An Unwanted Guest
1034 Words
Chapter 14: An Unwanted Guest.
Aria's POV.
I'd never been through this much torture in my entire life.
I've been punching this dummy for at least 15 minutes now. My wrist no longer felt like it belonged to me. Pain buzzed beneath my skin, sharp at first, then dissolving into a sick, vibrating numbness that crept up my arms. Every strike sent a dull shock through my joints, like my bones
My joints just moved in simple rhythm, hitting the dummy repeatedly. I looked to Damon. His face was expressionless. His aura was cold. I couldn't understand why this was so necessary.
The sun was setting now and my arms were tiring more and more as the minutes went by.My muscles trembled, small involuntary shakes betraying me. I wanted to stop. I needed to stop.
But I did not.
Stopping meant failure. I dared not stop or I'd receive another tongue lashing from him.
So I kept going.
I looked at him, my arms still continuing, waiting, practically pleading with my eyes for an end to the pain and suffering.
He said nothing, only staring at my work as I continued to punch the dummy.
I punched till I could punch no more. He only continued to stare.
This was not the Damon I had met when I first came here. That Damon had been restless, tense, hovering, constantly checking on me. This Damon was still. Silent. Untouchable. It felt like he had shut something off.
Sweat ran down my face and into my eyes, blurring my vision. My heartbeat thudded painfully in my ears. He did not acknowledge any of it.
Just cold. He didn't look like he even minutely thought about how much pain I could be going through, especially as I hadn't done this before. My eyes dropped in disappointment, my heart aching from the realization that Damon no longer cared.
I continued to punch, waiting for his order. There was none.
Damon's POV.
I'm pretty sure she thought I was nuts. Almost certain she thought I had lost whatever humanity I had left.
My heart ached as I stood there watching her. Her arms were moving in steady motion, even as beads of sweat soaked her clothes and her hair. Her hair was damp and matted, and her clothes soaking, but her arms did not stop moving.
Her body was betraying her.
That was what I wanted. The simple, calm obedience that yielded results. If I was not harsh, then I'd lose the chance to actually make her able to defend herself, and there I would have failed completely.
My heart continued to ache, the pain radiating outward towards my ribs. I pushed on, keeping my face motionless and just watching her.
Stop her.
The voice inside me was frantic now. Loud. She has had enough.
I ignored it, standing there and waiting for just the right time to say stop.
I watched her eyes dim just slightly, like a candle struggling in a draft. Her breath dragged, her body slowing down in agony. Her clothes clung to her skin, her stance wobbly.
That was my limit.
I opened my mouth to stop the exercise.
“You shouldn't be doing that to her, she looks like she's in a lot of pain.” I turned to the direction of the voice, coming from inside the house and onto the field. I rolled my eyes beside myself.
Reece. Stubborn, stubborn Reece. He'd never ever learned to stay within his own matters.
“What are you doing here, Reece?” I asked, my tone clipped.
“Well, Kyle told me we were teaching Aria here our ways now, and I came to find out if that's true.” I nodded, eyeing him with contempt.
He didn't need to do this, he could always go meet her separately. My stare hardened. He did not belong here. This moment was not his to interrupt.
He eyed me just as I eyed him, and then walked towards her, standing before her and the dummy.
“Aria, stop.” She put her hands down, falling languidly to the ground. She hit the ground with a broken sound, a groan dragged from her throat as her body twitched, unable to settle because everything hurt at once.
Guilt hit me like a blow.
“Do you see what you have done to her?” Reece looked at me in feigned indignation. He didn't really care about the pain Aria felt, he just needed to build trust with her by making me look and seem evil.
“She is in pain. You could have stopped that while you still could.” My irritation burned hot in my chest.
“Well, as far as I know, I'm the one who's in charge of this training, and whatever we do here, you do not have a say in, correct?” I raised my eyebrows at the question, and he just stared at me.
“So what? You enjoy this pain she's feeling, and you claim to love her. How disappointing.” He gave me the same look of contempt I'd given him a bit before, making sure Aria was still watching.
I was holding back. He didn't know how much.
He stretched a hand out to her and she took it, trying to get up when I just couldn't take it anymore.
I snapped.
Reece had been pushing the limits for quite a while now. It was high time he got what was coming to him. I lunged at him and began to punch.
My fist collided with his arm as he blocked, the impact reverberating up my bones. I pulled back and punched again, aiming for the side of his face. He dodged, throwing his own half assed punch towards me.
I barely dodged before he tackled me and we crashed into the grass, rolling, fists flying, legs tangling as anger and frustration bled into violence.
“Stop.”
Her voice cut through everything.
Instantly, my body locked. My breath caught. The rage drained from me, shame taking its place.
It's what she did to me. I couldn't continue once I'd heard her voice.
I pulled back. I had to.
- Writer
