It is really dark here, I can't even see Glen clearly.

I knew it was Glen from the smell of his strong cologne. I am surprised that he didn't confront me before when we were still in the hospital. Maybe he couldn't bear having to explain to his colleagues again why he had locked up a patient.

"You're a bitch, you know that?" He says with rage.

"What?"

"Why are you still with him?" A car passing by illuminates his face, I see the crazed slit eye rage he has. "You even brought him here?"

Out of nowhere I don't feel as scared any more. "Should I have done what you told me to do?" I ask tauntingly.

He doesn't appreciate my tone though, in a flash, a punch lands on my left cheek. I am too startled to scream, not even when I fall to the ground from the impact.

"What is wrong with you Glenn?" I ask with shock.

"I am trying to get some sense into you?" He says with self righteousness which is borderline paranoid.

"Sense? Does beating me up make sense to you?" I ask.

It infuriates him that I can still talk back to him, he gives me another blow to the other cheek. My vision blurs with tears.

"Move on. Please." I say between sniffles from the pain and the tears.

"Shut up." He says menacingly. He takes a step forward; I ready myself for impact.

My attention is diverted when something falls to the ground somewhere nearby. I can't see what or who is there because of Glenn standing in front of me.

For a moment he is standing there, the next he stumbles to the side holding his jaw. He has been punched in the face.

I look in the direction of the punch and I see another side of Kystan I didn't know. An animalistic and vengeful side of him I am not sure I like too much. In the background, I hear police sirens getting closer.

Kystan charges at Glen and manages to give him another punch before the policemen arrive and separate them.

I sit there dumbfounded, startled by what just happened before me.

One of the policemen comes to ask me if I am fine. They push Kystan on the wall and handcuff him. I get up abruptly and run to them.

"Let him go." I yell.

The officer looks at me levelly. "Miss, he assaulted that man over there. He has to come with us."

I try to get the officer's hands off of Kystan, "He was helping me." I try to reason with him. "That jerk there was beating me up and he helped me." I say pointing at Glen with rage.

It's as though the officer notices my swollen face, he motions to his colleague to handcuff Glen too. "You should come with us too." He says to me and leads Kystan to the police car still in handcuffs.

It surprises me how he didn't say anything at all while he was being bound and taken to the car. I go in the same car as Kystan.

All my attention goes to Kystan, I am shocked by how he reacted but my need to protect him overpowers that.

"I am so sorry." I say tears flowing freely down my cheek. Right now, I don't care that I am crying.

Instead of acknowledging that, he checks out my cheek, "Does it hurt so much?" He asks.

I was too preoccupied to feel pain, I feel it then. "A bit." I lie. I don't want to worry him anymore.

"Miss," The police officer in the passenger seat calls. I wipe my tears away and look at him.

"Yes." I say turning my attention from Kystan for a bit, but I keep my hand on his arm, letting him know I am here.

"What is the relationship between these two men?" I notice that he has a notepad and pen.

"He is my boyfriend," I motion to Kystan, "And that douchebag you saw is my ex-husband." He nods and jots that down.

"Alright, the rest will be dealt with at the station." He concludes and closes the notepad.

"Okay."

The rest of the ride, I try to convince Kystan that I am okay. I can tell that he has relaxed but there is still some inkling of frustration.

Unfortunately, they take us to Charing Cross Police station and my dad is working there on a case. He usually works at New Scotland Yard as the Assistant Commissioner of the Police of London but this might be a special case I guess.

We walk into the station at 7:25 pm. My dad is still here.

Kystan and Glen are taken away through barred doors, leading to interrogation rooms.

I sit there awkwardly waiting. Beside me is a filthy, drunk man, who keeps staring at me to the point of discomfort. I feel unsafe despite being in a police station.

"Liza Murray." I am relieved when the police clerk calls me. Anything to get away from that man. I take the seat across from her but she doesn't look up once. "So, what happened?" She asks nonchalantly. She is bored, I bet she does this so often it has become bland over time. But right now I want her to care.

I don't dwell on her, I delve into the events and tell her everything as detailed as I can. At the end she is alert and attentive. I caught her attention after all.

"Gosh, I hate men like that." She says with revulsion. "Can't he get the hint since you aren't together anymore?" She says as she writes down my statement.

"I know right?" I say with frustration. This woman gets me for sure. "What will happen now?" I ask.

"Well, we will process the evidence, and afterwards, if you want to you can press charges or even get a restraining order." She leans across the table and whispers, "A piece of advice, the restraining order is better." She says and dismisses me.

I go back to the waiting area making sure to sit as far away from the other man as possible. They send him home not long afterwards.

A cameraman approaches me and takes photos of my injury for documentation and then leaves.

I sit there alone waiting for Kystan to be released. Suddenly, I hear my father's booming voice, from far down a hallway I hadn't even noticed before, calling my name.

He emerges, drawing the attention of all the people in the main area. "Lizzie." He calls me by my childhood name. He walks over, worry visible in his eyes.

"Dad." I say awkwardly.

"Who did this to you?" He asks while surveilling the swells on my cheeks.

I am about to tell him when Kystan emerges from the barred door. "Kystan." I yell. At this point, we are already the center of attention, so no need to stop.

He notices my dad and stops for a second before he composes himself and walks over. I hurry and hug him, thankful that he is alright.

My dad doesn't share my joy though, he pulls me away from Kystan. Obviously, seeing me with swollen cheeks and Kystan with bloody knuckles can only lead to a few conclusions, one of them being that he beat me up. "Stay away from my daughter." Dad says while glaring at Kystan.

I make my dad look at me, "It was Glen. Kystan can't do that." I say with certainty. My hand finds Kystan's and I hold it firmly.

"I wouldn't hurt Liza, ever, sir." He says.

My dad's anger shifts from Kystan, "Where is that good-for-nothing?" He asks Kystan.

"I think he is being interrogated." Kystan answers.

I suddenly remember that I did not ask Kystan for an update, "What did they say?"

"My lawyer talked to them, so I won't be facing charges."

Hearing about his lawyer reminds me of the court hearing tomorrow. "Won't this affect the hearing?" I am worried his chances of getting custody may be reduced.

"My lawyer said it's not likely but if they do bring it up, I should stick to the truth. He says it may win over the jury." He says and shrugs.

My dad doesn't like that me being assaulted will be exploited to win a case but he doesn't say anything. I tell dad the whole story and he helps us speed the bureaucracy up so we can go home.

Before leaving, he takes me to the side. "Take care, okay?" I can see traces of wrinkles on his forehead because of how worried he is, "I'll make sure Glen gets what he deserves." He says and wraps me in a bear hug. I wrap myself in the comfort of my dad's arms, and for a moment it is just like old times when it was just dad and his little girl. No crazy ex-husband had come along.

He let's go but stays at the entrance until Kystan and I are safely in a taxi heading home.

When the taxi drives off and my dad is no longer in sight, I turn to Kystan and ask him, "Can I stay at yours, tonight?" The possibility of sleepwalking tonight is too high and I'd rather not stay in an empty house alone. Among other reasons why I want to stay at his...

"Yeah. Definitely." He pulls me into a side hug and unconsciously draws circles on my back for the whole ride back to his house.

It finally hits me how this looks when the taxi driver drops us off. "Will the guys be okay with this?" My nervousness escalates the closer we get. It's not like we will be doing anything but it could easily be mistaken for that.

"It's alright. Relax." He holds my hand and squeezes it for reassurance.

I can hear Asher and Luca even from outside the house. I've never been this nervous about seeing them. Kystan opens the door and takes my hand again.

"Kystan, do you want pizza?" Asher asks from the living room. We head to the living room too.

Everything pauses for a moment when they see me. Ehm, this is not awkward at all. It only lasts a second before everything resumes. "Liza, do you want pizza?" Luca asks but the look he is giving me is so not about pizza.

"Yeah." I ignore any implications laced with the questions, I am hungry anyway.

"Me too." Kystan says beside me.

Asher looks at us critically before asking while laughing, "What's with the matching outfits?"

I look at Kystan waiting for him to answer because honestly I don't know. His cheeks tinge with a faint shade of pink. I know Asher and Luca will never let him live this down.

I laugh, "Jeez, you're making him shy." I say and run away from Kystan when I see the pointed look he gives me. Instead of chasing me, he goes to sit.

"What's with your face?" Luca asks instead and he also sees Kystan's hand despite how he was hiding it the whole time, "And your hand?"

"It's a long story." I say evasively.

"You can tell us as we wait for pizza. Hope you eat margherita pizza." He says

"I do." I answer and take a seat between Luca and Kystan on the three-seater.

I tell them the story with the help of Kystan until the very moment when we leave the station.

"Wow, it sounds like one of those movies where the psycho ex-husband kills his ex-wife and throws her in a river." I give him that kind of look that says 'seriously?' He corrects himself, "minus the killing or throwing the body in a river, of course."

I catch Asher rolling his eyes, at least someone understands me. "What will you do about it?" Asher asks.

"I think I'll get a restraining order." I say with uncertainty, "If I press charges he won't spend too long in jail, and then he'd be back to haunt me." I say it like the horror it is.

"Actually, his medical license is likely to be terminated." Asher interjects. Obviously, among all of us he knows more about this since he is studying law. "Were you ever his patient?"

"Yes, for three years." I answer.

"Yup. It definitely will." I don't know what to say. I hate him a lot but I don't necessarily want him to lose his job because if there is one thing he actually loved it was his job, before he went cuckoo that is.

"That's tough." I say. The doorbell rings. It is the pizza. "Finally." I say.

Kystan goes to get it and he also pays. The scent of the bread and the cheese wafts to my nose making me crave the pizza more.

Kystan places three boxes on the coffee table, and goes to the kitchen, "Do you want any drinks?"

Asher asks for coke, Luca asks for milk, that's a weird choice, and I ask for a sprite. Kystan comes back and hands us all our drinks and we dig in.

Just to spite Kystan, I resume the topic of pizza versus burgers. Luca is on my side but Asher is leaning towards Kystan's side.

After eating, I follow Luca into the living room but Kystan has other plans. "Let's go." He says while tugging at my sleeve softly. I look at him quizzically.

"Where?" Beside me Luca chuckles.

"Upstairs." Finally it dawns on me.

"Oh." I get up and follow him. Behind me, Luca bursts into gales of laughter, idiot.

This is the first time I get to see Kystan's room. I enter gingerly, slowly absorbing everything I see. At the center of the room is a large fluffy bed almost like a little cloud. Near the window is a small desk with Kystan's laptop and books. I am surprised by how clean the room is. Not even one cloth is sticking out of his double-door closet near the door. The greyish hue of his room lends it even more character. It's so like him. Best of all, I can smell his scent all around the room.

"Uhm, make yourself comfortable." He pulls a small first aid kit from the bottom drawer of the desk.

"Okay." I say, "Your room looks great." I take a seat on the bed.

"Thanks." He comes to sit beside me on the bed. He has distilled water and cleaning wipes for the wounds.

"I prefer to bathe first." I say and get up. "Do you have extra towels? Toothbrushes?" I ask as I open the door to the bathroom.

"In the cabinet under the sink." He says and proceeds to clean his busted knuckles.

I enter the bathroom and close the door, I remember that I should call Cynthia or else she will kill me.

"Hello." Cynthia answers groggily.

"Hi Cycy." I answer. "So, I won't come to work tomorrow."

She sounds more alert, "Why? What happened?" she asks.

"I am not feeling well. I've had a horrible night." I say.

"I ma sorry to hear that." She sounds worried. "Well, get well soon."

"Ok. Thanks for understanding." I say and hang up.

I proceed to enter the bathroom and take a quick shower.

When I get out, I notice a pile of neatly folded clothes on the sink, there is a note on top, it says, 'These are for you'.

Kystan gave me a t-shirt and shorts and I see a black boxer tacked underneath all of it. I pick it up and another note falls out, 'It is new'. He had to say that because I was dubious about them at first.

I dress quickly and then dry my hair. I decide to wash the one pair of panties I have and I hang them as far from sight as I can.

I'll get them tomorrow.

I return to the bed and let Kystan put some ointment on my cheeks so they don't keep on hurting as much.

"You know you aren't getting this t-shirt back, right?" I say when he finishes up.

He simply laughs and shakes his head with amusement. He gets up and keeps the first aid materials away. "Let me take a shower too. Wait for me." He says and I nod. He removes his t-shirt on his way to the bathroom giving me a good view of his abs before he closes the door to the bathroom.

I crawl into the sheets to wait for him there. It actually surprises me that this is the first time I see his bedroom. We've been together for almost two months now, surely I should have seen it before?

But anyways, whatever, I guess this is what taking it slow is, I actually like it, and I like his bedroom too. I sink deeper into the sheets and wrap myself up enjoying the warmth of his sheets.

He comes back from the bathroom, shirtless and gets into the sheets beside me.

I scoot closer to him and hug his waist. He unfolds his arm from his side and anchors it under my head making sure not to incite any pain in my cheek.

"Are you nervous about tomorrow?"

"Yeah." He looks at me, "It's scary standing before people who will be deciding your fate." He says.

"Don't worry. You'll be okay." I say. "Besides, I'll be there with you."

He gets up quickly, he accidentally touches the swollen parts of my left cheek and the pain there increases. "I am sorry." He says apologetically.

"It'll pass." It takes a few moments before it subsides. "I am fine now."

He doesn't look convinced but he continues with what he was going to say, "Shouldn't you rest tomorrow?"

"I've been looking forward to being there all week, I can't just not go." I say with conviction.

"Are you sure?" He asks and I nod. "It'll be nice having you there, actually." He says and smiles.

"That's more like it." I gingerly kiss him and then lay my head back down. "Now let's rest, you need to be crisp and well rested tomorrow."

He puts his arm under my head again and we cuddle until I eventually fall asleep.

Leave me alone. The sentence keeps repeating in my head. I can't see anything at the moment, but I am surrounded by the strong scent of medicine similar to that in hospitals.

Suddenly, I see a light go on, and it stings my eyes. I try to rub them but my hands are stuck on my sides. I adjust quickly though and come face to face with Glenn. He is wearing his white robe and gloves. He looks at me with disgust.

"You can't run away from me now." He says and laughs hysterically. He steps forward and punches me once in the face. He steps back and looks at me as I try to contain the pain surging through my head. He punches me again.

My brain can only think of one phrase, leave me alone. In a flash, another punch lands on my stomach. I don't know why, I can't seem to defend myself.

I start shouting, 'Leave me alone'.

Glen laughs and lunges for me again.

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