Chapter four: Fractures
1177 Words
The nightmare was different this time. It wasn’t about the streets or the blood he'd spilled—it was her. Her voice, soft and broken, whispering *“Why did you do that to me?”* over and over, until the guilt wrapped around his chest like a noose.
Zion jerked awake, heart thudding in the dark. Sweat clung to his skin. He ran a hand down his face, sighing. *Why the hell was she still haunting him?*
It had been two years. Two whole years since he touched her when he shouldn’t have. Two years since she ran and left behind a silence louder than any scream.
And now, she was here. Sleeping under his roof.
Cooking his meals and cleaning his house..They should have moved on. But the silence was too heavy and he found it so damn hard to move on
He swung his legs off the bed and made his way to the kitchen, bare-chested in sweatpants. But the scene that met him there stopped him cold.
Alzira Wearing *his shirt*—just his shirt. Standing barefoot at the stove, humming quietly, her curls messy, legs on full display. Like she belonged here. Like she wasn’t the same girl who once looked at him with fear and disgust.
His jaw clenched. “You look real damn comfortable for a guest.”
She jumped, startled, then glanced back. Her eyes landed on his bare chest and she gulped down. He looked so damn good and that, she couldn't deny. "I didn't have something else to wear so I helped myself to this."
“That ain’t my problem.”
Alzira turned fully, the light casting shadows on her cheekbones. “Why are you always angry? I didn’t ask to be here.”
He moved closer. “But you *are* here. Walking around in my shirt like you own the place. What, tryna seduce me into forgetting what happened?”
Her eyes hardened. “Don’t you dare.”
Zion’s temper flared. “Then stop acting like nothing happened. Stop walking around like you didn’t run off and leave all this mess behind.”
“You mean the mess you caused?” she fired back. “You were drunk, Zion! I said *no*, and you didn’t listen!”
Silence fell. A long, stretching silence that choked the air.
Zion looked away first. His hands curled into fists at his sides. “I know what I did.”
Alzira stepped forward, voice low and trembling. “Then stop punishing me for it. Stop acting like you hate me for what *you* did.”
He didn’t think. His hand shot out, grabbing her wrist as she tried to walk past him. She gasped, their bodies too close now. Her breath hitched as his gaze dropped to her lips, then back to her eyes.
The air between them sizzled—thick with rage, guilt, want.
“Zion,” she whispered.
All he saw was the flicker of pain in Alzira’s eyes before she disappeared into the kitchen.
He hated that it affected him. Hated that she was still under his skin. That the sound of her cleaning, the scent of her on his shirt, the way she walked around like she was trying to hold herself together—*it all messed with him.*
Later that evening, she barely spoke. Didn’t meet his eyes. Didn’t eat.
Zion watched her across the table. “You good?”
She nodded quickly. “Just tired.”
He didn’t believe her. But he also didn’t push. He never had the right to ask her how she felt. Not really.
---
He let go like her skin burned him. “Go wear something else.”
She turned without another word, and he stared after her, pulse racing.
---
*Later*
Alzira was wiping down the living room table when the doorbell rang. She heard Zion’s heavy footsteps and the familiar rumble of his voice as he opened the door.
Then came *her* voice. Soft, flirtatious. Feminine laughter. High heels clicking against his floor.
Alzira froze.
She peeked through the hallway and saw a tall, stunning woman in a red dress drape her arms around Zion’s neck like she’d done it a hundred times. Zion didn’t move away. He even smirked a little.
Something in Alzira twisted. It wasn’t rage. It was *ache*. Pure, stupid ache.
She turned and walked briskly to the kitchen, hands shaking as she snatched plates from the counter harder than necessary. A glass nearly slipped from her fingers. Her throat tightened.
Why did she care?
She didn’t want him. Not after what he did. Not after the pain. But her body remembered the way he used to look at her—before everything. And seeing him smile at someone else—someone who *wasn’t haunted*—cut deeper than she expected.
---
He walked into the kitchen his hands tucked into his pockets. She sensed his perfume, and anger brewed more in her chest. Did he come to see her vulnerable? Did he come to mock her?
"Alzira, Could you make something for my guest and get her some water?" He said his voice low as he stood by the door way.
"Zion". She called out ,her face stern and her face flushed.
He stared at her and a flicker of something passed through her eyes . Was she jealous? It excited him. But he shouldn't care. She never wanted him anyways.
" That i asked you for help or that I'm here in your house doesn't turn me into a slave." She said her voice pitched.
His face squeezed.
"We had an agreement. Look I don't want us going back and forth with this s**t. You live here, You work for me." He said ,his face stern and emotionless.
" Really Zion?" She said surprised at how he treated her
" We'll be waiting, zira" He said and walked out.
She stomped her feet on the tiles and pouted angrily.
How dare him treat her like this?
_____
" Zion baby, you didn't tell me you had a new pet." Carmen said ,her face into a wide smile." c'mon girl, what's the name?" She asked as she sipped from the water that alzira served.
Alzira stood staring at Zion, to defend her, to talk for her, but instead he kept shut. He looked away and acted like he didn't just hear the slut refer to her as a pet.
" C'mon go ahead, tell me girl". Carmen urged, the mocking smile still spread across her bitchy face.
" Carmen, She's a friend." He finally said, his eyes fixed on Carmen. A friend? Alzira stared at him in bewilderment.
" Okay, so she doesn't talk then? She seems like her tongue's been tied." Carmen said rolling her eyes
Alzira picked up the water she brought and poured it on Carmen's face.
" Oh my God!"
" Alzira"!!!
Zion and Carmen both exclaimed.
" You better f*****g mind your damn business when next you come around here, bitch.". Alzira added and stormed out.
- Writer
