Safe & Sound

3

As soon as the sun rose, Amena was up. The room filled with a gentle warm glow from the rising sun.

She waited for Cyfrin to come barging in just like her father but he never did, and after some time, she let herself fall back into a comfortable sleep.

The second time she woke up, it was with a start. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she was sweating. She was going to be in so much trouble for not making her dad breakfast.

She sobbed, muffling the sound with her hand. There was only one time she had not been awake on time, and he made sure she would never forget it. Her ribs had been cracked from where he had kicked her. She had bruises everywhere. She was certain that he had also broke her wrist because of the way it had swelled, but she never knew for sure.

It took weeks to heal, maybe even months. She did not want to go through that again.

She tried to suck in deep breaths, squeezing her fists tightly together so her nails dug into her skin. Her cheek ached, and her face felt swollen.

Cyfrin knocked on the door, but she wasn't able to speak. He came right over to her when he noticed her panicked state.

"Amena," he whispered. There was something about his deep voice that soothed her. He reached for her hand, gently unclenching her fingers. "You're hurting yourself." He ran his thumb along the blood from the broken skin, wiping it away.

"I thought-" she gasped.

"I know," he said. "You're okay here."

He sat with her. She focused on the feeling of his thumbs running soothing circles along her hands until she felt okay enough to pull away.

"There's breakfast for you in the kitchen. You can eat whatever you like. You have access to the whole house including the garden," Cyfrin said.

"Outside?" she asked quietly.

"Yes," he confirmed. "There are car keys in the drawer next to the garage door if you need to go somewhere. You should put a little bit of ice on that bruise."

She nodded, unable to wrap her head around the idea that Cyfrin would actually let her do whatever she wanted. She was waiting for him to change. There had to be a trick.

He pulled a phone from his suit pocket, offering it to her.

"In case you need me while I'm at work."

"I won't know how to use this," she whispered.

He pushed the power button, swiping up on the screen. He explained everything he was doing.

"There's the icon with the phone, you can tap that if you need to call me."

Cyfrin's name was the only name under the contacts. He tapped it to show her how it went through to his personal phone.

"But if you just want to type something, you can push the chat bubble and type something out."

He handed the phone over to her.

"You can call or text me at any point today for any reason, Amena. I don't mind."

She watched his tall form leave the room. He looked nice in a suit today.

She shook the silly thought away. She took in a shuddering breath, before going over to the bathroom to shower.

The shower was incredible. It looked like a waterfall, and the new soap made her hair and skin feel so soft.

After that, she ventured out of the bedroom, exploring the large house.

It was very clean and cozy. The sun was bright and warmed every space.

She found the kitchen. It was the largest kitchen she had ever seen, with the fanciest appliances. 

Cyfrin had made her breakfast like he had said. He had even put a nice note on top of the covered plate. This time, she did eat the bacon and eggs he had left for her, and they were delicious. She didn't get more than a few bites in before she was full, but she left the plate out to come back to later.

The kitchen had a sliding door that led out to a covered sitting area, and then some steps down into the yard. There was a pool, and lots of green space.

The fresh air was amazing. She took a seat at the table, soaking in the morning air.

She spent the rest of the day wandering the house before it got close to the time her father typically came home from work. She assumed that's when Cyfrin would be home, and she went back up to her room.

How mad would Cyfrin be when he found out she didn't make him dinner? She sucked in a shaky breath. She didn't know how to use any of his appliances or know where anything is. It wasn't her fault.

She unfolded her blankets on the floor, taking a seat.

She tried to wait to see if Cyfrin was going to come in the room, but she ended up falling asleep.