Chapter 52: Chapter 52

“I will sleep on the couch.” He informed as he came back dressed in a tank top and sweat pants. She wanted to tell him to sleep on the bed as she did not want to suffer because of her. The couch was a small one, but she could not do that. She needed her space. She just felt so bad for bothering him so much.

She was always independent and liked to take care of herself. It was so new to her that aside from her mom, somebody else was looking after her like that. But she could not deny that it felt to lean on someone for support. She would have lost it for sure if he was not with her.

He switched off the lights, but let the table lamp on. She was so drained, but she could not think sleep would come to her anytime soon. Her head was so heavy. She was still a little hung over and the stress she went through with that creep did not help either.

Thomas was right. She could not believe she made a fool of herself by believing Leo. She was so excited to see him after such a long time. She also felt so offended whenever Thomas talked bad about him. She did not have any idea about people.

He was drunk for sure. But whatever he said to her and how he mistreated her could not be just out of intoxication. He said such disgusting things to her that she was having chills all over her body just thinking about it.

He was so close—so close to do what she had always been afraid to face in her life.

Her heart started racing again as she tried to close her eyes and sleep. She remembered a memory that she wanted to bury forever. When she was too young to understand anything…

Tears poured down her eyes on their own accord. Why did it happen to her always? She did not do anything to entice the other person. Sure, she worked as a stripper but she always made sure she kept it separate from her personal life.

She had been hit on countless times. Even the simple gesture sometimes made her scared.

Thomas was lying on the couch—his thoughts too busy to even think of sleeping. He was thinking of pressing charges against that bastard. He would have to convince Olivia because he knew how scared she must have been. He would have to assure her nothing wrong could happen to her now that he was with her. He would not let that fucker get away with what he did. His powerful blows must have taught him some lessons. But Thomas still was not satisfied. He wanted to do more damage than that fucker could even imagine.

His thoughts were invested in his plans when he heard a quiet sob. He felt like she was crying while trying not to make any sound.

He got up from the couch and could make out her figure lying sideways. Her body visibly shook as she cried silently. He could not take it anymore.

He went to her straight and laid down beside her. She stopped crying looking at him surprised. He saw her getting surprised that he was lying beside her and smiled gently.

“These eyes—they are not made for crying. They are too beautiful to be bothered like that.” He said as he wiped her tears that had soaked her cheeks. She bit her lip to refrain from sobbing again.

Something about the way he handled her made her want to hug him tightly and hide herself in his embrace. She was so tempted to do that, but she stopped herself. He might not like it for her to be too clingy.

But God, he was making her truly forget about all her worries and get lost in those pair of gorgeous eyes of his. His presence was having a calming effect that she could not even put into words.

“I can listen to anything you have to say. Just don’t pile up everything inside your chest. My mom used to say that sharing your worries lightens your heart.” He smiled as he put his arm below his head and turned to her side completely. She was lying there facing him and he was facing her.

Their eyes were so drawn to one another. All the awkwardness she felt initially when he came to lie beside her vanished out of the window. She took a deep breath as she stared into his eyes. He had a gentle smile on his face.

The dim light of the lamp was adding to her calmness.

“This is not the first time I was harassed like this.” She began talking. It was as if the words were leaving her tongue on their own. She had no control over what she was saying.

She would have never thought she would get to share the darkest part of her life with someone. That too, none other than Thomas who she thought was the biggest narcissist in the world and who had no concern about anybody else’s feelings.

He really proved her wrong. Again, she had no idea how people were and what they were actually like. In case of Leo, her positive assumptions were totally wrong. And in Thomas’s case, her negative assumptions about him were also proven wrong.

Thomas did not say anything and just kept on looking at her with a gentle expression. It was a clue for her to continue.

“You saw the other time when Joe tried to---.” She could not continue. Thomas nodded when he noticed she could not continue. She took a deep breath again.

“But that was not the first part. When I was fourteen, there was this guy in our school who was always so nice to me. I thought—I thought he genuinely liked me. Don’t get me wrong. Neither did I think he liked me romantically nor did he show that. He always treated me like a younger sister. He had stopped his studies due to some reasons and continued it again after a few years. So he was seventeen when he was in our class. I started sharing my lunch with him when I saw how he reserved a seat for me whenever I was late or how he grabbed me lunch from the café. He took care of me. I had no friends in my class. Sana was my only friend, and she was a senior. He became my friend, and—.” She stopped as she looked at Thomas to gauge his reaction. He was patiently waiting for her to finish. She sighed before continuing.

“For the first time, I felt like I had a friend. I felt like I was not an outcast. My classmates did not like me since I was poor, so they made no efforts to be friends with me. They also used to bully me when he became my friend telling me how I did not deserve to be his friend. He was a popular guy because he was older than us and handsome as well. I did not think he had other intentions.” She turned around and laid on her back staring at the ceiling. She did not think she could keep looking at him anymore.

“One day, he told me to go and meet him in his house. I did not think any big of it. We had been friends for over a month when he invited me to his house saying that he wanted to learn sketching from me. I was good at drawings and he sucked at it. I thought why not! I would teach him how to sketch since he had been so nice to me. I went to his house. Everything was fine until he started acting weird. I was so stupid. I did not even know he had other intentions. He told me he wanted to sleep with me. I was so scared to hear that and tried to run away from him.” Thomas saw a tear leave her eye. It was so hard for her to share that with anyone.

Not even her mom knew that story. She had not even told Sana who she shared everything with. Why was she sharing it with Thomas then?

“There was no one inside his house to hear me yelling. He had made sure there was no one so he could do what he wanted with me. I was young and innocent. He—touched me down there.” Her chest rose and fell as she took quick breaths. She was finding it hard to breathe.

Thomas quickly turned her around and hugged her tightly. He started caressing her back to calm her down. He was so shocked to hear her say it.

He had no idea Olivia had been through such harsh times. His heart ached for her. He felt rage at the boy who had caused her so much pain and trauma.

“Did he…?” He asked her as he could not help himself. Only God knew how much he was trying to control his nerves at that moment. He would tear open the earth and find him so he could get revenge. He was afraid of her answer, but he wanted to know.

She sniffed as she clutched in his shirt by his waist. Her face was hidden in his chest just like how she wanted—no, she needed it. She needed him.

“No. I ran away after hitting his head with a vase. I did not know what I did and how I did it. All I know is that I wanted to save myself.” She said it making him relieved to no end. He pulled away a little to look at her face with a grin.

“That’s my girl.” He said with such adoration in his eyes that she forgot to breathe for a second. He tucked her hair behind her ear.

Did he even know what he had just said?

“Tell me you tore open his head at least.” He asked in all seriousness making her forget about his little comment. She could not help but chuckle at his remarks.

“I heard he was alive. But he did go to the hospital and had a few stitches.” She informed him in between the chuckle. He threw his head back and laughed.

“You have no idea how proud I am of you.” He caressed her cheeks while grinning at her. She had completely forgotten about what they were talking. All that mattered was that they were having a good time.

She got lost in his gaze as it slipped to her lips. Her heard went in a haywire noticing it.

His expressions had completely changed from a soft one to a serious one as he kept gazing at her lips for a longer time than a normal gaze would last.

Her heart beat crazily. She was still clutching his shirt and he was still holding her face.

Is he going to…? Could he…? Her head raced with the thoughts that scared her and excited her at the same time.