From days without end, they metamorphosed into one week. No amount of work was enough to bury Zoey within it, but as she well knew, the scrutiny of Lily only sharpened. Silent chaos, suspicion or repudiation, got learned, but clearly, Lily had grown far more sour and much less forgiving.
"Zoey, the tea is cold. Do it again," Lily told her, throwing a rather expensive porcelain cup onto the floor.
As it breaks into a million pieces, Zoey winced. "I'm sorry, Miss Lily," she said as she went down on her knees to collect the shards.
"So you're that useless?" said Lily with her arms folded. She beamed when Zoey merely shrugged her off and continued working.
Moreover, Zoey gritted her teeth under the dragon between his emotional burdens and the awful unbreakable silence.
Broken.
"This afternoon however it furthers dusting in the Sinclair library; Alex entered without a sound. She froze, stunned with her heart galloping into her throat with an approach slow and deliberate of him toward her: "You're working too hard," was all Alex said, gently, before adding in that unmistakably tender voice.
"That more or less is what I am meant to be here for," Zoey responded, not even bothering to glance at him as she continued dusting the shelves.
"You don't need to pretend with me," Alex said quietly. "You are more than just a maid, Zoey; you-"
"Stop," Zoey interrupted, her voice shaking as she turned to face him for the very first time. "Don't say things you might regret. Please, Mr. Alex."
Frowning, he remarked, "It's Alex. Just Alex. Why can't you let me help you?"
"Because you can't!" yelled Zoey, shaking as she shouted. "I'm just a girl who works here. And you're—"
"I'm a man who knows what he wants," Alex spoke with conviction, taking one step closer to her. "You don't deserve this life, Zoey. I will-"
At that instant, a creaking door opened and froze both of them in space. Lily's voice boomed throughout the hall.
"Alex? Are you in here?"
Zoey temporarily impelled by panic drawing back while Alex stopped, his jaw tightening. "We'll continue this later," he muttered as he turned away.
Moments later, Lily was coming in, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at Zoey before fastening on Alex. "There you are. What are you doing here?"
"Just checking on the library," Alex was saying, voice smooth yet taut.
Lily's eyes flitted back and forth between them, her suspicions igniting. "Isn't Zoey meant to be in the kitchen? You shouldn't be shirking your responsibilities," she snapped at Zoey.
"I'll get back to work," said Zoey quickly, eyes cast to the ground as her quiet exit from the room.
A Dangerous Plea
That night, Zoey lay restless on her tiny bed. Her thoughts spiraled in a dizzying whirl, almost feeling crazy. "You don't deserve this life" echoed continuously in her mind in Alex's voice.
It was then that a gentle knock on her door made her spring bolt upright with her heart racing and pounding inside her chest. "Who is it?" she whispered. "Open the door," Alex's voice was quiet and urgent.
Finally, after a really long pause, Zoey rose to open it. Alex stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, the casual dress and his bland appearance giving him almost a tangibly vivid aura of humanity.
"I'm sorry, but this isn't something that can go on anymore," Zoey stammered a little. "If Lily finds out...
"I don't care about Lily!" Alex spat vehemently. "Or anyone else for that matter. Zoey, you weren't meant for that kind of life, bondage or otherwise. Come with me. I will help you Escapists. Let's get out of this place and start fresh.
Zoey stared at him with incredulity. "Leave? I can't. I have nowhere to go.
"Then come with me," Alex urged, very genuine sounding. I will provide for you."
Tears well up in Zoey's eyes. "You don't understand. People like me . . . she sees it as a happily ever after."
"Zoey-".
"Please, Alex," she interrupted, shaking her head. "Don't make this even more difficult. You are engaged to Lily. She'll ruin me if she finds out."
He looked at her helplessly, expression pained. "I don't care about the engagement. It's not real. You're the one I-."
A loud knock on the door halts both of them.
"Zoey?" came the sharp, icy voice of Lily. "You talking to anybody?"
"Zoey, you have to hide. Now!" Alex tenses, and Zoey looks at him in panic, "You need to hide. Now!"
Alex hesitantly slipped into the small closet as Zoey opened the door.
Lily stood there, arms crossed, a smirk playing on her lips. "You are being very noisy this evening, aren't you?"
"I was just... cleaning up," lied Zoey, flashing a smile again.
Lily came into the room, and her gaze swept across the space as though searching for something or someone in particular: "You're hiding something, aren't you?"
"Definitely not, Miss Lily," Zoey replied flatly at once.
"You'd better be ready bright and early tomorrow because you're coming along to town with me again." Lily snorted; she did not take it up further.
"Yes, Miss Lily."
Before her footsteps trailed off into the distance, one last gleam of suspicion lit up Lily's face.
And then came Alex from the closet-all wrapped in an angry cloud. "You can't be living like this, Zoey."
She shook her head while drying the tears from her cheeks. "I don't choose to." "Choice is always there," said Alex softly, tucking a back strand of hair behind her ears. Their eyes met for just a moment but the air was thick, with much said but not loud enough. But she shifted her gaze. "I advise you to go before somebody else sees you," said Ella. Alex stained over but nodded finally. "Will see you tomorrow." Using her arm for support, Zoey fell on her bed when Alex slipped out into the night. He knew all too well; so did she; it would never end well. But there was most of her that kept hoping things would somehow turn out differently.