I couldn't breathe.
Not because of the cold.
Not because Lila was still pinning me into the snow.
Because my mind refused to accept what she'd just said.
I'm not afraid to break your arm.
The words echoed over and over again, refusing to leave.
Flash after flash ripped through my head.
The warehouse.
Her smile.
The videotape.
If she ever have to physically disable you to keep me alive, she would.
Except, it wasn't to keep me alive.
It was to control my autonomy itself.
That's all it was and all it had been…control.
Back then I never took it serious enough.
But no one could tell me I was supposed to put a bullet in her head so she wouldn't harm me, because I was just that foolish.
Oh God, Lila.
My stomach twisted.
Slowly…
Painfully…
I realized she hadn't been joking.
Not then.
Not now.
This was the woman I loved.
The woman who claimed she loved me.
This hadn't been the first scenario where I genuinely felt scared rather than appreciated.
