A new type of love

Chapter Two

Five years later

Jasmine Patel carefully lowered her body in a warm strawberry-scented bath, and moaned her pleasure as the water engulfed her and warmed her skin. She had done well today, she thought, as she played with the bubbles.She had finished writing her weekly celebrity column for Bloom magazine and had even booked a good number of interviews for the following weeks. Most of her contacts had come through for her and had arranged popular celebrities for her. She had even attended their daily morning meetings with her new ideas, which was something she usually avoided, and had even applied for a new position that had suddenly appeared on their job board . She was finally starting to change herself after all this time.

Her feisty employer, Caroline Shanning, had grilled her heavily about her current columns ;( probably trying to trip her up as usual) but she had confidently explained the fundamentals of her articles, the meaning of certain aspects and which target market she was aiming at. Her boss had visibly relaxed and had winked at her. She knew Caroline was always trying to help her improve her standard of work, so she never took any of her tests personally. She had been the only one to give her a chance when she had been fresh out of college.Jasmine was determined to work hard for her. She owed her a lot.

Shortly after that, a small disaster had followed when her good friend had presented her with yet another birthday gift. This time it had been tickets to an indoor concert tonight, for some new musician she didn't know about. She never listened to current music. As usual, she had declined and had opted to stay at home instead. Elsie Jones had been understandably upset and had accused her of being a workaholic, walking off in a frustrated huff. Jasmine let out an involuntary chuckle as she remembered her friend’s horrified face when she had once again explained to her that her birthday wasn't very important to her. She sobered up quickly as she realised that her past would always affect her present, even after she escaped her prison within an inch of her life.

Trying to start over was so hard…

It had been five years and she was still struggling to adjust to her freedom. At the back of her mind, she was always worried about not setting her ex-husband off. Trying to lie low and not show him that she was actually happy and content without him. So she had stayed away from parties,had stayed away from men, basically keeping herself as small as possible. At some point, she had even told herself having friends was also dangerous, but Elsie had stubbornly stood by her side and had helped her see the world again . It was a miracle itself that he had let her go so easily, almost without much of a fight. She had escaped and didn't know how she had gained the strength, but thanked the heavens that she had left Bill.

He would have killed her sooner or later and through therapy she had finally realised it. In the beginning, a sense of guilt had consumed her to the point of madness, but she was finally letting go now. A cold shiver ran across her skin despite the warmth of the bath. Her mind then struggled back to the present and she gave herself a viscous mental shake and tried to scrub off the unpleasant feelings that lingered after every time Bill intruded on her thoughts.

Elsie was right, she needed to stop dwelling in the past, she had her freedom now and it was about time she lived her life again without worrying about that monster. She had promised her adoptive parents that she would try to change and she definitely would.

Jasmine quickly got out of the tub and wrapped herself up with a huge green fluffy towel and rushed to the lounge. She then glanced at the clock on her wall and realised she still had time. She quickly picked up her phone from her coffee table and called Elsie. After a few rings, her friend answered with a breathless, excited voice.

” I’m sorry Elsa, I could still come with you if you want…. Do you still have my ticket?” she said in a rushed voice.

“Of course, honey, Welcome to the world of living! …. I will be there to pick you up in an hour…. Now I have to get dressed…. Wear something sexy okay.” She laughed and dropped the call.

Jasmine stared at the phone shocked and sighed.“Something Sexy?” she asked out loud.

The only sexiest outfit she could think of was the one she had got from Elsie on their last birthday argument. She rushed to her bedroom and opened the wardrobe. On top of the various shoe boxes was a big, pretty, pink gift box with a black silk ribbon. She took the box out,a little anxious, and laid it on the bed. She unlaced it and stared at the long red silk dress that lay in the box. The dress was quite revealing. It was embraced with gold chains that held it together at the sides, exposing quite a bit of her skin.

She stared at her body in the full-length mirror, a little hesitant. Her hand momentarily gripped her towel and she let it drop to the carpeted floor with a muted thud.Her head tilted to the side as she studied the faded marks and slowly caressed her body, tracing the scars from her past. She smiled sadly as she realised she had gained more curves since then. She looked at the soft swell of her full breasts and liked the way her toffee-coloured skin shined in the low lights. Her skin was finally clearing, she could barely see those stains now. She glanced at the numerous fadded moon-shaped scars on her left thigh and shivered as she remembered how she had received them. She chewed her lips, anxious and assured herself that no one would notice them.

Filled with a renewed sense of confidence, she moisturised her skin with vitamin oil and put on some light makeup. She wore red lace briefs and realised that she couldn’t wear a bra with the dress. She grimaced and decided she needed an extra boost of courage.She went into the kitchen, took out a crystal glass and mixed herself a vodka and cranberry. She took several sips whilst walking back to her room and placed the drink on her white dressing table. With a deep calming breath, she took the dress from the bed and examined it one last time. With a small smile, she slipped the dress on, adjusted the little chains and paired it with beaded gold sandals and wore a matching gold bracelet and clutch purse from her neatly organised accessory drawer. She straightened her long dark hair and put the final touches on her makeup and looked at the final result in awe. She didn’t look like her usual self, she looked almost sensual. The red lipstick she had applied made her lips fuller, her hair shined brightly in the low lights. The dress clung to her every curve and flared away from her long legs, almost as if it had been painted on, the chains twinkling as she moved. Her eyes seemed wider and a renewed sense of awe slowly filled her. Maybe she could do this, she could be normal again. Hope finally filled her for the first time in years and she softly smiled at her reflection ,her hand hovering as she tried not touch her hair.

Just then, the doorbell rang and she heard an impatient banging on her door. She rolled her eyes in amusement, finished off her drink and grabbed her purse. She walked to the door and opened it with a sweet giggle and gave Elsie a beaming smile. Her friend screamed in excitement and gave her a warm hug.