Puppets on a string

PROMISE

The marks I saw on his neck made my blood boil in rage.

" Who the hell did this to you Sam?" I asked with tears in my eyes.

His neck and shoulder was filled with brown bruises and scratches. His left shoulder was also swollen a little bit. It was clear that he was beaten up by someone.

I quickly searched for other bruises on his body and found some of them at the back of his hand.

"I am fine baby. I just fell from stairs" He said with a fake laugh.

"Don't you dare lie to me Samuel. I am not a kid. I know that these are not the kind of bruises that you get by falling. Tell me what the hell happened?" I yelled at him. He sighed and looked at me fisrt before pulling me closer. He hid his head in the crook of my neck and started speaking.

"I told you about the argument I had with my father. After that, he got really drunk and started beating me up" He said still hugging me making more tears fall from my eyes. How can a man beat up his own son like this?

I didn't know what to say? So, I just did one thing that came to my mind. I pulled him more closer to me and gave him a more tight hug rubbing his back. I just couldn't control my tears. He heard my sobs and pulled away a little. He cupped my cheeks and wiped my tears away.

"Hey, hey. Look here, I am absolutely fine. These are just a few scratches." He said smiling.

"These are not just scratches Sam. These are some deep wounds as if he hit you with a belt. Why the f*ck will your own father do it? Is it the first time he did something like this" I asked angrily to him.

"I will tell you everything. Let's go out somewhere. I want to spend the whole day with you" He said and I nodded my head in a yes. I can leave 100 classes if it concerns Samuel.

Then we both walked to the beach and sat there in silence. He sat behind me while I sat between his legs with my back pressed to his chest. After a few minutes, he spoke.

"I don't get along with my dad much. He is a very angry person. He drinks sometimes, but whenever he is drunk, you would not want to go near him. He has beaten me up a few times before too. But it was never this bad. That day after the argument I had with my father, he got really drunk and took out all his anger on me" He said shrugging his shoulder. How can he be this calm after talking about something like this?

I slowly turned around to see his face, but his expressions were blank.

"Why would he beat you up? You are his own son" I asked him trying to keep my voice stable

"Because I am an unwanted child. You know that I am the youngest one in the family. My parents only wanted 2 kids. After my sister and brother were born, my parents were fine. Then suddenly, I was concieved and my mother refused to abort me. My father was not happy with her decision. So, he started seeing someone else while still being married to my mom." He explained making my heart stop for a second. His father cheated on his mother when she was pregnant with him? What kind of man do this to his pregnant wife?

"Yes, my dad has a mistress and my mom knows about it. He even has 2 kids from his mistress" He continued with a painful smile on his face. How is he this strong?

"Why didn't your mother ask for a divorce?"I asked him.

"She loves him too much Ash. She says that he is stuck with his mistress because of the kids. She says that my dad loves her only. My dad also refused to divorce her too. He sends money to his mistress every month and stays with us. Its not my decision to make. Its her choice and I respect her decision" He answered me.

" And what about the physical abuse? He beats you up and your mother doesn't say anything?" I asked again

"She doesn't care Ash. She also sometimes blame me for all the complications in my family. She ignores it everytime he raises his hands on me. She would just come at night to apply the medicine on my wounds. Even my siblings don't like me. I am just an unwanted member of my family. My parents hate me. Heck, sometimes they don't even give me food" As soon as the last words left his mouth, tears made their way down my face again. This guy has been through a lot of pain in his entire life and is still able to keep a smile on hie face. I just fell in love with this angel of a man more. He is one of the strongest people I have ever met and I feel really proud of him. So, I just did one thing that came to my mind. I pulled him and slammed my lips on his kissing him like there is no tomorrow. It took him a second before he started kissing me back. After few minutes I pulled back a little.

"I love you Sam. Always remember that. You don't deserve any of the hate they give to you. You deserve only happiness and I will give my 100% in this relationship to make sure you get all the love you deserve." I said pulling him in a hug.

"I know baby. I love you too. You are the only person I trust in this world." He said hugging me back.

"What happened to your cellphone?" I asked

"My dad threw it on the wall, breaking it in pieces. Don't worry, I have already ordered a new one. It will come in a day or two" He shrugged making me sigh. I just want him to have all the happiness and I will make sure that he get it.

"Ash, Can you promise me something?" He asked after a few seconds.

"What promise ?" I asked confused not breaking the hug.

He sighed pulling away from the hug and held both of hands in his.

"Promise me that no matter what happens, you will never let me go. Maybe I will shout at you in future, maybe hurt you a little, but promise me that you will never leave my side and love me the same way you love me now. Maybe we will fight, but promise that you will never breakup with me. I have noone other than you Ash. You are the only one who cares for me selflessly. I am not the perfect guy you will find. I also have anger issues. Promise me that you will stay by my side and help me get out of the dark side of my life" He said looking me straight in my eyes. His eyes held so much pain, and emotions that I couldn't help but nodded my head in yes.

"I promise you baby. I will always love you and stick by your side forever" I said and sealed my promise with a kiss on his lips.

"I love you baby" He said and pulled me again for a kiss.

We spent the whole day sitting on beach just holding each other stealing a few kisses in between. I can't believe that this beautiful soul is abused in his own home. How can parents be this cruel?

The love and respect I have for this amazing man has been increased alot.

Next Day

I was busy whole day in one of my project work and was not able to meet Samuel. I was sitting whole day in front of a burner in chemistry lab with a boiling tube over it with alot of chemicals inside them, waiting for it to reach a certain temperature and then cool it down to take out a certain product. I had already messed it up a couple of times before. I was really tired and feeling hot. For f*ck sake, I just promised Sam to stay by his side and here I was stuck in a chemistry lab with a hot burner in front of me.

It was almost 3p.m when I was finally done with my experiment. I sighed and went out of the lab just to see Samuel standing there.

"Hey baby" I said pulled as me closer in his arms.

"Hey" He said as I snuggled more in his chest.

" How long have you been standing here?" I asked him

"Just came a few minutes ago. Let's go and eat something. You haven't eaten since morning " He said and pulled me in the cafetaria.

After we had eaten, we made our way to the third floor and found ourselves an empty classroom. As I made my way to the seat, I didn't feel Samuel following me back. I turned back around to see Samuel locking the door. He turned around when he was done with a teasing smirk on his face. He slowly made his way towards me making me blush.

"I missed you today" He said and kissed me.