I was asleep because the lights were switched off, and I was nestled in the blankets. Jake came to my side and carefully picked up a pillow. He turned to walk away and sleep on the couch but I reached out and grabbed his shirt.

"Jake. Sleep with me." I told him. At first, Jake seemed frozen at first. When he turned around to look at me his face was neutral.

"I thought you were asleep." Jake said.

"Please." I said. Jake obliged and settled beside me on the bed. I hesitated a bit but moved on to put my head on his chest, my hand on his torso and my leg on his foot. And Jake pulled me even closer and tightened his arm around my torso. I sighed at his closeness.

I've never found this sort of comfort in anybody's embrace. Never had I felt cozy, safe and secured enough in someone's arms. His warmth spread through my body, warming me to core. I wanted to bury myself in him.

"Are you scared?" He asked. His voice was soft and deep. It carried a heavy weight around the quiet room.

"When I was born, my parents abandoned me. From the time I knew, I didn't have any parents. Till fifteen, I was raised in an orphanage. There weren't many things I loved to do, but I was happy. I was friends with a person named Sheena. We used to have fun and play all the time." I chuckled at my one memory.

"One time, we both snuck out at night to search for owls. We had heard that they can see in night and not in day." I chuckled at our little action that we put up that night.

"We got caught. Sheena took the blame for me. She said that she forced me to follow her. She was forgiven and so was I. We were given a warning though. Then one day I heard that she was being adopted by someone. I was really happy for her, but I was sad as well. She was the only person whom I could have fun with. Who wanted to be my friend. No one else wanted to be my friend. When she left, I was alone. For a few nights, I used to cry at night. Asking why she had to go and leave me here alone. Why does she have to have parents and I don't? Why did she get to be happy and I don't?" I heaved out a sigh when started running his hand behind my back in a soothing manner. I nestled more in his arms. "Then one day, when I was fifteen, a couple met me. At first, they seemed really nice. On our second meeting, they even bought me candies and chocolates. When they asked me if they could adopt me, I agreed instantly. They seemed nice and I felt like I was finally going to get a good life now. Everything would be great. I will have parents, I would go to a nice school and make new friends like Sheena but it never happened. When I walked into my new house, I was really happy. All of a sudden, I don't know what happened but my so-called new parents' behavior changed. They took me to their house which should not be called one. It was a small, one storey house. Still, I was happy that it was my house now. Whatever it was." I quieted down a bit.

"They told me that my room was in the basement. By room, they meant living with rats and mice and sleeping on a rotten wooden bed that was filled with bedbugs. I was a bit shocked to see that but I ignored it. However, my real nightmare began when the lady asked me to do all of her chorus while she sat on the sofa and supervised my work. I was so nervous that I broke a glass. That was the first time I received my first beating. That lady's husband took out his belt and whipped me. When I ran away from him to hide in the basement, he chased after me and grabbed me by the hair. He brought me back and this time he used the buckle of his belt. He seemed to enjoy everything he was doing. He was a sadistic pig. His wife didn't say anything, like a teenager wasn't just getting beaten half to death in front of her. All the while, I begged him to forgive me and leave me alone. The pain from the beating was so intense that I passed out. For a whole week I couldn't move. Yet, I was forced to do every work. What's even worse was that they had a son. Who raped me on the first day we met. He used some sort of drug to knock me out. I became conscious when he was finishing. It was how I knew that I was getting rape. I was glad that I was knocked out for the most part and didn't live through the horrors that had happened to me." Jake's hand still on my back. He looked at me. Even though the whole room was dark, I knew his eyes flashed with pure rage. Nothing I've ever seen before. I don't know why but it made me smile. Maybe it was because he was getting angry over something that had happened to me. Maybe because it made me feel like he cared about what happened to me. I put my hand on his chest and rubbed it slowly.

"It happened a long time ago Jake. I don't even remember it clearly anymore." I told him. It was obvious that I was lying. I still remembered everything. Every single detail that went through that night. But he didn't need to worry about that. "Just because you 'claim' that you don't remember anything it doesn't mean it didn't happen." He replied to me. His voice was stern.

"Forget about it. After that comes the best part." I said.

"I decided then. That I would run away. And I did. But not before I sought my revenge from him. He sold drugs. No surprise there. I got my hand on Ketamine. I was looking for a chance and I got it. I drugged all three of them and started a fire. I called the police and they arrived. They got me out and I pretended that the fire started by an accident. They believed me and sent me back to the orphanage. The reports said they all died." I told him. This time Jake looked stunned. He could not believe that I actually killed them. I saw his lips getting tugged up.

"Atta girl." He said and I chuckled. More on the fact that he was praising a murderer than that I found him funny. I nodded.

"But my nightmare continued when I was sent, yet again, with another foster parent. They weren't any different. They beat me, tortured me and the worst they killed my dog. But I gained one advantage. I met one of the bodyguards from where I work now, and he suggested that I should start working at his. I didn't have anything to lose, so I took my chances. You wouldn't believe me but people around me, actually gave me respect. If anyone tried to harm me, they would be thrown out of the place in an instant. I started working there when I was seventeen. Finally, I turned eighteen and left their house legally and bought my own house from the money I earned in this field of work." I told him. Finally, looking him in the eyes, I answered his question.

"So to answer your question, Jake. I am scared of meeting them." I told him.