IT rained heavily at that night. In one dark room, Victoria hid herself there while hugging tightly her old teddy bear. Her small that full of bruises and wounds, was shivering with fear. She was not afraid of thunder or lightning, but she was afraid of loud voice outside her room. The dreaded voice was punctuated by the crying of her mother. Lately, her father’s temper worsened and almost every night, the house would fill with the crying of agony. The crying was not only from Auntie Ling but from Victoria that was also the victim of his anger. Both of them were no longer his wife and daughter, but they had become the toys for him to unleash his anger.

“Enough and stop it!” Auntie Ling begged him to be released. She had enough and afraid her body was no longer strong to receive his tortures. Plus she afraid that she wouldn’t be able to protect Victoria after this.

“Oh, you are fighting me back now!” he screamed angrily until it startled Victoria once again. That kid didn’t know what to do but cried in fear. For many times she wanted to protect Auntie Ling at least for once, but her mother forbade her to leave the room. Victoria had no choice but obeyed her words.

“Dear Lord, please save my mother from that devil. Please take him away from us. He is not deserves to be called a father because he is not human!” she cursed that devil endlessly. It was so embarrassed to have an evil father, and how she wished that she wasn’t made from his seed. The loud bang from her door room almost made her heart stopped beating because she knew that it was her turn to be the toy for that devil to unleash his madness.

“Hey, open this door! If you don’t want to die, open this door!” Huh! To Victoria, it wasn’t a wise choice either to stay alive when every day she almost got killed by her own father. How she wished to end her life now but the one should die wasn’t her or Auntie Ling, but that evil bastard. Bang! The endless banging sound somehow gradually turned her body into statue.

“Please! Please save me, dear Lord!” her teary eyes wandered around the dark room, trying to find the safest place to hide. At least she was trying although her effort was useless.

“Save me! Save my Mom! Save us!” she tightened the hug around teddy bear, as if that lifeless toy could awake and protect her from any danger. Few seconds later, the surrounding suddenly became silent. What was going on? Was God heard her prayer? Where did her father disappear? Did he go out to have drink at this hour? If he went out, she wished that he would never return to home. Victoria braved herself to come out from her hiding and checked on Auntie Ling. Her mother must be unconscious since she was so quiet when her father wanted to break into this room.

Victoria went to the door, leaving her lifeless knight behind. Her heart beat irregularly as the distance getting shorter. What if her father still here when she stepped out from this room? She never thought about that possibility since in her mind was only Auntie Ling. Please! Save her! Before she was able to unlock the door, someone had done it before her. Quickly her small body ran away from there to hide somewhere, but there was no any safe place for her in this room.  She was going to die in that devil’s hands.

“Where do you want to hide?! You should listen to me just now, kid!” she screamed the minute that devil barged into her room. Tears of fear streamed down again while she sought the protection from her ‘knight’.  Even thought the room was dark, but she could see that devil was approaching her with a stick of broom in his hand. Huh, Victoria cursed him again. All the respect and love she had for him had disappeared. The feeling that only left inside her was hatred.

“You are just same with your mother! Useless! Both of you should just die!” he laughed devilishly before swayed the broom to hit her. With an agony cry, she just closed the eyes with hope that her miserable life was going to end soon. She was really hoping for it!

THE loud thunder awoke Victoria from her nightmare. Her breathing was ragging, and she was bathing with sweats althought the weather was cold at that night. It was raining heavily outside there. Victoria breathed in deeply to calm herself. She was only having a nightmare. That was all! Her eyes drifted outside the window where she could see the thick rainfall from the bed. Lately she was having sleepless nights because of that nightmare. Damn it! Why it suddenly haunted her again when she was trying to forget it?! Victoria wanted to get up from bed but something was restricting her movement. At that time she realized that she wore nothing but only a thin blanket to cover her body.

            “Honey...,” one y voice mumbled in her ear, so closed and seductive. Victoria looked back and noticed how close her face with Nichkhun’s until his warm breath brushed against her cold skin. His body was warm until Victoria felt the comfort inside his embrace. Realizing that both of them , she suddenly felt disgust to be in that state with Nichkhun. It had been a long time she had no such kind of feeling anymore, but why it suddenly returned? Why? Victoria removed his arm and quickly reached her clothes on the floor. Luckily her abrupt acting didn’t wake him up although it stirred his sleep. His hand the empty spot beside him as if it was searching the warmth that suddenly disappeared from his embrace.

            “I have gone too far with this guy. What should I do now?” a heavy sigh escaped through her parted lips. Her eyes then shifted to her small round tummy. The seeds of this man were growing healthily inside her. She had accepted the reality that she was going to be a mother, but why suddenly she regretted it? Why she was too weak to fight Nichkhun’s seduction?

            ‘It’s still not too late, Vic! You can end everything now!’ an evil thought of her began to incite.

            ‘All these things shouldn’t happen to you. You can’t conceive with his offspring, Victoria. Remember that he is someone that you suppose to hate, not to love!’ Love?! Impossible!

            “Then what should I do now? What should I do to end everything between us?!”

‘Abort these babies, Vic! Then there is nothing that can bound you with him! This is the only way to make he leave you!’ Victoria was taken aback by her evil thoughts. Abort the growing babies inside her? She stared long at her tummy with doubt. If she gave up these babies, then she was going to be a murder. She didn’t kill one but two innocent lives that deserved to see a world. Gosh, what was she thinking about?! If she really did it, then she was inhuman!

“No! I would never do that!” that was it! She would never sacrifice these babies in order to escape from Nichkhun. Victoria walked towards the mirror and stared at her figure that gradually lost its shape, especially on waist area.

“Erm, Honey...” suddenly Nichkhun called her once again in his sleep, startling Victoria who was in her own world. From the mirror, she stared at his reflection while thinking why she was so weak against his temptation? The temperature tonight dropped because of heavy rainfall, but the chillness of night couldn’t be compared with her heart that gradually turned into ice.

“You should guard your heart, Vic!” she mumbled with hands wrapped around her body. Victoria surprised when her sight accidentally caught a figure on the mirror, and it almost turned her legs into jelly. What the hell was going on?! It wasn’t enough for her to have nightmare about her late father, and now she hallucinated him?! She saw him in Nichkhun! Again! Victoria had no idea when did she start to see Nichkhun as himself but what bothered her now, why she must see her late father inside him again?! Why must the past haunted her again when everything in her life seemed goes well lately?

ALONG the way from Seoul to Incheon, Nichkhun drove the red Mercerdes car with big grin plastered on face. He had no idea why he was so damn happy but he might have one answer for it. Glancing at the quiet person beside him, he grinned from ear to ear. Having someone he loved by the side of course something that could make he die in happiness. Behind the sunglasses, he kept stealing the glance at Victoria whom likely to stay quiet. The weather today was really nice. The flowers bloomed beautifully in spring but to Nichkhun, his wife was the most beautiful creature in this universe. The plants wilted as time passed but Victoria bloomed beautifully every day. Victoria looked gorgeous today but unfortunately there was no smile on her face.

In these few days, Nichkhun noticed that she often spacing out and smiled less than usual. Victoria was really in her own world because she was surprised when something warm gently her honey thigh. Nichkhun secretly smiled after saw her funny response. Disliking the way he purposely , she shoved his hand away. Nichkhun didn’t give and reached her soft hand this time. Once again she abruptly pulled her hand away before giving him a sharp glare.

“Don’t touch me!” she said harshly but it didn’t upset Nichkhun at all. Finally she talked to him. That was what he hoping for. Since few days ago, he noticed that Victoria tried to build the barrier between them. She no longer let him to touch or kiss her liked before.

 ‘You know darling, I don’t mind to bother you 24 hours 7 days just to make you talk to me,’

“Oh, last time you didn’t mind when I kissed and touch you but why I can’t today?” he playfully asked for the reason, causing Victoria to blush in embarrassment. Her tongue stiffened to argue, so she only could give him a death glare. At last she chose to ignore and threw her sight outside the car.

“Honey, are you okay? You look unhappy. If you have any problem, please tell me. It’s not good for you and our babies if your body in stress,” he baited her to speak but useless. Victoria looked at him sharply with pouted mouth, as if she was saying ‘Mind your own business!.

“Honey, I’m driving now,”

“So what is your problem? Can’t you just shut up and focus on your driving?!” Gosh, this was so annoying! She got angrier when he chuckled because he seemed laughing at her.

“My problem is you, my dear? Can you not distract me with your pouted lips? I feel want to kiss you right now. Not a light kiss but passionate one!” he pretended to attack until Victoria quickly distanced herself away from him. Victoria didn’t know why she embarrassed over that joke even though this wasn’t her first time to be teased so.

“ert!” she turned away to hide her red face from Nichkhun.

“If I’m a ert, I’m only going to harass you, Darling,” Victoria bit her lower lip to endure the burning sensation on her cheeks. This man had so many ideas to ! Nichkhun grinned widely and this time, Victoria took the chance to stare at him. Her round big eyes then shifted to his muscular arms and big hands.

‘These hands had touched and caressed me, tempting me to give in at the end,’ her sight fell on his face again.

‘Handsome,’ she undoubtedly acknowledged it with lips curled a small smile. No wonder women outside there fell for him, but suddenly she felt hurt. She hurt when imagined how many women had come into his life before her.

“Honey, I’m know that I’m handsome but please, don’t stare at me like that,” Victoria was taken aback and embarrassed at the same time, especially when she met his eyes. Nichkhun watched his wife trying to hide her face from him.

“I afraid that we will be late because I have to stop the car somewhere and ‘eat’ you inside here,” Victoria’s eyes grew wider over his statement, but then she knew that it just wasting her time if she argued with him.

“You are just full of yourself,” she acted cold although she wasn’t actually. She had to stay away from him in order not to be tempted again by him. She must stay away with hope that she would hate him again liked before.  But could she do so? Why this heart seemed unable to hate him? Where the hatred had gone? Victoria had no answer for them. Meanwhile, Nichkhun took another opportunity to touch but this time Victoria didn’t stay quiet. His hand on her thigh was grabbed by Victoria before this ‘lioness’ bit his little finger.

 “Ouch!” he groaned while fanning his fingers to ease the painful sensation.

“Huh, serves your right!” Victoria satisfied to see his hurtful funny face. Now he knew that she wasn’t a type of woman who could joke around anytime.

‘Ish, what a bad temper,’ the car stopped at the red traffic light.

“What are you looking at? Do you want me to bit you again?”

“You have a bad temper lately, but it doesn’t matter to me. Hit me, slap me, bit me, you can do anything to me but I won’t stop loving you, my dear,” once again he made her speechless. Although he sounded joking, but he was sincere